Question

Parents of different social classes socialize their children differently. Middle-class parents are more likely to stress independence and self-direction, whereas working-class parents prioritize obedience to authority. Using this example, justify and explain the position that these different socialization experiences could reproduce social inequality. Do you find this position convincing

Answer 1

The different forms of socialization shown in the question above may create social inequalities between members of middle-class and working-class families.

As was seen in the question above, working class parents prioritize their children to be obedient and respect their authorities as parents. The children of these parents do not have much freedom to choose what to do with their lives and end up being forced to follow what their parents want. Generally, working class parents need their children to help with household expenses, so they prefer their children to look for jobs and not university courses. These children end up doing this, and find jobs without much academic demands and with lower wages.

On the other hand, middle class parents prioritize that their children look for their independence and that they have an accurate sense of self-direction. In these families, children have more freedom to choose what to do with their life and their future. In addition, these families have better economic conditions, giving their children the freedom to enter universities and only search for jobs after they graduate, so that they can find higher-level jobs with better salaries.