Meaning, Concept and Stages of Socialization.

 1. Meaning of Socialization

Socialization is a process in which a person interacts with others and shape as well as mold his/her personality according to the prescribed norms of a society.

1.1     Definitions of Socialization

Followings are some important definitions of socialization by well-known sociologists.

 

D Macionis “The life long process by which as individual becomes the proper member of society and develops human characteristics.”

 

Horton and Hunt “It is a learning process in which groups interact and learn social norms also develop his/her self.”

 

Definition of Socialization according to Ogburn: “It is the process of learning the norms of the group and society “

 

MacIver: “It is the process through which social beings develops relationships and association with each other.”

 

Bogardus: “A process of learning to live and work together is called socialization.”

 

Vijay Anand “Socialization is the process of internalization of social norms, Values and behaviour and act according to them to establishing a relationship with others members of society.”

1.2     Characteristics of Socialization:

1.       It is a gradual and life-long process.

2.       It helps in the inculcation of principles, values and symbols of a social system.

3.       It enables a person to enact certain roles.

4.       The roles that one enacts are in accordance with what he has learnt form the process.

5.       The roles a person enacts are the expressions of his social nature.

6.       The development of the social nature enables the person to participate in social life.

7.       The nature of what one communicates in society is determined by the influence of one's interaction with the society.

8.       Most human behaviour is learned, not instinctive. The capacity of the child to learn and to internalize is called the plasticity of human nature.

2. . Stages of Socialization

The Process of socialisation is gradual. A child concentrates one task or few tasks at a time.

Social scientists have marked four stages of socialization.

1.       The Oral Stage

2.       The Anal Stage

3.       The Oedipal Stage

4.       Adolescence

 

1.       The Oral Stage: (infancy to 1 year)

At the first stage the infant builds up fairly definite expectations about feeding time,

and he learns to signal his pressing needs for care.

 

Ø  Child needs to be fed as it is helpless and dependent on other for survival.

Ø  It also needs to be protected from external environment.

Ø  During this stage child cries (as a signal) as a way to communicate its need.

 

During this stage, the infant is not involved in the family as a whole. He is involved only in the subsystem consisting of himself and his mother.

 

2.       The Anal stage: (1 -3 Years)

The anal stage of socialization covers the period between first and third year of child's

life. Toilet training is the main focus of this stage. During this stage the child internalizes

two roles- his/her own and that of his/her mother, now clearly separate. The child receives love and care and give love in return.

 

3.       The Oedipal Stage (3 Year to Puberty)

The third stage extends from about the fourth year to puberty.

During this stage

 

Ø  The child becomes a member of the family as a whole. The child identifies itself with the social role ascribed to him/her on the basis of his/her sex.

Ø  According to Freud, the boy develops Oedipus complex and girl develops Electra complex.

Ø  At this stage. Children go through identity conflict.

Ø  Boys generally identify with the father and girls with the mother.  

 

4.       Adolescence: (Puberty to Adulthood)

The fourth stage begins roughly at puberty. At this stage young boy or girl wants to be

freed from the control of parents. The 'crisis' of this period is precisely the strain produced by much greater demands for independence. By the time the individual attains maturity major part of socialization is over, though it continues for whole of the life.