On a cold winter in 1938, a social worker knocked on the door of a rural Pennsylvania farmhouse.

Investigating a case of possible child abuse, the social worker soon discovered a five-year-old girl
hidden in a second-floor storage room. The child, whose name was Anna, was wedged into a old
chair with her arms tied above her head so she couldn’t move. Her clothes were filthy, and her
arms and legs were as thin as matchsticks.

Anna’s situation can only be described as tragic. She was born in 1932 to an unmarried mentally
impaired woman of twenty-six who lived with her strict father. Enraged by his daughter’s
“illegitimate” motherhood, the grandfather did not even want the child in his house. For her first six
months, Anna was shuttled among various welfare agencies. But when her mother was no longer
able to pay for care, Anna returned to the hostile home of her grandfather.

To lessen the grandfather’s anger, Anna’s mother kept the child in the storage room. She gave the
child just enough milk to keep her alive, but she gave her no loving attention, no smiles, no hugs,
no play. There in the dark and lonely world of the storage room she stayed, day after day, month
after month, with almost no human contact, for five long years.

When he heard about the discovery of Anna, sociologist Kingsley Davis (1940) immediately went
to see the child. He found her being scared for by local authorities at a county home. Davis was
appalled by the sight of the emaciated girl, who could not laugh, speak , or even smile. Anna was
completely unresponsive, as if alone in an empty world.
Socialization
Lifelong social experience by which individuals
develops their human potential and learn culture.
AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION
 Should parents get the
credit when their children
turn out to be good kids and
even go on to accomplish
great things in life?

Should they get the blame if

their children turn out to be
bad?
 FAMILY
• The family environment:
– Creates emotional support by giving child a safe
environment in which to explore their emotions
– Provides social control
• By using force, rewards, punishment, and coercion
• If parents aren’t successful, the result can be
disastrous, not only for the child (micro) but also for
society (macro)
Gender Socialization

Learning the psychological and social traits associated

with a person’s sex.
Race Socialization

The process through which children learn the behaviors,

values, and attitudes associated with racial groups.
Class Socialization

Teaches the norms, values, traits, and behaviors you

develop based on the social class you are in.
 SCHOOL
• It does much more than teach the basic skills and
technical knowledge.
• The school exposes children to situations in which
the same rules, regulations, and authority patterns
apply to everyone.
PEER GROUP

A social group whose members have interests,

social positions, and age in common.
Peer Pressure can happen when we are influenced to do something
we usually would not do, or stop us from doing something we would
like to do.
 Peer groups also offers the
chance to discuss interests that
adults may not share or permit.
 The importance of peer groups typically peaks during
adolescence, when young people begin to break away from
their families and think themselves as adults.
 MASS MEDIA
• The means for delivering impersonal
communications to a vast audience.
• Comes form the Latin word for “middle” or
“between”, suggesting that media connect people.
 RELIGION
• Important source of individual direction
• The values and moral principles in religious
doctrines serve as guide to appropriate roles and
behaviors.