SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE SELF

- The self as a product of the society

Assumptions:

1. The self as a product of social interaction

 The self is not present at birth
 It develops only with social experience wherein language,
gestures, and objects are used to communicate meaningfully
 The sociological perspective of the self assumes that human
behavior is influenced by group life
 A particular view of oneself is formed through interactions
with other people, groups, or social institutions.

Charles Horton Cooley – The looking glass self

 The people whom a person interacts with become a mirror in

which he views himself.
 Since these perceptions are subjective, there might be some
wrong interpretations of how other people evaluate him/her.
 It would be critical if he/she thinks others judge him/her
unfavorably because he could develop a negative self-image.

George Herbert Mead – “I” and “me”

 The “I” is the subjection element and the active side of the
self.
 It represents the spontaneous, and unique traits of the
individual
 The “I” is the response of the individual to the “Me”
 The “Me” is the objective element of the self.
 It represents the “internalized” attitudes, expectations,
and demands of other people.
 The “Me” is what is learned in interaction with others and
with the environment.
 The people whom a person interacts with become a mirror in
which he views himself
 Since there perceptions are subjective, there might be some
wrong interpretations of how other people evaluate him/her.
 It would be critical if he/she thinks others judge him/her
unfavorably because he could develop a negative self-image.
 The full development of the self is attained when the “I”
and the “Me” are united.
 Who you really are and what others see you as
2. The self as a product of postmodern society
 Gerry Lanuza – in modern societies the attainment and
stability of self-identity is freely chosen. It is no longer
restricted by customs and traditions.
 In postmodern societies, self-identity continuously change
due to the demands of multitude of social contexts, new
information technologies, and globalization
3. Self as a product of postmodernism
 These freedom and changes offer opportunities for self-
cultivation but problems may also arise (e.g. alienation and
dehumanization
 For instance, it limits the face to face, close
relationships with others especially among family members.

Postmodern Self
  Jean Baudrillard – individuals achieve self-identity through
prestige symbols that they consume
 The cultural practices of advertising and mass media greatly
influence individuals to consume goods not for their primary
value and utility but to give them a feeling of goodness and
power when compared with other.
 The postmodern person has becomes an insatiable consumer and may
never be satisfied in his life.
 Thus, the self may be a never-ending search for prestige in the
postmodern society.

THE ANTHROPOLOGICAL CONCEPTUALIZATION OF THE SELF: THE SELF AS

EMBEDDED IN CULTURE

 Anthropological holds a holistic view of human culture. It is

concerned with how cultural and biological processes interact to
shape the self.
 Anthropological considers human experience as interplay of
“nature” referring to genetic inheritance which sets the
individual’s potentials and “nature” which refers to
sociocultural environment.
 Both biological and cultural factors have significant influence
in the development of the self.
 In the anthropological perspective, there are two ways in which
the concept of self is viewed in different societies: egocentric
and sociocentric.
 The egocentric concept of the self suggests that each person is
defined as a replica of all humanity but capable of acting
independently from others.
 In the sociocentric concept of the self, the self is viewed as
dependent on the situation or social setting.
 For example, the Japanese possess a socioecentric view of the
self, wherein the membership of a person in a particular social
group defines the boundaries of the self.
 The Chinese prioritize kin ties and cooperation. They put
importance to compliance and subordination of one’s will to the
authority figures in the family.
 In egocentric view, the self is viewed as autonomous and distinct
individual with inherent characteristics.
 The Americans are egocentric. They believe that they should be
assertive and independent.
 From the similarities and differences in characteristics among
individuals, people construct their social identities.
 The identity toolbox refers to the “features of a person’s
identity that he or she chooses to emphasize in constructing a
social self.
 Self-identification may be attained by: kinship, family
membership, gender, age, language, religion, ethnicity, personal
appearance, and socioeconomic status.
 Some characteristics such as kinship, gender, and age are almost
universally used to differentiate people.
 Other characteristics, such as ethnicity, personal appearance,
and socioeconomic status are not always used in every society.
 Family membership could be the most significant feature to
determine the person’s social identity.
 Another important identity determinant that is often viewed as
essential for the maintenance of a group identity is language.
 In other societies, religious affiliation is an important marker
of group identity.
  In Mindanao, being a Christian or a Muslim is possibly the most
important defining feature of social identity.
 Personal naming, a universal practice with numerous cross-
cultural variations establishes a child’s birthright and social
identity. A name is an important devise to individualize a person
and to have an identity.
 One’s identity is not inborn. It is something people continuously
develop in life.
 Changes in one’s identity usually involve rites of passage that
prepare individuals for new roles from one stage of life to
another.
 Changes in one’s status and identity are marked by a three-phased
rite of passage: separation, liminality (transition), and
incorporation
 In the separation phase, people detach from their former identity
to another.
 For example, in a wedding, the bride walking down the aisle to be
“given away” by the parents to the groom implies the separation
from one’s family to become part of a new one.

THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE SELF

- This topic presents the psychological theories thatb influence

the way people understand the Self and the growth process to live
to the full.
- Understanding of the self is highest when the different parts of
the self-become integrative.
- An important aspect of understanding the self is self-awareness.

William James’ concept of the Self: THE ME-SELF AND THE I-SELF

- (1842-1910) was one of the first postulate a theory of the self

in The Principles of Psychology
-
 The self is divided into two categories: the “I-self” and the
“Me-self”.
 The “I-self” refers to the self knows who he or she is.
 James believed that the “I-self” is the thinking self.
 The “I-self” reflects the soul of a person or what is now thought
of as the mind and is called the pure ego.
 The “Me-self” is the empirical self. It refers to describing the
person’s personal experiences and further divided into sub-
categories: Material self, social self, and spiritual self.
 The material self consists of things that belong to a person such
as the body, clothes, houses etc.
 The social self refers to whom and how a person acts on social
situations.
 The spiritual self refers to the most intimate and important part
of the self that includes the person’s purpose, motives,
emotions, values, conscience, and moral behavior.
 James believed that the path to understanding the spiritual self
is through introspection

CARL ROGERS’ SELF THEORY: REAL AND IDEAL SELF

 Another aspect of self-understanding is self-concept.

 Self-concept refers to the image of oneself.
  Psychologist Carl Rogers defined the self as a flexible and
changing perception of personal identity.
 The self develops from interactions with significant people
and self-awareness.
 According to Rogers, human beings are always striving for
self-fulfillment, or self-actualization.
 When the needs of the self are denied, severe anxiety may
result.
 Central to achieving self-actualization is the development of
self-concept.
 Roger’s (congruent) the ideal self is to the real self, the
more fulfilled and happy the individual becomes. The farther
(incongruent) the ideal self is to the real self leads to
unhappy and dissatisfied person.

MULTIPLE VERSUS UNIFIED SELF

 Self-understanding in adolescents also includes conceptualizing

the self as multiple or unified and true or false.
 The construction of multiple selves varies across different roles
and relationships.
 Coping with different selves constitutes a formidable task among
adolescents.
 These challenges contribute heavily to the young person’s
struggle for a unified self.

TRUE SELF FALSE SELF

 Winicott suggest that the self is composed of the TRUE SELF and
the FALSE SELF.
 The function of the false self is to hide and protect the true
self.
 People tend to display a false self to impress others.
 The self can change depending on situations.

THE SELF AS PROACTIVE AND AGENTIC

 Albert bandura suggests that humans have the ability to act and
make things happen.
 In this theory of the self, people are viewed as proactive agents
of experiences.
 Agency embodies the endowments, belief systems, self-regulatory
capabilities, and structures and functions through which personal
influence is exercised, rather than residing as a distinct
entity.
 The main agentic features of human agency are: intentionality,
forethought, Self-reactiveness, and self-reflectiveness.
 Intentionality – refers to acts done intentionally.
 Forethought – enables the person to anticipate the likely
consequences of prospective actions.
 Self-reactiveness – enables the person to make choices and choose
appropriate courses of action, as well as motivate and regulate
their execution.
 Self-reactiveness – gives the person the ability to reflect upon
oneself and the adequacy of one’s thoughts and actions. People
are not only agents of action but self-examiners of their own
functioning.
 Efficacy – beliefs are the foundation of human agency.
 Self-efficacy - refers to the individual’s beliefs that he or
she is capable to perform a task.
 it influences whether people think pessimistically or
optimistically and in ways that are self-enhancing or self-
hindering.
 Efficacy beliefs play a central role in self-regulation.