ABSTRACT
Socialization has been conceived of as process by which the child becomes acculturated into adult standards; deviation from this ideal is thought to represent a failure of the acculturation process. This process is seen as deriving from the child's identification with the adult. The conception of the child as having a single adult source of identification leads to children being seen as incomplete adults, lacking, but steadily learning, the norms that will incorporate them as full members of their society. The growth of social competency can be observed in the child's increasing sophistication in the practice of game rules. By preadolescence, peer relationships have become central to the child's social world. Their centrality reveals itself in children's self-consciousness about the impressions that others have of them and in the importance they give to their friendships. Children acquire information from many sources- the media, schools, religious organizations, and their families- all adult-dominated institutions.
