.ucr‘ Date lll lllluullugul Ll i ill will l M l w This is to certify that the thesis entitled CASE STUDY OF THIRTY MATRICULATING AND NON-MATRICULATING BLACK MALE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES IN A RURAL SOUTHERN COMMUNITY: A HYPOTHESIS GENERATING STUDY presented by PERRY W. BROWN has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for PH.D. Administration & degree in Higher Education Q W24. Major professor 8P25—80 0-7639 {fl-‘\\\\ ‘A .1.“ OVERDUE FINES: 25¢ per day per item RETURNIN LIBRARY MTERIALS: Place in book return to remove charge from circulation records CASE STUDY OF THIRTY MATRICULATING AND NON-MATRICULATING BLACK MALE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES IN A RURAL SOUTHERN COMMUNITY: A HYPOTHESIS GENERATING STUDY By Perry We Brown A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION Department of Administration and Higher Education 1980 CASE STUDY OF THIRTY MATRICULATING AND NON-MATRICULATING BLACK MALE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES IN A RURAL SOUTHERN COMMUNITY: A HYPOTHESIS GENERATING STUDY By Perry w. Brown Some Black southern secondary students in rural areas seem to develOp low eXpectations for themselves early in their careers. It also appears that attitudes develop that prevent continuing their education beyond high school. For those students who choose not to continue their training beyond high school, one of three patterns seems to develop: (1) out-migration to a large city (usually northern) where relatives are located and the search for employment begins, (2) immediate entry into one of the Armed Forces, or (3) remaining in the rural community and accepting any type of employment that may be available. In none of the instances of out-migration, entry into the Armed Forces, or remaining in the community does this high school graduate make a de- cision to continue on to higher education. The graduate who makes the decision to continue on to higher education, sometimes in the face of apparently insurmountable odds, seems to have no geographical limitations, that are self- imposed, on where he will go to receive that training or Perry W. Brown what the training will be. This study compared social im- pact variables affecting ten successful matriculating Black students, ten unsuccessful matriculating Black students, and ten non-matriculating Black students in a rural-based south- ern community. The case study analysis focused on varia- bles that were most likely to affect social attitude develOp- ment with implications for self-concept formation. Cooper- ation of subjects was secured through promising complete anonymity. Data was collected through participant-observation interviews, and review of public records. Names were dis- guised by using alphabetical designations. The residences of all participants were listed as "University Estates", a fictitous area of County Seat. Those variables that seem to warrant larger scale demographic attitudinal studies under more controlled con- ditions were: parenting, positive reinforcement from teach- ers, school progress, extracurricular involvement, and in- volved-others. The data seem to indicate that there is a close relationship between these variables and the ultimate post-secondary achievement of these students. DEDICATION Dedicated to W.P.and Emily Brown, parents of the author, who have provided over five decades of parental support. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Much more than ordinary gratitude is due Dr. Max R. Raines for his patient and valuable guidance during this project. His guidance and support are gratefully acknow- ledged. The author also wishes to eXpress thanks to Dr. William Hinds for his timely suggestions, particularly on some of the structural aspects of this study. Finally, thanks to my wife, Addie, and children, Perry and Kimberly who have sacrificed much to permit completion of this study. iii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION. Background. II. III. IV. V. APPENDIX A CASE STUDIES. TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of the Problem. Purpose of the Study. Research Questions. Procedures. Underlying Assumptions. Delimitations . Limitations . Definition of Terms . Significance of this Study. Overview of Succeeding Chapters VALUE-ATTITUDE FUNCTION . PROCEDURES. FINDINGS. RECOMMENDATIONS ,Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject "UOZSHNQHIQWI‘HUOUJSD iv 0 O 0 o 0 PAGE 10 10 10 ll 12 12 18 20 22 1+9 91 I 90 96 106 111 115 119 123 127 130 134 136 141 145 151 153 156 160 CHAPTER Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject Subject 0 0 O O I O O O O I C 0 APPENDIX B CASE STUDY OUTLINE. APPENDIX 0 FAMILY QUESTIONNAIRE (PARENTS). APPENDIX D- INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONNAIRE. . APPENDIX E VISIBILITY RATING BIBLIOGRAPHY. PAGE 164 170 173 176 179 182 186 189 193 197 199 204 210 213 218 219 221 222 223 LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE SUCCESSFUL MATRICULATING STUDENTS 1 Parenting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 2 Positive Reinforcement from Teachers . . . . 53 3 School Progress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 4 Extracurricular Involvement. . . . . . . . . 56 5 Sociocultural Visibility . . . . . . . . . . 57 6 Sociocultural Conformity . . . . . . . . . . 59' 7 Church Relationships . . . . . . . 61 8 Family Socioeconomic Position in the Black Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 9 Involved Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 10 Emotional Trauma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 UNSUCCESSFUL MATRICULATING STUDENTS 11 Parenting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 12 Positive Reinforcement from Teachers . . . . 67 13 School Progress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7O 1# Extracurricular Involvement. . . . . . . . . 7O 15 Sociocultural Visibility . . . . . . . . 72 l6 Sociocultural Conformity . . . . . . . . . 72 17 Church Relationships . . . . . . . . . . 74 18 Family Socioeconomic Position in the Black Community. . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 19 Involved Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 20 Emotional Trauma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 NON-MATRICULATING STUDENTS 21 Parenting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 22 Positive Reinforcement from Teachers . . . . 79 23 School Progress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 24 Extracurricular Involvement. . . . . . . 81 25 Sociocultural Visibility . . . . . . . . . . 83 26 Sociocultural Conformity . . . . . . . . . . 85 27 Church Relationships . . . . . . . . . . 85 28 Family Socioeconomic Position in the Black Community. . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 29 Involved Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 3O Emotional Trauma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Background Prior to 1948, Blacks in the rural southern area studied, received their education in schools that were seg- regated from elementary grades through college. Segregated institutions existed as a matter of law. There was one state supported institution of higher education for Blacks in the state, but no facility for graduate education. There was, however, a procedure for the state to pay the differ— ence between state tuition rates and tuition at instiutions that accepted Blacks at the graduate level in other states. For examplepagraduate of the state-supported college for Blacks could receive state assistance to attend a graduate school outside the state (Syracuse,'Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan come to mind most readily) while being denied ad- mission to graduate schools in the state. Black institutions, elementary, secondary and higher education received what can best be described as the very short end of the stick. The lone state supported institu- tion of higher education for Blacks received considerably less in apprOpriations than any white institution. Not all counties had elementary or secondary schools. Students in the county studied, for example, came from two adjacent counties as well. Some students who attended the all Black high school came from as far as fifty miles away. At the school in County Seat, the focus of this study, in- equality in equipment and facilities was a standard condi- tion. The school for Blacks housed both elementary and secondary students from 1934, when it was erected, until 1950 when an elementary school was built to thus allow the physical separation of elementary and secondary Black stu- dents. Subsequent to the Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education decision in 1954, facilities improved at a rapid pace until 1965, at which time the all Black high school was discon- tinued. All students attending this school were enrolled in the white high school. All of the Black teachers were fired. After some court litigation, one Black teacher was rehired. As a result of this same litigation, all of the Black elementary teachers were retained when the elementary school was discontinued. As they quit, died or retired, - however, no other Blacks were hired to replace them. Salaried personnel hired by the local school board execute its policies and make the school system function. Board policy seems to be to hire local personnel whenever possible. Three-fourths of the salaried personnel, from the superintendent to the most recently hired teacher, were born, reared and educated through high school in County Seat. After they completed County Seat high school, they went to state universities for their professional training and then received appointments in the local system. As of 1978, only six Blacks out of one hundred sixteen profes- sional staff were employed in the County Seat schools. The high school is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. Instruc- tion is offered at four levels ranging from accelerated courses down to Special Education. Advanced classes are ostensibly designed to stimulate the minds of excellent stu- dents and to provide a wider and deeper knowledge of the course work involved. General Level classes are designed for students who are deemed average to excellent. Remedial Level classes are designed for students who are weak or deficient in some area. The material taught is different from the General Level and is designed to prepare these stu- dents for entry at the General Level. This work is accepted by state colleges, but is not in any sense college prepar- atory. Theoretically, grouping is voluntary and may occur in any basic subject. In reality, however, it is difficult to envision a student who has been fed a steafirdiet of news- papers in English classes and basic arithmetic in mathematics suddenly making a voluntary transition to literature and algebra. Grouping occurs in the junior high school and appar- ently in all of the elementary schools in the district. While labels are not officially applied at the elementary level, at least seventy-five percent of the students in the senior high school for the years 1975 through 1978 had been classmates since the first grade. County Seat is a town of approximately 8,000 popu- lation. The surrounding county also has a population of about 8,000; thus, the population of the entire county, in- cluding County Seat is approximately 16,000. Located in a rural southern area, County Seat is a town of multiple in- dustries which includetextile mills, automobile parts remanu- facturing, plastic products and paper products. A terminal training facility for practical nursing, automobile mechanics, welding, machine shop operations, office practices, printing, diesel and heavy equipment operation and other vocations is located intflmetown. There are three elementary schools (including one labeled experimental),one junior high school and one high school in County Seat.<3xmmy Seat is located within fifty miles of a major air terminal, and hard surfaced roads provide access from all areas of the county regardless of the time of year. There is a color line in the industries of County Seat as well as in the schools and other institutions, the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and subsequent acts not withstand- ing. In the majority of industries employing Blacks and whites, Black workers are generally restricted to unskilled or menial tasks, while whites fill the more responsible positions requiring skill and education. For example, in the textile industry where Blacks are employed as laborers, whites are employed as shop mechanics and engineers, and in clerical and supervisory positions. In such institutions as banks, newspapers, telephone companies and radio stations, Blacks are not employed at all except on a token basis. In the public schools, there are no Blacks in supervisory posi- tions. Employers will, of course, give numerous reasons for not employing Blacks or restricting them to menial jobs. Their reasons are, however, simply rationalizations which are more or less familiar to those acquainted with racism in employment. The Black church is an institution which the Black community has made its own. It reflects in its ideologies and practices as well as in its organization and leadershnp whatever is unique and peculiar to the Black experience and outlook on life. Therefore, in seeking to discover the attitudes of Black youth toward higher education, one can- not neglect to study the influence of the church. The major- ity of Black families in County Seat are affiliated with the Baptist and Methodist churches. These churches attempt to perpetuate in their services those features which haverbeen traditionally associated with Black religion. In County Seat a Black child acquires a certain status at birth. The community decrees through legal regu- lations and custom that he be labeled in birth records as legitimate or illegitimate. A child's reaction to being labeled and his attitudes toward himself, are not automat- ically determined but vary according to the personal exper- iences of the individual. At what age he will become aware of his status and how he will be affected are determined in part by the manner in which the attitudes of others are transmitted to the child. The definitions of his status, made in subtle and not so Subtle ways by his neighborhood playmates, by his school and church, and by television and the local newspapers are all an important part of the pro- cess through which a Black child learns to know himself in relation to the opportunities and limitations of his social world. For the years 1977 and 1978 a Black child born in County Seat had one chance in seven of being illegitimate. Further, of the illegitimate children born, he had three chances in four of being born to a mother aged less than sixteen years. When this happens, the girl is not "dis- graced." Her friends may gossip about her and her par- ent(s), if religious, will grieve over their daughter's sin; but she will hardly lose her friends and will.pnix&fly continue her activities in any organizations to which she be- longs. There appear to be no sanctions directed toward the male partner in this birth situation. This society appears not only to tolerate illegitimacy, but almost seems indif- ferent to it. Law enforcement in County Seat can best be described as ambivalent. A great amount of lip service is given to the need for control of drugs (usually meaning marijuana). However, alcohol appears to be readily available to anyone who has the money. This researcher cannot comment on the availability of marijuana. The young men at the Community Center rarely discussed it and only once during the study did this researcher observe the smoking of what he assumed to be marijuana. The drinking of beer and other alcoholic beverages, however, occurred rather frequently. The Statement of the Problem Some Black secondary students in southern rural areas seem to develop low expectations for themselves early in their careers that prevent the continuance of their educa- tion beyond high school. For those students who choose not to continue their training beyond high school, one of three patterns seems to develop: 1. Out-migration to a large city (usually northern) where relatives are located and they search for employment; 2. Immediate entry into one of the armed forces; or 3. Remain in the rural community and accept whatever types of employment that may be available. The graduate who makes the decision to continue on to higher education, sometimes in the face of apparently in- surmountable odds, seems to have no limitations on where he will go, or what that higher education will be. In this southern rural society the Black male stu- dent has had to contend with his "invisibleness." He is in- visible, in other than athletics, in the sense that one of Ralph Ellison's characters considered himself invisible: I am an invisible man. No, I am not a spook like those who haunted Edgar Allen Poe; nor am I one of your Hollywood movie ectoplasms. I am a man of substance, of flesh and bone, fiber and liquids--and I might even be said to possess a mind. I am invisible, understand, simply because peOple refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus shows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard, distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings, themselves, or figments of their imagination-- indeed, everything and anything except me. (Ellison, 1952. p.3) From a school system where they are "invisible" to a work force where they are "the last hired and first fired" is the experience of most of the young Blacks graduating from County Seat High School. Blacks' attitudes toward their fate are often voiced by some of these young men: "Maybe if I went into the army I could do like Mr. R. He spent twenty years and was wounded only once. Look at him now; an income for the rest of his life." This point of View was prevalent in the 19505 and is still prevalent among Blacks. Certain respected and responsible social scientists also point to the Armed Forces as the only place where Black men can feel fully free and equal to whites. Accompanying this outlook is the very real problem of employment or unemployment; as individuals these youths face intense status struggles within the Black community in- volving economic, personal and social insecurity. All of these conditions make a wholesome integration of personality and the social world difficult. The external behavior of these Black youths is directly related to the internalzfifius, worries, anxieties, and feelings of inadequacy and frustra- tion expressed in the individual cases cited in Chapter IV. Black youths in County Seat have been limited in their contacts and access to the outside world (radio and television not withstanding). In most instances they do not know of any major contributions by Blacks or know any prominent Blacks of whom they can be proud in a sense com- parable to the knowledge available to white youth. Many Black youths do not believe that Blacks can be bankers, pharmacists, skilled mechanics, printers, radio broadcasters and newspapermen because they have neither seen or heard of 10 a Black in these roles. A great deal of pride has been taken in Black athletes. It is not coincidental that more than 66 percent of the young men cited in this study were (are) athletes. Purpose of the Study It was the purpose of this study to compare social impact variables affecting ten successful matriculating Hunk students, ten unsuccessful matriculating Black students,and ten non-matriculating Black students in a rural-based south- ern community. The case study analysis focuses on variables that are most likely to affect social attitude development with implications for self-concept formation. Research Questions 1. What are those elements that are common to matriculating successful students? 2. What are those elements that are common to matriculating unsuccessful students? 3. What are those elements that are common to non-matriculating students? Procedures Ten successful matriculating students, ten unsuccess- ful matriculating students and ten non—matriculating students 11 were selected from a population of 63 Black male graduates of County Seat High School for the school years 1975 through 1978. These cases were selected on the basis of their use of the community center as a place for socializing. In order to secure the participation of these young men and their fam- ilies, complete anonymity was promised. Names and locations of homes were disguised so that they would be unrecognizable. The names of families and subjects were given alphabetical designations and all home locations were designated as "Uni- versity Estates," a fictitious area of County Seat. Back- ground information that was a matter of public record.was secured in each case. Educational level of parents was ob- tained from school records where possible. Community activ- ities were monitored through personal observation. Inchxbd as appendices are Subject Questionnaire, Family Questionnaire, Visibility Rating Scale, and Individual Cast Outline. The case history for each subject is listed in the Appendix. Underlying Assumptions l. The responses of the subjects in this study accurately reflect their percep- tions of their environments. 2. The population of County Seat will in- crease and, by implication, elementary and secondary school populations will increase. 3. The increase in elementary and secondary 12 school populations will expand the pool of prospective students for higher edu- cation. 4. The achievements, or lack of same, by the subjects in this study are due largely to environmental rather than genetic influences. 5. The rural area studied is not unique or substantially different from other southern rural areas with similar percentages of Black people. Delimitations No attempt was made to interview or study any subject who did not frequent the community center. Potential sub- jects for this study were eliminated when records revealed any indication of organic brain damage. Written question- naires were avoided, as this observer felt that for a number of the non-matriculating or unsuccessful matriculating stu- dents this would constitute a threat and thus be counter- productive. For this same reason no formal questions were administered to the parents. No notes were taken in the presence of the subjects; they were instead reproduced from memory after the interview. Those who entered County Seat High School from other areas were not studied. Limitations It was necessary to forego randomness of sample due to the fact that the young men frequenting the community l3 center were the only subjects to which this researcher had access. It is felt, however, that this is acceptable be- cause at least one-fourth of the population is included in this study. The exact phrasing of conversations could not be re- produced. While the sense Of what was said is accurate, some of the author's phrasing has inevitably crept in. The author may have placed emphasis in recording where the speaker did not intend it. He also may have seen things in the data which may not be as clear to the reader. He was aware of these biases and attempted to neutral- ize their influence through immediate note-taking after the interview. His biases were compensated for by the fact that persons interviewed were able to speak freely and frankly in the absence of note taking or cassette recording. Definition of Terms For the purposes of this study, the terms below will be defined as follows: Invisible: This definition of invisible comes from The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, previously quoted on page 8 of this study. Higher Education: Training, either at a college or vocational-technical school, which occurs after high school graduation, and requires a commitment, in terms of 14 time, of at least six months. Successful Matriculating Student: One who enrolls in a program of higher education and accomplishes or is ac- tively pursuing his educational objective. Unsuccessful Matriculating Student: One who enrolls in a program of higher education and drops out, without choos- ing an alternative, before completion of training. Non-matriculating Student: One who enters the job market or one of the armed forces upon graduation from high school. The non-matriculating student makes no attempt to enroll in a program of higher education. Involved‘Other: Someone who provides continual un- conditional support and acceptance of another. An emotional security blanket. Parenting: Those functions associated with being a parent; i.e. being married to provide societal legitimacy for the child, attending pmxmt-teacher conferences, watch- ing one's child develop, etc. Legitimate: Legally married parents of student. Educationally Supportive: Parents support student by attending conferences with teachers, supporting parent— teacher organizations, and attending functions in which stu— dent is a participant. Parental support may be classified at three levels: 15 High: Had at least two conferences with teachers each year, belonged to parent-teacher organizations, and attended functions in which student was a participant. Moderate: Had one conference with teachers and attended 50% of functions in which student was a participant. Low: Attended athletic events only. Positive Reinforcement from Teachers: Expressions of approval for work performed and of student as a person. Quantitative levels are as follows: Considerable: One or two times per week Some: One or two times within a two month period Little or None: Less than three times per school year School Progress: The rate and quality of progress in the particular curriculum where the student is placed; designated as follows: Favorable: 2.5 or better on a 4.0 scale Undistinguished: 2.0 to 2.4 on a 4.0 scale Unfavorable: Less than 2.0 on a 4.0 scale 16 Extra Curricular Involvement: Involvement in activ- ities outside the classroom for which no credit is given; may be classified as follows: High: Participated in two or more activ- ities, other than athletics. Moderate: Participated in athletics only. Low: Participated in no extra curricular activities. Sociocultural Visibility: The degree to which a given student is recognized in school and in the community. High: Recognized by at least eight or ten people. Moderate: Recognized by six to seven of ten people. Low: Recognized by less than six of ten people. Sociocultural Conformity: Predictability of a student's pursuing or not pursuing higher education and succeeding. High: Predicted by most of school and community. Moderate: Predicted by fifty percent of school and community. Low: Predicted by less than fifteen percent 17 of school and community. Church Relationships: Amount of participation in church activities: Strong: Participated in all church activities Moderate: Participated in some church activ- ities. Limited: Participated in few church activ- ities. Resistive: Avoided most church activities. FamilygSocioeconomic Position in the Black Community Above Average: Home is family owned; head of household has steady employment. Average: Head of household has steady em- ployment. Below Average: Family is one parent. Employ- ment is not steady for head of house. Emotional Trauma: An incident or series of incidents which result in unfavorable stress. Considerable: Two or more incidents. Some: One or more incidents. Little or None: No recorded incidents and none reported. 18 Significance of this Study Census data for the past several years has indicated an almost continual downward trend for birth rates in the United States. Consequently, school enrollments have been and will continue declining for the foreseeable future. Log- ically then, it follows that enrollments in higher education will also decline. One has only to read any professional journal or newspaper to see that this population contraction is having a profound effect on elementary, secondary and higher education. Added to these phenomena are the developments in the economic sphere along with shifts in population densities from urban to rural settings. While only one new industry has located in County Seat in the past four years, the exist- ing industries have undergone a significant increase in em- ployees (technically trained) and industrial output. At least two shopping centers have been built and four new hous- ing developments are underway. The unsuccessful matriculating students and the non- matriculating students seem to present an untapped source of students for higher educational institutions, and an un- realized potential resource for society. Change has been a characteristic of this country and it is evident that adaptations to that change should beandei by higher education. Post secondary education or higher 19 education is becoming mandatory, not elective, in our society. Those who fail or fall through the cracks in the system represent a human resource that society can ill afford to discard much longer. Most will agree that self-image is shaped by others and how information is interpreted are important elements of a person's own self-concept. Self-worth becomes a key factor in developing self-image: Educators, particularly counselors, must be very careful in the assessment of their .students' needs. The self-image of the student must be understood to provide the appropriate aid and guidance. If the self- image is positive, it must be affirmed, but if the self-image is negative, the counselor must establish a supportive relationship that will enhance the student's self-worth and chance for success. (Allsup, 1979, p.145) While Allsup was referring primarily to Mexican- Americans and their relationship to American history, his words are appropriate for other minorities. Of particular important is his reference to the lack of role models for Latin children: For Latin children, this state of affairs is most disturbing. Although white children have a plethora of heroes and role models, a Latin historical figure is usually an out- law or a sleepy-eyed farmer. Where white children learn their superior culture attri- butes from birth and receive affirmation in their schooling, Latin children must develop their sense of self-worth from their own 20 culture. A severe conflict can develop when that developed perception is challenged by their education experience. (Allsup, 1979, p.146) The elements of our society which are related to the development of self-image, then, are important in the achieve- ment, or lack thereof, of Black students. It becomes impor- tant to attempt to tease out and isolate those elements which are in an attempt to reverse or at least halt, the negative views of self that so many Black youths receive. The devel- opment of positive views of self bears a strong relationship to achievement. There has been regression in percentage of Black suc- cesses in higher education from this community. The attri- tion rate, comprising those who return to the community be- fore completing a course, is about 60 percent. Very few re- turn for financial reasons. Some, for no apparent reason, with failure apparently succeed and others fail. This study hopefully will illuminate some possible hypotheses explain- ing these phenomena. Overview of Succeeding Chapters Chapter II consists of a theoretical overview of atti- tude development, based primarily on a discussion of the de- velopment of self-concept, roles, and environmental influ- ences, and a review of the literature and related research 21 on attitudinal development in rural youths. Chapter III will provide details of the procedures used in this study. Chapter IV is comprised of the findings of this study and conclusions and recommendations will be presented in Chapter V. CHAPTER II VALUE-ATTITUDE FUNCTION Human nature and personality are to a great extent the product of participation in social groups. Through re- lationships with others.individuals acquire the ideas, habits, and attitudes that comprise the core of personality. Accord- ing to Mead (1934) the key to internalization of the attitudes of others is to be found in language. When children learn to talk, parents can make comprehensible their definitions of various stituations. In talking about a particular act, they reflect the response which the act elicits in them. By describing acts and objects they can often apprise us of attitudes toward situations which we have not yet exper- ienced. For instance, the use of language weighed with negative connotations toward other racial and ethnic groups can develop strong prejudices in us and prepare us to act in a negative manner toward members of such groups. In the same manner, parents can exert influence on attitudes toward such distant events as choice of career and mate. The ability to use language is a basic condition for internalization of the attitudes of others, and some atti- tudes are developed simply through conversation with parents. 22 23 Systematic and organized internalization also occurs through the acting out, overtly and in fantasy, the behavior of others. Children in play frequently take the part ofrmnher, father, brother or sister, mailman, grocer and others with whom they come in contact (i.e., they talk and act the way they have seen these people talk and act). In doing so they set into motion two processes of personality formation. First, they call out in themselves through this symbolic and overt play the attitudes of others. Second, they respond to those attitudes of others which have been directed toward them and in doing so fuse their own tendencies to act as others act. As a result children become self-conScious through taking on the attitudes of others toward themselves and building up an organized set of responses to the attitudes of others. In the beginning of the process of internalization, the attitudes taken over are still identified with the person from whom they were adopted, and the self which is developed in relation to them is a self related to that person. Thus, we build a series of selves, each one relauxito another per- son with whom we interact. Individuals participate, however, in social groups whose members' attitudes are reciprocally related and serve as a basis for cooperative behavior within the group. Mead points out that the clearest illustration of such particuxmion 24 is the organized team game. Here the principles of playing together (i.e., the objectification of the system of shared attitudes, defines the activites of each member of the team, and each person must hold in his mind the attitudes of each of the others as they relate to all the other members and to him. Since all the members do the same, the result is an organization of their attitudes and actions into the uni- fied whole which constitutes team play. The same organized system of attitudes is to be found in the family, except that not all its aspects are discern- ible to us as children. Nonetheless, we are able to fuse the major aspects of the attitudes of the other members of the family into a unified whole and to develop our own atti- tudes and responses in relation to this generalized configur- ation. In this process many internalized attitudes become so deeply ingrained in personality that it is forgotten they are the attitudes of others; hence, they become our own. In- stead of reflecting what others expect of us, we now expect the appropriate behavior of ourselves. Additionally, re- sponses to these internalized expectations of others may be- come so habitual that we act in many situations without identifying in ourselves the attitudes of others. In other situations, however, particularly when our own responses are not firmly fixed or when the situation possesses some new aspects, our actions will continue to be self-conscious in 25 that we will call out in ourselves the attitude of others to define the situation and our own place in it before we act. Thomas (1923) held that: (1) Action flows from the meaning which the individual attaches to the situation; (2) these meanings-definitions of the situation are determined by attitudes formed on the basis of past experience and re- lated to the situation in which we find ourselves; and (3) although we are psychologically capable, as children, of forming our own definitions, we are born into groups which have already defined most general situations and developed appropriate rules of action, so that we adopt these rather than form our own spontaneous assessments. In the first stage of socialization we learn to manage the tensions set up by the drives of our original nature and in so doing, we are forced to accept, without any possible chance of real resistance because of our helplessness, the group's definition of the situation. In other words, we learn to adapt our activity to that of adults. We do this by eliminating actions which either do not bring results or bring painful ones, and by fixing attitudes in our personality which result in the repetition of actions producing pleasur- able feelings. These attitudes issue into action when the appropriate stimulus presents itself (e.g., when our parent is ready to feed us and picks us up, we respond with sucking 26 and other movements required for eating). The attitudes and habits so developed are linked with our internal drives and overtly express themselves in the content and pattern of our actions. The satisfactions accruing from tender handling by mother in these dependent relationShips, together with the frustrations of drives sometimes involved in the formation of socially determined habits, such as those which result from toilet training, produce general drives and attitudes of affection and aggression. These drives and attitudes will be culturally patterned to focus upon various persons in the social world. The affectional attitudes will usually be di- rected toward parents and other members of the family, and aggressive attitudes toward outsiders. As persons internal- ize the attitudes of others, they become socialized. In applying this criterion to others we find that most of them have been socialized. We are all familiar, however, with some people whose behavior departs from what we consider normal, whose goals and aspirations are in conflict with what is considered legitimate, and who seem unable to par- ticipate in the ordinary affairs of social life and thus are labeled deviant. A closer look discloses that some deviants are mem- bers of social groups whose cultural patterns conflict with those of the larger community. If they are able to function 27 effectively as members of such groups, they must be con- sidered organized personalities, even though their behavior deviates widely from what the larger community deems normal. Other individuals, however, are unable to partici- pate effectively in any social group. This failure may man- ifest itself in psychic conflict, withdrawal from the real world, and in over-conforming or deviant behavior. Such peOple are examples of personality disorganization. There are several types of recurring phenomena which lead to con- siderable conflict within the personality and often to per- sonality disorganization. Of these phenomena, three appear to be most important and are mentioned most often in the literature. The first, and perhaps the most frequent, is an attempt on the part of a person to play simultaneously or sequentially incompatible social roles. When we are forced to play simultaneous conflicting roles, we face an impossibility. Under such circumstances failure to act arouses the censure of everyone, including ourselves, and yet acting involves the violation of at least one set of expectations concerning our behavior which we and the others hold. Imagine for a moment the situation of a child whose parents are in conflict. It is likely that each parent will expect the child's undivided affection, respect and admira- tion. Most family identification is broken into two roles, one played in relation to the mother, and the other in re- lation to the father. The two roles are incompatible and 28 the child is torn between two sets of requirements. It is not surprising that it is to such conflicts that person- ality disorders can frequently be traced. A second source of personality strain arises when behavior performed according to a social role does not earn the reward promised by that role. Having been taught that hard work and honesty will always result in steady employ- ment, workers experience considerable shock when handed a pink slip because the shop is shutting down. Current social disorganization resulting from mass unemployment attest to the effects of this experience on numbers of workers in an area. Similarly, personality disorganization is frequently found when people, taught to value certain rewards, are un- able to carry out the approved behavior patterns which lead to the attainment of these rewards. Thus, many people, pos- sibly because of lack of ability or membership in a group discriminated against by society, are unable to compete suc- cessfully for economic rewards in our society. A third source of personality disorganization is the frustration which occurs when correct role behavior is not met by approPriate reciprocal actions on the part of others. This cause of personality disorganization is obviously related to the second since the achieving of goals is usally depen- dent on the predictable c00peration of other members of the group. There is the additional shock, however, of having 29 people behave in an unexpected manner. Everyone is occa- sionally subjected to such reaction from others, but when the process repeats itself, again and again, personality disorganization is an almost certain result. Personal security is largely rooted in the familiar behavior of weHZDEEOO xo mpcmasoflepmz mez A