Discussion Post: Exploring Socialization and Social Norms
Prior to beginning work on this discussion read the articles How Policing Black Boys Leads to the Conditioning of Black Men, Fear of The Black Man: How Racial Bias Could Affect Crime, Labor Rates, Disproportionate Minority Contact in the Juvenile Justice System, The Essence of Innocence: Consequences of Dehumanizing Black Children and When Chicago Tortured, and perform your own research.
This discussion will help you think about the varied aspects of socialization, social norms, and deviant behavior that are at the foundation of public sociology. In your initial post, thoroughly address the following, providing specifics to support your presentation of the course content:
1) What is socialization?
2) What are the key agents of socialization?
3) What are the social processes involved in creating social norms?
4) Erving Goffman defines the core components of "dramaturgy" in his book The Presentation of Selfin 1959. The basic idea of this perspective is that our entire social world is a stage, where performances take place. These front and back stage performances are either convincing, or not, and influence how we are perceived by others, and also how we perceive ourselves.
a) What are some of your "front" and "back" stage behaviors?
b) Whom do you feel most comfortable revealing your backstage behaviors to?
c) How do you use your front stage performances?
d) How do you control your behaviors around your family, friends, and in public to reflect an identity you want them to believe?
5) After reading the articles How Policing Black Boys Leads to the Conditioning of Black Men, Fear of The Black Man: How Racial Bias Could Affect Crime, Labor Rates, The Essence of Innocence: Consequences of Dehumanizing Black Children, and Disproportionate Minority Contact in the Juvenile Justice System respond to the following questions:
a) How do the authors suggest policing of black boys influences their socialization?
b) How might the experience of being targeted by police as a youth influence how these young men experience similar interactions as an adult?
c) After enduring such an experience, what might these individuals transmit to future generations in similar situations about how to define police?
6) After reading the article, When Chicago Tortured, respond to the following questions:
a) Is it ever appropriate to coerce information from a suspect using physical, emotional, or mental abuse? Explain why or why not.
b) How was the abuse of suspects by Chicago Police driven by those with status and power in the city?
c) If a person were to commit such aggressions against suspects under the direct orders of a supervisor, should they be defined as deviant, or should the fact that they are effectively taking orders from a superior reduce, or remove, any deviant label?
The response should include a reference list. One-inch margins, Using Times New Roman 12 pnt font, double-space and APA style of writing and citations.