Nature vs Nurture
Initial Post
1. Nature and Nurture: What do twin studies tell us about nature/nurture? Also, discuss the influence of heredity in explaining the process of one’s personality and intellectual development.?
The twin studies tell us that even when two twins are born, separated at birth and then exposed to completely different circumstances and environments they may embody the same characteristics and inherit traits. This is what naturally has come with them from genetics. examples of nurturing is when one is exposed to the world around them. These studies have shown that genetics along with social experiences play a key part in making who a person who they are. Development is not solely based on one or the other they work together to build a person.
2. What is the self? According to Charles Horton Cooley, explain the “looking glass self” (discuss the three phases). George Herbert Mead also discusses the stages of the self: identify differences between I and Me. What is meant by significant others? How are significant others related to the self? Identify Mead’s three-stage process of self-development.
According to Charles Horton Cooley’s “Self” is that there are many factors that make us “Us”. According to Cooley we mirror how other people act towards us and what they say to us as defining who we are. We interpret how people see us as to how we see ourselves. This is an imaginative way of formulating ones perception of self. Mead expands on Cooley’s thoughts and says that the idea of “self” can be broken in two. The first is “I”which is the active self and “Me” the more pensive self. Utilizing these two harmoniously one makes decisions and builds ideas of ones “self”. Such thoughts may have come from preconditioned ideas or experiences built from the past. People that are more important to us are defined as our “significant others”. These are our closer relationships that us up with time this network of people grow into a much larger more complicated social structure. This larger network is described in a three-stage process of further understanding ones self.
Stage one begins in our first three years as children and is viewed more as the preparatory phase. This is where imitation comes into play. As a child tries to understand the world they begin by copying what they see. Children begin to see patterns and connect them to symbols to gain a better understanding of the environment around them. The second stage is the “Play Stage” (ages 3-5) this is the social awareness phase. This phase is where “Role taking” begins and where the child will act out and pretend to be other people and take on jobs and roles in a society. The final stage is the “Game Stage” (6-9 years old) when children start taking on roles and in which they work to together. This usually means in games where rules have already been created in which they comply, understand and follow. This is can be viewed as a micro blue-print for what a society may look like and their first ideas of how a community works.
3. Explain the dramaturgical approach. What occurs on front-stage? What happens in backstage? How can Erving Goffman’s idea of impression management and face-work be used to understand social behavior?
The Dramaturgical Approach is looking at the world as a sort of stage performance where everyone has parts to play. This is where we formulate who we are and how we want to be seen, to all the different people around us. The perception of “Front Stage” is where we act and work as a team for the show. This includes costumes props and the set. The “Back stage” is where we gather the props, create scripts and build our personas happens. We can be different characters for the different parts of who we are in the many “acts” we play.
Erving Goffman’s idea of impression management is the idea that we alter ourselves for particular people and situations to appease and satisfy our special audiences. “Face-work” is the actual act of manipulating our behaviors whenever we feel rejected or self conscious. The need to protect our image is so important that we will make statements that we may not normally make just to appease a particular situation or audience. An example of this was described in our book giving an example of Japanese culture. The book describes the working men of japan and a time when many had lost their jobs. Although they had been let go the men would still pretend they were “going to work” everyday to save their families from embarrassment and shame of being without work. Saving face from relatives and neighbors was more important than just staying home and showing people what was really going on.
4. Identify the agents of socialization. What is the role of schools in gender role socialization? How has technology (computer, cell phone, email, & TV) influenced the socialization process?
The agents of socialization are the people that we interact with (Family, friends, school, peers, the media, work, religion and the state). They are a large part of who help shape us become who we are. The role of school is to civilize us and help us enter society understanding what is expected of us. School allows us to understand universal rules and appropriate social cues. School creates a space for adults to teach the youth common practices and culture. If this structure wasn’t in place, society as we know it would no longer exist.
Gender role socialization plays a significant role in school. Many studies have found that gender roles play a huge part in forming what people believe to be a “successful young person” for males it may mean a boy academic, tough and athletically inclined. For a girl, its being socially manipulative, attractive and a family with wealth so that she may have the latest and greatest new things.
Technology (computer, cell phone, email, & TV) have influenced the socialization process by spreading different ideas and viewpoints across the world. With cell phones we can have an almost constant connection to anyone at any time. With constant connections comes “narrowcasting” which means that we now connect to people that are so called “Friends” (people known and unknown) and less with the people that we have more intimate relationships. Mass media plays a huge role in how we all see information and communicate to each other on a much larger spectrum as well.
5. What are total institutions? Identify Goffman’s four traits of total institutions. Discuss how a degradation ceremony is used to mortify one’s sense of self.
Total institutions are places that cut and control a persons identity from the outside world by creating an isolated community with one single authority figure. The 4 common traits that Goffman mentions are described as A) One authority figure usually running the show. B) Activities that are run are conducted in the company of others for the same universal purpose. C) Authority figures that run these establishments create rules and set times for activities without the participants input or knowledge and D) The running of a micro society is for the good of the structured organization, not centered on the individuals that are a in it.
Degradation of ceremony happens in institutions like army or jail. This is where a person is stripped of their identity and made to be a part of one unit as a whole. In these places people are stripped of their belongings, given uniforms and new identities.
How does society deal with an elderly population? Discuss differences between disengagement theory and activity theory? Finally, provide solutions to ageism.
6. When dealing with the elderly many societies view them quite differently. In some countries they greatly respect them and give them ways to keep their freedoms and treat them with empathy and respect. While in other places it is understood that they are no longer of use and are set out to the outer rim of villages near graves they will eventually inhabit. All in all different societies deal with the elderly vastly differently.
Disengagement theory is the idea that when a person grows older they begin to disconnect from their society as they become closer to dying. Society begins to distance itself creating places just for old people to stay in (old folk homes and older living communities). Many theorists don’t agree with this theory, the opposite theory of this is called “Activity theory” which states the even though older people may not want to do everything a younger person may do they still have the need to be a apart of society in an active state. Living as they would normally do and not disappearing into a society only viewed for the old. A solution to ageism can be to create more programs to support the elderly in staying independent and healthy. Informing people about ageism and continue on creating a society that does not judge someone solely based on age but on their characters as people.
Reflection
I will be reflecting on the Socialization: Nature vs Nurture assignment. Looking back at my work and reflecting on how I did, I could’ve discussed both sides of the nature versus nurture debate in depth with examples in order to show that I have an understanding of the implications of each. My assignment was written very broadly. I did not use my critical thinking skills to form my own opinion on the topic. I predominantly relied on research findings of the study. This is not beneficial for me in regards to improving my critical thinking and analytical skills. Also, because I come from a Biology background, I already had knowledge of this topic, thus I was not motivated to neither do any further research nor invest any extra work such as critical thinking towards the assignment. Consequently, this does not help me grow as a person nor academically.