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Socialization

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Socialization is an act of a long-life process by which people learn the values and

traditions of a specific society. People socialize with each other in various and many ways,

mainly due to social and interpersonal relations. It involves these key processes, context,

content and process, and lastly, results. Often, these groups aim to provide counseling

treatment, consolation, comfortability, and even a sense of belonging to most individuals.

There are several types of socialization categories, with the major two being primary and

secondary Socialization. Apart from the types, it entails several agents like family, religion,

peer groups, economic systems, legal systems, penal systems, language, and the media.

Socialization plays a role in society, affecting individuals imposing positive and negative

behaviors. This practice leads to many forms of social controls, such as direct, indirect,

organized, unorganized and spontaneous.

Individuals socialize on several different grounds based on different reasons, and they

affect each one of them differently. Socialization is achieved through social and interpersonal

relations between one another (Gecas, 2017). The process creates an environment conducive

for the smooth growth of society and development, and it also allows its members to fit well in

the society. In Socialization, people learn the sense of belonging to either group, organization,

or even the community at large. The process aims to habituate individuals and enable the

sustainability of the involved groups. According to Gecas, Socialization ensures the

transmission of norms and customs of the societies and teaches people about the group's

expectations of them. In young people, it educates them on how to control and manage their

biological impulses, while in adults, it gives a moral compass that guides one in fitting in

numerous roles. It involves three parts: the context (mainly relate to cultures, language, and
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social structures), content and process, and results, which normally are the outcomes of the

process of Socialization.

Socialization has its two main stages, and it has four main types of Socialization that

are involved in the process. The two main stages of Socialization are primary Socialization and

secondary Socialization, and some of the types of Socialization include primary, anticipatory,

professional, or developmental socialization and re-socialization (Ely & Gleason, 2017).

Primary Socialization often ranges from birth to adolescence, and mostly the process is guided

by individuals like teachers and even caregivers, etcetera. In contrast, the secondary

socialization process occurs throughout an individual's life since one encounters groups and

situations not part of the primary socialization experience. In secondary Socialization, people

encounter diverse populations, unfamiliar places, and different norms and values with different

backgrounds. According to Weidman (2020), the different types of Socialization include

primary Socialization, anticipatory Socialization is experienced between childhood and

adulthood, and professional Socialization occurs at adulthood and depends on both the

preliminary and ready stages. Finally, re-socialization is an individual's adjustment from one

group to another, forsaking the old ways and learning new ways of life.

Socialization has its roles in people and is driven by achieving certain goals or results.

It aims to present people with the norms of a specific group or even society (Jamil & Sohail,

2020). Socialization molds an individual to fit them into the group's expectation like in

children, it is evident, and the process starts from home with the family and paves its way

through to school. The method invokes different reactions from its audience, which may be

both positive and negative depending on the situation (Ely & Gleason, 2017). Positive
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Socialization assumes an exciting and enjoyable social experience, like when a child is

supposed to obey the rules and beg rewarded for doing their assigned chore or duties. Negative

Socialization assumes the utilization of punishment and unkind criticisms to pass a point that

creates an unpleasant atmosphere for the participants involved.

Socialization creates some virtual space for individual behavior and smooth decision-

making that may or can be influenced by the surrounding individuals or, more accurately, the

presence of other people. The influence may be a two-way traffic group affecting an individual

personally and the people involving groups, which can be achieved by interacting directly with

each other (Richards et al., 2019). In small groups, interaction is high compared to larger

groups whose intensity is low but has high stability. There are different behavior types

concerning human behavior that may build up an individual's personality, namely optimistic,

trusting, envious, and pessimistic. These behaviors can be described using numerous aspects

like active, ambitious, cautious, conscientious, creative, and curious, depending on behavior.

In conclusion, social control is created by encouraging people to adjust and obey social

norms through formal and informal means. Conformity allows fitting individuals' values with

the group's criteria and is achieved either solo or with other individuals present. These forms of

social control include direct, indirect, organized, unorganized, spontaneous, positive, and

negative social control. The discussed criteria are some of the contemporary trends of

Socialization and their first-hand course of action and experience among individuals in modern

societies. Socialization should be part of one's life where it can act as a safe space for them to

open and link up with the world, and one can always connect and help them face some issues

and their problems head-on. Some of these social groups include our own families, clubs,
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companies, and peer groups. Social groups help people deal with issues in the most accurate

and proper ways, and most of them provide a sense of belonging; therefore, they should be

encouraged among people.

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References

Ely, R., & Gleason, J. B. (2017). Socialization across contexts. The handbook of child

language, 251-276.

Gecas, V. (2017). Contexts of Socialization. In Social psychology (pp. 165-199). Routledge.

Jamil, M. F., & Sohail, T. (2020). Role of Socialization Patterns towards Adopting Rigid

Sectarian Identities. Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, 10(1), 255-272.

Richards, K. A. R., Pennington, C. G., & Sinelnikov, O. A. (2019). Teacher socialization in

physical education: A scoping review of literature. Kinesiology Review, 8(2), 86-99.

Weidman, J. C. (2020). Conceptualizing student socialization in higher education: an

intellectual journey. In Socialization in higher education and the early career (pp. 11-

28). Springer, Cham.