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Article #108: Socialization and Is It All That Important!

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Socialization is extremely critical for develop if they didn't utilize it when
human beings, without it life would be they were a child. So yes, it's quite
dull. In 1938 it was an unfortunate but important to get mysterious games and
true case study of this. A girl named puzzles for your children so you can help
Anna was born to a mentally impaired them develop a more elastic brain. So
woman that lived with her father. She was avoiding people is not good for numerous
sent countless of places but was then of reasons.
returned home due to financial An interesting and classic study was
restraints. She was then forced into the conducted by psychologist Harry and
attic and was given only enough milk to Margaret Harlow using monkeys. It would
live on and lived there until she was be illegal to use human beings for a
five. She wasn't given no affection, no study like this. Since monkeys show the
smiles, no hugs, or anything else, just closest correlation to human beings than
coldness. they were used for this experiment. The
Luckily, social workers saved the girl experiments included testing monkeys in
and sociologist Kingsley Davis went to various environments and comparing the
see the girl immediately once he heard of results to one another. When a baby
the tragedy. The girl was completely monkey was placed in complete isolation
unresponsive, he reported and she did not (except for food and nutrients) for six
laugh nor speak. However, with some help months they reported some deformities in
and guidance the girl did learn how to their development. They found that when
walk, speak a little, and even care for they returned to their group that they
herself. However, she died at the young were extremely fearful and subservient.
age of 10. This is an example of how lack They then placed a baby monkey in cage
of socialization can harm someone both with an "artificial mother," and this
physically and mentally. mother was made of wire and had a wooden
The term socialization refers to the way head, and a feeding tube for a nipple.
humans adapt to their surroundings and These monkeys also showed some
learn their culture. Unlike animals that deformities because when they were placed
behavior is biologically programmed, back in their group they were unable to
humans learn and adopt over time. Social interact properly.
experience and interacting with people is However, for the last experiment a baby
what helps forms an individual's monkey was placed in a cage with an
personality or an individual's consistent artificial mother made of "soft cloth,"
pattern such as emotions, thoughts, and than the monkey held on to the artificial
behavior. Animals generally tend to act mother very closely and show very little
similar such as a cat. A cat in America sociological deformities. So what was the
will usually act the same as a cat in difference between the artificial
Egypt, but the same can't be applied to mothers? Well, with the hard wired one
humans. We build a personality it just the monkey was unable to hold on to the
doesn't come automatically to us, and we mother because it was rough and didn't
build it by our surroundings but as the give back. However, with the soft
case I mentioned earlier, without artificial mother the baby monkey held on
socialization a personality doesn't form. to it very deeply because it was soft
In Anna' case it is defiantly clear that more like the way a mother is and it
humans depend on other people to not only developed a bond with it. So, this
mature physically, but mentally. About a experiment confirms how important it is
century ago it was believed that people for infants to receive love and hugs so
was born with certain instincts that that they can develop properly. It's also
would form personality and behavior. An interested to note that the psychologists
example is Charles Darwin's theory of studied that the infants can recover from
evolution that led people to think this. as much as three months of isolation, but
The US economic system led some people to around six months the behavior was noted
believe that some behaviors just occurred to be "irreversible."
"naturally," such as some people are born Like the story I mentioned earlier with
criminals, or women tend to think more Anna, after ten days the sociologist
emotionally while men think more visited her she showed immediate
rationally. People also used this improvement and even smiled. A year later
thinking for centuries to justify their she show some slow but steady progress
"ethnocentric" view on society. They showing some interest in objects and
claimed that members of a technologically people and even teaching herself how to
inadequate society were not as walk. About six months later she could
biologically evolved as they were so they take care of herself such as feeding and
were viewed as being less human. Why not even played with toys. Even though she
exploit others if they seem to be less showed drastic improvement by the age
evolved and not as human as us? You can eight she showed the mental development
obviously see the flaw in this. of that of a two year old, and at the age
In the twentieth century a psychologist ten she died of a blood deformity. This
who helped explained behavior clearer is is evidence that some things are
known as John B Watson, and developed the irreversible but this statement can
theory of behaviorism. This refuted the easily be argued. As noted earlier she
theory mentioned above and stated that was born to a mentally disabled mother so
behavior was not something that people that could have stunted her developing
are born with, but more learned by their process even greater and the mystery
surroundings. He also stated that people remains unsolved even to this day.
around the globe are equally human A more up to date case of child isolation
beings, just they share different took placed when a California girl was
cultures and that behavior can be tied up in a dark garage in a basement.
correlated to not nature, but more with The girl name was Genie and when she was
nurture. However, that does not mean that saved at the age of thirteen she weighed
biology does not play any part of only about sixty pounds. She had the
behavior. Most people usually share mental capacity to that of a one year
biological traits with their parents such old, and her language remains that of a
as height and hair color, and their young child. Today she lives in a home of
parents genetic makeup could influence mental disabled adults. This is evidence
their intelligence and artistic talents that socialization is crucial for the
such as art or music. But, as again it development of humans and animals for
deals with socialization, and individual that matter. Human beings can sometimes
can't develop a personality without recover from damage but to what extent is
interacting so children tend to pick up the answer, and I will assume it will
habits from their parents through years remain the same because every individual
of socialization. Also, it's interesting is different.
to note that people brains can't fully






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