EACH post should be a minimum of 1-3 paragraphs (8-10 sentences per paragraph). • Demonstrate understanding of key concepts through application in your posts (bold key concepts). • List citations - anything that is copied from the internet will result in a zero. • • In-text citations must use quotation marks and should be kept to a minimum. • POST #1 Agents of Socialization • Choose 1-2 topics below and discuss what you were taught about those topics (good, bad, indifferent) and which agents of socialization socialized you to believe those things. • Discuss if you experienced any positive and/or negative reinforcement in order to get you to conform to the norms you were taught. • You can also discuss if you went through a resocialization process and whether or not you accepted or rejected what you were socialized to believe and do. Topics: race & ethnicity, gender, ability, sexuality, religion, socio-economic statuses, citizenship/nationality Agents of socialization: family, friends, colleagues, media, school, religion, government, work... For example: If you were born and raised as a girl/woman you might have been taught to "sit like a lady," wear makeup when going outside, cook and clean, choose a male partner... You would talk about the agents of socialization that taught you to do/believe those things. Then discuss if you experienced positive or negative sanctions related to gender socialization. Perhaps you were rewarded when you adhered to "acting like a lady" and experienced negative reinforcement when you did not. Note; I am NOT a girl/woman POST #2 ; Role Strain and Role Conflict Discuss a status in which you experience role strain or statuses in which you experience role conflict. • Name the status or statuses. • Explain the role(s) associated with the status or statuses. • Discuss any possible solutions. For example, if you experience role strain as a business owner, what might you, your colleagues, or management do to alleviate the strain? NeONRAND
 

Socialization and Social Interaction

Part 1: Ability and Religion

Socialization refers to the process of learning to behave or act in a manner that is generally acceptable in the community (Frymier and Nadler, 2017). As people grow up in society, they are socialized into different aspects of life such religion, race and ethnicity, citizenship, gender, sexuality, and nationality. The agents of socialization include as family, media, school, government, friends, family, etc. In my case, I would like to discuss my socialization into different abilities and religious beliefs at a young age. In terms of abilities, I would discuss my initiation to learning, reading, and general discipline. That happened as a young child at the kindergarten and first grade and therefore, school was the agent of civilization. I will also discuss my socialization into religious beliefs by the church.

At the kindergarten and first grade, the teachers taught us mannerisms, etiquette and how to read and write. They used both positive and negative reinforcement to get us to conform to certain behaviors. For instance, the teacher utilized positive reinforcement such as giving us presents whenever we wrote correctly. At first grade, I was awarded a toy for being the most courteous pupil in the class. Such stimulus acted as a positive reinforcement for good behavior and academic performance. Those who performed poorly and were less courteous were denied basic freedoms such as going to play with the rest. The removal of such stimulus acted as a negative reinforcement (Frymier and Nadler, 2017). At the church, I was taught religious values such as honesty, love, truthfulness, among others. In this case, the church was the agent of socialization. I was taught that living religiously would earn me eternal life and that acted as a positive reinforcement for religious living. On the same note, I was taught that being less religious would attract eternal suffering in hell. Such fear acted as negative reinforcement and shaped my religious views up to today.

Post 2: Role Strain and Role Conflict

Role strain refers to stress that arises within one particular role, while role conflict refers to the confusion involving one or more roles (Ebbers and Wijnberg, 2017). As a son, I faced role strain as a tried to balance between the wishes and aspirations of my parents while trying to chart my own path. Being a son is not as easy as one would imagine. At a young age, my parents encouraged me to study hard and become a neurosurgeon. In my heart, I have never wanted to be one. In such a scenario, I experienced role strain since I did not want to disappoint my parents yet I also wanted to pursue my dream in sociology. Disagreeing with my parents would have been a huge disappointment on them. Therefore, I was not ready to lose favor with them as their son yet I wanted to pursue my dreams. To address the challenge, I waited until I became an adult. Through conversation and dialogue, I explained to my parents what my preferences were and they gladly embraced them. I was trying to find the balance between being a good son and pursuing my dreams.

Role conflict arises when one has to perform two conflicting or competing roles at the same time (Ebbers and Wijnberg, 2017). I have been experiencing role conflict at a personal level since I joined college. The status of being a student comes with different roles, which are conflicting and competing. For instance, as a student, I want to score good grades at the end of the course. However, I also find myself struggling to meet my other dreams such as volunteering at a local charity home, learning driving, learning a foreign language and playing football. All these competing roles arise due to my status as a student. To avoid role conflict, I ensure proper planning and timing of every activity. Proper scheduling, avoids overlapping and reduces role conflict.