SOC 1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Erving Goffman
Ch. 4 Social Interaction
The Self
• The individual identity of a person as perceived by that person
• Looking Glass Self- Charles Horton Cooley
o Our self emerges from our ability to take view of others and then
imagine how they see us
• George H. Mead
o I/Me
▪ I-action
• I took the selfie
▪ Me- object
• The selfie is of me
o Significant others—specific people
o Reference group—group we are a part of, not specific people, but
people we are like
o Generalized others—final process of becoming socialized
o Stage Development
▪ Imitation Stage
• Absorbing information by mimicking what is around us
▪ Play Stage
• Recognizing behaviors as attached to whatever position
we are in
▪ Game Stage
• Complicated games, we start understanding strategy
• Society at large has specific ideals for how we should act
• Agents of Socialization
o Families, peers, schools, media, workplace, religion military, prison,
mental institution
o Total institutions=total control
Robert Merton’s Role Theory
• Statuses-positions
o Ascribed-born into it, little to no control
o Achieved- have control over, we can pursue
o Master- reserved for famous people, the main status you are
o Status Set-all of your statuses
• Roles-behaviors
o Role Conflict-expected behaviors of you that conflict with each other,
you have 2 statuses and they conflict because you cannot get both
done
o Role strain-individual status, strain going on with your one single role
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