- Different conceptions of culture, including subculture, mass culture, folk culture, high and low culture, popular culture and global culture.
- The socialisation process and the role of the agencies of socialisation.
- The self, identity and difference as both socially caused and socially constructed.
- The relationship of identity to age, disability, ethnicity, gender, nationality, sexuality and social class in contemporary society.
- The relationship of identity to production, consumption and globalisation.
Key Terms -
The term culture refers to the language, beliefs, values, norms, customs, dress and diet which make up a society.
- Dominant Culture – the dominant culture of a society refers to the main culture in a society which is shared or accepted without any opposition by the majority of a population. For example having your hair dyed green would be seen as unacceptable by the vast majority of the population.
- Subculture – a subculture is a smaller group of people sharing their own norms, customs, values etc. within the main culture of a society. An example of a subculture would be goths, chavs, gay people etc.
- Folk culture – is the culture stemming from the experiences, customs, traditions and beliefs of particular communities. For example it’s seen as custom for Scottish people to play bagpipes.
- High culture – are cultural products of lasting value such as Shakespeare, classical music, literary products like Dickens novels not Harry Potter, art such as Pre-Raphaelite.
- Mass, low or popular culture – is the same thing. It refers to all the cultural products which are popular and instantly accessible. These cultural products are seen to have no lasting value and make no intellectual demands.
- Culture of hybridity – is a culture that is a mix of two or more other cultures, creating a new culture
- Cultural capital – is the cultural advantage possessed by the upper and upper middle classes
- Disability – a physical or mental impairment which has an adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities
- Gender identity – refers to how people see themselves and how others see them in terms of their gender
- Habitus – the cultural expectations possessed by a social class through socialization
- Hegemonic identity – a dominant view of someone to the extent it becomes difficult for individuals to assert any other identity
- Impairment – is some abnormal functioning of the body or mind which doesn’t tend to limit a person’s day-to-day activities
- Globalisation the process in which events in one are influence what happens everywhere else. The world has become increasingly interconnected. Socially( trends and fashion), politically (political leaders) and economically (stock Markets). Understanding social changes and societies. Global cultures have emerged through migration, spread of media. McLuhan (1989) cultural homogeneity is key. Mcdonalisation and Americanisation questions whether global culture is American culture
Culture, Socialisation and Consensus.
1. The importance of socialisation is stressed and the way people learn the already-existing norms (rules) of expected behaviour. Functionalist writers argue that it is only by learning cultural rules that social interaction becomes possible. 2. Cultural rules, therefore, provide a structure for people’s behaviour, effectively channelling behaviour in some ways but not others. The stress here, therefore, is on the way our behaviour is constrained by the rules of the society into which we are born. We can understand this more clearly by thinking about the following examples. Whenever you enter a building, your behaviour is constrained by its physical structure, layout and purpose. For example, if you want to move from one room to another, then you have to use the doors that have been provided by the designer and builder. Similarly, it would be difficult for you to cook a hot meal in a room designed to be a bathroom, just as you might find it difficult to sleep in a kitchen. • These things are not, of course, impossible (you could simply smash a hole in the wall when you want to change rooms, but this deviant behaviour will produce negative social sanctions because you have broken a norm), but it cannot be denied that physical structures constrain our behaviour. • A culture, with its attendant roles, statuses, values and norms similarly constrains our range of possible behaviours. This is not a physical constraint, as such, but rather a mental one that leads to the individual choosing to limit his or her range of behaviour. We feel inhibited, for example, about doing things that people find culturally distasteful (although, of course, we can use this cultural revulsion to produce shock and outrage at certain times - artists and writers, for example, are quite adept at breaking social norms in this way). 3. Social structures, according to this way of seeing things, operate at an institutional level in society. We experience structural pressures whenever we adopt a particular role, since as we have seen, by taking on a role we take on certain norms, give expression to certain values and have a particular status in society. 4. If we accept the above as plausible, we can then see the basis for this being a consensus theory of social organisation – If society has a culture and everyone is necessarily socialised into that culture then a general consensus over values and norms must exist because everyone is socialised into the same set of general ideas. CULTURAL RULES STRUCTURE OUR BEHAVIOUR, FROM THIS THEY PRODUCE A SOCIAL CONSENSUS AND THIS ENSURES STABILITY AND ORDER IN SOCIETY. |
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Perspectives of Culture and Identity
- Functionalists believe that the social structure is much more important than the individual. They say that society is made up of complex systems and parts that all need to work together in order for society to function and continue. From this, social institutions need to socialise every individual into a system of shared values and norms that can guide their thinking and behaviour. People need to learn the communal values and internalise them so they become part of their everyday life, this is known as a value consensus, and where everyone has a sense of what is right and wrong. This lends itself to social solidarity, in that everyone in the community will have a sense of belonging together. Social institutions also prepare the younger people in society for their roles that will become clearer as the get older (division of labour, getting qualifications, working hard etc. Parsons believed that socialisation was the key to understanding the behaviour of individuals. He suggested the role of FERM (Family, Education, Religion and the Media) was to pass on socially acceptable roles, values and norms.
- Marxists argue that the working class rarely challenge capitalism because those who control the economy also control the family, education, media and religion.
- Louis Althusser argued that the function of these cultural institutions is to maintain and legitimate class inequality.
- Marxists argue that socialization is an ideological process in that its main aim is to transmit the ruling class idea that society is meritocratic. Working class are then persuaded to accept their lot and that capitalism has provided them with a decent standard of living.
- Marxists argue that capitalists shapes the way of life of a society. An example of this is that the mass media convinces us through advertising that our priority should be to buy more and whilst we are doing we fail to notice the inequalities and exploitation which are the norm in the capitalist society.
- This means most of us are unaware of our ‘real’ identity and we experience false class consciousness.
Conflict theories agree that society and culture influences individual behaviour, almost but not quite to the point of determining it, by the way it structures the way people are able to think and act. Conflict theorists stress the extent to which individuals, groups and classes within society are in competition with each other for whatever people in society consider to be important or worthwhile.
Feminists argue that another important status difference and source of inequality is gender. They point out that the UK is a patriarchal system – generally have more power. Natasha Walter claimed that women do not enjoy equality of access to jobs, especially the top jobs in the city. Also, women are still expected to be responsible for the upkeep of the home and childrearing. Liberal feminists are optimistic that women will achieve financial, educational, domestic and legal equality with men. Marxist-feminists argue that patriarchy suits they capitalist system as well as men. True equality can only exist when the capitalist system is broken down. Radical feminists argue that the patriarchal oppression and exploitation of women is built into every aspect of the way society is organised.
Interactionist perspectives - Social Action tend to concentrate upon relatively small- scale levels of social interaction (between individuals, small social groups and so forth) and, for this reason, they are sometimes referred-to as a micro level of sociological analysis. We can begin this brief overview of Interactionist theories of culture by identifying a number of the basic characteristics of human cultures. Culture develops out of social interaction, how we engage, talk and behave with others. The interactions must be meaningful and have a purpose. Sometimes we have to guess the purpose and meaning behind a person’s actions. This is because we are unable to know what someone else is thinking. The most we can do, therefore, is observe the behaviour of others and make assumptions (or educated guesses) about what they are thinking (their purpose and meaning) when they do something.
Types of Culture
The Self and Identity
There are three components of the self, these are; your personal identity, which refers to aspects of an individual which makes them distinct and unique from others around them. Your social identity, these are personality characteristics that are attached to different values, norms or roles within a society, and then finally, you have sense of self, which is a subjective view of your own uniqueness and personality.
Mead believed that we all have a sense of self and self-identity, as we grow older we become more aware of the existence of these processes and begin form an impression of our own traits and qualities. The concept of the self has been explored for years and it is believed that it can be broken up into two main parts. The ‘I’ refers to our inner self, that houses our thoughts and emotions, and then there is the ‘me’ part which refers to the social part of us, the side of us that everyone else sees. Our behaviour her is mediated by how others react to us, we act in ways that are socially desirable.
Mead believed that we all have a sense of self and self-identity, as we grow older we become more aware of the existence of these processes and begin form an impression of our own traits and qualities. The concept of the self has been explored for years and it is believed that it can be broken up into two main parts. The ‘I’ refers to our inner self, that houses our thoughts and emotions, and then there is the ‘me’ part which refers to the social part of us, the side of us that everyone else sees. Our behaviour her is mediated by how others react to us, we act in ways that are socially desirable.
Postmodernist Theories –Postmodernists argue that if there were underlying patterns of behaviour then these would have been broken down. They believe that in contemporary society, we are constantly bombarded with competing ideas on how to live our lives that we are continually constructing and reconstructing our identity. For postmodernists, our sense of identity is much more fluid and interchangeable at any given time. For a postmodernist, the idea that the media creates our reality is important, they see people as only being concerned with how things look, and they forget about the underlying meaning.
- For Bradley there are three different types of identity:
- Passive – a source of identity is recognised but is not seen as important in our day to day lives.
- Active – we are consciously aware of a membership of a group. It is not a focal source of identity but we can use it to make sense of our experience.
- Politicised – at the forefront of our sense of identity and our actions. Politicised identities may result in political protests.
- These three levels of identities may become more or less important to us depending on our interactions with others.
Socialisation
•Socialisation – The process by which we learn the culture of our society.
•Primary socialisation – Intimate and influential socialisation in the early years of life (usually from parents)
•Secondary socialisation – Socialisation that occurs later in life from various different sources.
•Re-socialisation – When a person has to learn new ways when their role changes.
•Anticipatory socialisation – The process by which knowledge and skills are learned for future roles
•Internalising – Is the process that norms and values shared by society become part of a person’s own personal set of values.
•Primary socialisation – Intimate and influential socialisation in the early years of life (usually from parents)
•Secondary socialisation – Socialisation that occurs later in life from various different sources.
•Re-socialisation – When a person has to learn new ways when their role changes.
•Anticipatory socialisation – The process by which knowledge and skills are learned for future roles
•Internalising – Is the process that norms and values shared by society become part of a person’s own personal set of values.
Agents of Socialisation - Parents
Children learn about social norms from imitating their parents, as they grow up they use their parents as role models. Parents try to teach social norms by telling them how to behave and setting examples. They use sanctions (rewards and punishments) to guide and control this process.
Diane Reay (1998) studied 33 mothers in London. She said that middle class mothers had more time and energy to spend with their children reading, playing etc. However, the working class mothers had more of a struggle when it came to working and providing for their children so therefore didn’t have the same amount of time and energy. This could therefore indicate that the amount of socialisation coming from parents is fairly dependant on their class / social status.
Frank Furedi (2001) studied how the roles of parents have changed over time. He said traditionally ‘good’ parents tried to care for and stimulate their children. However now he believes that the main task of parents is protecting their children from danger (accidents, paedophiles, bullies). He said that parent’s paranoia prevents children from taking certain risks like socialising and going on school trips, from this it can stifle the children’s sense of adventure. He is highlighting the social pressure to keep children out of harm’s way, however it is important to note that parents are more vigilante of their daughters than their sons.
Education
The hidden curriculum takes place within the school where pupils learn the expectations and background assumptions that run through the school. It unintentionally teaches children the importance of hard work, teamwork, competition and the importance of following the rules.
Christine Skelton (2001) studied a primary school in the North East, the area was known for its high rates of crime and theft. The school took it upon themselves of socialising the children. She stated that when young boys went to school they took with them attitudes, aggression, physical toughness and dominance, things they had seen local ‘lads’ doing. The school attempted to maintain social control by using firm measures, such as using locked gates, fences and security cameras. Teachers (both male and female) took on masculine roles (firm eye contact, intimidating body language) to gain ‘respect’ from troublesome pupils. This shows us that, schools / education play a huge part in socialisation, and have also undermined gender socialisation as even the women teachers on masculine roles to gain control. But a negative effect of that could be the fact it might reinforce the idea that men are of a higher status than women.
Peer Group
In the early years of children’s lives playing with each other helps them learn. They learn about social norms e.g. treating others properly. How to develop social skills, e.g. not fighting over toys, and by playing games such as shop assistants and customers they are experimenting with social roles. As children move into teenage years they start to develop a stronger sense of their own identity through socialising with other people their age, it also helps them develop / gain independence from their parents which in turn prepares them for taking on adult roles.
Adler and Adler (1998) studied a group of white middle class children in the United States. They found that peer group was a very important thing within the lives of these children. They said as cliques form and some groups gain a higher status than others certain members of the individual groups have more power and influence than others, and within each group friends are expected to be loyal to their peer values. This research shows us that peoples peer groups play a huge part in socialisation. People’s peers have a great influence on the paths and choices they make.
Religion
Religion has an influence on social attitudes and behaviour. Each religion has a set of moral values, which over time become a part of society as people are exposed to them. Religious rituals and ceremonies facilitate social unity, for example, marriages and baptisms bring the community together. Religions also provide a moral code, which can help people guide, their behaviour. Whilst the amount of people going to church these days has significantly decreased, we cannot assume that these people have abandoned the morals and values that their religion holds. All of these things show that religion does play quite a large part in socialisation even though it isn’t clear, as many people say they don’t ‘believe’ but yet they still follow the values that originally came from religion.
Charlotte Butler (1995) studied a group of Muslim girls who were born in Britain that adapted some of their religious beliefs to fit in with the circumstances surrounding them. Although they were firmly committed to their Muslim identities they modified it in certain ways, such as rejecting customs of arrange marriages, which their experience of living in Britain had showed them that such a custom was not relevant. So they were developing more independent lifestyles but at the same time they maintained their commitment to Islam. Charlotte’s research tells us that although religion plays a big part in socialisation it can be affected by the place / culture in which a person lives.
Work
•Formal Socialisation in the work place would be the firm’s responsibility. They would usually have rules / norms about appearance and behaviour.
•Informal Socialisation in the workplace would be from the peer groups. They usually have their own rituals i.e. playing jokes on the newcomers etc.
Children learn about social norms from imitating their parents, as they grow up they use their parents as role models. Parents try to teach social norms by telling them how to behave and setting examples. They use sanctions (rewards and punishments) to guide and control this process.
Diane Reay (1998) studied 33 mothers in London. She said that middle class mothers had more time and energy to spend with their children reading, playing etc. However, the working class mothers had more of a struggle when it came to working and providing for their children so therefore didn’t have the same amount of time and energy. This could therefore indicate that the amount of socialisation coming from parents is fairly dependant on their class / social status.
Frank Furedi (2001) studied how the roles of parents have changed over time. He said traditionally ‘good’ parents tried to care for and stimulate their children. However now he believes that the main task of parents is protecting their children from danger (accidents, paedophiles, bullies). He said that parent’s paranoia prevents children from taking certain risks like socialising and going on school trips, from this it can stifle the children’s sense of adventure. He is highlighting the social pressure to keep children out of harm’s way, however it is important to note that parents are more vigilante of their daughters than their sons.
Education
The hidden curriculum takes place within the school where pupils learn the expectations and background assumptions that run through the school. It unintentionally teaches children the importance of hard work, teamwork, competition and the importance of following the rules.
Christine Skelton (2001) studied a primary school in the North East, the area was known for its high rates of crime and theft. The school took it upon themselves of socialising the children. She stated that when young boys went to school they took with them attitudes, aggression, physical toughness and dominance, things they had seen local ‘lads’ doing. The school attempted to maintain social control by using firm measures, such as using locked gates, fences and security cameras. Teachers (both male and female) took on masculine roles (firm eye contact, intimidating body language) to gain ‘respect’ from troublesome pupils. This shows us that, schools / education play a huge part in socialisation, and have also undermined gender socialisation as even the women teachers on masculine roles to gain control. But a negative effect of that could be the fact it might reinforce the idea that men are of a higher status than women.
Peer Group
In the early years of children’s lives playing with each other helps them learn. They learn about social norms e.g. treating others properly. How to develop social skills, e.g. not fighting over toys, and by playing games such as shop assistants and customers they are experimenting with social roles. As children move into teenage years they start to develop a stronger sense of their own identity through socialising with other people their age, it also helps them develop / gain independence from their parents which in turn prepares them for taking on adult roles.
Adler and Adler (1998) studied a group of white middle class children in the United States. They found that peer group was a very important thing within the lives of these children. They said as cliques form and some groups gain a higher status than others certain members of the individual groups have more power and influence than others, and within each group friends are expected to be loyal to their peer values. This research shows us that peoples peer groups play a huge part in socialisation. People’s peers have a great influence on the paths and choices they make.
Religion
Religion has an influence on social attitudes and behaviour. Each religion has a set of moral values, which over time become a part of society as people are exposed to them. Religious rituals and ceremonies facilitate social unity, for example, marriages and baptisms bring the community together. Religions also provide a moral code, which can help people guide, their behaviour. Whilst the amount of people going to church these days has significantly decreased, we cannot assume that these people have abandoned the morals and values that their religion holds. All of these things show that religion does play quite a large part in socialisation even though it isn’t clear, as many people say they don’t ‘believe’ but yet they still follow the values that originally came from religion.
Charlotte Butler (1995) studied a group of Muslim girls who were born in Britain that adapted some of their religious beliefs to fit in with the circumstances surrounding them. Although they were firmly committed to their Muslim identities they modified it in certain ways, such as rejecting customs of arrange marriages, which their experience of living in Britain had showed them that such a custom was not relevant. So they were developing more independent lifestyles but at the same time they maintained their commitment to Islam. Charlotte’s research tells us that although religion plays a big part in socialisation it can be affected by the place / culture in which a person lives.
Work
•Formal Socialisation in the work place would be the firm’s responsibility. They would usually have rules / norms about appearance and behaviour.
•Informal Socialisation in the workplace would be from the peer groups. They usually have their own rituals i.e. playing jokes on the newcomers etc.
Teaching Ideas
1. Get the students to choose one nationality, they must write down everything it is to be a part of the culture (e.g. what is it to be Irish? Ginger hair and like to head out). Then have them list the problems when it comes to defining culture and identity.
2. Have the students work in pairs and for each institution (school, workplace, family life) come up with a range of norms and values that are appropriate in that specific institution but would be deemed unacceptable in the other, pupils first watch the HSBC advert.
3. Spider diagrams with associated words and behaviours in four social identities; gender, social class, ethnicity and age.
4. Construct a debate for various arguments on how these social identities may or may not affect our identity. (Gender identity is socially constructed by the media, family is most important for creating and reinforcing a working class identity, the concept of age cannot be influenced through socialisation, ethnicity is purely a biological construct).
2. Have the students work in pairs and for each institution (school, workplace, family life) come up with a range of norms and values that are appropriate in that specific institution but would be deemed unacceptable in the other, pupils first watch the HSBC advert.
3. Spider diagrams with associated words and behaviours in four social identities; gender, social class, ethnicity and age.
4. Construct a debate for various arguments on how these social identities may or may not affect our identity. (Gender identity is socially constructed by the media, family is most important for creating and reinforcing a working class identity, the concept of age cannot be influenced through socialisation, ethnicity is purely a biological construct).