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Sociology Unit 2: Culture and socialization

Culture is a society's shared way of life, and socialization is how people learn it and develop a sense of self.

Covers: Elements of culture, cultural diversity, ethnocentrism and cultural relativism, socialization, agents of socialization, the self

Study guide

Culture includes material culture (physical objects like tools and buildings) and nonmaterial culture (ideas like beliefs, values and language). Its elements are symbols, language, values (shared standards of what's good) and norms (rules for behavior). Norms include folkways (everyday customs), mores (norms with moral weight) and laws (formal norms enforced by the state). Sanctions reward or punish behavior. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis suggests that language shapes how people think. Cultural lag occurs when nonmaterial culture lags behind changes in material culture, like laws catching up to new technology.

Societies contain subcultures, groups with distinct practices within a larger culture, and countercultures, which reject mainstream values. Ethnocentrism is judging other cultures by the standards of one's own, while cultural relativism understands a culture on its own terms. Culture shock is the disorientation people feel in an unfamiliar culture. Cultural universals, like family and religion, exist in every society. Globalization spreads culture through diffusion.

Socialization is the lifelong process of learning culture. Studies of children raised in isolation, like Genie, show how essential social contact is. Charles Horton Cooley's looking-glass self says we see ourselves through how we imagine others view us. George Herbert Mead described the self as having an 'I' (spontaneous) and a 'me' (socialized), developing through stages of imitation, play and games, where children learn to take the role of the generalized other. Agents of socialization include family, schools, peers, mass media and religion. Anticipatory socialization prepares people for future roles, and resocialization, as in total institutions like prisons or the military, replaces old values with new ones.

Lawrence Kohlberg described moral development moving from preconventional (avoiding punishment), to conventional (following society's rules), to postconventional (abstract principles of justice). Carol Gilligan criticized his work for being based on boys and argued that girls more often reason from an ethic of care. Melvin Kohn found that working-class parents tend to stress obedience and conformity, matching jobs that are closely supervised. Middle- and upper-class parents stress independence and creativity, preparing children for professional work.

Sanctions can be positive (rewards) or negative (punishments) and formal (official, like a fine or diploma) or informal (unofficial, like a stare, a compliment or gossip). Harlow's monkey studies and cases of extreme isolation both show that social contact, not just food, is necessary for normal development. Twin studies try to separate nature from nurture, but twins raised apart often share similar environments, which complicates the results.

Key ideas

• Culture includes material objects and nonmaterial beliefs and values.
• Norms range from folkways to mores to laws.
• Ethnocentrism judges others; cultural relativism understands them on their terms.
• Cooley's looking-glass self and Mead's theory explain the self.
• Family, school, peers and media are key agents of socialization.

Formulas and rules

Common mistakes

• Confusing folkways (casual customs) with mores (morally important norms).
• Thinking cultural relativism means anything is acceptable; it means understanding a culture in its own context.

Words to know

Culture

A group's shared beliefs, practices and objects.

Material culture

Physical objects a society creates.

Nonmaterial culture

Ideas, beliefs, values and language.

Values

Shared standards of what's good and desirable.

Norms

Rules for expected behavior.

Folkways

Everyday customs with little moral weight.

Mores

Norms with strong moral significance.

Sanctions

Rewards or punishments for behavior.

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis

The idea that language shapes thought.

Cultural lag

Nonmaterial culture lagging behind material change.

Subculture

A group with distinct practices within a larger culture.

Counterculture

A group that rejects mainstream values.

Ethnocentrism

Judging other cultures by one's own standards.

Cultural relativism

Understanding a culture on its own terms.

Socialization

The lifelong process of learning culture.

Looking-glass self

Cooley's idea that we see ourselves through others' eyes.

Generalized other

Mead's term for society's general expectations.

Agents of socialization

Groups that teach culture, like family and schools.

Anticipatory socialization

Preparing for future roles.

Resocialization

Replacing old values and behaviors with new ones.

Total institution

A setting that controls all aspects of life, like a prison.

Sample practice questions

5 more questions like these, from level 1 to 5, are in the practice set.