In my Sociology 101 class, our teacher first introduced to us the concept of “socialization” a few days ago. It was a term I had never even heard of, and my automatic reaction was to store it in my mind as just another example of jargon that would be applicable for this semester, and then never be relevant again. Although I cannot recall the exact phrasing he used, my professor’s definition (in a paraphrased form) was along the lines of the following:

Socialization is the cultural and social assumptions that are ingrained in a society that encourage its members to think and act a certain way.

As is the case with most things, a solely technical definition is no good without examples.

Socialization is the reason why African Americans are scared to put up their hoods in public.

Socialization is the way our daughters and sisters are discouraged from pursuing careers in STEM.

Socialization is why immigrants are assumed to be job-thieves or criminals.

Socialization is the reason why under 5% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women.

Socialization is why discussing mental health issues is seen as taboo.

Socialization is the reason why people with accents are believed to lack an awareness of American culture.

Socialization is why some people are scared that as a woman, Hillary Clinton will be too emotional to handle the role of a president.

Socialization is why the prisons are full of young, colored people.

Socialization is the reason why the N-word is still dropped casually in conversations, why different sexualities are seen as unnatural, and why female athletes continue to be paid less. It is why teachers ask for “a few big, strong guys” to carry the textbooks, why girls zip their jackets up to their throats when they walk outside at night, why interracial couples are almost never portrayed in media, why every Indian character in entertainment has the same flat personality.

Socialized behavior is unnatural, because outside social influences encourage the members to behave in a certain manner. It is not natural for us to view people of different religions, ethnicities, genders, and sexualities as “lesser,” or for the criminal justice system to treat people of different demographics with varying levels of severity.

Socialization is a complex product, an amalgam of cultural and societal values. It is a result of ideas that arise from a range of sources, everything from Disney Channel to Fox News, from our cul-de-sacs to our aunts who come to visit during Thanksgiving, from our coaches to our principals, from our siblings to preachers. We are taught to be scared of some, while trusting of others. We are taught that some are sinners, while others are role models. We use certain attributes – such as skin color, gender, and sexuality – to construct preconceived notions of people without bothering to get to know them first. The word prejudice itself comes from the roots pre (before) and judic (judging), or to judge prematurely.

It is not something we control. Assumption is a natural instinct, and humans are innately impressionable, as we are a result of our environment and constantly imbibing the ideas that surround us. However, it is after learning this term that I started to ask myself if it were truly natural that women walk with keys hidden between their second and third knuckles, that black youth are taught to never argue with police officers, that we assume that some religions are undoubtedly right while others are downright ridiculous. The answer I can give you now is a definite no; these are not biological characteristics, but constructed ones.

The entire subject of sociology seeks to interpret and define the intersection of biology and culture, to try and decipher what constitutes as natural and what constitutes as unnatural, and it’s impossible to summarize the origin of modern racism, sexism, and prejudice with a single word.

However, if I was to try and summarize socialization elegantly, I supposed it would be in the form of a single question:

“Is this my own idea, or society’s?”