The Formation of Personality through Socialization

The Formation of Personality through Socialization

The process by which personality is formed as the result of social

influences is called socialization. Early research methods employed

case studies of individuals and of individual societies (e.g.,

primitive tribes). Later research has made statistical comparisons

of numbers of persons or of different societies; differences in

child-rearing methods from one society to another, for example, have

been shown to be related to the subsequent behaviour of the infants

when they become adults. Such statistical approaches are limited,

since they fail to discern whether both the personality of the child

and the child-rearing methods used by the parents are the result of

inherited factors or whether the parents are affected by the

behaviour of their children.

Problems in the process of socialization that have been studied by

experimental methods include the analysis of mother-child

interaction in infancy; the effects of parental patterns of

behaviour on the development of intelligence, moral behaviour,

mental health, delinquency, self-image, and other aspects of the

personality of the child; the effects of birth order (e.g., being

the first-born or second-born child) on the individual; and changes

of personality during adolescence. Investigators have also studied

the origins and functioning of achievement motivation and other

social drives (e.g., as measured with personality tests).

Several theories have stimulated research into socialization;

Freudian theory led to some of the earliest studies on such

activities as oral and anal behaviour (e.g., the effect of the

toilet training of children on obsessional and other "anal"

behaviour). Learning theory led to the study of the effects of

rewards and punishments on simple social behaviour and was extended

to more complex processes such as imitation and morality (e.g., the

analysis of conscience).

The self

Such concepts as self-esteem, self-image, and ego-involvement have

been regarded by some social psychologists as useful, while others

have regarded them as superfluous. There is a considerable amount of

research on such topics as embarrassment and behaviour in front of

audiences, in which self-image and self-esteem have been assessed by

various self-rating methods. The origin of awareness of self has ...

... middle of paper ...

...problems involved. Similarly, the causes of

delinquency and crime have been extensively studied, but it is not

feasible to manipulate the factors influencing crime, such as

genetic factors, methods of upbringing, and inequalities of

opportunity. Social psychology has made some contribution to

education; sociometry is quite widely practiced as a means of

grouping children, and evidence is growing about the optimum styles

of teacher behaviour.

(M.Ar.)

(Ed.)

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Contents of this article:

Introduction

Research methods

Social perception

Interaction processes

Small social groups

Social organizations

20th-century approaches

Personality

Socialization

The self

Attitudes and beliefs

Various specialties in social psychology

Bibliography

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