DEVELOPING THE SOCIAL SELF

Emelyn Grace A. Chavez

Socialization into the Self, Mind, and Emotions

How do you view yourself?
How do you view others?

What is the basis for these thoughts/ judgments?

Socialization into the Self, Mind, and Emotions

At birth, we have no idea that we are separate beings. We

dont even know that we are a he or a she.

How do we develop reasoning skills?
Our morality?
Our personality?
Our emotions?
How do we develop a self, the picture we have of how

others see us, our view of who we are?

Charles
H.
Cooleys
The
Looking

I imagine your mind, and especially

what your mind thinks about my mind,
and what your mind thinks about what
my mind thinks about your mind.

-Charles Horton
Cooley

The Looking Glass Self

How my mom and
dad see me.

How my girlfriend
sees me.

How my older
brother sees me.

How my exgirlfriend sees me.

 The drawing depicts the looking-glass self. The

person at the front of the image is looking into

four mirrors, each of which reflects someone
else's image of him back to him.

 Do you sometimes experience that the mere

presence of other people leads to feelings of

discomfort and tension? When not knowing exactly
what other people think of you it may lead to selfdoubt and feelings of insecurity.

 According to the American sociologist Charles

Horton Cooley (1864-1929), the degree of

personal insecurity you display in social
situations is determined by what you believe
other people think of you.

Cooley and the Looking-Glass Self

Charles Horton Cooley, a
symbolic interactionist
Our sense of self develops from
interactions with others.
looking-glass self the
process by which our self
develops through internalizing
others reaction to us

Cooleys Looking-Glass Self

Three elements:
1. We imagine how we
appear to those around
us.
Example: We may think that
others perceive us as witty
or dull

Cooleys Looking-Glass Self

2. We interpret others reactions.
Example: We come to conclusions about how
others evaluate us. Do they like us for being witty?
Do they dislike us for being dull?

3. We develop a self-concept.
Example: Based on our interpretations of how
others react to us, we develop feelings and ideas
about ourselves.
A favorable reflection in this social mirror leads to
positive self-concept, a negative reflection to
negative self-concept.

Cooleys Looking-Glass Self

the development of self does NOT depend on accurate
evaluations
self-concept begins in childhood and its development is an
ongoing, lifelong process
the self is never a finished product

 Cooleys concept of the looking glass self, states that a

persons self grows out of a persons social interactions

with others.
The view of ourselves comes from the contemplation of
personal qualities and impressions of how others
perceive us.
Actually, how we see ourselves does not come from who
we really are, but rather from how webelieveothers see
us.

 The main point is that people shape their self-concepts

based on their understanding of how others perceive them.

We form our self-image as the reflections of the response
and evaluations of others in our environment.

 The idea is that people in our close environment

serve as the mirrors that reflect images of

ourselves.
Cooley clarified that society is an interweaving and
inter-working of mental selves.

Mead and Role

Taking

Mead and Role Taking

George Herbert Mead, a symbolic interactionist
play is crucial to the development of a self
taking the role of the other putting oneself
in someone elses shoes; understanding how
someone else feels and thinks and thus
anticipating how that person will act

Mead and Role Taking

significant other an individual who
significantly influences someone elses life
oExample: parents, siblings

Mead and Role Taking

generalized other the norms, values, attitudes, and
expectations of people in general
the childs ability to take the role of the generalized other is a
significant stop in the development of self
the ability to take the role of others allows us to modify our
behavior by anticipating how other will react

Mead and Role Taking

Learning to take the role of the other entails 3
stages:
Stage 1 Imitation (preparation for role
taking)
children age 3 and younger
imitate peoples gestures and words

Mead and Role Taking

Learning to take the role of the other entails 3 stages:
Stage 2 Play
children ages 3-6
pretend to take the
roles of specific people

(E.g., firefighter,
wrestler,
Xena,
parents clothes)

Mead and Role Taking

Learning to take the role of the other entails 3 stages:
Stage 3 Games
children ages 6-9
playing organized games or team sports
significant because
children have to take
on multiple roles

Who are your significant

others?
How have they influenced your
self?

 In

other words, people are not shaped by the

reflections from others, but rather are
shaped by the creation of a collective social
identity that contrasts usagainst relevant
others.