1.1
Socialization
Socialization is considered a basic concept in many fields. References
are made to socialization and its processes in almost every publication relating
to social change and culture transmission. In linguistics, studies on language
acquisition and sociolinguistitcs often make references to the process of socialization.
But an in-depth study of socialization is generally pursed mainly in sociology,
anthropology and social psychology.
Socialization is viewed in many different ways. It is viewed as a process
to acquire roles, as an acquisition of norms, as a process of becoming human,
as a life-long process, as a process to become a member of society, as n embodiment
and acquisition of social self, as underlying all basic concepts of the discipline
of sociology, as a cause of as well as
an effect of the differences between these concepts, as a developmental process
of a human learning indicating the range of possibilities of human learning, as
a process predicting what would become of an individual in future, and as a process
moulding the individuals intellect, personality and character. Thus the
process of socialization has a dual role-one concerning the growth of an
individual, the other concerning the society, of a which the individual as a member.
It as also viewed as a process by which society creates persons suitable to carry
out its functional requirements.
It whatever manner we define socialization, acquisition and use of language
become a vehicle for socialization and a sign of achievement and inclusion. For
example, each social role has its own language variety; each norm has its own
specific way of expressing itself through language use; once we consider acquisition
language as part of socialization, there is nothing better than language acquisition
to prove that socialization is a life-long process; the acquisition of social
self is based on intelligibility between the uses of language varieties. If the
personality of an individual is a product of the socialization process, one should
not forget that an individual’s personality gets fully reflected in the type of
language one use. Firth rightly said that once we open our mouth we reveal what
sort of men we are. However, language has not been taken seriously in the study
of personality and the socialization process.
What we intend to do in this book is to infer and relate within a broad
interdisciplinary frame covering sociology, social psychology, and anthropology,
the process of socialization cannot be seen comprehensively within a single field
of investigational While sociology, rightfully claims a major share in the focus
on socialization the shares of anthropology social psychology and of linguistics
are equally important. Socialization must be seen as a many splendoured or multi-dimensional
network of sociology, anthropology social psychology and the influence of language.
To us it appears that this essentially interdisciplinary need to characterize
socialization has been largely absent/missed. In linguistics, the branch of sociolinguistitcs
could have been the right place for a focus on the process of socialization but
socialization got a focus, even here, only to refute claims on language use vis-à-vis
socialization from non-linguistic theoretical expositions, such a those of Bernstein.
Socialization is considered the process through which an individual acquired
the knowledge, the values and the customs of a society in order to live as a member
of that society. It could also be enabling him to adjust to other societies. This
acquisition is mostly an inevitable consequence of being human. This also mostly
acquisition unconscious process, at least in the beginning stages of socialization
of Socialization is also defined as the long range, developmental process of human
learning in a group setting. Once it is considered as a process of human learning,
the types of learning experiences to which an individual is exposed become very
important.
Socialization would then be assumed to indicate the range of possibilities
of learning behavior-what and how much one learns. The process of socialization
are generally assumed to have a direct bearing on moulding the individuals intellect,
personality and character. Socialization
process, thus are assumed to indicate what sort of person the individual would
become later on. Through the socialization processes, the individual gets assigned
a part to play in his society but also from the point to view of the society’s
survival, maintenance and proliferation. Socialization makes it possible to ensure
the individual’s adherence to the values and customs of a group/society. This
ensures that the group/society continues. One may also say that socialization
refers to both formal and informal techniques of indoctrination and training.
The socialization process cuts across, embraces and underlines all the
key concepts of sociology, viz., society (a society consists of persons who are
organized into a complex system of relationship with one another), culture (totality
of what is learned by individuals as members of a society; it is a way o life,
a mode of thinking, acting and feeling-knowledge, beliefs, and customs as well
as characteristic ways of perceiving and evaluating that are learned in one’s
environment)., institutions (the clusters of activities and ruled deemed essential
to societal welfare—economic, political and military activities, etc.,) social
differentiation (age, sex, race, class, or occupation, etc.), social control (maintenance
of order and stability, ) social group (kind of collectivity which is an organized
system, in which people have established relationships with one another) and social
change. Socialization, in a sense, is the cause and effect of differences that
one identifies between social groups in relation to the above key concepts.
Socialization is also considered an embodiment of the social self. The
social self is acquired through the process of socialization. The term social
self refers to an individual’s perception of his role requirements and his attitudes
towards his own roles and the roles requirements and his attitudes towards his
own roles and the roles of his fellow
group members. The social self of an individual develops in him when still a child
He learns to respond appropriately to the many commands and exhortations form
his elders. This and other items regulate
his behavior. In this regulations of his behaviors, the employment of symbols,
both verbal and nonverbal, and inter-communication that the society places
before the child its ways of life, as it were. The symbols, both verbal and nonverbal,
pre-exit and co-exit with the child and continue through his adulthood and remains
even after the adult disappears from the scene. In this sense, society and the
symbols become one and the same. In this sense, acquisition and use of symbols
become the socialization process.
Although one cannot ignore the importance of the biological factors in
the evolution of an individual’s personality, one should emphasize the direct
dependence of the development of personality on the socialization processes. In
fact, one should take the position that the social prescriptions and expectations
are superimposed on man’s biological requirements, dispositions and propensities. One should also give due importance to the
fact that in all societies, survival of the group is assigned a higher value than
survival of the individual. When we emphasize the individual’s personality vis-à-vis
socializations processes, we speak not only of the individual’s personality as
a product of the socialization processes, but also of the effects an individual’s
personality may have for the modification of the socialization process themselves.
In other words, the socialization process regulate the development of an individual’s
personality insofar as each individual’s personality
must partake of the social norms. At the same time, the individual’s personality has also the potential to direct, modify and change the course
of the socialization process. The function of changing the direction of the socialization
process is generally left to the adult.
Through socialization, a human child becomes a member of a society. Becoming
a member means the acquisition of or an adherence to the norms of that society.
Norms are found wherever we find an organized society, primitive or otherwise.
The norms of a society are found in the standardized ways of doing things in that
society. Within these norms we include speech, similar modes of dress, fairly
uniform beliefs, attitudes, etc. These norms are behavior prescriptions, giving
guidelines to the members of a community for appropriate action in different situations.
Even when there is a change in the norms, the change is from one set of norms
to a new set norms. There may be a transitional period but a norm is bound to
be established at the end. With the norms of the group, an individual’s own norms
get merged. The individuals who constitute a group/society may have had different
backgrounds and thus may have arrived at norms that are different from one another’s.
This would have made them also to perceive differently the norms of the
society as a whole. However, when the
individuals come into contract with one another, the norms of the individuals
tend to converge. Language use is no exception to it. This convergence of the norms of the individuals comes to control
the individual norms of the individuals. In essence, the norms of the individuals
come to be influenced by the norms of the group/society. Socialization can be
viewed as a process by which an individual may also contribute to he change of
norms.
Socialization must be viewed as a continuing process, and not
as a process restricted to, mastered and completed by the end of the childhood.
The notion that language acquisition is generally over by a particular
age in childhood fails to appreciate the continuing process of language acquisition
and socialization. The continuing process
of socialization provides a link between the socialization process in childhood
and adulthood. Just as early childhood
language acquisition provides an overall frame for later language use, the early
childhood socialization provides the basic structures that would remain even through
adulthood. There is a qualitative change in language use as the child grows, even
though most of the structures are already acquired and available. The qualitative
change is not simply restricted to the acquisition of some new and complex
linguistic structures. The qualitative change must be seen more significantly
in the ways the already available linguistic structures are put to use. This is precisely what happens in adult socialization.
We have already pointed out that socialization is nothing but the acquisition
and use of symbols; if this were the case, what we should look for in the study
of socialization is the linkage between early childhood symbols and the symbols
that surface in the adult. The symbols
or early childhood socialization must have a place in adulthood, but with more
qualitative change in their use.
Are
there differences between socialization in childhood and socialization in adulthood?
Is there any need for adult hood socialization at all?
Are there any limits imposed upon adulthood socialization? What is the content of focus in childhood and adulthood socialization?
Are there differences in language socialization and adulthood?
Answers these questions will be presented in subsequent chapters. But we should state here in brief some of the
salient points of the answers by way of introduction. In an approach to socialization, role acquisition
is considered the most important aspect childhood socialization.
If this is accepted, there are certain roles for which there would be no
socialization process in childhood. Childhood
socialization focuses on aspects some of which may not be relevant for adulthood.
Childhood socialization may also be inadequate to handle successfully all the
roles an individual may have to play in later life.
The geographical mobility, social mobility, the heterogeneity of structures,
complex modern societies, rapid social changes, unpredictable role demands, discontinuities
in between what is expected in successive roles all indicate the need not only
for adulthood nonverbal socialization but also for adulthood verbal socialization.
But there are also limits to adulthood socialization and these limits are
set by the biological capacities of an individual and by the effect of earlier
learning or the lack of it. Note that
these limits have a direct correspondence on the limitations in second language
acquisition in later life. This has also
a direct correspondence to the inability of non standard dialect speakers to switch
over completely to the use of standard dialect in later life. The adult socialization is viewed as consisting
of creating new combinations of old response elements, the quality of earlier
learning comes to assume importance for later life socialization.
Note also that the creative aspect of language use or the felicity with
which language structures including vocabulary are used in later life would be
based on the quality of earlier learning. As
regards the content of socialization in later life, it is obvious that the subtractive
content of socialization differs in important ways at different stages of life
cycle and in different major social institutions. But it is not certain whether the types as opposed to the substance
of the content differ throughout the life cycle. We would prefer to assume, following the language
acquisition processes, that socialization types also at the nonverbal level are
basically the same both at the childhood and adulthood socialization.
The notion on types we assume here are of a dynamic nature, not static
ones. They are dynamic and hence extending back and front, just as the
flow of water, linking childhood experiences with the experiences and demands
of adulthood socialization. We would like
to take the position that while the substantive content in adulthood socialization
may be different, the individual comes to grips with the challenge of the adulthood
socialization basically with the equipment he has acquired in the childhood socialization
and that types of childhood socialization and adulthood socialization are basically
the same. With the notion that these types are a dynamic
nature, we can account for the changes in content and process in adulthood socialization-changes
such as the shift in content. Form a concern with values and motives to a
concern with overt behavior (little attempt to influence motivation of a fundamental
kind or to influence basic values), shift from acquisition of new materials of
a synthesis of the old; from a concern with idealism to a concern with realism;
from teaching expectations to teaching how to mediate conflict among expectations;
from a concern with general demands of society to a concern with role specific
expectations, from a concern with self-centered component to other components.
All these changes are a dialectical necessity and have their roots in childhood
socialization. The elements of changes may be identified in
childhood socialization process itself. However,
in adulthood socialization, the individuals are not required to take formally
the role of one being socialized except in formal apprenticeship in occupations.
In childhood socialization, not only home and other informal devices but
also formal devices require that the individual take the role of one being socialized. The home language is acquired under these circumstances.
The school imparts the formal language.
In adulthood socialization, apprenticeship, apprenticeship in different
walks of life, gives the individual the technical language, but any switch over
to the school language of the individual during the course of adulthood socialization
is based on perception of the needs and this switch is achieved mainly through
personal efforts, without oneself taking the role of an individual being socialized.
The processes in both adulthood and childhood socialization are pursued
unconsciously by the one being socialized. While
in the childhood socialization, the agents are conscious of the processes, in
the adulthood socialization more involvement of he individual being socialized
in demanded. In other words, the childhood socialization
is characterized by a context of affectivity and high powder whereas we find affective
neutrality and little power differentiation in adulthood socialization.
(This is true in some cases or in some forms of behavior but in formal
apprenticeship affectivity and power play a crucial role.)
There is empirical support to believe that different cultures produce different
types of personality. There is also empirical
support to believe that there is a direct relationship between membership in a
particular social/economic class and the personality of an individual. In India and elsewhere, the social class distinctions
are related, in some manner, to the economic class distinctions also.
There is also empirical support to believe strongly that the development
is directly dependent upon social processes, rather than on biological processes. This has already been referred to earlier. But, in spite of all these overriding influences
of social prescriptions and expectations, one can identity how social norms are
established and/or altered, how socialization processes can be redirected and
how societies can be better organized for the pursuit of human goals and objectives.
This possibility for conscious control of socialization processes has been
exploited by movements seeking social and other changes, including change in language
behavior. This possibility has also been
exploited by many misguided elements to tamper with childhood socialization processes
to achieve their ends, posing that at times to even the survival of mankind.
We only hope that an understanding of this double-edged weapon would help
man to better his social environment so that what man has achieved in his physical
environment will eventually be rivaled by progress in his social environment.
In the processes of socialization, the imitation of fellows, and the participation
in play activities and games have been emphasized by many models. These are assumed to lead to the acquisition
of the repertoire of social skills necessary for participation in the social world
of the adult. The role taking of the young
child is found functionally related to his becoming a member of the society.
Related to this is the narrow definition of socialization as a processes
of becoming human form the animal/biological child stage.
While imitation of fellows and the participation in play activities and
role taking could be identified in the socialization processes and could even
be related to later adulthood behaviour, the socialization processes do no necessarily
depend on imitation and participation activities only. The socialization processes. Defined
as acquisition and use of verbal and nonverbal symbols, should be assumed to be
an internal part of being human. Humans are humans because they acquire and use symbols. There is no stage in human life cycle that
could be called an animal stage-the acquisition and use of symbols at any stage
of human cycle far excels the quality of acquisition and use of symbols of animals.
Hence we take the position the socialization is not a process of becoming
human from the animal stage; it is an integral part of being human.
Because it is an integral part of being human, socialization processes
not only introduce a child to a set of specific norms of a society but also to
a more general set of norms of a human setting.
When we look into the studies on socialization, we find the only a few
systems of behaviour are dealt with and that these systems of behaviour are generally of a nonverbal type. These include oral behaviour (sucking), excretory
behaviour, sexual behaviour, aggression, dependence, achievement, anxiety, control
of fear, reproductive behaviour, character or moral development, material socialization,
formal apprenticeship socialization, and socialization into social roles across
different (intra and inter) social dimensions and social variable.
We take the position that every human activity is subject to socialization
process and that, as a result, the studies of socialization should cover all the
systems of behaviour. We do not claim
any exclusive, decisive role to the acquisition and use of language in the process
socialization, but we certainly argue that language should form an important theme
in the study of socialization, as it is mainly through language humans get socialized.
1.2 Plan of the Book
Our concern in this book is mainly to broadly outline the contributions
language makes to the processes socialization and to indicate the influence of
socialization processes in the acquisition and use of language. For this, we consider it imperative that we
understand the different view-points on socialization from sociology, social psychology
and anthropology. Chapter Two presents
some of the major sociological approaches to the study of socialization.
This is done through a presentation of the ideas of some of the masters
of sociology on the scope of sociology. As
we take the position that socialization is a theme that cuts across all the concepts
of sociology, we infer from these masters’
ideas on the scope of sociology their notions of socialization processes. Included in this chapter are the ideas of Comete,
Cooley, Durkheim, Goffman, Marx, George Mead, Simmel, Pareto, Park, Parsons, Weber,
Veblen, Mannheim, Sorokin, Thomas and other. In Chapter Three, we present the social psychological
models of socialization. In particular,
the psycho-analytic approaches, the normative-maturational approach, the developmental-cognitive
approach, stage theories, the genetic and constitutional approaches, and learning
theory approaches. We also discuss some current issues in relation
to the study of socialization. In Chapter
Four, we present briefly some of the salient features of anthropological approaches
to socialization. Our discussion revolves
mainly around the mechanisms of culture transmission and the influence of specific
cultural pattern of a society on its socialization processes.
In a second volume, approaches to socialization from the point of view
of linguists are taken up for discussion. Linguists
have been led by developments in psychology in this respect. They have had to fight certain notions also.
Most of the linguists have not explicitly stated their ideas on the processes
of socialization. Their ideas on dialectology and language change
are, in some sense, related to their concept of socialization. In modern times, sociolinguistitcs and studies
on language acquisition have contributed many interesting insights with further
work. Bernstein’s ideas are taken up for
a special description, followed by a criticism of this position.
In this second volume, we also discuss the socialization process vis-à-vis
language acquisition and language use. We
show here the need for the recognition of the important role of language in the
socialization processes. We iterate the
major areas in which language plays a crucial role in the processes of socialization. Socialization through language is the focus
of this chapter. Finally in the second
volume we discuss aspects of deviant socialization and aspects of language deviance
in relation to social deviance.