Draft:Psychology of Socialization

The Psychology of Socialization is a model of social and developmental psychology that defines socialization as an active, plural, conflictual and prospective process. If socialization had to be defined in one sentence, it could be described as the process by which people earn the habits, norms, values and attitudes of a group — but also as the act of interacting with other people.

Socialization is a concept found in other social sciences such as sociology, economy, philosophy. The psychological approach to socialization differs from the sociological one. Indeed, it goes beyond social reductionism to include and focus on the role of the subject in this process. The psychology of socialization enables the subjects to understand the construction of their identity and personality by interacting with other people and different areas of life.

This model of psychology of socialization is considered as a socio-constructivist approach according to which human development is socially situated and knowledge is constructed through interaction with others. It allows the individual to create new forms of identity in order to adapt to his/her environment. This model differs from the sociological distinction of primary and secondary socialization, which is interested in how individuals help themselves to integrate norms of a society during their childhood (primary socialization) and in school (secondary socialization) to consider the plurality of social environments (hobbies, work, friends, etc.).

The psychology of socialization was invented by Philippe Malrieu, a French philosopher and psychologist who studied the fields of work and education in psychology. In the 1950s, Philippe Malrieu started as a literature teacher at University of Toulouse. Later, he became interested in psychology and initiated the first psychology degree in Toulouse. Philippe Malrieu's theoretical approach to human behavior is very close to that of Henri Wallon and Ignace Meyerson. Malrieu promoted a theory of psychology that drew attention to the acts of socialization of human beings throughout their existence.

Most of the research conducted within the theoretical framework of the psychology of socialization are carried out by the LPS-DT (Laboratoire de Psychologie de la Socialisation - Développement et Travail) laboratory based in Toulouse. This laboratory published “Penser la Socialisation en Psychologie: Actualité de l'œuvre de Malrieu” in 2013, which covers, so far, most of the work and the different areas of application of this theory. Today, researchers continue to develop Malrieu's thinking. This approach can be applied to all fields of psychology, and human sciences in general.

History

Psychology of socialization comes from the writing of Philippe Malrieu. He works in the fields of work and education psychology. He promoted developmental psychology which is in link with social psychology, through the socialization process. Philippe Malrieu founded in 1967 the “personnalisation and social changes” laboratory in the University of Toulouse. He taught in this university from 1953 to his retirement. In 2022, this same laboratory is named “Psychology of Socialization : development and work” (LPS-DT). The current work of the laboratory focuses on the continuity of Malrieu's thought. In 2013, researchers of the LPS-DT published a book entitled: "Penser la socialisation en psychologie. Actualité de l'œuvre de Philippe Malrieu". A master’s degree specialized in the socialization process and attached to this laboratory was created in 2021.

Core theories and concepts

The psychology of socialization is part of a socio-psychological approach. The theory of psychology of socialization considers socialization as active, plural, conflictual and prospective — since it takes place in various groups or environments, more or less heterogeneous, that change over the course of a lifetime. This model of psychology is inspired by the theories of sociology about socialization, including the ones from the French sociologists Durkheim and Bourdieu with their primary socialization and secondary socialization’s division.

George Herbert Mead (1963). defines primary socialization as the internalization of the family as the only world in which the effects of this socialization persist throughout life. This corresponds to the teaching of fundamental knowledge, values and attitudes. In this perspective, the reality of the social world is perceived by the child as the reality of the natural world, as an objectively valid truth. Secondary socialization is then defined by Berger and Luckmann (1966) as the internalization of institutional domains, also considered as “sub-worlds”. Thus, it allows the already socialized individual to sort of absorb new realities related to his or her investment in new sectors of social life. In this way, the relationships and interactions acquired during childhood persist during secondary socialization, although it is possible to modify them.

The appropriation of different values, norms or rules coming from different institutions creates conflict for the individual (especially during periods of transition). The person tries to overcome these conflicts by the processes of acculturation and personalisation. Thereby, he/she is considered as taking an active part of his/her development by the creation of meaning. This search for meaning takes place in a temporal perspective, since the subject relies on past experiences to create new perspectives, new projects and changes.

The psychology of socialization operates as much in developmental psychology as in the social psychology of work and organizations because its theoretical foundation takes into account all dimensions and ages of life. It is at the center of different research in different subjects, both in social work psychology and in developmental psychology.

In the social psychology of work and organizations, research focuses on the systemic and temporal study of behaviors in situations of psychosocial work transitions (entering the workplace, training, unemployment, mobility, end of career...). Concerning developmental and educational psychology, the main themes are the inscription of people in their social links in their social and cultural insertions and the study of different schooling contexts and transitional moments of adolescents and emerging adults in different living environments.

Research Methods

As in many other fields of science in research, the psychology of socialization uses a diverse frame of methodologies such as action research or experimental research. This section focuses on intervention research because it is particularly relevant.

Intervention Research (IR) is a variant of Action Research. Kurt Lewin first coined the term "action research" in 1944. Action Research is a cyclic process (Greenwood & Levin, 2007) as it implies a spiral of steps, each of which consists of a circle of planning, action, and fact-finding about the outcome of the action (Lewin, 1946)

In intervention research, there is a strong focus on democratic participation : the researchers do not impose themselves, they collaborate and co-construct with the field actors (ex. : professionals, patients, ...) (Duchesne & Leurebourg, 2012). Mesnier and Missotte (2003) explain that intervention research is built in a spirit of collaboration (joint interventions by everyone) and transformation (change of perceptions and/or practices). Intervention research has a double objective: a scientific one (development of theories from the interventions carried out) and an applied one (improvement of action and/or field management) (Merini & Ponté, 2008). The position adopted in intervention research is often that of constructivism insofar as it is known that intervention modifies the behavior of actors and thus transforms reality (Noguera & Plane, 2020).

Intervention research connects the world of research and that of professional practice. This type of research is applicable to different disciplines and sectors of activity such as the social, medical, educational, continuing education, business ones, etc. This project of intervention research can be built using both qualitative (interviews, focus group, discussion group) and quantitative (surveys) research methodologies. However, there is a predominance of qualitative methods (Mesnier & Missotte, 2003, 120).

Duchesne and Leurebourg (2012) propose an example of intervention research plan  :

Step 1 : Identification of the problem ("the feeling of discomfort")

Step 2 : Problematization phase of the research ("building a rational myth")

Step 3 : "Experimental" phase (intervention and interaction)

Step 4 : Definition of a simplified set of logics of action of action ("the inductive phase: portraying a set of logics")

Step 5 : The change process ("knowledge versus implementation")

Examples of research

Many researchers in such varied domains of psychology as developmental, educational or industrial and work psychology use the framework of socialization psychology to carry out their research and explain the results. For example, in developmental psychology, authors use the theory of socialization to explain the construction of social link between children. In 2003, Ricaud-Droisy and Espiau studied the social adaptation of children in school environments. This study was carried out by means of a questionnaire to parents and teachers. The aim was to understand the social adaptation of children in kindergarten. The authors also carried observations of the children in the playground to see the differences between the adults' representations of children behavior and the children's actual behavior. The results showed that parents have a more positive attitude than teachers towards their children in terms of behaviors and their integration into peer groups. Parents perceive children as sociable, cooperative, easily integrated and participating in more collective than solitary. The results of the observation highlights a divergence between the representation of adults on the socialization of their children and the behavior of children in the playground. This study is mainly about developmental psychology but the authors used the psychological theory of socialization to interpret children’s behavior and to discuss the results of their study.

In socialization theory researchers address various topics. For example Oubrayrie Roussel and Brioux study teenagers’ identity building. These two researchers address the fact that developing a project of orientation is an important step in the construction of the adolescent's identity. Many influences participate in the evolution of the orientation projection. Therefore, according to the authors, it is important to question the mechanisms linked to these developmental processes such as social ties and identity processes. Oubrayrie and Brioux decide to explore the role of significant others as sources of support for third-year college students. The results of their study show that some differences appear between adolescents whose parents push them towards a sector and adolescents who are already in action and assume a direction. It appears that in contact with the various other individuals participate more in their own socialization. The results obtained thus support the conception of guidance as a socialization process.

The article “Genre et socialisation de l'enfant: pour une approche plurifactorielle de la construction de l'identité sexuée” written by Mieyaa and Rouyer deals with gender and child’s socialization. It highlights the active role of the subject in the construction of their sexual and gender identity. For the authors, the development and the process of socialization is thought of as a dynamic and dialectic interaction between different factors, whether they are biological, social, cognitive or emotional. The authors explain that this process participates in the child’s sexual construction and acquisition of gender roles. These scientists defend the idea that the construction of identity is a multifactorial approach. The different dimensions that influence one other are : gender and biology, living environments and gender socialization, cognitive development and conceptual understanding of gender, and finally, affect and adherence to gender roles. These conclusions are fully in line with the psychology of socialization theory, which is based on psycho-socio-historico constructivism.

Further Readings

We use the APA standards to recommend books related to the psychology of socialization.

Baubion-Broye, A., Dupuy, R. & Prêteur, Y. (2013). Penser la socialisation en psychologie: Actualité de l’œuvre de Philippe Malrieu. Érès. https://media.electre-ng.com/extraits/extrait-id/5ccdfec77da4e23d24c4e74f64227521bfab88314a53217dba3232e7c584d28f.pdf

Duchesne, C. & Leurebourg, R. (2012). La recherche-intervention en formation des adultes : une démarche favorisant l’apprentissage transformateur. Recherches qualitatives, 31(2), 3–24. https://doi.org/10.7202/1084727ar

Fraser, M. W. (2004). Intervention research in social work : recent advances and continuing challenges. Research on Social Work and Practice, 14(3), 210-222.

Greenwood, D. J., & Levin, M. (2007). Introduction to action research. SAGE Publications, Inc., https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781412984614

Lewin, K. (1946) "Action research and minority problems". J Soc. Issues 2(4).

Merini, C., & Ponté, P. (2008). La recherche-intervention comme mode d'interrogation des pratiques. Savoirs, (1), 77-95. https://doi.org/10.3917/savo.016.0077

Mesnier, P. M., & Missotte, P. (2003). La recherche-action: une autre manière de chercher, se former, transformer. Editions L'Harmattan.

Paillé, P. (2004). Recherche-action. Dans A. Mucchielli (Éd.), Dictionnaire de méthodes qualitatives en sciences humaines (2e éd.), (pp. 223-224). Paris : Armand Collin.