Page 16 - Flipbook: Sociology Shortcuts Issue 3
P. 16
types of
socialisation 1
Learning "rules for social interaction” occurs through
socialisation, a process with two main forms.
Primary socialisation occurs, according to Secondary socialisation involves secondary
Charles Cooley (1909), within primary groups groups and is characterised, according to
that involve “intimate face-to-face association Berger and Luckmann (1967), by “a sense of
and cooperation"; these are critical to the detachment…from the ones teaching
development of behaviours we recognise as socialisation”. This relates to situations where
"fundamentally human", such as learning we don’t necessarily have close, personal or
language. even face-to-face contacts with those doing the
socialising.
The first primary relationship we form is
usually with our parent(s), followed by One of its main purposes, or functions, Parsons
primary attachments to people of our own (1959) argues, is to "Liberate the individual
general age (our friends) and, subsequently from a dependence on the primary attachments
with other adults, such as school and work and relationships formed within the family
colleagues. group".
Primary socialisation is necessary because In contemporary societies, where the majority
human infants require the assistance of other of people we meet are strangers, it would be
members of society to develop as both human impossible and undesirable to deal with them
beings and as members of a particular culture. in the same way we treat people we love or
know well. For this reason we must learn
We don't just need to learn "general human instrumental relationships - how to deal with
behaviours", we also have to learn about social people in terms of what they can do for us and
relationships, how to play roles and so forth. what we can do for them in particular
situations. Berger and Luckmann, for example,
suggest that while primary socialisation
involves “emotionally charged identification”
with people like our parents, secondary
socialisation is characterised by “formality and
anonymity” - you don’t, for example, treat a
stranger who asks you for directions as your
closest friend.
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