The Role of Socialization and Development in the Formation of the Individual - Research Paper Example

The Role of Socialization and Development in the Formation of the Individual Socialization is the process and phenomenon which makes human beings different from the other species of living organisms and which makes it really human. During this process human beings acquire vital skills and gain important knowledge in terms of their social behavior which will be necessary for their successful functioning as a full member and element of society. Biological development is an important factor in terms of individual formation, and its connection and relation to the process of socialization contribute to successful and proper gaining of the necessary social experience. Key concepts: socialization, development, sociobiology, social deprivation, cognitive and moral development, the self concept, lifelong socialization. The Role of Socialization and Development in the Formation of the Individual Introduction This research paper will investigate into the process of socialization and its connection to the biological development and formation of the individual and will establish the connections between these two concepts. The perception of the phenomenon of socialization is more and more often today realized through its connection with the biological matters, which deserves attention and is a matter of research. Research purpose: The process of socialization is one of the key concepts of sociological science and a very important component of biological explanations of human activity and, particularly, interaction between the individuals, which reasonably presupposes connections between the two sciences. The research will consider the phenomenon from the aspects of both branches of science and will establish the mentioned connections. Research method: The research method of this research paper is analysis of the information from reference sources. Research hypothesis: the phenomena of socialization and development are connected and interrelated with each other. Results The results of the research will be given according to the following structure: definitions; the phenomenon of socialization; biological component of socialization; stages of cognitive and moral development; the self concept; Erikson’s model of lifelong socialization. Definitions This section will reveal the key concepts of the work mentioned above. Socialization is a process of child’s acquisition of the skills which are necessary for performing functions of a full member of society. This process of learning is the most influential one that can be experienced by a human being. (Billingham, 2007, 336). Development is a process of human growth during the entire lifespan starting from the moment of conception and lasting till the moment of death. In this regard, human growth has such aspects as emotional, social, physical, intellectual, personality, and perceptual development. (Cherry, 2015). Sociobiology is a branch of science which studies each species’ biological grounds of social behavior. This science closely deals with the evolutionary theory and biological psychology. (Gould, 2005). Social deprivation still demands a common concept to agree upon, but generally it is defined as limited person’s access to the social environment because of several factors, such as poverty, low level of education, reducing of opportunities, freedoms, and dignity. (Bassouk, Donelan, 2003). The term of cognitive and moral development comprises two parts: cognitive development, which is a study about development of the child regarding processing of information, skills of perceptive character, resources related to conceptual issues, and aspects connected to the sphere of cognitive psychology (Schacter, 2009, 429); moral development means children’s considerations regarding moral aspects, behavior in relation to the issues of morality, attitude to the lapses of moral character. (QCC, 2015). The self concept is one of the central ones in psychology and it means one’s self perception, evaluation and thinking of oneself. (McLeod, 2008). Lifelong socialization is a definition meaning that the process of socialization lasts throughout the entire life of an individual. This concept was offered by a famous scientist Erik Erikson who described this process in eight stages. (Macionis, John, 2010, 111). The Phenomenon of Socialization Socialization is a unique phenomenon of human being which distinguishes it from other species of the animal world. This is the thing that makes human being namely human and emphasizes on a special place that the nature reserves for the representatives of the Homo sapiens species. While the behavior of other biological species is determined naturally, human beings need to gain special skills and knowledge in order to behave properly and function well within a society. This is realized by means of the phenomenon of the personality formulation which is called socialization, the definition of which has already been given in the correspondent section of the paper. It is necessary to mention, however, that the knowledge and skills gained in the process of socialization, such as children’s physical, social and intellectual skills, are very specific, and the process of their gaining is different from the other ones a human being can ever experience, and the children learn the culture and shape their personalities by these means. (Billingham, 2007, 336). The feature that makes this process peculiar and not similar to any one is that it continues during the entire lifetime of the individual, and the knowledge and skills gaining does not stop at any point. (O’Neil, 2006). The Biological Component of Socialization The process of socialization may be affected by some hereditary physical traits of a human being inherited from the parents. Mental and physical capabilities inherited, for example, affect the way the others perceive an individual, which, in its turn, affects the individual’s self-perception. (O’Neil, 2006). This can affect the person’s self-perception both negatively and positively: if the inherited traits and qualities are negative, the person may be mocked or avoided by the surrounding people, which makes such individual think of himself or herself that he or she is not like the others and even worse than they; or if the qualities and traits are positive, the person may be proud of them and, as a result, of himself or herself, and the people around would also notice his or her strong points. (O‘Neil, 2006). Such situation causes other important consequences: if the individual is perceived by the others positively, then his self-perception is proper and the model of behavior chosen by this individual is socially correct, and if the situation is opposite, the person may be inclined to apply unusual or even deviant models of behavior. (O’Neil, 2006). The phenomenon of socialization comprises a serious debate in relation to biological and social aspects of the factors affecting it: this is a debate of nature versus nurture. In this regard, a group of scientists who mainly support the idea of nature, that is, they believe that the traits and features inherited by the individual are the key point in terms of individual formulating (nativists), who consider that “…the characteristics of the human species as a whole are a product of evolution and that individual differences are due to each person’s unique genetic code.” (McLeod, 2007). Their position about the differences and characteristics that are developed later on in the person is also specific: according to it, they constitute a result of the individual’s maturation, and that there is something like a mechanism that switches on or off certain behavior types which are previously programmed in the individual. (McLeod, 2007). Their opponents, empiricists, or environmentalists, regard that an individual’s mind is similar to a blank sheet which is filled under the influence of one’s experience in the course of life and time. According to their assumptions, characteristics of psychological nature and differences in behavior which occur during the periods of childhood and infancy are learning results. This position supports the idea that nurture, that is, bringing up, “…governs the psychologically significant aspects of child development and the concept of maturation applies only to the biological.” (McLeod, 2007). The above mentioned issues are points of concern of a branch of scientific study called sociobiology. Sociobiology is a specific scientific field study which deals with the hypothesis that evolution is a reason which explains phenomenon of social behavior. As it related to evolutionary theory, it is logical that it is also connected with the ideas of Charles Darwin and his anthropology. There is also such a definition of sociobiology: “The extension of population biology and evolutionary theory to social organization”. (Wilson, 1978). There are two premises that are fundamental for sociobiology: there are some traits of behavior that are inherited; traits of behavior that are inherited have been naturally honed by means of selection, and they may have been adaptive in the evolutionary environment of the species. (Wilson, 1978). Socialization and development also deal with the cognitive and moral developmental processes. In this regard, the theory of Lawrence Kohlberg is the most recognizable one. This theory is based on the similar research of Jean Piaget, and the study of Kohlberg took approximately 20 years to support its being long-term focused. (Foti, Hauenstein, Harvey, 2000, 6). The theory of Kohlberg meant that the judgment in terms of moral may be developed through three-levels-consequence. (Foti, Hauenstein, Harvey, 2000, 6). The stages are distinguished based on the criteria as follows: 1) all the stages are different thinking modes, both qualitatively and distinctly; 2) the sequence the developments follows through certain stages is invariant; 3) any stage is a structured entity, comprising logic in various situations; 4) there is a hierarchical integration of the stages regarding the insights achieved in the stages that are lower. (Foti, Hauenstein, Harvey, 2000, 7). “At the preconventional level the individual is responsive to the culture’s rules and labels of right and wrong, but interprets these labels in terms of physical or hedonistic consequences to the individual, or in terms of the physical power of those who enforce the rules.” (Foti, Hauenstein, Harvey, 2000, 7). The self concept is another very important issue in terms of socialization. The most famous self concepts were developed by such scientists as Freud, Mean and Cooley. Freud’s self concept comprises the three different parts of the psyche model of structure, which are super-ego, ego and id. The id in this concept makes the number of trends which are instinctually uncoordinated; the element of super-ego is a moralizing and critical one; and the ego is a part which is realistic and organized and makes something between the two previous ones, the super-ego and id. (Snowden, 2006). The concept of George Herbert Mead states that “the self entails that individual selves are the products of social interaction and not the logical or biological preconditions of that interaction. It is not initially there at birth, but arises in the process of social experience and activity.” (Crossman, 2015). Mead classifies three main activities of the development of the self: game, play and language. (Crossman, 2015). Mead’s theory is also famous for its introduction of the concepts “I” and “me”. The “me” stands for attitudes and expectations of the other individuals. The concept “I” responds to the individual, the “me”. (Crossman, 2015). Cooley’s self concept is renowned for its representation of the “looking glass self” which means that an individual benefits from interactions with other elements of the society and his or her perception of individuals of the surrounding society. The looking glass self is also a person’s own perception of himself or herself. (Cooley, 1902, 152). The consideration of socialization as the lifelong effect was expressed by Erik Erikson’s theory. He managed to distinguish eight stages of development. The first model has t do with the hope, or basic mistrust and trust. This is the time “…of infancy through the first one or two years of life. The child, well – handled, nurtured, and loved, develops trust and security and a basic optimism. Badly handled, he becomes insecure and mistrustful.” (Children Development Info, 2015). The second stage is learning of autonomic skills and behavior versus the shame felt. The third stage is an opposition between the initiative and guilt. The fourth stage is rivalry of industry and inferiority. The fifth one is identity and identity diffusion opposition. The sixth stage is the stage of love, that is, isolation versus intimacy. The seventh stage is the issue of care, the opposition of self-absorption versus generativity. The eighth stage is wisdom, that is, despair against integrity opposition. (Children Development Info, 2015). Discussion The results of the research make it possible to investigate into socialization as a phenomenon and its interrelation with the development of the individual. Socialization is a very important phenomenon of human life and is namely the issue that makes people human and different from the other species of the living nature. Animals’ behavior is pre-programmed before naturally, whereas a human being demands gaining special social skills and knowledge which will be vital for the future communication and functioning as a member of society. The process of socialization is affected by the hereditary traits and features of the individual. This means that good qualities and capabilities lead to proper socialization and sound self-perception, whereas poor skills and abilities are a source of possible mocking and humiliations which make an individual select the adversarial and often antisocial models of behavior. (O’Neil, 2006). There is a scientific debate of two approaches in modern psychology which affect the problem of socialization as well. This is the debate of the nature versus nurture, that is, the two opposite approaches to the traits and features of the individual. The naturalistic approach states that all the traits and features are comprised by the individual and that they are activated in certain periods of time, that is, at the individual’s maturation, whereas the nurture approach explains that the mind of human being is a clean sheet which is covered and filled in by means of the individual’s social experience. (McLeod, 2007). Conclusion The results of the research conducted make it possible to conclude that the socialization and development are two connected and interrelated phenomena. Development of an individual influences his or her socialization, that is, if the self-perception and the interaction between the society members are proper, then socialization is carried out properly ad well, and vice versa. Lack of socialization, for example, by means of social exclusion, or social deprivation because of various reasons, such as poverty, ignorance, adversely affects development, and lack of development negatively affects socialization: if development of an individual is improper, it is often difficult or even impossible to gain necessary social knowledge and skills. (Bassouk, Donelan, 2003). This means that the hypothesis of the research that the phenomena of socialization and development are interrelated and connected with each other. References Bassouk, E., Donelan, B. (2003). Social Deprivation. Trauma Intervention in War and Peace. New York: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Billingham, M. (2007). Sociological Perspectives. Health and Social Care Book 1, Oxford: Heinemann, 336. Cherry, K. (2015). What Is Development? http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentecourse/f/dev_faq.htm Children Development Info. (2015). Stages of Social-Emotional Development – Erik Erikson. http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/child-development/erickson/ Cooley, C. (1902). Human Nature and the Social Order. New York: Scribners, 152. Crossman, A. (2015). George Herbert Mead. http://sociology.about.com/od/Profiles/p/George-Herbert-Mead.htm Foti, R., Hauenstein, C., Harvey, R. (2000). The Effects of Cognitive Moral Development and Reinforcement Contingencies on Ethical Decision Making. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-05172000-19000040/unrestricted/JoanThesis.pdf Gould, J. (2005). What is Sociobiology? http://uwf.edu/jgould/sociobiology.pdf Macionis, G., John. L. (2010). Sociology. 7th Canadian Edition, Toronto/Ontario: Pearson Canada Inc., 111. McLeod, S. (2007). Nature vs Nurture in Psychology. http://www.simplypsychology.org/naturevsnurture.html McLeod, S. (2008). Self Concept. http://www.simplypsychology.org/self-concept.html O’Neil, D. (2006). Personality Development. http://anthro.palomar.edu/social/soc_3.htm QCC. (2015). Theories of Moral Development. http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/socialSciences/cbluestone/PrintableNotes/Theories-of-Moral-Development.pdf Schacter, D. (2009). Psychology. Catherine Woods, 429. Snowden, R. (2006). Teach Yourself Freud. New York: McGrawHill, 105-107. Wilson, E. (1978). On Human Nature. Cambridge: Harvard. Read More