SOCPSY 1Z03 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Mirror Test, 18 Months, Erving Goffman
14 Jan 2017
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Social Psychology- Self and Identity
The Self:
-self concept and self schema; these represent out thoughts about who we are, our social
identities and personal qualities
our thoughts about who we are, and our perceptions of our social identities and personal
qualities
•self-awareness; to have a self, we have to be able to be aware of it and look at
ourselves as an individual. need to believe that we are distinct from everything else
around us.
•self-esteem; level we place on our worth, our emotional evaluation
•self knowledge; all the things that we think we know about ourselves, the things that
we think we know about ourselves.
infants have a low level of self awareness, they have a low level of what is surrounding
them and their ability to focus on the things around them
early development of self awareness
•mirror test; usually seen in young children where there is a mirror placed infant of the
child to see how they are going to react to the mirror
•usually around 18 months, children are able to link movements and objects in the
mirror
The Nature and Genesis of Self
-our understanding of the ‘self’ is drawn from symbolic interaction theory
-the self is the individual viewed as both the source and the object of reflexive behaviour
•the self is both active (the source that initiates reflexive behaviour) and passive (the object
toward whom reflexive behaviour is directed)
-according to George H. Mead:
•the active aspect of the self is labeled the I. the object of self action is labeled the me.
•looking back at ourselves= taking ourselves as the object
•by going through school while not wanting to be there, you are putting yourself as the
object because you know that your later self will be happy that you did that.
•considered a founder of social psychology; he talks about the active processes (I) and
what we have learned in our social interaction experiences (me)
Charles Horton Cooley: The Looking Glass Self (1902)
-people shape themselves based on what other people percieve, and confirm other peoples
opinions of themselves
-we try to confirm other peoples experiences of ourselves; we imagine ourselves from the
perspective of someone else
-“ I am who i think you think I am”
-three components
1. we imagine how we must appear to others
2. we imagine the judgement of that appearance
3. we develop our self through the judgements of others
Stages in the Development of Self
Mead:
-role taking: the processes of imaginatively occupying the position of another person and
viewing the self and the situation from that persons perspective
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
-mead(1934) identified two sequential stages leading to the emergence of the self in children
1. the play stage
•young children imitate the activities of people around them
•role taking involves imitating the mail carrier, the doctor, the father, etc.
2. the game stage
•this stage occurs when children enter organized activates such as complex games of
house, school, and team sports
•now, role taking requires children to imagine the viewpoints of several others at the
same time
The Generalized Other:
-a conception of the attitudes and expectations held in common by the members of the
organized groups with whom they interact
-when we imagine what the group expects of us, we are taking the role of the generalized
other
-when you are apart of a sports team and have had the feeling that you have let the team
down; you have a sense of self
Identities: the meanings attached to the self by ones self and others
personal identities
•individual traits (extroverted, moody)
role identities; following rules and expectations
•concepts of self in specific roles
•specific position in a group (parent, student)
•for each role we enact, we develop a somewhat different view of who we are; an identity
•the role identities we develop depend on the social positions available to us in society
•role identities involve role expectations
social identities; being a member of a group
•a definition of the self in terms of the defining characteristics of a social group
(nationality, sports, gender and team affiliations)
•each of us associates certain characteristics with members of specific groups
•if you define yourself as a member of the group, these characteristics become standards
for your thoughts, feelings, and actions
•identity of being a Canadian: were really nice, we say sorry a lot
Identity Control Theory (Burke)
-premise: behaviour is a product of our attempts to control perceptions of situations in ways
that confirm the meanings associated with our identities
-components:
1. identity standard; what is expected of you depending on your role
2. input; your perceptions of things, how you see yourself in the situation
3. comparator; compares meanings of the input and what it actually should be
4. output; discrepancy, you want everything to be consistent with each other
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Our understanding of the self" is drawn from symbolic interaction theory. The self is the individual viewed as both the source and the object of re exive behaviour: the self is both active (the source that initiates re exive behaviour) and passive (the object toward whom re exive behaviour is directed) Charles horton cooley: the looking glass self (1902) People shape themselves based on what other people percieve, and con rm other peoples opinions of themselves. We try to con rm other peoples experiences of ourselves; we imagine ourselves from the perspective of someone else. I am who i think you think i am . Three components: we imagine how we must appear to others, we imagine the judgement of that appearance, we develop our self through the judgements of others. Role taking: the processes of imaginatively occupying the position of another person and viewing the self and the situation from that persons perspective.
