The Negative Effects Of The Agents Of Socialization

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Introductory Paragraph This essay will do the following; demonstrate how the agents of socialization limit our choices, how watching television impacts our society and the mean world syndrome. Limits on Our Choices We are always making decisions and choices. We make decisions that impact our lives in immense ways like, where we go to school, what we choose as our careers and who we choose to spend the rest of our lives with. It may be a surprise to be some, but when it comes to choices, the world is not always our oyster. The agents of socialization have a tremendous influence on how we live our lives. One way the agents of socialization have an influence on our lives is through our social identity. When we are born, our parents give …show more content…

80% of people watch television everyday or almost everyday. (Lecture Notes, Chapter 3) Since watching television is such a popular past time, we may not think about the negative effects that watching television has on us. We don’t even realize it, but by watching television our perceptions of reality start to change, this is also known as cultivation. Cultivation is a stable system of messages and images that shapes our conception of the world and life, society, power and ourselves. (Video) Researchers found that people who view television for more than four hours per day have a greater sense of insecurity and are more likely to think of the world as a dangerous place. (Video) How does this affect our children? Most people start watching television at an early age. 2-3-year-olds watch 4.4 hours of television per day. (Lecture Notes, Chapter 3) Along with watching TV comes watching violence. By the end of elementary school children will have seen 8,000 murders and will have seen 200,000 acts by age 18. (Video) These are scary facts, but what is even more terrifying is seeing children acting things out in real life because they saw it on TV. If you asked a random person on the street if they felt safe in their environment, what do you think they would say? Local news is the primary news source for two-thirds of Americans. (Lecture Notes, Chapter 3) If the local news is constantly playing and describing stories of violent and criminal

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