Laws become legislation when they are made and put into force by law making body or authority. There are two views regarding the functions of the laws:1. One view opines that law is the formal social control agency. Its aim is to design legal sanctions to minimize deviance and maintain social solidarity and social order 2. Second view stresses on the dynamic role of o f the law. It insists that law must bring about social change by influencing peolple‟s behaviour, beliefs and values. values. A careful analysis of the second opinion reveals two things:1. Through legislations the state and society try to bring the le gal norms in line with the existing social norms. 2. They are also used to improve social norms on the basis of new legal norms. A socila legislation can be an effective mean of social change only when the existing social norm is given a legal sanction. An unaided social legislation can hardly bring abou t social change, but with the support of the public opinion it can initiate a change in social norm thus a change in the social behaviour. Some examples of social legislations made in India:1. Hindu Marriage Act 1955 2. Hindu Succession Act 1956 3. Hindu Adoption and Succession Act 1956 These legislation were a success in bringing about the social change because they were backed the public opinion and current social norms and values. Whenever the social norms are ahead of the legal codes, it becomes necessary to bring the legal code into conformity with the prevalent social values. Those social legislations which are far ahead of the sovcial norms and values and those which lack the popular support and public opinion are bound to be a failure. For example 1. 2. 3. 4.
Untouchability Offences Act of 1955 (Later substitued by the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1976) Law relating to Prohibition Hyderabad Beggary Act 1940 Dowry Prohibition Act 1961
These laws produced the scenario described b y Festinger as „forced compliance‟. As long as the behaviour involves forced compliance, there is no internalisation of new norms hence there will be disobedience. Forced compliance only deepens the discreoancy between the law and the social behaviour.
Socialization is a term used by sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, politicians and educationalists to refer to the process of inheriting norms, customs and ideologies. It may provide the individual with the skills and habits necessary for participating within their own societ y; a society itself is formed through a plurality of shared norms, customs, values, traditions, social roles, symbols and languages. Socialization is thus „the means by which social and cultural continuity are attained‟. It refers to a process whereby an individual becomes the functioning member of the society. It is a continous process.
Socialization, however, is not a normative term: it describes a process which may or may not lead to desirable, or 'moral', outcomes. Individual views on certain issues, such as race or economics, may be socialized (and to that extent normalized ) within a society. Many socio-political theories postulate that socialization provides only a partial explanation for human beliefs and behaviours; that agents are not 'blank slates' predetermined by their environment. Scientific research provides strong evidence that people are shaped by both social influences and their hard-wired biological makeup. Genetic studies have shown that a person's environment interacts with their genotype to influence behavioural outcomes. Thus, we conclude that there is a scope of individuality in the process of socialisation.
Definition 1. “Socialisation is a process by which the individuals learn to conform to the normns of the social group.”- W.F. Ogburn 2. Socialisation as the process of “transmission of culture, the process whereby men learn the rules and practices of social groups. ”- Peter Worsley
Types Primary socialization
Primary socialization occurs when a child learns the attitudes, values and actions appropriate to individuals as members of a particular culture. For example if a child saw his/her mother expressing a discriminatory opinion about a minority group, then that child may think this behavior is acceptable and could continue to have this opinion about minority groups. Secondary socialization
Secondary socialization refers to the process of learning what is appropriate behavior as a member of a smaller group within the larger society. It is usually associated with teenagers and ad ults, and involves smaller changes than those occurring in primary socialization. eg. entering a new profession, relocating to a new environment or society.
Developmental socialization
Developmental socialization is the process of learning behavior in a social institution or developing your social skills. Anticipatory socialization
Anticipatory socialization refers to the processes of socialization in which a person "rehearses" for future positions, occupations, and social relationships. Resocialization
Resocialization refers to the process of discarding former behavior patterns and reflexes accepting new ones as part of a transition in one's life. This occurs throughout the human life c ycle (Schaefer & Lamm, 1992: 113). Resocialization can be an intense experience, with the individual experiencing a sharp break with their past, and needing to learn and be exposed to radically different norms and values. An example might be the experience of a young man or woman leaving home to join the military, or a religious convert internalizing the beliefs and rituals of a new faith. An extreme example would be the process by which a transsexual learns to function socially in a dramatically altered gender role. Organizational socialization
Organizational socialization is the process whereby an emplo yee learning the knowledge and skills necessary to assume his or her organizational role. As newcomers become socialized, they learn about the organization and its history, values, jargon, culture, and procedures. They also learn about their work group, the specific people they work with on a daily basis, their own role in the organization, the skills needed to do their job, and both formal procedures and informal norms. Soc ialization functions as a control system in that newcomers learn to internalize and obey organizational values and practices.
Agencies of Socialisation The process of socialization is not only operative in the childhood but throughout the life. From the societal point of view, the child is valued more for „what will he be‟ than „what he is‟. The socialization of a person has been given an institutional framework and controlled through various institutional channels. Following are the various agencies o f socialization. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Family Friends and peer group School Community Castes and class Religion
