RESOCIALIZATION

Sociologyindex, Sociology Books 2009

Resocialization is profound change or transformation of personality arising from being placed within a situation or environment no longer conducive to maintaining a previous identity.

Some choose this kind of transformation or resocialization by entering a monastery or nunnery while others have it forced on them by being sentenced to penitentiary.

The new identity is a product of these environments and comes from interacting with others and performing the roles required in these settings.

Weber focused on voluntary resocialization as opposed to the involuntary resocialization associated with total institutions.

If one is forcefully recruited into a religious cult, or sentenced to prison, involuntary resocialization is likely to occur. This involuntary resocialization is in stark contrast to the voluntary choice of military recruits.

Prisonization or Resocialization? 
A Study of External Factors Associated with the Impact of Imprisonment 
Charles W. Thomas, Department of Sociology, Virginia Commonwealth University 
This report focuses on data obtained from 276 adult male felons who were inmates in a maximum-security penitentiary in 1971. The general intent of the larger study of which this essay is a part was to test the viability of two available explanations of the impact of confinement. One of these models, often referred to as the "deprivation model," provides a restrictive perspective by virtue of its unusually heavy emphasis on intra-institutional processes and influences. A more recent approach, the "importation model," accepts the importance of such intra-institutional variables, but also points to the importance of variables that originate outside the context of the prison and, in many cases, cannot be directly manipulated by correctional officials. The specific variables reported in this paper include measures of social class of origin, social class of attainment, preprison involvement in criminality, extent of contact with the larger society during confinement, and the inmates' perceptions of their post-prison life-chances. These independent variables were correlated with a measure of prisonization. The findings provide evidence in support of the more inclusive conceptualization provided by the importation model. The obvious implication is that overemphasis on intra-institutional factors will only prove to be misleading. - jrc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/10/1/13

Social Disintegration As a Requisite of Resocialization 
Peter McHugh
Social Forces, Vol. 44, No. 3 (Mar., 1966), pp. 355-363 - doi:10.2307/2575835
Abstract: Attempts to radically alter the behavior of individuals have been notably unsuccessful and call for explanation. It is suggested that: (1) Radical change, as opposed to ordinary change, requires resocialization rather than ordinary socialization; (2) Resocialization requires an intervening process of desocialization, a process in which the efficacy of old values is erased; (3) Desocialization occurs when interpersonal relations disintegrate. Operant conditions of social disintegration, and hence desocialization, are described for prisons and other total institutions where staff-inmate conflict is an important system-maintenance device. - jstor.org

Church Base Communities and Democratic Change in Brazilian Society 
PAULO J. KRISCHKE, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina 
This article is an interpretation of the role of the Comunidades Eclesiais de Base (CEBs) - church base communities - in Brazil's democratization, inspired by Habermas's theory of "communicative action." The basic point is that CEB influence is focused on motivational effects rather than on a direct politicization. These effects may have a crucial importance for the process of democratization, when they relate to local changes in the political culture. They may help popular groups to overcome submissiveness to authoritarian traditions and to work out new values and strategies for social action and political participation. The formation and development of democratic institutions and ideologies depends, nevertheless, on other historical conditions beyond the influence of the CEBs. The first part of the article examines the influence of the CEBs on urban neighborhood associations of low income groups in two different cities, presenting data on local changes in political culture. The second part looks at the CEBs' internal processes of resocialization, comparing their motivational consequences for sociopolitical change in three different regions, two of them in the countryside. - cps.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/24/2/186

Resocialization Barriers of Juvenile Delinquents 
Gitana Liaudinskiene 
Abstract: The article provides theoretical and empirical rationale to the problem of barriers of resocialization of juvenile delinquents in the context of social changes. It presents a complex concept of resocialization, which is analysed from semantic-conceptual methodological standpoint; it presents the results of qualitative content analysis – generalised barriers of resocialization the delinquents who performed violation of law and order. The barriers are reflected in different levels: family, personality, educational organisation, state policy. The article focuses on the following research question: ‘What factors derange successful resocialization process of juveniles?' This question is analysed in the context of Lithuania . - info.smf.ktu.lt/Edukin/zurnalas/en/2005-1_(47)/summary.html

Participation in Operation Starting Line, Experience of Negative Emotions, and Incidence of Negative Behavior 
Kent R. Kerley, Todd L. Matthews, Jeffrey T. Schulz - Department of Sociology, Mississippi State University
The prison industry in the United States has experienced an unprecedented period of growth during the past three decades. Growing dissatisfaction with the monetary investment in the criminal justice system, state-level budget constraints, and high recidivism rates have led many criminal justice professionals to rethink issues of offender resocialization and rehabilitation. Faith-based prison programs are increasingly being used as inexpensive methods for potentially improving the institutional behavior of inmates and reducing their likelihood of postrelease arrest. Unfortunately, however, there is little systematic research on this issue. Using data from Mississippi’s largest state prison, the authors explore the relationship between participation in the faith-based prison event, Operation Starting Line, and subsequent experience of negative emotions and incidence of negative behaviors. Descriptive results suggest modest, yet positive, effects of attendance at the event. The article concludes with comments about the potential efficacy of faith-based prison programs and suggestions for future research. - ijo.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/49/4/410

The core element of all TYC treatment programs is a comprehensive rehabilitation program called Resocialization.
The Resocialization program is Phase-progressive and competency-based, which means that youth move gradually from high restriction confinement to aftercare or parole based on the completion of both the minimum length of stay and demonstrated mastery of predesignated objectives.

Reflections on the Forces for Adult Re-socialization and Thoughts on the Self as Capable of "Re-emergence".
Authors: Rivera, William M.
Abstract: Re-socialization as renewed social assimilation and accomodation, with emphasis on the possibility of such renewed stress to bring out self-redefinition, is discussed. The discussion is centered around (1) a tenative typology of forces for re-socialization, (2) a view of adults as having three basic attitudinal strategies toward life, and (3) a flow-chart that may serve as a paradigm for re-socialization theory. The three major forces for re-socialization are cited as being: (1) Cultural transition; rural to urban area, migration to new country, career shift, and social status shift; (2) Critical social interaction: social conflict, social institutionalization, and brainwashing; and (3) Personal crux: physical accident, familial loss, responsibility shift, religious experience, and age crisis. The three major additudinal strategies that can be attributed to the individual are: problem-solving types, conforming types, and ambiguous types. These three types are described as to traits and behavioral responses to the environment. The re-socialization paradigm, in the shape of a tree, shows the basic influences on a human organism (genetic developmental, and environmental), two basic socializations (general and occupational), a disturbance to the norm, re-socialization, and three possible re-directions that occur.

Resocialization: An American Experiment.
Authors: Kennedy, Daniel B.; Kerber, August
Abstract: Compensatory education, criminal rehabilitation and training the hard-core unemployed are all forms of resocialization. Resocialization programs operate on the assumption that values, attitudes, and ability can be permanently altered as a result of outside intervention. The importance of resocialization is evidenced by the vast amounts of money and time being expended. The magnitude of such efforts calls for continuous research in the theory, practice and efficacy of resocialization. In this book we investigate resocialization in three institutional areas: education, criminolegal systems, and industry. The theories, processes, and efficacy of compensatory education, criminal rehabilitation, and training for the hard-core unemployed are investigated in a descriptive/analytic fashion. An attempt is made to answer such nonhypothesized questions as: What is socialization? Who decides that socialization has "failed"? What is resocialization? On what theories of etiology and treatment does resocialization operate? Are we effectively resocializing? Is resocialization a true goal of our society? Chapter I describes the dynamics of the process of socialization. Chapter II is concerned with reactions of the dominant society to those it considers poorly socialized. The definition, nature, and processes of resocialization are considered in Chapter III. The remainder of the book is more directly concerned with specific forms of resocialization. There is a chapter on counseling and psychotherapy, which, in effect, are forms of resocialization.

Socialization, resocialization, and communication relationships in the context of an organizational change.
Author: Hart, Zachary P.; Miller, Vernon D.; Johnson, John R.
This investigation explores the influence of perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships on employees at the initiation of and 4 months into an organizational restructuring. Results of this longitudinal investigation reveal that employees (N = 72) report considerable changes in perceptions of organizational socialization/resocialization efforts. Results also indicate that both perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships contribute to decreased role ambiguity and role conflict and increased commitment.

SOCIALIZATION, RESOCIALIZATION, AND COMMUNICATION RELATIONSHIPS IN THE CONTEXT OF AN ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
Communication Studies, Winter 2003 by Hart, Zachary P, Miller, Vernon D, Johnson, John R
E-mail Print Link This investigation explores the influence of perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships on employees at the initiation of and 4 months into an organizational restructuring. Results of this longitudinal investigation reveal that employees (N = 72) report considerable changes in perceptions of organizational socialization/resocialization efforts. Results also indicate that both perceptions of socialization tactics' use and communication relationships contribute to decreased role ambiguity and role conflict and increased commitment at the initiation of the restructuring and four months later. However, the influence of these factors on the dependent variables changes over time. These findings are discussed in relation to recent research on organizational entry and change, and suggestions are made for future research.

Role Transformation, Re-Socialization and Psychological Distress - He, Wei
Abstract:
Previous research on the association between role and mental distress emphasizes role acquisition or loss (e.g., the number-emphasized role accumulation theory and the expected role acquisition perspective). From these perspectives, expected role absence is detrimental to mental health. I argue that absence of expected roles does not necessarily lead to damage on mental health at any time, and the role configurations incorporated with expected role are not always beneficial. To clarify the relationship between roles and mental health, the life stage should be taken into consideration. From the perspective of the hardship in the resocialization process, I propose that (1) expected role transformation phases no matter of getting, losing or failing to get the expected roles are associated with higher distress than transformation stunting phases; (2) the impact of expected role absence on distress varies by phase and gender: in the expected role transformation stunting phase, keeping out of the expected role repertoires is not necessarily related to more mental distress; role configurations impact more to women’s mental health than men’s. Using data drawn from a 1990 national probability sample of 1978 respondents age from 18 to 90, this paper found that the stunting phases are related to lowest average distress level in life, and the impact of expected role repertoires absence on the mental health varies by life phase and gender. In spite of the prevalence of expected-role holders in the stunting phase, expected role repertoires absence are not significantly associated with more mental distress, compared with the highly positive correlation between expected role absence and mental distress in role transformation phase. However, some role repertoires incorporated with expected role in the transformation life stage have not positive effect on mental health. From the re-socialization perspective, when approaching middle life, most of the people are either expected role holders or abnormal successful role transformation actors, which shed a light on the lowest average distress level of this phase in life time.

The Political Re-Socialization of Immigrants - Gidengil, E. , Fournier, P. , Blais, A. , Nevitte, N. H. and White, S. E.
Abstract:
How adaptable are immigrants to new host political systems? Theories of political socialization produce competing expectations about the political re-socialization of immigrants. Pre-migration beliefs and actions may be resistant to change; exposure to the new political system may facilitate adaptation; or immigrants may find ways to transfer beliefs and behaviors from one political system to another. Using pooled election study data from an immigrant rich country, Canada, this analysis proposes an alternative strategy for measuring for pre- and post-migration experiences and proceeds to test these three theories. The results indicate that both transfer and exposure matter; there is little evidence that pre-migration beliefs and actions are resistant to change. Moreover, how immigrants adjust to their new host political system depends on which orientation or behavior being considered, and what kind of political environments migrants come from.

Role Change: A Resocialization Perspective (Hardcover)
by Melvyn L. Fein
“In this book Fein proposes a theory through which sociologists can offer clinical help to individuals. Role theory suggests that people adopt roles--destructive or constructive--in social groups. If they have adopted a destructive role, clinical sociologists can teach them to abandon it, mourn its loss, and adopt a new role. This procedure is called resocialization. The book integrates diagnostic literature and is written in a clear, straightforward style with a minimum of footnotes or technical terms. Included are two brief case histories of a man and a woman, some useful lists of symptoms, and figures to explain theoretical models. There is a nine-page bibliography, a four-page combined subject-author index, and a description of the author's background. The book seems to be directed both to clinicians and sociologists and to the general public.”– Choice

Becoming Israelis: Political Resocialization of Soviet and American Immigrants. by Zvi Gitelman 
Contemporary Sociology, Vol. 12, No. 5 (Sep., 1983), pp. 571-572 - doi:10.2307/2068744

McKorkle L., and R. Korn 1954 "Resocialization within Walls." Annals of the American Academy of Political Science 293 (1): 88-98.

Zingraff, M. 1975 "Prisonization as an Inhibitor of Effective Resocialization ." Criminology 13 (3): 366-387.[CrossRef][ISI]