Children and Society The Sociology of Children and Childhood Socialization

by Handel, Gerald; Cahill, Spencer; Elkin, Frederick

• ISBN13: 9780195330786
• ISBN10: 0195330781
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-08-04
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Children and Society presents a comprehensive sociological portrayal of children and childhood from birth to the beginning of adolescence. A major theme is the tension between children's active agency and the socializing influences of the family, school, peer groups, and mass media. The book incorporates the most recent research and theories of childhood socialization. Its theoretical perspective is primarily symbolic interactionism which emphasizes the development of the self. The volume features research that documents cultural variations within American society shaped by social class, race and ethnicity, and gender. Children and Society is organized into four parts, each with an introduction. Part I, "Understanding Childhood Socialization," consists of four chapters. Chapter One reviews how social scientists have conceptualized children, leading to today's understanding of childhood as a social construction. Chapter Two briefly discusses the characteristics of the human organism that both require and make socialization possible, and the characteristics of society that receives the newborn. Chapter Three reveals the range of meaning of the concept of socialization in western and non-western societies and includes a review of the history of western childhoods. Chapter Four offers a careful exposition of the development of the self. Part II, "Agencies of Socialization," focuses on the major agencies that help shape the development of the self in the United States and similar societies. One chapter each covers families, schools, peer groups, and mass media respectively. "Diversities of Socialization" are the focus of Part III. Whereas Chapter Four presented a general account of how the self develops, the three chapters of Part III examine the variations that are shaped by social class, race, ethnicity and neighborhood, and gender. The single chapter in Part IV, "Looking Back and Looking Ahead," stresses that socialization is a life-long process. It briefly sketches issues of continuity and discontinuity in socialization throughout adolescence, adult life, old age, and death.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. x
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
About the Authors	p. xiv
Introduction Understanding Childhood Socialization
Introduction	p. 2
Complexities of Childhood Socialization	p. 4
Limitations of the Study of Socialization	p. 8
Organization of the Book	p. 9
References	p. 10
Studying Children	p. 11
Competing Images of Children and Childhood	p. 11
The Natural Development of Children	p. 12
The Social Inculcation of Children	p. 15
The Social Construction of Children	p. 17
Appreciating the Complexities of Childrens' Lives	p. 18
Methods of Studying Children	p. 23
References	p. 32
Foundations of Socialization	p. 35
Isolated Children	p. 36
The Human Organism	p. 40
An Ongoing Society	p. 46
References	p. 54
Cultural and Historical Constructions of Childhood	p. 57
Socialization in Cross-Cultural Perspective	p. 57
Children in Non-Western Societies	p. 59
The History of Western Childhood	p. 65
Continuing Cultural Contrasts: Japan and the United States	p. 76
References	p. 79
Basic Processes and Outcomes of Socialization	p. 83
Society and Socialization	p. 84
Emotionally Significant Relationships	p. 88
Communication	p. 90
Symbols, Language, and Interaction	p. 92
Language and Memory	p. 94
Conversation	p. 95
Language Mastery	p. 95
The Significance of Significant Others	p. 96
Development of the Self	p. 97
Play Stage and Game Stage	p. 99
Time and Outcomes of Socialization	p. 102
More About the Self	p. 103
Self-Concept, Identity, Self-Esteem, and Self-Efficacy	p. 104
Sentiments and Emotions	p. 108
Values and the Self	p. 110
Incipient Adult Roles	p. 111
Truncated Childhood, Premature Adulthood	p. 116
A Stock of Social Knowledge	p. 117
References	p. 118
Agencies of Socialization
Introduction	p. 124
References	p. 129
Families	p. 131
Some Cross-Cultural Comparisons	p. 132
Families in the Community	p. 134
Families as Groups of Interacting Persons	p. 136
Family Composition and Interaction	p. 139
Two-Parent First-Marriage Families	p. 140
Stepfamilies	p. 147
Single Mothers	p. 148
Teenage Mothers	p. 150
Siblings	p. 152
Grandparents in the Twenty-First Century	p. 153
References	p. 154
Schools	p. 159
Preschools and Daycare Centers	p. 160
Head Start	p. 162
Daycare Centers	p. 163
School and Society	p. 165
The Classroom as an Organization	p. 170
Authority	p. 170
Class Size	p. 171
Evaluation	p. 172
Moral Climate	p. 173
Family-School Interaction	p. 175
References	p. 181
Peer Groups	p. 183
Peer Culture	p. 185
Play	p. 186
Sports	p. 189
Peer Group Structures and Processes	p. 193
Play Groups	p. 193
Friendships	p. 197
Cliques	p. 199
Bullying	p. 200
References	p. 201
Media of Mass Communication	p. 205
The Major Issues	p. 208
Viewing as an Activity	p. 208
Violent Program Content and Children's Aggression	p. 212
The Power of Advertising	p. 215
Gender and Racial Stereotyping	p. 220
Research Methods in Television Studies	p. 222
Experiments	p. 223
Surveys	p. 224
Content Analysis	p. 224
Audience Interpretive Response	p. 224
Theories of the Relationship Between Children and Television	p. 225
Uses and Gratifications	p. 227
Cultivation Theory	p. 227
Semiotics	p. 228
Computers, the Internet, and Video Games	p. 229
Access to Computers	p. 230
Implications for Socialization	p. 231
Video Games	p. 232
Computers, Parental Authority, and Children's Autonomy	p. 235
References	p. 236
Diversities of Socialization
Introduction	p. 240
References	p. 245
Social Class	p. 247
Upper Class	p. 248
Upper-Middle Class	p. 250
Middle Class	p. 253
Working Class	p. 255
Working Poor	p. 258
The Underclass	p. 258
Social Class and Individualism	p. 260
References	p. 263
Ethnic Groups, Minorities, and Neighborhood Communities	p. 265
African American Socialization	p. 267
White European Ethnic Groups	p. 271
Hispanic, Caribbean, and Asian Immigrants	p. 274
Neighborhood Communities	p. 280
References	p. 284
Sex, Gender, and Socialization	p. 287
Sex Category and Social Organization	p. 288
Sex and the Social Division of Labor	p. 288
Sex and Gender Hierarchies	p. 290
The Biology of Sex	p. 293
The Development of Sex-Related Characteristics	p. 293
Nature and Nuture	p. 294
Socialization Processes and Agents	p. 297
Family Interaction	p. 298
The Media	p. 301
Preschools and Schools	p. 303
Peer Relations and Cultures	p. 305
The Complexities of Gender Socialization	p. 309
References	p. 311
Continuities With and Discontinuities From Childhood
Introduction	p. 316
Looking Back and Looking Ahead	p. 317
Socialization in Adolescence	p. 317
Continuities	p. 322
Socialization in Adult Life	p. 324
Continuities	p. 326
Socialization in Aging and Death	p. 327
Continuities	p. 329
References	p. 330
Author Index	p. 335
Subject Index	p. 343
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