Overview
Sociology was the very first subject we studied in Ninth Grade Humanities. After finishing this project, I have learned that Sociology has a lot more components than one would think. If I were to break it down, I would say that Socialization begins with how one was "socialized" to be and act. For example, to drill this idea into our brains, we did an activity expressing what we learned from "Feral Children", which I talk about next. One is socialized by different people around them, including friends, family, teachers, religion, and, the most influencing, peers. Of course, these different groups, a.k.a. "The Agents Of Socialization", are taught, and teach others, to act within a very strict set of guidelines called "Social Norms". These guidelines create boundaries between people through characteristics called "Social Categories", involving Race, Gender, Sexual Orientation, Ability/Disability, Religion, and Age. Social Norms are so strict, even, that people are very often discriminated against from birth, because of natural characteristics, or disabilities. These people are sought after to be "Targets" to the people who fit within the Norms, who are called "Agents". So, obviously there is much that is hidden from our sight about Socialization.
Feral Children
Like I said before, I will explain to you what "Feral Children" are in this paragraph. Feral Children can be defined as humans born and/or raised outside of natural human society. By this, I mean there have been a few cases of children actually being raised by animals for reasons such as parental abandonment, or running away. One good example is a girl found living with dogs in Ukraine who acted completely like a dog, from walking on all fours to barking at different things. These feral children show a great proof that Socialization has an astonishing, sometimes devastating, affect on those who are subjected to it. Through Feral Children, we can really learn all about what makes us "us".
The Agents Of Socialization
As listed above, the Agents of Socialization include: friends, family, teachers, religion, and peers. Now, Feral Children learn from what is socializing them, like whatever animal, instead of these different agents. (That is not to say there aren't Agents of Socialization within species.) But, it is self-explanatory that we are characterized through the observation of those around us, but is that all there is to know about that? Well, there isn't, because many of us overlook exactly how we see others. That is where Social Norms and their affect come into play...
Social Norms and their affect on people
So, what is it to be normal? There are few, if any, people that fit in to be perfectly normal here in America, and that is based off of different groups' opinion on things. The three levels of abnormalities consist of: Folkways, Mores, and Taboos. To begin, Folkways are anything that is acceptable, but viewed to the common public as abnormal. For example, cross-dressing and being gay are considered acceptable, but abnormal by the common public. Mores, meaning abnormal to the extent they exceed the law, can include Grand Theft Auto and murder. These are viewed as completely unacceptable things, and will result in charges, jail, or even a death sentence. Finally, we get to Taboo. Although Taboo isn't against the law, it is probably the least acceptable to the common public. Sadly, examples of Taboo would be too explicit to post on this website. But those are the 3 Social prohibitions, and their affect on the public.
Social Categories and their affect on people + Agent and Target groups
The six Social Categories are: Race, Gender, Religion, Sexual Orientation, Age, and Ability/Disability. Here in America, even today, people have been discriminated against for not fitting within the Social Norms of these categories. Examples include: racism, Sexism, and the bullying of those with mental/physical disabilities. Those who discriminate against people who are not inside the Norm, and others who fit into the Norm, are called "Agent Groups". Those who are discriminated against for not fitting within the Norm, and those who simply don't fit within the Norm, are called "Target Groups". The truth is, it is wrong to treat those who are not in the "Norms" differently than those who are, no matter if you were socialized to act that way or not.
Sociology Age Mask
Here is the mask I made at the end of the Sociology unit to describe age, and the stereotypes people have on different ages of people. For example, teenagers are sought to be irresponsible, and unreliable. Read the link to the right leading to the essay I did on it to look into this further, with a description of the mask.
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