Understanding Culture and Socialization in Society

Culture and Socialization

Culture: When using the term "culture" in everyday conversation, it is generally considered equivalent to the higher aspects of the mind, like art, literature, music, and painting. Sociologists' use of the term includes such activities, but also others. Culture has to do with the lifestyles of members of a society or of groups within it. This includes dress, marriage customs and family life, work patterns, religious ceremonies, and pastimes.

"Culture" is conceptually distinct from "society," but there is a close relationship between both concepts. A society is a system of relationships that bind individuals. No culture could exist without society, but equally, there can be a society devoid of culture. Without culture, we would not be at all "human" in the sense we normally understand the term. We would not have a language in which to express ourselves, and our consciousness and ability to think and reason would be greatly limited.

Socialization, Gender, and Sexuality

We learn the characteristics of our culture through socialization, which is the process by which, through contact with other human beings, the helpless infant gradually becomes a self-conscious person, knowledgeable and skilled in the manifestations of the culture in which it was born. From the moment of birth, the child has special needs or requirements that affect the behavior of those responsible for their care; the baby is active from the beginning.

Socialization brings together different generations. The birth of a child changes the lives of those who are responsible for their upbringing, which, in turn, is a new learning experience. Parenthood normally links activities of adults to children for the rest of the lives of both. Older people are still parents when they become grandparents, though, of course, they establish a new set of relationships that connect different generations together. While the cultural learning process is much more intense during infancy and early childhood than later, learning and adaptation continue throughout the life cycle.