Chapter 5 Section 3 Agents of Socialization Objectives

Chapter 5 Section 3 Agents of Socialization

Objectives • 1. Identify the most important agents of socialization in the United States. • 2. Explain why family and education are important social institutions.

Agents of Socialization • Sociologists use the term as a way to describe the specific individuals, groups, and institutions that enable socialization to take place. • Most important agents: family, (principal socializer of young children) peer groups, (most influential during preteenage and early teenage years) the school, (school play a major role between ages 5 and 18) and the mass media.

Mass Media as a Socialization Agent • 1. Mass media include books, films, the Internet, magazines, newspapers, radio, and television. • 2. Television probably has the most influence on children. • 3. The effect of television on children is an ongoing debate.

Activity • 1. Choose a partner. • 2. Create a collage poster that illustrates the four most important agents of socialization in the United States.

Activity • After reading the feature The Function of Fairy Tales. • Divide into small groups. • Each group will receive a short, well known fairy tale. Read analyze the fairy tale and discuss how the tale might help children and contribute to their socialization. Choose a spokesperson to present your conclusions.

Resocialization Activity • Resocialization-this involves a break with past experiences and the learning of new values and norms. • Conduct research on the resocialization that takes place in military boot camps, prisons, psychiatric hospitals, or other total institutions. • Create a one page written report on the chosen topic.