WJEC Eduqas GCSE Sociology sample

17 Socialisation Secondary socialisation: peer group Knowledge A child or young person’s peer group is a secondary agent of socialisation. The peer group is a group of people who are of similar age. Children and young people tend to be particularly influenced by their peers as they spend a considerable amount of time at school together and children and youths tend to want to fit in with each other and take each other’s opinions very seriously. The peer group might have its own norms and values and influence its members on choices of clothes, television, music, general behaviour and so on. The peer group, similar to the family, socialises its members through a variety of methods:  Some members of the peer group are likely to have more influence than others and might become role models for the others in the group to follow.  Peer groups might put pressure on its members to follow its norms and values, such as joining in activities or following a dress code. This is known as peer pressure. Peer pressure can be positive, such as encouraging its members to do well at school, or negative by, for example, encouraging members to misbehave at school or to take illegal drugs.  The peer group might use informal sanctions. If an individual does not conform to the group norms, they might be ignored or left out. However, if they follow group norms, this might lead to invitations to events. SUMMARY Individuals learn the culture of their society through agents of socialisation. The family and peer group are the most important agents of socialisation in the early years of life. The use of sanctions is a method of social control employed by both families and peer groups. Peer pressure: the peer group expects its members to conform to its norms and imposes sanctions if they do not. CHECK IT Draw a spider diagram showing the methods used by the family and peer group to socialise their members. ✓