Failures of Socialisation Process and the Problems of Faulty Socialisation – Essay

Essay on Failures of Socialisation Process and the Problems of Faulty Socialisation. It is true that socialisation is a powerful factor that helps to bring about social conformity.

It is equally true that socialisation is an effective instrument of creating a new generation of our expecta­tions. Still, like any other social mechanism it has its own limitations. Socialisation is not an all-out cure for all problems of personality.

Neither can we assure that socialisation would be a success always. With all the equipments and techniques of modern civilisation and with all the knowledge of human psychology, socialisation often results in failure. Failures of socialisation on the one hand, and inappropriate or wrong way of socialisation on the other, often lead to serious consequences including problems of personality.

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1. Culture cannot be understood completely:

‘Socialisation’ is said to be the process in which the culture of the group is introduced to the new individual. But no individual can internalise the total culture of the society. No person can internalise all the ways of creating works of art, using mechanical equipment, interpreting language, etc.

Further, no individual can know and put into practice all the norms of the group or society. The expected result of socialisation is no doubt conformity. But some deviation from what is considered proper behaviour is always found every­where. In fact, some amount of deviation is allowed everywhere due to inevitability.

2. Damage to the self-image:

Development of proper self-image is vital to successful socialisation. Personal self-image is a highly active factor in behaviour. Various research studies have revealed that self-image affects vitally task performance. Coleman’s famous study of Equality of Economic Opportunities 1966’ has revealed that the child’s self-concept and sense of control over the environment have a great bearing on the child’s performance at school.

Effective teaching in school tests upon building the learner’s self-confidence. Conversely, the lack of self-image al­ways cripples learning or task performance. For example, some years ago, it was found that in schools the black children had lower self-esteem than white children and this was reflected in the poorer performance of black children.

Recent studies, however, no longer, find lower levels of self- esteem among the black children. It would appear that ‘black-life’ and ‘black-consciousness’ have changed enough in recent years so that black children no longer see themselves as inferior.

Failure in socialisation would damage the self-image of the child. An unsatisfactory self-image often leads to unpleasant anti-social or delinquent behaviour. “In fact, a great deal of behaviour ranging from mildly annoying habits to serious neuroses and delinquencies can be viewed as des­perate attempts to repair an intolerable image of ‘self’ as incompetent, unworthy, or unimportant. The ultimate response to feelings of unworthiness is suicide. Truly, the image of self lies at core of behaviour”.

3. Failure of socialisation and mental illness:

Several sociologists have studied the relations between socialisation and mental illness. Some such studies have revealed that communication prob­lems between the child and parents, and the child and others often lead to mental illness on the part of the child. Sociologist Lennard has found that among families with schizophrenic children worst type of communication prevails between the parents and children.

Wrong parenting is often the cause of mental illness of children. Due to ‘ communication block’ parents do not allow children to identify and control their own reality. “Children need to develop such control if they are to reject false labels that others may apply to them and to their feelings.

Children must learn how to use anger, joy and sorrow to deal with tension” [Smelser]. In this way they will be able to manage both the internal world and the external one. Schizophrenic children do not gain this ability.

Further, lower-class parents also do not stress self-control and autonomy as much as middle class parents do. Schizophrenia is more common among the lower class people. This fact suggests a link between socialisation methods or ways and mental illness.

4. Resistance to excessive control:

Successful socialisation requires the parents to be support­ive to their children and at the same time controlling also. It has been observed that teenagers who recalled their parents’ childrearing method as both “supportive and controlling” were more commit­ted to traditional religious beliefs and norms in general.

Teenagers who got little support but a great deal of control were often found to be non-conformists particularly in religious matters. Many chil­dren rebelled by adopting values that were opposed to those of their parents and the larger society.

5. Failure to prepare children to face the challenges of “life-cycle”:

Socialisation in com­plex, modern societies is not a simple process. It often fails to prepare people for the challenges of ‘ life cycle’. In most of the civilised societies it does not equip people properly for the challenges of adolescence. The media, for example, glorify the virtues of sexual satisfaction and the value of money.

But adolescents are usually denied full access to either even though they have physical maturity to do both. Adolescence, thus, in modern society, is often experienced as a stage of confu­sion and personality crisis.

6. Confusions of mature adults:

Mature adulthood in some societies also brings its problems particularly in the middle-years of the forties and fifties. The Western “women are socialised to value their youth, their beauty and their roles as mothers.

When their youthfulness fades, and their children leave home, they may become disappointed and feel desolate and purposeless.” [Ian Robertson]. In the same manner, “the western men are socialised to value occupational and financial success. But a man who has not achieved these goals by the early forties must face an uncomfortable situation. His self-concept may suffer very badly.

7. Inability to equip people to face old age and death:

The greatest failure of the process of socialisation is, perhaps, its inability to equip people sufficiently to face old age and death. The old have very little role to play and fewer links with society. They are after treated as a ‘burden’ by their own children. Hence they may suffer severe personality disorganisation resulting from feelings of isolation and rejection rather than from the ageing process itself.

Further, socialisation for death is also not there in the modern societies. In preindustrial soci­eties deaths used to take place at home only, that is, in family and young people were getting a close understanding of its experience. But in modern societies old people and also severely diseased people die in formal organisation such as hospitals, old-age homes, etc.

The young do not get a firsthand experience of it. When someone is dying, many times, the relatives and medical personnel hide the fact from the dying person as if like a conspiracy. “Recent research into the sociology of death and dying, however, has produced an impressive and growing body of evidence to suggest that people die far more happily – even contentedly – if death is openly and honestly discussed with them beforehand”.

8. Inconsistency in the ways of socialisation of different socialising agents may also produce confusion and conflict for the child. When there is conflict between the ideas, examples and skills transmitted in the home and those transmitted by the child’s peers, teachers at school, the socialisation of the child suffers very badly. Rate of speed of learning comes down and uncertainty and confusion will prevail.

Example:

Parents may teach a child in a rural context that formal schooling serves no useful purpose; teachers tell him that it is essential to his well being, that is, to lead a happy and a successful life – which of the two he should accept? The child is at confusion, nay, at a conflict. It could thus be generalised that “the more in agreement the socialising agencies are, the more se­curely and rapidly socialisation of the individual takes place”. (David Dressier and Donald Corns).

The child may resist and alter the process of socialisation at many points in his or her develop­ment. Parents, attempt to impose their wishes, plans and ambitions upon their children are also often resisted by them. Socialisation sometimes fails from the stand point of society, that is, in so far as the child develops “non-conformity, rebelliousness, and counter-cultural tendencies”. Such failures “may often serve as the basis of social change in larger generations”. [Smelser].