Sociology - Witness Statement

Witness Statement

Socialization is the process by which people learn their culture (Brym and Lie, 2009). Agents of socialization are people such as parents or institutions such as school, which help integrate people in to society, and help them learn their culture. There are four major agents of socialization, which are society relies on to represent and act on the behalf of the larger society, they are family, media, peers, and school (Sociology Center, 2002).

The four main agents of socialization are important because they are all interdependent. They are all interdependent because each agent influences people's lives in a different way on different levels. For example, family is an agent of primary socialization, "the process of acquiring the basic skills needed to function in society during childhood" (Brym and Lie, 2009), and school is responsible for secondary socialization which is "socialization outside of the family after childhood" (Brym and Lie, 2009). The family aids in primary socialization which initially socializes a individual and makes them familiar with what others in general expect, while secondary socialization occurs when people move into new areas of their lives such as going to school or moving to a new area ( Rosenberg, 1983). An individual cannot move on to experience secondary socialization if they have not already received the basics of socialization through primary socialization.

The most important agent of socialization for both the individual and society is family. Family is the most important and influential because it influences an individual from birth, when they are the most helpless and dependent, and does not let go for a whole lifetime (Sociology Center, 2002). With the family taking care of a child at infancy gives them preeminent control, the parent's right to determine what is best for their child (Anderson and Taylor, 2006). Family is the foundation for all civilised