P a g e | 1-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

LESSON
SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE SELF

2
LEARNING OUTCOMES

In this lesson, you should be able to:

• compare and contrast the different views of the self;

• examine the two components of self;
• describe the concept of the looking-glass self and how it affects self-concept; and
• explain the concept of social comparison and why it is important to human
behavior.

INTRODUCTION

The social aspect of the self is explored in many ways, in which social situations influence one’s
view of self. The self is not created in isolation, and people are not born with perception of oneself as
good in sports, make-up artistry, dancing or business. Such perceptions are identified through
observations, or interactions with other people. “Am I beautiful?” “Do my eyebrows look like Liza
Soberano na?” These questions can be answered by looking at those people around. The self has meaning
only within the social context, and is not wrong to say that the social situation defines our self-concept
and our self-esteem. We rely on others to provide a “social reality”- to help us determine what to think,
feel and do (Hardin & Higgins, 1996).

DISCUSSION

SOCIOLOGICAL VIEWS OF THE SELF

Sociology or the study of how human society is established, its structure and how it works, the
people’s interaction with each other and the effects you have to others is an aspect in which you consider
with regards to the development of yourself as a person. It is also important to understand that the
establishment of the “Self” based on social structures could give you a better understanding of who you
are and provide reasons how your interactions can affect you as a person.

The Self as Product of Modern Society among Others

With modernization, the self becomes “delocalized” self which is free to seek its own identity;
defining religion, theological tradition; free from customary constraints hence, deviating from the

Page 1-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 2-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

traditional way of life. Stability of one’s self-identity is no longer based on pre-given traditional broad
definition of the self.

Clifford Geertz (1973) believes that the struggle for one’s individuality is only possible in modern
society where religio-theological traditions are gradually replaced by rational and scientific calculations;
and the intimate personal affiliations are replaced by exceedingly impersonal associations brought about
by urbanized way of life. Modernization or the destruction of the traditional way of life “delocalizes” the
self. This poses certain problems as:

1. The newfound freedom threatens the very authenticity of the self (e.g. love).
2. Alienation (Marx)- human beings hunted by the very images they have created
3. Objectification of the body (e.g. medical practice)
4. Dehumanization of self

Solution: For the individual to discover the “true” and “authentic” part of himself/herself to
realize his/her potentials, there is a needed to abolish repressive social constraints.

Self as Necessary Fiction

Self for Nietzsche, is the sum of individual’s action, thoughts and feelings. Self is nothing more
than a metaphor, representation of something abstract; symbolic. It is continuity even if it is only in
memory i.e, either heard or witnessed which did not happened to you. A true given self is not what unites
these experiences, but it is the presumed unity of these experiences that give rise to a concept of the self.

Post-modern View of the Self

Self is a narrative, a text written and rewritten. Self is a story. It is dynamic. Self is a product of
modern discourse that is historically and socially imprisoned by what is acceptable by norms, etc. Self in
post modernity is complicated by electronic mediated virtual interaction of cyber self such as change in
appearance (in the cyberspace). According to N. Green, self is “digitalized” in cyberspace, a virtual
version of who we are. The self is seen in websites or social media – Facebook, Twitter, instagram, etc.

The following are the manifestations:

1. Information technology dislocates the self, thus, self is “digitalized” in cyberspace.

2. Global migration produces multicultural identities,
3. Post-modern selves are “pluralized” selves.

Social Construction of the Self:

Self is not discovered: it is made through the socialization process. But, individuals are not just
hapless victims of socialization. The individual is an active, strategizing agent that negotiates for the
definition of himself. (Ikaw ang gumawa ng kung ano ka). Self is acquired socially through the language,
like symbols. We construct ourselves based on our social roles through socialization agents – family,
school, community, etc.

Page 2-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 3-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

Rewriting the Self as an Artistic Creation

Nietzsche states that the unity of the self is not pre-given but accomplished through conscious
effort – transform self through beautiful work of art. Individuals must fashion, care for and cultivate
themselves. We can recreate ourselves to get hold of the present, forgive the past and plan the future.

Rorty: contingencies of selfhood – conceal the “ugly” by reinterpreting the overall aesthetic
contours of the self. This does not mean that by rewriting the narrative of herself she will discover
something deep about herself… re-describing one’s life is just a way of reinterpreting and re-describing
one’s past.

Self-creation and Collective Identity

Memories (photographs, videos) play significant role in creating the self and identity. Memory and
forgetting are most important powers in recreating a person’s identity. Such memories of the past include
pain, triumph, etc. such experiences of the past can be linked with social transformation.

Another important aspect of this view of the self is that self-creation is formed within “imagined
communities”. Selves obtain their nature from cultural traditions, embodied in various institutions. These
are preserved in a collective narrative which becomes the reservoir for the project of self-creation. Self-
creation along cultural lines must be done in maximum cultural recognition of differences among and
between individuals and cultural groups.

Self-creation and Struggle for Cultural Recognition

This is a challenge of self-identity amidst recognition of racial and ethnic identities. Self-creation
is necessarily grounded on collective solidarities. You create yourselves by struggling with cultural
hassles then owning the created self. You hide the ugly part of your cultural nature. You learn to adjust.

Beyond Self Creation:

The quest or search for self-identity is a product of modern society but this is complicated by the
socio-cultural sensibilities of postmodernity, new information technologies and globalization,
reconfiguring ourselves as to gender, sex, ethnicity, and creating one’s own style signature.

Yet the project of self-creation is embedded within imagined communities. The self constantly
lives in this paradox: to pursue self-creation with pre-given, not willfully chosen social circumstances.

MEAD’S THEORY OF SELF

George Herbert Mead (1863-1931) is an American sociologist best known as a founder of

American pragmatism, a pioneer of symbolic interaction theory, and as one of the founders of social
psychology.

Mead’s theory of the self maintains that the conception a person holds of himself/herself in his/her
mind emerges from social interaction with others. This is, in effect, a theory and argument against
biological determinism because it holds that the self is neither initially there at birth nor necessarily at the

Page 3-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 4-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

beginning of a social interaction, but is constructed and re-constructed in the process of social experience
and activity.

The self, according to Mead, is made of two components: the “I” and the “me”. The “me”
represents the expectations and attitudes of others (the “generalized other”) organized into a social self.
The individual defines his or her own behavior with reference to the generalized attitude of the social
group(s) he/she occupies. When the individual can view him or herself from the standpoint of the
generalized other, self-consciousness in the full sense of the term is attained. From this standpoint, the
generalized other (internalized in the “me”) is the major instrument of social control, for it is the
mechanism by which the community exercises control over the conduct of its individual members.

The “I” is the response to the “me” or the person’s individuality. It is the essence of agency in
human action. So, in effect, the “me” is the self as object while the “I” is the self as subject (Crossman,
2017).

In other words, the “I” is the response of an individual to the attitudes of others, while the “me” is
the organized set of attitudes of others which an individual assumes. The “me” is the accumulated
understanding of the “generalized other,” i.e. how one thinks one’s group perceives oneself. The “I” is the
individual’s impulses. The “I” is self as subject; the “me” is self as object. The “I is knower, the “me” is
the known. The mind or stream of thought is the self-reflective movements of the interaction between the
“I” and the “me.” These dynamics go beyond selfhood in a narrow sense, and from the basis of a theory
of human cognition. For Mead the thinking process is the internalized dialogue between the “I” and the
“me”

Understood as a combination of the “I” and the “me,” Mead’s self proves to be noticeably
entwined within a sociological existence. For Mead, existence in a community comes before individual
consciousness. First one must participate in the different social positions within society and only
subsequently can use that experience to take the perspective of others and become self-conscious
(Boundless, 2016).

Mead’s Three Stages of Development of Self

Stage 1: The Preparatory Stage

The first stage is the preparatory stage. The preparatory stage starts from the time you are born
until you are about age two. In this stage, children mimic those around them. This is why parents of
young children typically do not want you to use foul language around them (Rath, 2016). If a two-year-
old child can “read,” what he or she most likely done is memorized the book that had been read to him or
her. In a noontime TV show, Vic Sotto, Allan K., Jose Manalo, use foul language like “bwisit,” “bastos!”
“sira ulo,” and so is the language of a child who hears them. Does he or she have any idea of what he/she
is saying or doing? No. He/She is mimicking. He/She is in the preparatory stage. If he/she had been an
older child, the scenes in the segments of the show would cease to have any humor. It works because
he/she doesn’t understand the meaning behind his/her words, actions, or tone of voice.

Stage 2: The Play Stage

From about age two to six, children are in the play stage. During the play stage, children play
pretend and do not adhere to the rules in organized games like pantintero or basketball (Rath, 2016).
Playing a game with children of this age is far easier to just go with it any “rules” they come up with
during the course of the game than trying to enforce any “rules” upon them. Playing the never ending

Page 4-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 5-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

chinese garter with girls still do not actually have one specific set of rules the same as last time played,
and yet they still play the game while adhering to these rules. During this stage, children play ‘pretend’ as
the significant other. This means that when they play “bahay-bahayan”, they are literally pretending to be
the mommy or the daddy that they know.

Stage 3: The Game Stage

The third stage is the game stage, which is from about age seven onwards. In this stage, children
can begin to understand and adhere to the rules of the games. They begin to play more formalized games
because they begin to understand other people’s perspective-or the perspective of the generalized other. In
this stage, when children play ‘pretend’, they may still play “bahay-bahayan”, but are pretending to a
mommy or a daddy independent of the one that resides in their home. The generalized other refers to the
viewpoint of the social group at large. The child begins taking perspective into account during this stage
(Rath, 2016).

The Looking-Glass Self: Our Sense of Self is Influence by Others’ Views of Us

The concept of looking-glass states that part of how we see ourselves comes from our perception
of how other see us (Cooley, 1902)

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’s concept of the looking-glass self. States that a person’s self grows out of a person’s
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 we believe others see us (Isaken,2013)

Sometimes, the influence of other people’s appraisals of ourselves on our self-concept may be so
strong that we end up internalizing them. For example, we are often labeled in particular ways by others,
perhaps informally in terms of our ethnic background, or more formally in terms of a physical or
psychological diagnosis. The labeling bias occurs when we are labeled and others’ views and expectations
of us are affected by that labeling (Fox & Stinnett, 1996). For example, if a teacher knows that a child has
been diagnosed with a particular psychological disorder, that teacher may have different expectations and
explanations of the child’s behavior than he or she would if not aware of that label. Where things get
really interesting for our present discussion is when those expectations start to become self-fulfilling
prophecies, and our self-concept and even our behavior start to align with them. For example, when
children are labeled in special education contexts, these labels can then impact their self-esteem (Taylor,
Hume, & Welsh, 2010)

If we repeatedly labeled and valued by others, then self-labeling may occur, which happens when
we adopt others’ labels explicitly into our self-concept. The effects of this self-labeling on our self-esteem
appear to depend very much on the nature of the labels. Labels used in relation to diagnosis of
psychological disorders can be detrimental to people who then internalize them. For example, Moses
(2009) found that adolescents who self-labeled according to the diagnosis they had received were found to
have higher levels of self-stigma in their self-concepts compared with those who described their
challenges in non-pathological terms. In these types of situation, those who self-label may come to
experience internalized prejudice, which occurs when individuals turn prejudice directed toward them by
others onto themselves. Internalized prejudice has been found to predict more negative self-concept and

Page 5-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 6-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

poorer psychological adjustment in members of various groups, including sexual minorities (Carter, 2012)
and racial minorities (Szymanski & Obiri, 2011)

In other cases, labels used by wider society to describe people negatively can be positively
reclaimed by those being labeled. Galinsky and colleagues (2013) explored this use of self-labeling by
members of oppressed groups to reclaim derogatory terms, including “queer” and “bitch,” used by
dominant groups. After self-labeling, minority group members evaluated these terms less negatively,
reported feeling more powerful, and were also perceive by observers as more powerful. Overall, these
results indicate that individuals who incorporate a formerly negative label into their self-concept in order
to reclaim it can sometimes undermine the stigma attached to the label.

Social Comparison Theory: Our sense of self is influenced by comparisons with others

Self-concept and self-esteem are also heavily influenced by the process of social comparison
(Buunk & Gibbons, 2007; Van Lange, 2008). Social comparison occurs when we learn about our abilities
and skills, about the appropriateness and validity of our opinions, about our relative social status by
comparing our own attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors with those of others. These comparisons can be with
people who know and interact with, with those whom we read about or see on TV, or with anyone else we
view as important. However, the most meaningful comparisons we make tend to be with those we see as
similar to ourselves (Festinger, 1954).

Social comparison occurs primarily on dimensions on which there are no correct answers or
objective benchmarks and thus on which we can rely only on the beliefs of answers for information.
Answers to questions such as “What should I wear to the interview?” or “What kind of music should I
have at my wedding?” are frequently determined at least in part by using the behavior of others as a basis
for comparison. We also use social comparison to help us determine our skills or abilities- how good we
are at performing a task or a doing a job, for example. When students ask their teacher for the class
average on an exam, they are also seeking to use social comparison to evaluate their performance.

Page 6-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 7-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

LET’S DO THIS

How do you negotiate your self-identity in the different social contexts you are into? Use the
space provided inside the box.

NEGOTIATING MY SELF-IDENTITY

_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________

Multiple Choice. Write the best answer on the space provided for.

______1. It represents the self as subject, and the individual’s impulses.

A.“I” B. “Me” C. “You” D. “We”

_______2.In this stage, children can begin to understand and adhere to the rules of games.
A. Game B. language C. Play D. Preparatory

_______3.He is known for his concept of looking-glass self.

A. Cooley B. Mead C. Erikson D. Freud

_______4.This occurs when one is labeled, and others’ views and expectations of an individual are
affected by that labeling.
A. Internalized prejudice C. Self-labelling
B. Labelling bias D. Social comparison

_______5.This occurs when individuals turn prejudice directed toward them by others onto themselves.
A. Internalized prejudice C. Self-labelling
B. Labelling bias D. Social comparison

Page 7-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 8-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

Describe some aspects of your self-concept that have been created through social
comparison. Write down your thoughts and feelings in no less than 300 words.

______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________

Page 8-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 9-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

REFLECTION

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________

Page 9-Sociological Perspectives of the Self

 P a g e | 10-GE1 (Understanding the Self)

REFERENCES

Alata, Eden Joy P. et. al. (2018). Understanding the Self. Sampaloc, Manila. Rex Book Store, Inc.

Brawner, Dalisay G. & Arcega, Analiza F. (2018). Understanding the Self. South Triangle, Quezon
City. C & E Publishing.

Corpuz, Ronald M. et. al. (2019). Understanding the Self. South Triangle, Quezon City. C & E
Publishing.

Villafuerte, Salvacion F. et. al. (2018). Understanding the Self. Cubao, Quezon City. Nieme Publishing
House Co. Ltd.

Page 10-Sociological Perspectives of the Self