Sociology · May / June 2024 · Paper 11 · Question 2
0495
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Gender identity can be influenced by primary and secondary socialisation. Age is also an important aspect of an individual’s identity. Youth and old age are often stereotyped in the media. Some people choose to join sub-cultures which can cause conflict in society. 2
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2(a)[2]
What is meant by the term ‘secondary socialisation’? One mark for a partial definition e.g. norms and values in school. Two marks for a clear definition e.g. later socialisation, usually involving learning more specific norms for particular statuses and roles.
2(b)[4]
Describe two stereotypes of elderly people. Possible responses:
the elderly are full of wisdom – derived from their vast experience of life;the elderly are frail or helpless – often shown as physically weak, in a wheelchair or walking with a stick;the elderly are grumpy/miserable - seen as ‘killjoys’ who frown on the young having fun;the elderly are confused/lack the ability to think clearly – old people are often linked with diseases like dementia and need to be protected;the elderly are retired – they are too old to work and live on benefits;the elderly live in the past and are set in their ways – they think that they have ‘seen it all’ and that the old ways of living are the best;any other reasonable response. One mark for each stereotype correctly identified (up to a maximum of two). One mark for each stereotype that is developed (up to a maximum of two).2(c)[6]
Explain how agencies of socialisation can influence gender identity. Possible responses:
family – parents canalise children into traditional gender identities by giving their children appropriate toys e.g. dolls for girls and guns for boys;family – parents manipulate children into socially acceptable gender identities by encouraging certain behaviours and discouraging otherse.g. taking daughter to dance class and son to football;media – programmes and advertising reinforce traditional male/female identities e.g. males portrayed as heroes/lead characters while females are in a supporting role;the media may show alternative gender identities (e.g. transgender) in tv shows, movies and documentaries, promoting an understanding and acceptance of different gender identities;religion – role models in religion encourage boys to think of themselves as leaders and a source of authority e.g. most religious leaders are male and the chief figures in the holy books are male;education – often reinforces traditional gender identities through the hidden curriculum e.g. gender identity reinforced in textbooks etc.;through teacher labelling
peer group – individuals who fail to conform to traditional gender roles may be excluded from the group or bullied, hence most conform;workplace-gender identity may be enforced by peer groups within the workplace as above or by factors like patriarchy within the workplace i.e. ‘the boss’ most frequently being male;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. Responses may be short and un/underdeveloped. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2–3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point, but there may be a tendency towards simplistic answers, engaging with sociological ideas without using sociological language. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will have clear and accurate explanation, showing good sociological knowledge and understanding. Sociological terms and concepts should be expected and explained. At the bottom of the band, the range of points covered may be narrow or lack detail. Higher in the band, answers will cover more than one point in a well-developed way or cover several points in less detail.2(d)[8]
Explain why formal social control is important in society. Possible responses:
it is important that the government sets the legal framework for what actions are permissible or not, otherwise society would be in chaos;social order is important in society and when rules or laws are broken offenders must be sanctioned so that good order in society is maintained;formal social control in education such as formal rules help to maintain order through associated sanctions such as expulsion for attacking other students, taking drugs in school etc.;formal social control is important when informal controls have been ineffective e.g. if a family does not socialise a child properly, they may turn to crime and deviance and agents of formal social control such as police and courts will try to halt that deviance;formal social control is important because it has authority to uses the most serious sanctions such as punishments like prison or fines - such sanctions deter potential offenders;in situations such as large scale riots, where anomie occurs, the police have the authority to use coercion to restore order and sometimes martial law may even be imposed using the armed forces to keep order;prisons are important in protecting the public from violent offenders by locking the away from the rest of society;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. A tendency to description is likely. Responses may be short and undeveloped and points stated without explanation. Sociological terms and concepts are unlikely to be used. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2 –3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will show basic sociological knowledge and understanding. Responses may be underdeveloped and lacking in range. At the bottom of the band, candidates are unlikely to use sociological terms and concepts accurately. Higher in the band, candidates may be beginning to use sociological terms and concepts with greater accuracy. However, some aspects of the answer may only be partially developed/explained. Band 3 [7–8 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding and will be well-developed and explained. Sociological terms and concepts will be used accurately overall. Answers will be well-focused on the question and there will be a range of points presented. At the top of the band explanations will be clear throughout.2(e)[15]
To what extent do sub-cultures cause conflict in society? Possible arguments for:
anti-school sub-cultures cause conflict in schools by rebelling against school rules e.g. by disrupting lessons, truanting or being abusive to teachers or even violent to others - this brings them into conflict with staff and potentially with their own parents who will try to make them conform e.g. Willis’ study;deviant sub-cultures such as drug sub-cultures cause conflicts because their actions are contrary to socially accepted norms and values, including laws, which brings them into conflict with the police and judicial system;New Right sociologists such as Murray may argue that the underclass culture of poverty is likely to lead to social conflict either because of social disapproval of a ‘something for nothing’ ethos or because their lifestyle inevitably leads to crime;some youth sub-cultures have historically engaged in conflicts with each other and with the police e.g. mods and rockers fights noted by Stan Cohen in the 1960s;Walter Miller argues that there is a working-class sub-culture in which males have values or focal concerns which inevitably lead to conflict such as ‘toughness’ and ‘trouble;’some extreme ethnic sub-cultures cause conflict by engaging in acts of violence or terrorism in pursuit of their beliefs;opponents of multiculturalism may argue that having many ethnic and religious sub-cultures in a society inevitably leads to a clash of norms and values which may lead to social unrest and violence;gangs as sub-cultures - criminal or delinquent - cause conflict because they break the law by for example dealing drugs or engaging in anti-social behaviours such as graffiti and vandalism e.g. Cohen’s boys in ‘Status frustration;’Marxists argue that some youth subcultures are a working-class protest against capitalism and their style and behaviours may create conflicts with both other groups and the police e.g. Cohen’s study of the skinheads;any other reasonable response. Possible arguments against:some sub-cultures do not cause conflict, instead they simply withdraw from mainstream society to live according to their beliefs e.g. the Amish;most sub-cultures are law-abiding and are based around personal interest, fashion and style choices e.g. emos, gamers and followers of anime;functionalists argue that sub-cultures are not about conflict but about coping with the traumatic transition to adulthood - as such they provide a time/space to experiment with identity and ‘let off steam’ before settling down to adult expectations;in McRobbie’s bedroom sub-culture, girls did not cause conflict but gathered in a safe space to experiment with hair, fashion and make up and to gossip about boys;Matza argues that sub-cultures are transitory and young people drift in and then drift out of such groups, showing that they have little power to cause major conflict or upheaval in society;Moral panics – Cohen argues that youth are often falsely labelled by the media and police which they said created conflicts, such as those between the mods and rockers in the 1960s;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. [Band 1 [1–4 marks] Answers in this band may be vague and largely based on common sense showing limited knowledge of the debate. Use of sociological terms or concepts is very unlikely. Responses may be short, undeveloped and one- sided. Lower in the band (1–2 marks), expect one or two weak points. Higher in the band (3–4 marks) candidates may offer more than two points and provide a weak definition of key terms in the question. Band 2 [5–8 marks] In this band candidates will show some basic knowledge of the debate. Alternatively, they may offer an answer which is list-like in nature but there will be no real attempt to assess the issues raised by the question. There may be limited/some use of sociological terms or concepts. Responses may be underdeveloped and lack range. Answers may be simplistic and two-sided or only cover one side of the debate. Lower in the band, the response may be rather narrow in the points covered and there may be some development. Higher in the band, more points are likely to be covered with some development. Alternatively, a list-like answer with some development covering both sides of the argument may score up to 8 marks. A one-sided answer cannot score higher than 8 marks. Band 3 [9–12 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding of the debate. Sociological terms and concepts will be used with greater accuracy and/or frequency. For the most part, answers will be well-developed, focused on the questions and there will be a range of points presented. There will be a two-sided response but it may lack range on one side. At the bottom of the band, candidates may provide a narrower range of developed points. At the top of the band, expect a wider range of developed points and clear focus on the question. Band 4 [13–15 marks] Answers in this band will show excellent knowledge and understanding of the debate. There will be a strong grasp of the arguments as well as accurate and frequent use of sociological terms and concepts. Answers will be well- developed, clearly focused on the question and discuss a wide range of points. Responses will be two-sided and have a range of points on each side. At the bottom of the band (13 marks), the answer may lack a specific conclusion. Higher in the band, there will be a clear attempt to offer an assessment of the ‘To what extent?’ part of the question through a focused conclusion.
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