AGENCIES OF SOCIALIZATION

Socialization occurs all through our life, but some of the most significant socialization happens
during childhood. The most influential agents of socialization during childhood are family,
school, community, peers, mass media, workplace and the state.

Family
Family is considered to be the first world of the child. Since family is always regarded as
the most important instrument of socialization, it is always better to start from the role of family
in the social development of an individual. Infants are fully reliant on others to survive. Parents,
family members and others play an important role in teaching their children how to function and
to take care of them. The parents along with the rest of the members of the family used to teach
the young children about close relations, peer life, and sharing of properties. Besides these, they
are responsible for providing their children the main system of norms, values, and principles i.e.
a system that is typically an image of societal status, religion, ethnic group, race, etc.
The family is the primary agency of socialization. Family is also a world in itself in
which the child is taught the way to live, to move and to have his being.
Within the family the natal, defense and nursing of the child take place and development
of the first and close linking with people of different ages and genders which form the beginning
of the development of child‟s personality.
It is within the family that the child begins to develop an initial sense of self and habit-
training like eating, sleeping etc. Considerably, the instruction of the child, whether in primitive
or modern complex society, happens inside the circle of the family. The paramount relationships
of the child are with the immediate members of his family like parents and other members of the
family. The child first experienced love, collaboration, authority, direction and safeguard in his
family. He also learnt and developed language from family during childhood. Since family is the
primary agency of socialization during infantile, parents play a vital role in leading their children
into their gender roles considered suitable in the society. Parents intentionally or unintentionally
teach gender role, behavior and values that they will hold throughout life. Children often adopt
the attitudes of parents towards work and about the importance of education, patriotism, society
and religion.

School
The school is a social institution which fulfills the special needs of the society. A school
is described as a social institution because: it is a cultural configuration, it is formed purposefully
to fulfill individual desires and social needs, and it embodies certain norms and has its own
standardized way of solving societal problems. The school trains and socializes the individual
and thus serves the societal needs. But it is to be remembered here that the societal needs differ
in different societies.
After family the educational institutions play an important role in the socialization of
young individuals. In some non-literate societies, mostly socialization of an individual takes
place inside the family but in more compound societies the educational institutions also plays an
important role in socializing the child.
In the schools, children are not only taught about reading, writing and other basic skills;
but also learnt the way to develop and to discipline themselves, to cooperate with their peers, to
comply with the rules and to test their attainments by taking part in various types of
competitions. In the schools, children are trained with sets of supposition on the profession, job
and careers that they will follow after they complete their academic life. Schools play a
significant role in imparting knowledge to the students in various disciplines which are most
basic to adult functioning in the community. It is believed that learning at home is essentially on
an individual and emotional level while learning at school is mostly intellectual.

Community
Besides home and school, community has a greater responsibility towards socialization.
As Crow and Crow commented, “A community cannot expect something for nothing, if it wishes
its young people to serve their community well; it must provide whatever educational advantages
are needed by the young people, individually and collectively, to prepare themselves for that
service.”

Peer Group
Apart from the family and schoolmates, the peer group plays a very significant role in the
process of socialization of the child. In the peer group, the youngsters as a member of that group
learn to approve the accepted ways of the group and to accept the fact that social life is based on
regulations. The role of peer group in socializing an individual has been growing day by day
these days.
Today, youngsters devote substantial time with one another outside the family. Especially
the youths in the cities or towns that have access to vehicles are spending much time together
with their friends away from their families. Studies have shown that the youths used to create
their own exclusive sub-cultures like the school campus culture, the drug culture, the motorbike
crazes, sporty group culture etc. Therefore, the peer groups play an appreciated role by
supporting the switch to mature responsibilities. Adolescents imitate their friends in part as the
peer group sustains a meaningful system of rewards and punishments. The peer group may
inspire a young person to live a life that society considers praiseworthy. In the meantime the peer
group can stimulate its member to violate the societal norms and values by driving uncaringly,
robbery, stealing vehicles, engaging in acts of annihilation etc.
Some studies on deviant behavior found that the influence of peer group is more than the family
in inculcating the behavior patterns.
Why do some youngsters choose peer groups which generally support the socially
acceptable adult standards while others select peer groups which are at conflict with the social
order? The choice seems to be connected with self-respect. Perhaps the statement that „seeing is
behaving‟ works. This means that how we perceive ourselves is how we act. The typical
delinquent often sees himself as unloved, worthless, inacceptable, incapable and unappreciated.
Then he joins antisocial peer group with other such destitute youngsters which supports
and approves his resentful and aggressive behavior. On the other hand, the honest youth
perceives him as loved, capable, valued, esteemed and accepted. Thus, he joins some peer group
which supports socially desirable behavior.

Mass Media
From the early ages of print media to modern age of electronic media like radio,
television, computer, mobile phones, internet etc., the mass media continues to play a significant
role in molding and shaping the personality of the individuals. Since the last century,
technological inventions like radio, television, recorded music, and mobile phones have become
one of the most important agents of socialization. Today, television and even smart phones, in
particular, are a driving force in socializing the youngsters almost all around the globe. The study
conducted in United States of America found that the average youths (between the ages of 6 and
18 years) have devoted most of their time for watching „YouTube‟ than studying in school.
Besides sleeping, watching TV, computers and playing with smart phones are the most time-
wasting activities of the youths in the present day.

Workplace
The important aspect of socializing an individual includes learning in what manner to
behave properly within the workplace. Occupational socialization cannot be parted from the
socialization experiences that occur during childhood and adolescence. Almost all of the
individuals are exposed to work-related roles by witnessing the work of parents and others whom
they met while performing their duties and of people shown in the media.

The State
Sociologists have increasingly acknowledged the state as an essential agent of
socialization due to its growing effect on the life sequence. Before, the protective functions of an
individual were performed by family members but they have gradually been taken over by the
outside agencies such as hospitals, community, health clinics and insurance companies etc. Thus,
the state has turn out to be a breadwinner of child care, which allocates it a new and direct role in
the socializing infants and youngsters.