Socialisation

● Socialisation is the process of learning how to behave as part of a society.

● Primary socialisation is socialisation that takes place between the age of 0-5.
● Secondary socialisation takes place from the age of 6 and continues into adulthood.
● Social control is the way society keeps social order and ensures people follow society’s
norms
● Sanctions (rewards and punishments) are used by the family e.g. a treat, the naughty
step, or by the peer group exclusion from activities, gossip to encourage people to
conform.
● Formal social control is used by Agencies of social control e.g. Police, The Courts.More
severe e.g. a prison sentence, removal of children from the family home.
● A feral child is a human child who has lived isolated from human contact from a very
young age, and so has had little or no experience of human care, behavior, or human
language.
● Genie is a Californian girl who was locked in a room from the age of about one and a
half until she was over thirteen (Curtiss, 1977). When she was first admitted to the
hospital, she could not stand erect, run, jump or climb, and was only able to walk in a
shuffling, clumsy way. She was described by a psychiatrist as ‘unsocialised, primitive,
hardly human’.

Gender Roles

● Gender socialisation is the process in which children learn what is expected of them and
how to behave like a girl or a boy
● Canalisation means parents select toys for their children that reflect gender roles e.g. a
doll for a girl.
● Manipulation meaning girls and boys are encouraged to take part in activities that are
considered gender appropriate, a physical activity like rugby for a boy
● Verbal appellations e.g. pretty girl, strong boy
● Role models / imitation e.g. girls imitate their mothers applying makeup and doing house
work
● Equal Pay Act 1970 and the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, which helped woman achieve
equality in work and education
● Societal norms have changed, it is now considered acceptable for women to want to
pursue a career and for men to do more domestic duties in the home and to have more
of an active role as a father.

Theory

● Identity means the way people define themselves and different things or qualities that
make you who you are.
● One reason why people struggle with their identity may be if they are adopted. For
example, those who are adopted are growing up without knowledge of their birth parents
and their birth parents' culture and background.
● Nature theory explores how our genetics determine our behaviour as we were born with
our traits and abilities. Scientists suggest that we inherit behaviour traits just like
appearance traits such as eye colour. Evidence for nature theory: Jim Twins-
● Nurture Theory showst is our surroundings such as our environment, upbringing, family
and society that makes us who we are and what we grow to be
 ● The sociologist Bernstein argued that working class families tend to use a restricted
language code in the home whereas middle class families use an elaborated code (they
describe and explain things in more detail). The family reinforces class identity in this
way

● Functionalist:They believe that society works well when all agencies play their
part.They are positive about society.If an individual is dysfunctional it is because one of
the agencies failed
● Marxist: they believe that the way society is unfair as it only benefits a small minority i.e.
the bourgeoisie, employers etc.The system is made in a way to oppress the proletariat.
● Liberal feminists would like equality for males and females.Radical feminists would like
to eliminate the concept of gender to stop discrimination taking place.

Family

● A family is a group of people who are related by blood or by law.A household is the
people that live together in a house or other accommodation.
● Cohabitation is where a couple live together but are not married.
● The nuclear family consists of two parents, a mother, a father and their children. It is
also known as the cereal packet family.
● Extended families. Families with other family members living with them.There are 2
types of extended families; horizontal and vertical.
● Horizontal families are when there are two generations such cousins, uncles and aunts
living together or nearby.
● Vertical families are when grandparents live in the household. This is because different
generations live in the home. Grandparents, parents and children.
● Beanpole - people living longer so older parents/grandparents, people have fewer
children, cost of raising children expensive, women having children later in life some due
to career
● Boomerang - children move back in with parents due to financial cost of living, common
to move back after uni. House prices v. high hard to buy get on to property ladder
● Sandwich Family - The sandwich generation is when a couple in their 30’s/40’s are
looking after their own children and their elderly parents. they always lived together
● Empty Shell marriage - Empty-shell marriages are where the couple stay together for
the children
● Changes in law 1968 divorce law- easier and quicker to get divorce, same sex marriage
2014. Change in social attitude, more acceptable, less stigma. Secularisation, people
don’t get married or get a divorce without stigma/guilt. Women more financially
independent don’t need a partner. Extended families provide support for working parents
- dual income families.people living longer, parents need care

● Rapoport 1982.The way in which a family is organised. Due to your religious

background, ethnicity or culture that will influence how your family looks There might
also be differences in terms of child rearing practices between the Bourgeoisie and the
Proletariat. Depending on your age and generation it will depend on how you view
discipline, giving children independence, how you view divorce, homosexuality etc.
● Willmott and Young believes the family has gone through 4 stages of
development/transformation over time.These stages include: Pre-industrial families,
Industrial families, Symmetrical families and the ‘Managing director’ family.

● The ‘new man’ spent more time in the home, did more domestic work and spent more
time with their children.
●
● Ann Oakley who’s research in the 1970s fargued Willmott and Young exaggerated the
role men played in the home

● e.g. 72% of men helped the women with at least one piece of housework a week, which
is a very small amount compared to the women’s workload.

● Oakley argued that as more women did paid work they end up with a double burden as
they did almost all of the housework and childcare as well.

● Duncombe and Marsden in 1995 suggested that women also do most of the emotional
support roles in the home leading to a triple shift.

● The ONS calculated if adults were paid for their unpaid work women would earn £260
per week compared to £166 per week for men.

● Stephen Edgell discovered that although women made decisions regarding home
decoration, childcare and domestic spending, men made the significant decisions e.g.
finance, moving house and concluded men were still in control of domestic decision
making.

● Jan Pahl 1993 found that in households where they were dual workers there was much
more equality when it came to decisions in regards to the home, children and money.

Sociologists:

● Functionalism :Family provides many functions: Primary socialisation, shelter,

emotional stability, financial stability, teaches you your identity and culture and your
status.Parsons believe the functions provide a ‘warm bath’ effect.Most important
functions are emotional stability and primary socialisation.
●
● New Right thinkers: They believe the only family that supports [primary socialisation
fully is the nuclear family. They believe it can teach the child gender roles and gender
socialisation. They also believe this is the best one as they will not rely on the welfare
state.
●
● Childhood is a social construct. The way children are viewed and treated varies across
societies and across time. There is much debate today about the state of childhood,
with some sociologists arguing that we live in a child centred society

● Family size has decreased over the generations. The average number of children is 1.9
per family showing most families have 1 or 2 children
●
● Working hours for parents have reduced and so parents have more leisure time to spend
with their children.
 ● Children are better protected in law than they have ever been. The Children's Act 1989
gave improved powers to Local Authorities to enable them to better safeguard children
and protect them from abuse. The Children's Act 2004 strengthened powers and
ensured agencies work together to protect children.

● Here are currently 4.3 million children, that is 3 in 10 children in the Uk living in poverty

● Sue Palmer describes modern childhood as toxic. She argues that modern children are
at greater risk of mental health problems, obesity and a lack of freedom to play outside
● Children from working classes still face significant challenges and barriers in their lives
which means society is not child centred for all groups of children

Research methods

● Reliability: This means research that can be repeated and compared in other situations
and contexts
● Validity: This means the results paint a true picture of society, they are an accurate
representation of reality
● Representativeness: This means the group being studied (the sample) truly represents
the target population. For example the sample has a mix of ages, gender, ethnic
minority groups, locations similar to the population being studied.

Strengths of covert participant observations:

● The researcher observes every aspect of social life from the participants point of view.
This makes the research very valid.
● Avoids the Hawthorne effect. As the group does not know they are being observed they
behave naturally, increasing validity.
● Is often the only way of gaining important research about criminal or vulnerable groups
of people e.g. homeless people, drug addicts. This justifies the ethical issue of
deception according to many sociologists

Weaknesses of covert participant observations:

● Practical issues such as getting access to a gatekeeper may be difficult to overcome.

Researchers might find themselves in danger or involved in criminal behaviour.
Researchers conceal illegal activity from the police for example to protect their research.
● James Patrick refused to carry a weapon when he researched Glasgow gangs, this
also put him in danger. James Patrick delayed publishing his research for a number of
years to protect the identity of the gang members he studied
● Laud Humphrey impersonated an NHS employee to trick homosexual men into
discussing their personal lives.
● The researcher may go native. This means they are so influenced by the views of the
● group they are studying that their findings are biased and less valid.
Ethics:
● Ethics are based upon the idea of what is right and wrong and standards of behaviour in
research carried out by sociologists.
● Informed Consent: Participants have the right to know exactly what the research
involves so they are not harmed.
● Participants have the right to withdraw from the process: The participant needs to
be aware that they can change their mind and leave the research at any time.
● Confidentiality and anonymity: Anonymity means the identity of the people involved in
the research are not revealed. Participants should not be put at risk of physical or
psychological harm

Strengths of overt participant observations:

● The researcher observes every aspect of social life from the participants point of view.
This makes the research very valid.
● Trust can be built up allowing the researcher to find out a great deal of detail. The
researcher can ask the group questions to really understand their lives. The research is
very valid.
● The researcher is able to record information as they go rather than relying on their
memory which reduces mistakes being made, the research is more accurate.

Weaknesses of overt participant observations:

● Hawthorne Effect: The researchers presence may make the group change their
behaviour making the research less valid.
● The researcher can become very involved in the lives of the group they are observing.
This can make them biased in the way they interpret and record what they are seeing.
● The research is not reliable. Each group being observed is unique, the findings will only
be true of the one group studied.

Strengths of quantitative data:

● You can collect a large amount of data from a large sample e.g. by questionnaire. This
makes the data more representative and fair.
● The data is easy to graph so patterns and trends can be seen and comparisons easily
made.
● The data is very reliable. The study can easily be repeated with the same questions
allowing a real comparison of different groups in different areas.

Weaknesses of quantitative data:

● Lacks detailed information so hard to get a full picture.
● It is low in validity. The sociologist will not gain a true picture of society e.g. if people are
selecting from multiple choice answers and are not able to go into depth.
● Links between statistics do not always prove a cause. For example poverty can be linked
to doing badly in education but it is not clear if poverty leads to low education outcomes
or if low education outcomes leads to poverty.
Strengths of qualitative data:
● The research collected is very detailed and enables the researcher to get a full
understanding.
● The detailed data collected in the respondents own words, means the information is very
valid. It paints a true picture of reality.
● The detailed data collected can help researches design further research questions e.g
Eileen Barker used qualitative data to design a questionnaire to gain data from
thousands of Moonies

Weaknesses of qualitative data:

● Qualitative data is time consuming and therefore expensive to collect. This means the
sample size will be smaller.
● A small sample will not represent the target population, it will not be representative or
fair.
● Often low in reliability. It is difficult to repeat a study for example semi / unstructured
interview or observation that collects qualitative data.

Strengths of secondary data:

● It is already available meaning it is cheap and easy to collect. Official statistics for
example are collected from a very large sample of people meaning they are very
representative of the population and can be graphed to identify patterns and trends.
● Content analysis has been a very useful method to study the media. Content analysis
has exposed the degree of gender stereotyping and sexism in adverts for example.

Weaknesses of secondary data:

● The data was collected by another group or organisation so may not be in the form
needed by the sociologist. This will make it harder to analyse and understand.
● It may be hard to compare statistics or data collected in the past with that today as the
way data is collected changes over time.
● The data may have been collected in a biased way by the group or organisation who
collected it. This means it is not trustworthy or valid.

Strengths of structured interviews:

● As all respondents answered the same questions, it is easier to collate results into
statistics to identify patterns and trends
● The interviewer is able to explain the meaning of the questions and can encourage
respondents to explain in more detail, this makes the research very detailed and very
valid.
● The list of questions means the interview can be repeated with other groups in other
locations, increasing reliability.
Weaknesses of structured interviews:
● Interviews are time consuming and expensive as the interviewers have to be trained and
paid. This means only a small number of interviews can be completed which makes the
sample smaller and less representative / fair.
● There is a risk of the interviewer biasing the research.
● For example William Labov researched this and found black respondents spoke more
openly and honestly to a black interviewer in a relaxed environment but were less
comfortable speaking to a white interviewer in a formal environment.

Strengths of unstructured interviews:

● The interviewer develops a strong rapport (relationship) with the respondent as the
discussion develops. As the interviewer is free to ask additional questions they get a
complete picture of reality making the research very valid.
● The respondent is free to talk in their own words without being questioned. T
● For example Dobash and Dobash used unstructured interviews so they could build trust
speaking to victims of domestic abuse.
● Unstructured interviews can provide very detailed information about the social life of
groups we know little about
.
Weaknesses of unstructured interviews: Each interview is unique with no standard
questions. This makes it impossible to repeat the interviews with other people. The research is
unreliable.

Random sampling means that members of the population have an equal chance of being
selected. E.g picking names out of a hat or using a computer generated list. It is considered
representative and fair as all members of the target population have an equal chance of being
selected.

Systematic: The researcher decides on a pattern or system for the selection of the sample and
then follows this to select who will be part of the sample. For example choosing every 3rd
person on a register / 10th person on a voters list.

Quota: are a method of making sure that a truly representative sample is chosen. Take a
tailored sample that’s in proportion to the characteristics or traits of a population.

Stratified random samples are a type of quota sample. The sample frame (where the sample
is chosen from) is divided up into groups to represent the characteristics of the target
population.

Snowball: this person then recommends / introduces the researcher to other suitable people
who take part in the research. The sample gets bigger as more and more people are introduced.
 Education

Private/Public/Independent schools -These are schools where the parent pays for their child to
get an education. Some schools also provide boarding. These schools also do not have to
follow the National curriculum. Average cost £17,000 per year

Grammar schools- A state school which admits students based on their ability after sitting the
11+ exam. For example Woodford County High. They follow the national curriculum

Academies-These are schools that take over those that were ‘failing’ or because other schools
in the area are not very good. However good schools can also convert to this. These schools
can be sponsored by a business or other group. They do not have to follow the national
curriculum.

Free schools- A school that is funded by the government but not run by the local council. They
can be set up by different groups such as parents, teachers, charities or community/faith
groups. They can set their own pay and conditions for staff and do not need to follow the
national curriculum

Specialist schools-These are state schools which specialise in one or two areas such as; Arts,
business, science or performing arts.

Single sex School- This is a state school whereby only one sex is taught. This can be done to
help with concentration, to target the needs of that particular sex etc. For example Plashet.

Alternatives to mainstream secondary education are Homeschooling where students may be

taught by their parents at home, but they may sit their exams in a school. There are also pupil
referral units for those students who have been excluded from mainstream education.

How schools are measured:

League tables- Schools are ranked both Nationally and in their borough of how well schools
are doing. It is measured on how many 5 A*-c students get including Maths and English

Ofsted- This is another way that schools are measured. A group of people who are made up of
teachers and government bodies come and assess how well a school is doing. They look at
teaching and learning, students behaviour, the leadership of schools and Safeguarding.

Functions:

Secondary socialisation -Teaches norms and values of society, hidden curriculum teaches
expected behaviour.

Economic Role –- Provides trained and skilled workers needed in the workplace.Could also
refer to Bowles and Gintis and correspondence theory but they see it from Marxist view of
recreating a workforce for the capitalist system
Role Allocation/selection –Helps select individuals for the right role job in society based on
their skills and ability. Through meritocracy those with the skills and ability are rewarded with the
right role (Refer to Parsons). Exams enable individuals to be tested and then selected for the
right role.

Social Cohesion - Teaches social values and tolerance and respect, Helps maintain social
solidarity and unity in society

Political Role – Teaches about democracy and rights as a citizen, different political parties and
voting.

Social Control – Schools are informal agencies of social control. They teach acceptance of
authority figures and following rules. Uses sanctions such as detentions, reports or isolation.
They also have positive sanctions and rewards like certificates and commendations. They use
these sanctions to make students conform.

Parsons: universalistic values of society and how status is achieved. The ideas of meritocracy
and role allocation are important as people are rewarded for their hard work and can fill in the
jobs suited to their skills and abilities making it a fair and equal system.

Marxists see education as reproducing the class system. The bourgeoisie have cultural capital
and are at an advantage to do well and take the top positions in society.

Bowles and Gintis explain through correspondence theory how schools provide employers
with the skills needed for an obedient and passive workforce and so education reinforces class
inequalities.

Feminists see schools as patriarchal, run in favour of males and dominated by males. In the
past girls have underachieved due to different factors including the gendering of subjects and
given alternative choices. Now girls are outperforming boys in all subjects in spite of the
patriarchy they face.

Data

● 2008 students up to 18 must be in education, training or employment

● 2008 free travel for individuals up to 16 in London
● 2010 Increase in tuition fees from £3000 to £9000
● 2010 Introduction of Free schools
● 2011 Reform for pupil premium
● 2014 By 18 you must have attained a ‘C’/5 in Maths and English
 ● Grouping:is putting students in groups or classes based on their academic ability.

● Labelling: Students are given a role they have to live upto. students in those groups are
lazy or badly behaved which can then lead to the self-fulfilling prophecy where students
act on that label and therefore do not try hard and perform badly.

● Halo effect: Middle class white students where teachers have higher expectations
leading to the biased attention Hargreaves found that teachers were more likely to label
middle class pupils as ‘clever’ and working class pupils as ‘less able’.

● Mac and Ghail describe how working class boys might be having a ‘crisis of masculinity’
with fewer traditional jobs for men.

● Willis found working class boys may also develop anti-school subcultures which lead
them to reject school values. Girls develop their language from the ‘bedroom culture’ and
therefore do better than boys.
○
● Tony Sewell- Underachievement in Afro Caribbean boys is due to lack of strict rules and
peer group pressure thus boys get involved in delinquent behaviour and gang life.

● Ethnic minorities also suffer from material deprivation and live in poorer
accommodation. Language barriers may mean parents are less involved and students
don't get the support they need.
● Francis believes this shows ‘the marginalisation of girls and how they do not count.
School and classrooms are male dominated for example boys monopolise more space,
they were much more noisy and took much more of the teachers attention.

Sociologists

● Bernstein- language codes

● Mac & Ghaill - crisis of masculinity for w/c boys
● Angela McRobbie - ‘bedroom culture’ for girls
● Usher & Thompson- new technologies
● Rosenthal and Jacobson - Pygmalion in the classroom

Keywords:
Ethnocentrism-When certain ethnicities believe that they are not doing well because they
cannot connect to the National Curriculum as it is all about British history and all the pictures of
aspiring people are white

Vocational education- These courses prepare people for a specific job for example Hairdressing,
Plumbing, Mechanic etc. Students will gain a qualification such as an NVQ, BTEC or Diploma.

Tripartite system- 1944 until 1965 through the Butler Act. This was the idea that after primary
school students would sit a test called the eleven plus. It would decide if students went to a
grammar school, secondary modern or the technology school.