Learning a role : becoming a nurse

Abstract

In essence, humans do not exist in isolation; rather they live and work in a social world made up of groups, often defined as communities of practice (Wenger, 1998). Each society has its own culture, of norms and values, which is understood and lived through its own language, knowledge, values and beliefs. The culture is learned through the process of socialization, whereby individuals entering the society learn how to live and survive within the culture. Berger and Luckmann (1966) suggested that there are two aspects of socialization: primary socialization, whereby individuals become members of a society, and secondary socialization, as any subsequent processes through which individuals enter new areas of the objective world of their society. Thus, the socialization process becomes a long-term process. [excerpt]