The self from the perspective of Sociology

The self from the perspective of Sociology. The self is a product of modern society among other constructions. 2. Individual vs. Collective Self.

O VERVIEW. It is defined as the reflexive self to mirror and think, how one is in interaction with other persons. From a sociological point of view, the self-reflects through a mechanism that includes the self-efficacy, identity, self-conception and self-esteem of the individual evolves in contact with others. Charles Cooley (1864–1929) was one of the founders of sociological insights. George Herbert Mead (1863–1931), who was a practitioner of social interaction, researched the self, a distinct personality of an individual..

LEARNING OUTCOME/S. At the end of this module, the students are expected of the following: Discuss the different representations and conceptualizations of the self from various disciplinal perspectives Examine the different influences, factors and forces that shape the self Compare and contrast how the self has been represented across the different disciplines and perspectives.

What is SOCIOLOGY?. Sociology.

• Is the study of human social relationships and institutions. • Emphasize the careful gathering and analysis of evidence about social life to develop and enrich our understanding of key social processes • Pioneering contributors to sociological perspectives of the self.

Pioneering Contributors to Sociological Perspectives of the Self.

Pioneering Contributors to Sociological Perspectives of the Self.

The SELF ACCORDING TO GEORGE MEAD. a relatively stable set of perceptions of who we are in relation to ourselves, others, and to social systems ..

TWO COMPONENTS OF SELF ACCORDING TO MEAD. “ME” – Represents the expectations and attitudes of others (the "generalized other") organized into a social self. – Is the self as object, – Anticipated responses with respect to self.

TWO COMPONENTS OF SELF ACCORDING TO MEAD. “I” – Is the response to the “me,” or the person’s individuality. – Is the self as subject. – Is the responses of the person to the organized attitude of others. – Contains creativity ang spontaneity parts of the self..

3 WAYS TO DEVELOP THE SELF ACCORDING TO MEAD. LANGUAGE allows individuals to take on the “role of the other” and allows people to respond to his or her own gestures in terms of the symbolized attitudes of others. IN PLAY , individuals take on the roles of other people and pretend to be those other people in order to express the expectations of significant others. IN THE GAME , the individual is required to internalize the roles of all others who are involved with him or her in the game and must comprehend the rules of the game ..

How Mead Theory Matters Today. Many of us today live in a culture that encourages us to think of ourselves as essentially and uniquely individual, cut off from or even opposed to the larger societies in which we live. When we hear people say things like, “I don’t care what other people think about me,” we get a glimpse into common(mis)conceptions of what it means to be a self. But Mead’s theory of the self convincingly shows us that this way of thinking is wrongheaded. What others think of us, the perspectives of others we gain from being a part of the conversation of gestures, are absolutely necessary for us to even have a sense of self. We think of ourselves as individuals, to be sure, but we are only able to do so by virtue of being a part of a larger social community. Arguably no other social theorist argues this point more brilliantly and systematically than George Herbert Mead..

The Conversation of Gestures and Significant Symbols.

ERVING GOFFMAN. A major Canadian-American sociologist who played a significant role in the development of modern American sociology. He is widely known and celebrated as a major figure in the development of the dramaturgical theory. He believed that when we are born, we are thrust onto a stage called everyday life, and that our socialization consists of learning how to play our assigned roles from other people. Dramaturgy is the idea that life is like a never-ending play in which people are actors..

INDIVIDUAL SELF VS COLLECTIVE SELF.

INDIVIDUAL SELF. The individual self-highlights one's unique side. It consists of attributes (e.g., traits, goals and aspirations, experiences, interests, behaviors) that differentiate the person from others. This self-representation is relatively independent of relational bonds or group memberships. The individual self is achieved by differentiating from others (i.e., the individual self contains those aspects of the self-concept that differentiate the person from other persons as a unique constellation of traits and characteristics that distinguishes the individual within his or her social context). This form of self-representation relies on interpersonal comparison processes and is associated with the motive of protecting or enhancing the person psychologically (Brewer & Gardner, 1996; see also Markus, 1977;Sedikides, 1993).The individual self-comprise unique attributes, the relational self-comprises partner-shared attributes, and the collective self-comprises ingroup-shared attributes. All selves are fundamental components of the self-concept, with each being important and meaningful to human experience and with each being associated with health benefits..

COLLECTIVE SELF. The collective self consists of those aspects of the self that are based on memberships in social groups or categories. It refers to a perception of self as an interchangeable exemplar of some social category rather than a perception of self as a unique person. The collective self is based on impersonal bonds to others that are derived from the shared identification with a social group. Those bonds do not necessarily require close personal relationships between group members. The collective self-concept is composed of attributes that one shares with members of the group to which one belongs (the ingroup).That is, it includes those aspects of the self-concept that differentiate ingroup members from members of relevant outgroups. Commonalities with groups may be based on stable characteristics, such as race or gender, or on achieved states, such as occupation or party membership..

COLLECTIVE SELF BACKGROUND. Marilynn Brewer and Wendi Gardner suggested a theoretical framework that encompasses three levels of self-definition: personal self, relational self, and collective self. The collective self refers to there presentation of self at the group level (e.g., “I am a student of psychology”). It corresponds to the concept of “social identity” as described in social identity theory and self-categorization theory. Recently the term collective self has been preferred to the term social identity, as all aspects of the self are socially influenced. The collective self can be distinguished from the personal self and the relational self. The personal self-concerns the definition of self at the individual level (e.g., “I am smart”); it refers to characteristics of the self (e.g., traits or behavior) that one believes to be unique to the self. The relationalself alludes to the interpersonal level; it is derived from relationships with significant others (e.g., “I am a daughter”). The term collective self-corresponds to the interdependent self as defined by Hazel Markusand Shinobu Kitayama in their analysis of cultural differences between self-concepts in Japan and the United States. The relational self refers to people to whom one feels emotionally attached, such as close friends or family members. In contrast, the collective self may include people whom one has never met but with whom one shares a common attribute, such as occupation or gender..

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