Socialization

The EU’s Two-Track Promotion of Democracy in its Eastern Neighbourhood: Examining the Case of Armenia

by Nicholas Ross Smith

Asia-Pacific Journal of EU Studies (forthcoming issue)

This paper examines the EU’s effectiveness in promoting democracy in its Eastern Neighbourhood through engaging with... more This paper examines the EU’s effectiveness in promoting democracy in its Eastern Neighbourhood through engaging with the case study of Armenia. In evoking Pridham’s two-track approach to democratization, the EU’s democratic strategy in its European Neighbourhood Policy is evaluated through empirically examining electoral reform (2008 presidential election) and EU interaction with domestic civil society organizations (specifically domestic NGOs)  in Armenia.  Ultimately, it is argued that the EU represents an inefficient agent of democratization through its European Neighbourhood Policy, comparatively to previous neighbourhood strategies which were based on enlargement, where reform is now more modest and the EU’s mechanisms and strategies require modification and reinvigoration.

‘Heaven starts at your parents’ feet’: adolescent bowing to parents and associated spiritual attitudes

by Phra Nicholas Thanissaro

International Journal of Children's Spirituality (2010), Vol.15 No.4, pp.295-305.

In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi‐religious sample of 369 school pupils aged... more In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi‐religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London, the practice of bowing to parents was found widespread in 22% of adolescents spanning several religious affiliations and ethnicities – especially Buddhists, Hindus and those of Indian, African and ‘Other Asian’ ethnicity. Whether an adolescent bowed correlated significantly with spiritual attitudes such as wanting to abstain from alcohol, hearing religious stories, being inspired by religious festivals and liking the idea of seeing God in everything. Findings suggest bowing to parents can have religious significance on all three levels of Jackson’s Interpretive Approach and therefore cannot be regarded as a ‘cultural accretion’ of religion. Study of bowing to parents could form a unifying exercise in shared values for study of religion in the plural classroom and facilitate community cohesion in certain religious membership groups.

From the Mouths of Babes: Exploring Families' Career Socialization of Young Children in China, Lebanon, Belgium, and the United States

by Brenda Berkelaar

Co-authored with Patrice M. Buzzanell & Lorraine Kisselburgh

Families' communication with young children about work and careers has not been the focus of much systematic... more Families' communication with young children about work and careers has not been the focus of much systematic investigation. We contribute to family communication scholarship both by providing an overview of career socialization research involving children, and by presenting findings from a multinational (China, Lebanon, Belgium, and the United States) investigation of 800 children's discursive, cultural, and material socialization. Using a grounded interpretive approach and the theoretical lenses of intersectionalities and socialization messages, we found that children engaged in four communicative processes that intersected across cultural differences: (a) acting as designers of their own careers; (b) extracting cues to make sense of careers; (c) articulating meaningfulness based on local contexts, and (d) participating in families' concerted cultivation and/or natural growth practices.

The perspective of host country nationals in socializing expatriates: The importance of foreign-local relations

by Geoffrey Leonardelli

Toh, S.M., DeNisi, A.S., & Leonardelli, G.J. (2012). The perspective of host country nationals in socializing expatriates: The importance of foreign-local relations. In C. Wanberg (Ed.) The Oxford Handbook of Organizational Socialization. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Failure to adapt is one of the most often cited reasons for the premature return of expatriate assignees. This chapter... more Failure to adapt is one of the most often cited reasons for the premature return of expatriate assignees. This chapter reviews and builds on research that suggests that the expatriate socialization process involves multiple stakeholders. We introduce new theory on the process of expatriate socialization by adopting the host country national’s perspective, and taking into consideration social cognitions and organizational practice as important interactive influences on host country coworkers’ decision to act as potentially important socializing agents for expatriate newcomers. We discuss the consequences for multiple stakeholders when the socializing potential of host country nationals is overlooked. Our research has significant implications for how organizations and expatriates should approach expatriate socialization, particularly that the host country nationals’ role in the process needs to be taken more seriously.

Social identity: Looking through micro-macro lenses

by Boushra Dalile

2010 - Conference Presentation - Violent becomings: discipline, education and identity formation in the monastic rules of Visigothic Spain

by Jamie Wood

Presentation given at the Medieval Hispanic Research Seminar, Queen Mary University of London in January 2012

"Why Do You Write Your Name Long Like That?" Language and Literacy In a San Francisco Kindergarten

by Espen Helgesen

Unpublished Master's Thesis, University of Bergen 2008

In this thesis I investigate the role of language awareness in early literacy, and argue that skills acquired when... more In this thesis I investigate the role of language awareness in early literacy, and argue that skills acquired when becoming literate can provide resources for manipulating social as well as textual relations. Based on ethnographic research among a group of 5- and 6-year old kindergartners in a San Francisco public school, I describe how the kids' personal names provided them with stable landmarks with which to explore both oral and written language. The capacity of names to facilitate communication was, however, countered by the equally powerful capacity of names to obstruct communication. Presenting the kids' personal names as examples of how language is often polysemic, or ambiguous, I argue that, even if the words they used did not have a singular meaning, they were often treated as if they did. I argue that there was a mismatch between two dominant perspectives on names among the kindergartners. Whereas some of the kids primarily used names as markers of identity, others challenged this stability by manipulating names in what I refer to as name joking; the playful manipulation of phonemes or letters for humorous effect. The assumed fixity of names seemed to make them particularly suitable for joking purposes, and a tension could often be found between the kids who considered names to be attached to individuals, and those who considered names to be detached or detachable from individuals. I argue that metalinguistic awareness, understood as the ability to attend to elements of language as objects, was a prerequisite for name joking. Rather than emphasizing this single skill, however, I argue that the kids' different perspectives on language was the product of a difference in communicative flexibility. As such, the kids who were able to switch between considering names to be attached and to be detached from people had a distinct advantage both in conversation and play among the kindergartners. Although teachers encouraged the kids to consider language to be a fluid and flexible tool, they also treated language as a direct reflection of reality by responding with sanctions when the kids used what was referred to as "bad words".

Behavioral Change Starts in the Family: The Role of Family Communication and Implications for Social Marketing

by Torgeir Watne

With Linda Brennan. Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, 23(4), 367-386, 2011

This article investigates reciprocal consumer socialization in families, with a particular focus on the influence... more This article investigates reciprocal consumer socialization in families, with a particular focus on the influence young adults above age 18 living at home have over their parents. A dyadic method of analysis was used to determine the level of influence young people have on the decision making of their parents with regard to the consumption of environmentally sustainable products. Our research shows that parents are not only influenced by their adolescent children, but that they are much more likely to take their children's advice when the family foster open issue-based communication patterns with respect for others. Our findings show that when the parents initially encourage their children to develop their own opinions and at the same time uphold the family hierarchy, they are much more likely to take their children's advice as well. For social marketers seeking to address issues of sustainable consumption, these are important findings.

Children as agents of secondary socialisation for their parents

by Torgeir Watne

With Antonio Lobo anf Linda Brennan. Young Consumers, Volume 12 issue 4, 2011

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the body of knowledge associated with consumer socialisation.... more Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the body of knowledge associated with consumer socialisation. We investigate how children function as socialisation agents for their parents in influencing their purchase intentions of computer and high-tech products – essentially the idea of the young educating the old.

Design/methodology/approach – A review of the extant literature relating to consumer socialisation, social power and knowledge about computer related and small high-tech products yielded meaningful hypotheses. A structured survey which was required to be completed by dyads (i.e. children and parents) was mailed to Australian families in the state of Victoria. Data obtained from 180 usable responses from the dyads were analysed to test the hypotheses.

Findings – Children are seen to possess expert power over their parents with regards to computer related and small high-tech products; which make them an important agent of secondary socialisation for their parents. Men are perceived as being more knowledgeable than women, a phenomenon which leads mothers to be more inclined in seeking their children’s (son’s in particular) advice.

Research limitations/implications – This study implies that when children are seen as experts by their parents, they become important agents of secondary socialisation. However, this only relates to the consumption of the product categories studied here. Future research needs to include other product categories in order to assess the validity of the measures.

Practical implications – Marketers of computer related and small high-tech products can benefit from the findings when promoting these products to children and parents.

Originality/value – This research study is unique in Australia and possibly globally.

Keywords – Children, family, consumer socialisation, high-tech products, computer related products

Paper Type – Research Paper

Herramientas para un análisis del impacto de las políticas públicas en la confianza social

by María Cecilia Güemes

Revista Circunstancia, Instituto Universitario Ortega y Gasset, Madrid, España Año IX - Nº 26 Septiembre de 2011

In recent years social trust has become a favorite topic for social research. However, role of the State in its... more In recent years social trust has become a favorite topic for social research. However, role of the State in its problematic re-creation has received little attention. Considering that and assuming such relation is indirect and complex to explain, in this paper we present and justify a tripartite methodological strategy that tries to analyze the impact that public policies have on trust. Based on case study research this proposal try to explore how public policy reshape the scenarios in which trust are embedded: a) objective structures: productive and labor relations and social classes, b) traditional spaces of informal socializing like school and urban spaces; c) subjectivity and social imaginary.
We conclude by pointing out the advantages and contributions of the strategy proposed here.

Targeted Socialization

by Dean Call

Transition Shock: New Graduates Adjust to the Real World

by Judy Duchscher

(2006) « Convertirse en psicoanalista en Francia », Política y Sociedad, Madrid, (numéro spécial “Sociologia y Anthropologia de la Enfermedad Mental”), Vol. 43, N° 3: 73-88

by Samuel Lézé

article in spanish

RESUMEN
««¿Cómo convertirse en psicoanalista?» Las respuestas a esta pregunta representan el eje de las... more RESUMEN
««¿Cómo convertirse en psicoanalista?» Las respuestas a esta pregunta representan el eje de las discusio- nes que se han desarrollado en Francia, en torno a la formación más apropiada para los psicoanalistas. Apoyándose en un trabajo de campo de 6 meses, realizado en el mundo social de los psicoanalistas pari- sinos, desde una perspectiva de sociología política de la salud mental, este artículo se propone dos obje- tivos. En primer lugar, dado que se considera al análisis como un momento social particular dividido en dos polos y constituido por organizaciones militantes dentro de un campo político, se intenta comprender de qué manera una carrera de “trabajo con uno mismo” se vuelve, no sin tensiones, más una carrera mili- tante de un cierto tipo que una actividad profesional. En segundo lugar, se trata de restituir la compleji- dad de la socialización de los psicoanalistas, sus limitaciones objetivas y el tipo de carrera moral basada en el principio de cambio del self*.

PALABRAS CLAVE: Psicoanalistas, psicoanálisis, salud mental, interaccionismo, carrera, profesión, organiza- ción militante, socialización, cura por la palabra.

ABSTRAC T
Answering the question “how do we become a psychoanalyst?” is in the heart of the divisions of the psychoanalysis in France relating in particular to the most appropriate training. Leaning on a long- term fieldwork (6 years) in the social world of the Parisian psychoanalysts and a perspective of poli- tical sociology of the mental health, the aims of this article are: (i). to consider the psychoanalysis as a particular social movement divided into two poles and constituted by activist organizations in a poli- tical arena. Then the issue addresses how a self work’s career become, no without tensions, a type of activist’s career rather than a professional activity as such. (ii). To restore the complexity of the socia- lization of the psychoanalysts, its objective constraints and the type of moral career in the principle of the change of self.

KEY WORDS: Psychoanalysts, psychoanalyse, mental health, interactionism, career, profession, social movement organization, therapy.

Directives: Entitlement and contingency in action

by Alexandra Kent

Televisión y socialización: apuntes críticos desde una ecologia socio-cognitiva

by MAGDALENA ALBERO-ANDRÉS

Published in: TELOS - Cuadernos de Comunicación, Tecnología y Sociedad  38 (1994)

Visual Culture`s Role On the Emergence of Identity

by Evren Eken

The article focuses on the nexus between visual culture and identity formation by implementing a Lacanian social... more The article focuses on the nexus between visual culture and identity formation by implementing a Lacanian social theory into three paintings by Tintoretto, Velazquez and Dali respectively. During the last decade the importance of
everyday life has gradually become a junction between social
sciences, ranging from sociology to international relations,
visual culture and anthropology. Along with discerning the
limits of structural determinations on identity, new
approaches on the constraints and powers of individual
choices have increasingly started to be welcomed by social
theory. Due to that, the very basics of everyday life, such
as reality and identity have begun to be the new objects of
analyses. However, the importance of visuality, as to its
impacts on the structuration of identity is yet to be
understood as an ordinary component of everyday life. Hence
the aim of this paper is to set forth an introductory
argument for scrutinizing the impact of visual culture on
the sources of identity and its wider ties relating to the
changing patterns of socialization and social change through
an interdisciplinary perspective. The critical nuance of
this introductory argument is that visual culture has a deep
and indirect impact on the sources of identity and
socialization process, rather than having a direct impact on
identity.

“Personal Communication, 2006”: Authorship and Ownership in Anthropology

by Kathryn Graber

2010. Michigan Discussions in Anthropology 18:174–208.

School Experiences, Classroom Climate and Political Trust. A Two-Year Panel Study among Belgian Late Adolescents on the Impact of School Environment Characteristics on Political Trust

by Sofie Marien

Co-authored with Ellen Claes and Marc Hooghe. Forthcoming in International Journal of Public Opinion Research.

Trust in political institutions can be considered as an important prerequisite for the stability of democratic... more Trust in political institutions can be considered as an important prerequisite for the stability of democratic political systems. Opinions differ, however, on how this attitude is shaped. Research among adolescents suggests that this age group already has quite stable levels of political trust, even before they can have had first-hand experiences with the functioning of political systems. Building on a two-year panel study among Belgian adolescents (n=3,632), we investigate the development of political trust between the ages of 16 and 18. As was already predicted by functionalist authors, experiences with an open classroom climate have strong and persistent positive effects on political trust, and this effect proves to be much stronger than the one from direct civic education classes. The information function of mass media and academic aspirations, too, have a strong effect on political trust.

Ora et Labora – The use of prayer in schooling

by Ondrej Kaščák

Forthcoming in Pedagogy, Culture and Society
Co-authored with Slavomira Gajnakova

This study researches the role prayer plays in a class at a faith primary school in Slovakia in terms of reproducing... more This study researches the role prayer plays in a class at a faith primary school in Slovakia in terms of reproducing the traditional elements of school organisation/schoolwork, such as accepting authority, conforming and competing. It looks at non-religious elements of school socialisation as a consequence of the practice of praying. At the same time, it establishes the state of research in the psychology of religion and its limits. It reconstructs the path Slovakia has taken inestablishing faith education and religious elements within education in order to reveal the sociocultural background concerning the practice of prayer in Slovak schools. It then presents some of the research findings from the ethnographic study of prayer. Prayer is found to be a strong formal and symbolic element in school socialisation.

Power, publishing and prestige: Academic freedom in the corporatized university

by Andrew Herrmann

Paper presented at the Central States Communication Association Convention, St. Louis, MO. (Top paper Communication Ethics and Freedom of Expression Interest Group)

Educational scholars often use survey-based and statistical analysis to investigate how individuals are socialized... more Educational scholars often use survey-based and statistical analysis to investigate how individuals are socialized into academe. This discursive and narrative project focused on intricate, detailed and lived aspects of academic socialization. Using narrative interviewing, this project reveals new faculty negotiating strategically ambiguous situations, self-disciplining to become “good” academics, and the consequences of the pursuit of prestige by universities on new faculty agendas.