Self and Identity January 11, 2007

Definitions Self – the process of reflexivity that emanates from the interplay between the “I” and the “me” Self-concept – sum total of an individuals thoughts and feelings about him/herself as an object Identity – the various meanings attached to oneself by self and others

Perspectives on Self Situational – emphasizes the emergence and maintenance of the self in situated interaction Social structural – focuses on the consequences of role relationships and other structural groups

Perspectives on self Biographical-historical – focuses on the self as a cultural and historical construction Intrapersonal – focusing on processes within the self and personality affecting behavior

Classical theories of the Self Mead: stages of self development –play stage –game stage / generalized other the “I” and the “me” Cooley: theory of the looking-glass elements to the “self-idea” – imagination of our appearance to the other person –imagination of his judgment of that appearance – some sort of self-feeling such as pride or shame

Goffman How does Goffman view the self and social interaction? as a dramatic or theatrical production the individuals are actors and in each interaction they enact a self which influences others’ perceptions of them and the situation the self must be realized in each interaction people generally cooperate with one another to enable a performance to continue

Goffman How do people evaluate others in a situation? verbal assertions – something relatively easy for the individual to manipulate (expressions given) expressions given off – nonverbal behaviors over which the individuals have less control do the expressions given match the expressions given off?

Goffman Embarrassment – the feeling we experience when the public identity we claim in an encounter is discredited Sources of embarrassment: Becomes publicly apparent that someone lacks the skills to perform in a manner consistent with the identity claimed violation of privacy norms awkwardness or lack of poise

Goffman face – the positive social value a person effectively claims for himself in a given interactional setting Types of facework: avoidance- avoid situations or people which may threaten face corrective- ritual interchange of moves: –the challenge- attention is called to the misconduct –the offering- participant who committed misconduct is given an opportunity to correct the offense –other person accepts the offering –person who committed the misconduct displays gratitude

Identity Theory The self is a hierarchical ordering of identities, differentiated by: –Salience – the probability of activating a given identity in a situation –Commitment – the number and affective strength of ties to others as a result of having a particular identity

Social Identity Theory Emphasizes group membership and belongingness and their consequences for interpersonal and intergroup relations A person will compare their group to relevant other groups in order to create a favorable distinction

Identity Control Theory Trying to maintain a view of the self Four central components: –The identity standard or the set of meanings held by the individual which define his or her role identity –Person’s perceptions of meanings within the situation matched to the dimensions of meaning in the identity standard –Mechanism to compare perceived meanings with identity standard meanings –Individual behavior which is a function of the difference between perceptions and standard