Blog #5

In studying socialization we have discussed the importance of acquiring culture, language and thought.  There are a variety of factors that influence our own behavior as well as a number that demonstrate how we impact others.  While watching "Radio" we see a number of relationships and social interactions that occur as a result of our influences from agents of socialization such as family, peer group and school.

In the beginning of this movie, the main character's, Radio, life is affected by lack of socialization. At first, Radio would just walk around all day and not interact with people besides his family. When Coach Jones and other people started talking to him he did not know how to respond, did not how to make eye contact when speaking to a person. Radio's life was greatly affected by the lack of socialization also because the boys on the football team continuously picked on him. For example, when the boys tied him in the shed after practice one night.

In the middle of this movie, Radio slowly begins to start socializing with Coach Jones, his family, and the people of Hanna. This emergence of socialization greatly benefited him by making him happy and boosting his confidence. Radio started to help coach the football team, did the morning announcements, help control the school environment by reminding students to not run in the hallways. He was delighted every time someone would speak to him; he became a whole different person and character. Radio's life drastically changed in the end of the movie "Radio". His character changed as a product of socialization. He did not feel like an outcast anyone but felt accepted by everyone at Hann High School. His personality and character changed so much that he was able to graduate high school; however he will return back to the 11th grade because of how much he enjoyed being a student and being loved by the school.  

 Overall, I really enjoyed watching the movie "Radio". It taught me to never take anything for granted and always appreciate what I have. 

Blog #4 Socialization of Gender

Men and women socialize very differently. Men are usually more introverted and quiet, while girls are more energetic, loud, and talkative. Every single human interaction is influenced in some way by gender. The differences between the genders is narrower than in times past, but there will always be a difference. Men and women subtly, and not so subtly sometimes, experience the world differently. Our senses are different, our emotions are different and our life experiences (paths of womanhood and manhood) are different. And finally the societal expectations for each is different. Since it is impossible to sum it all up one can simply state that "men and women are equal, but different".
5 examples of how men and women socialize differently:

1) Field Observation: I observed the way students talked and socialized in the cafeteria during lunch. Boys talked in a rude manner and were more open about taking risks. For example, throwing something into the trash can from their seat as apposed to girls who walk towards the can to throw something out. The girls talked much more often than the boys. When the boys stopped talking for a moment it was not awkward, but when the girls stopped talking the situation became awkward for them.

2) Through my observations, I saw that boys are much more open to speaking to other people who are not in their immediate group of friends. The girls during lunch time for example only talked to their immediate friends who were sitting with them at a table and not to anyone outside of their 'group'. The boys talked to everyone. Through this, I saw that boys are much more open to building new bonds and are better are communicating with others.

3) Males are much better at thinking about one thing at a time rather than many. This is not to say that females are any less adept at problem solving, but rather that the male mind is more suited to single-pointed thinking, while the female mind is associated with multi-tasking and with making connections between different fields. In many situations, a particular problem between two people will most likely be resolved by a male, while a more general situation within a community will be addressed by a girl.

4) By observing the way males and females interact with each other in the hallways; I saw that the girls were much more affectionate to each other. When a girl seemed sad, their female friend would walk up to them to comfort her, while a boy would just leave their friend alone; thinking that is the best way to approach the situation.

5) Also by observing students during lunch, I saw that girls used/checked their phones more often than the boys did. Every couple of minutes a female would check her phone and send a text, whereas the males checked their phone once or twice during the 48 minute time period. I feel like girls are more dependent on cell phones and texting to get their message across or too shy to say it in person.