CHILDREN AND SOCIETY: THE SOCIOLOGY OF CHILDREN AND CHILDHOOD SOCIALIZATION, 1st ed.

CHILDREN AND SOCIETY The Sociology of Children and Childhood Socialization *First Edition*
Gerald Handel, City College and Graduate Center at the City University of New York Spencer E. Cahill, University of South Florida Frederick Elkin, York University at Toronto
ISBN: 1-933220-40-6
softbound, 372 pages, © 2007
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These authors, all seasoned veterans of childhood research, have enlightened us with a book that illuminates our understanding about the social worlds of children. We learn about how children become acclimated to their societies, the major agents of socialization that influence them, and how social class and subcultures help to create diverse experiences for our youngest citizens. Accessible, well documented, and current, Children and Society provides the most contemporary, complete, and accurate overview of the field to date. --Peter Adler, University of Denver CHILDREN AND SOCIETY presents a comprehensive sociological portrayal of children and childhood from birth to the beginning of adolescence. A major theme is the tension between children's active agency and the socializing influences of the family, school, peer groups, and mass media. The book incorporates the most recent research and theories of childhood socialization. Its theoretical perspective is primarily symbolic interactionism which emphasizes the development of the self. The volume features research that documents cultural variations within American society shaped by social class, race and ethnicity, and gender. CHILDREN AND SOCIETY is organized into four parts, each with an introduction. Part I, "Understanding Childhood Socialization," consists of four chapters. Chapter One reviews how social scientists have conceptualized children, leading to today's understanding of childhood as a social construction. Chapter Two briefly discusses the characteristics of the human organism that both require and make socialization possible, and the characteristics of society that receives the newborn. Chapter Three reveals the range of meaning of the concept of socialization in western and non-western societies and includes a review of the history of western childhoods. Chapter Four offers a careful exposition of the development of the self. Part II, "Agencies of Socialization," focuses on the major agencies that help shape the development of the self in the United States and similar societies. One chapter each covers families, schools, peer groups, and mass media respectively. "Diversities of Socialization" are the focus of Part III. Whereas Chapter Four presented a general account of how the self develops, the three chapters of Part III examine the variations that are shaped by social class, race, ethnicity and neighborhood, and gender. The single chapter in Part IV, "Looking Back and Looking Ahead," stresses that socialization is a life-long process. It briefly sketches issues of continuity and discontinuity in socialization throughout adolescence, adult life, old age, and death. TABLE OF CONTENTS PART I: Introduction: Understanding Childhood Socialization Complexities of Childhood Socialization Limitations of the Study of Socialization Organization of the Book Chapter 1: Studying Children Competing Images of Children and Childhood The Natural Development of Children The Social Inculcation of Children The Social Construction of Children Appreciating the Complexities of Children's Lives Methods of Studying Children Chapter 2: Foundations of Socialization Isolated Children The Human Organism An Ongoing Society Chapter 3: Cultural and Historical Constructions of Childhood Socialization in Cross-Cultural Perspective Children in Non-Western Societies The History of Western Childhood Continuing Cultural Contrasts: Japan and the United States Chapter 4: Basic Processes and Outcomes of Socialization Society and Socialization Emotionally Significant Relationships Communication Symbols, Language, and Interaction Language and Memory Conversation Language Mastery The Significance of Significant Others Development of the Self Play Stage and Game Stage Time and Outcomes of Socialization More about the Self Self Concept, Identity, Self Esteem, Self Efficacy Sentiments and Emotions Values and the Self Incipient Adult Roles Truncated Childhood, Premature Adulthood A Stock of Social Knowledge PART II: Agencies of Socialization Chapter 5: Families Some Cross-Cultural Comparisons Families in the Community Families as Groups of Interacting Persons Family Composition and Interaction Two-Parent First-Marriage Families Stepfamilies Single Mothers Teenage Mothers Siblings Grandparents in the 21st Century Chapter 6: Schools Preschools and Daycare Centers Head Start Daycare Centers School and Society The Classroom as an Organization Authority Class Size Evaluation Moral Climate Family-School Interaction Chapter 7: Peer Groups Peer Culture Play Sports Peer Group Structures and Processes Play Groups Friendships Cliques Bullying Chapter 8: Media of Mass Communication The Major Issues Viewing as an Activity Violent Program Content and Children's Aggression The Power of Advertising Gender and Racial Stereotyping Research Methods in Television Studies Experiments Surveys Content Analysis Audience Interpretive Response Theories of the Relationship Between Children and Television Uses and Gratifications Cultivation Theory Semiotics Computers, The Internet, and Video Games Access to Computers Implications for Socialization Video Games Computers, Parental Authority, and Children's Autonomy PART III: Diversities of Socialization Chapter 9: Social Class Upper Class Upper-Middle Class Middle Class Working Class Working Poor The Underclass Social Class and Individualism Chapter 10: Ethnic Groups, Minorities, and Neighborhood Communities African American Socialization White European Ethnic Groups Hispanic, Caribbean, and Asian Immigrants Neighborhood Communities Chapter 11: Sex, Gender, and Socialization Sex Category and Social Organization Sex and the Social Division of Labor Sex and Gender Hierarchies The Biology of Sex The Development of Sex-Related Characteristics Nature and Nurture Socialization Processes and Agents Family Interaction The Media Preschools and Schools Peer Relations and Cultures The Complexities of Gender Socialization PART IV: Continuities With and Discontinuities From Childhood Chapter 12: Looking Back and Looking Ahead Socialization in Adolescence Continuities Socialization in Adult Life Continuities Socialization in Aging and Death Continuities