The Socialization Of Peers

Your identity is what defines you and is made up of many things. But your identity goes through many formative stages throughout your lifetime. Agents of socialization are the things or people that influence your identity. For me there have been 3 specific agents of socialization that have influenced me greatly the first one is my peers, the second one is my brother and the third one is my teachers. Peers have an integral part of my socialization as they have shaped the way I think and how I behave. I have been moving every 2-3 years and because of that my peer group as also been changing every 2-3 years. No peer group is the same each one has different beliefs, values and behaviors which meant that every 2-3 years I would have have to

Researchers have long noted an association between the social environment and the behaviors, feelings, and thoughts of individuals (James in Reitz, 2014). A truly compelling theory on this subject is Reitz’s theory that sheds light on dyadic peer relationships as the individual differences in personality still exists between peers (Reitz, 2014). The main problem faced in research about peers is the definition is not clear cut, in a general online dictionary, peers are defined as, “belonging to the same societal group especially based on age, grade, or status” (Merriam-Webster.com in Reitz, 2014). In a thesis by Nathan Jurgenson it stated that adolescents that change peer groups are more likely to hold their own ideas and not conform much with new peer groups (Jurgenson, 2014). This too is touched on in Reitz’s theory where it states that dyadic relationships between peers still hold individual personalities that are different to the other (Reitz, 2014). While my experiences have been slightly different as I tend to conform more towards the group’s ideas instead holding my own opinions, this difference could also be caused because the convenience sample selected had a gaussian curve where

For me it was my brother who socialized me because he was someone much closer to my age and could teach me things my parents didn’t necessarily know anymore. For me my brother is someone who acts as a mentor for me because he is much closer to my age compared to my parents and has more insight on the sorts of issues I may be facing. It makes my relationship with him much closer and is why his actions are so influential on my identity. Research conducted by Professor Laurie Kramer at the University of Illinois has shown a conclusion where parents are more likely to influence a child’s behavior in formal settings while siblings influence a child’s behavior in a more informal setting which is encountered on a daily basis for the child which can range from the way to behave in front of friends all the way to how to portray yourself in the outside world. While there is a lot of positive behaviors that can be influenced by an older sibling such as how to study, when to do your homework and how to make friends (Kramer in Ciciora, 2010). It can also have negative effects on the child since the bad acts siblings do such as anti social behavior, smoking and drinking can also affect a child (Conger in Ciciora, 2010). The research also