The effects of
being in a group strongly effect that way that group members and non-group
members are perceived and the attributions asscibed to them. We talked
about the many effects represented in the diagram to the right (but "Roger"
was "Roy").
Individuals behave very differently alone than when in groups.
These two statements combined with the way that groups cause changes in attitude, effect and describe attributions about one's self and others and effect others through modelling factor in to rites of passage in many ways.
In class, we posed one answer to each of the following questions. Many other answers are also possible.
Why go through a rites of passage?
Conformity. Conformity is based on people's desire to be and be preceived as being accurate and accepted. Two studies show how conformity effects perception. The first is the autokinetic effect in which a stationary light in a dark room appears to move based on the suggestions provided in the situation. The second is Arthur Asch's demonstration that people will agree with a visibily wrong answer under certain circumstances.
What happens in a rite of passage?
Many of the effects in your reading are present in a rite of passage. In class, we focused on the power of shifting a learner from central/rational processing to peripherial/heuristic processing. Central processing occurs when learners are able to evaluate information and compare it with what they know and believe. Periperial processing occurs when cognitive resources are low or a crisis-like situation makes effortful processing difficult. The more that a person is relying on peripherial processing, the more a person will accept information based on cues like:
What are the effects of going through a rite of passage?
The effects of
being in a group strongly effect that way that group members and non-group
members are perceived and the attributions asscibed to them. We talked
about the many effects represented in the diagram to the right (but "Roger"
was "Roy").
Self Esteem
We did not talk about the impact that rites of initiation typically have on self-esteem. Two charts help to explain some of these effects. The first is a chart of cognitive development. From the chart, you can see that most rites of initiation take place when the person starting to either conceptually classify the world or rationally test hypotheses about the world and others (and themselves) under Piaget's stage theory. As you read through the stages, imagine what a rite of passage at other stages and what the differences might be between rites of passage taking place at 8 years of age versus 13 years of age.
| Stage | Age | Characteristics | What is learned |
| Sensory Motor | Birth-2 years | Recognizes relationships between perceptions and actions | Object identity
Object permanence t-s Cause and Effect |
| Preoperational | 2-7 years | Identifies consistant properties and functions to construct cognitive rules | Appearance-reality distinction
Perceptual classification Causal reasoning |
| Concrete Operational | 7-11 years | Shift from perceptual to conceptual based thinking; develops rules which can be flexibly applied | Reversibility of actions
Conceptual Classification Conservation principles |
| Formal Operational | 11-15 years | Solves abstract problems through logical operations; not limited to physical problems | Deduction
Hypothesis testing Reasoning hypothetically |
| (Post Formal Operational) | (adulthood) | (reason about the relative nature of knowledge and opposing points of view) | (Tolerance of ambiguity) |
Coupling the Piaget's theory of cognitive development with some of the social psychology we covered (attribution and attitude and behaviorial consistancy) a picture begins to emerge about why rites of initiation into a society take place during particular times of life. Other rites of passage (births, marriages, and funerals) have other attributes and take a little more theory to explain.
Notice that the cognitive development in Piaget's model shows that there are periods of strain or crisis for the child and that those periods coincide with cognitive changes that allow for modes of expression and understanding that were not previously possible.
Another theory which helps to bring rites of passage in focus is Erikson's theory of social development.
| Developmental Stage | Age | Conflict | Challenge | Positive Resolution |
| I. Infancy | Birth-2 years | Trust v. Mistrust | Develop confidence while being dependent | Hope |
| II. Toddler | 2-3 years | Autonomy v. Shame | Adjust to social rules | Will |
| III. Early Childhood | 3-6 years | Initiative v. Guilt | Learn social limitations on behavior | Purpose |
| IV. School Age | 6-11 years | Industry v. Inferiority | Master culturally relevant skills | Competence |
| V. Adolescent | 12-17 years | Identity v. Role Confusion | Independent, positive view of self | Fidelity |
| VI. Young Adult | 17-40 years | Intimacy v. Isolation | Establish love and intimacy in relationships | Love |
| VII. Adulthood | 40-60 years | Generativity v. Stagnation | Make an enduring contribution to others | Care |
| VIII. Old Age | 60+ years | Integrity v. Despair | Accept one's life and gain broad view of past | Wisdom |
More detain can be found here: http://www.psychpage.com/learning/library/person/erikson.html
Erikson's stages may be seen as the manifestation of crises at particular times in the life cycle (som brought on by changes in cognitive development, some brought on by shared cultural expectations, some as a result of struggling with developing one's self concept, etc.). Rites of initiation typically occure in Stage IV or V and seem to deal with the challenges outlined by Erikson. What other rites of passage seem to be present at other stages of life?
More on rites of initiation and Erikson: