1
00:00:00,675 --> 00:00:04,181
Socialization describes the process
by which people learn the attitudes,

2
00:00:04,181 --> 00:00:08,596
values, and behaviors that are appropriate
and expected by their culture and community.

3
00:00:08,596 --> 00:00:11,028
and it typically occurs 
through the observation of

4
00:00:11,028 --> 00:00:14,812
and interaction with the 
people we are surrounded by.

5
00:00:14,812 --> 00:00:17,129
And this can include those 
who are close to us,

6
00:00:17,129 --> 00:00:19,147
like our family, friends, and teachers,

7
00:00:19,147 --> 00:00:22,900
but it can also include everyone else
that we come across in our daily lives:

8
00:00:22,900 --> 00:00:26,829
our doctors, nurses, celebrities 
that we see on TV and in the movies,

9
00:00:26,829 --> 00:00:30,361
even the people standing in line 
next to us at the supermarket.

10
00:00:30,361 --> 00:00:34,697
They all have something to teach us about
how we should act within our community.

11
00:00:34,697 --> 00:00:39,515
But socialization also shapes
our self-image, or how we view ourselves,

12
00:00:39,515 --> 00:00:43,278
and sociologist Charles Cooley
used the term "looking glass self"

13
00:00:43,278 --> 00:00:45,697
in order to describe this process.

14
00:00:45,697 --> 00:00:47,897
And he theorized that our view of ourselves

15
00:00:47,897 --> 00:00:51,679
comes not only from our direct 
contemplation of our personal qualities

16
00:00:51,679 --> 00:00:56,463
but also from our perceptions about
how we are being perceived by others.

17
00:00:56,463 --> 00:00:59,615
And Cooley thought that this 
happened through three steps.

18
00:00:59,615 --> 00:01:02,063
First, we imagine how we must appear

19
00:01:02,063 --> 00:01:06,628
to others (to our families or friends,
or just people on the street).

20
00:01:06,628 --> 00:01:12,195
Second, we imagine how they must evaluate
us based on their observations of us.

21
00:01:12,195 --> 00:01:17,066
So do we come across as intelligent?
or funny? or shy? or maybe just awkward?

22
00:01:17,066 --> 00:01:19,930
And third, we develop
feelings about ourselves

23
00:01:19,930 --> 00:01:24,646
based on our impressions of their 
evaluations and their observations.

24
00:01:24,646 --> 00:01:29,794
And one critical aspect of this theory that 
want to point out is that Cooley believed

25
00:01:29,794 --> 00:01:33,730
that we are not actually being 
influenced by the opinions of others,

26
00:01:33,730 --> 00:01:35,511
but instead, we are being influenced

27
00:01:35,511 --> 00:01:38,936
by what we imagine the opinions
of other people to be.

28
00:01:38,936 --> 00:01:42,112
So according to this theory,
we might develop our self-identities

29
00:01:42,112 --> 00:01:46,543
based on both correct and incorrect 
perceptions of how others see us.

30
00:01:46,543 --> 00:01:50,336
So let's say that we have this teacher
and they're grading a paper very harshly,

31
00:01:50,336 --> 00:01:54,030
they're grading it very critically,
and they're doing this because they think

32
00:01:54,030 --> 00:01:57,478
that the student who wrote this paper
actually has a lot of potential,

33
00:01:57,478 --> 00:02:01,219
so they're grading that student's paper
harshly in order to help them reach it.

34
00:02:01,219 --> 00:02:03,463
So let's say our student 
gets their paper back

35
00:02:03,463 --> 00:02:07,179
and notices that it's full of red ink 
marks and corrections from the teacher.

36
00:02:07,179 --> 00:02:09,930
How might that student interpret this?

37
00:02:09,930 --> 00:02:12,545
And how might that
influence their self-image?

38
00:02:12,545 --> 00:02:17,014
First, they might observe that the teacher
criticized them harshly on this paper.

39
00:02:17,014 --> 00:02:18,713
Second, they think that the teacher

40
00:02:18,713 --> 00:02:22,896
probably did so because they see 
the student as not being very intelligent.

41
00:02:22,896 --> 00:02:25,431
And then finally, our student
comes to the conclusion

42
00:02:25,431 --> 00:02:30,380
that based on this, they're probably 
not very good at literary analysis.

43
00:02:30,380 --> 00:02:33,946
So here, the student is acting 
on an incorrect perception

44
00:02:33,946 --> 00:02:35,994
of what they think the teacher believes.

45
00:02:35,994 --> 00:02:39,038
And because our attitudes can 
often influence our behaviors,

46
00:02:39,038 --> 00:02:42,280
this might result in the student
putting less effort into the class

47
00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:45,795
instead of more effort,
like the teacher originally wanted.

48
00:02:45,795 --> 00:02:48,518
But this doesn't have to 
be the end of our story

49
00:02:48,518 --> 00:02:51,374
because it can also be influenced
by future interactions.

50
00:02:51,374 --> 00:02:54,312
So let's say that the student
talks to the teacher after class

51
00:02:54,312 --> 00:02:56,385
about why they graded so harshly.

52
00:02:56,385 --> 00:02:58,311
At that point, the teacher might explain

53
00:02:58,311 --> 00:03:00,862
that they think that the student
is on the right track

54
00:03:00,862 --> 00:03:03,129
but that they need to put in
a little bit more effort.

55
00:03:03,129 --> 00:03:05,911
So because of this additional interaction,

56
00:03:05,911 --> 00:03:08,325
the student was able 
to revise [their] perceptions

57
00:03:08,325 --> 00:03:12,571
and this could lead the student
to developing a different self-perspective.