Chapter 10- Political Self

POLITICAL
SELF AND
IDENTITY
As an essential part of the self,
the political self organizes
self-relevant information
about politics. It constitutes
knowledge about the
Constitution, government, and
governance.
The political self helps in detining the
structure and functions of the
government, in telling and
understanding the relationship
between the state and the citizens,
and in describing their rights,
freedom, and obligations as citizens.
 CONSTITUTIONS

GOVERNMENT GOVERNMENT GOVERNMENT

Legislative Executive Judicial
The political selfexemplifies
the ideals and aspirations
of the people, embodies
the rules and principles of
the State, and determines
the status and power of the
people.
One important component of political self is
identity, the person's understanding of who
and what he or she is. Citizenship becomes a
salient basis for political self. The political
self is often defined by citizenship. In her
book, Democracy and Citizenship

 Citizenship is the most

basic identification with
the nation and, as such, is
oriented towards the state
and its expressions in law
and policy.

MA. SERENA DIOKNO (1997)



FROM THE SOCIAL AND

PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES,
THE INDIVIDUAL'S CLAIM TO
CITIZENSHIP MEANS THAT THE
PERSON RELATES HIMSELF OR
HERSELF TO A GROUP OF OTHERS
WHO ALSO SEE THEMSELVES AS
CITIZENS OF A LARGER POLITY.
The institutions which influence
the values of citizenship

family
church
school
media
government
non-governmental
organizations.
 The value component of
identity construction is
shaped by societal
agencies that enter the
life of the individual from
childhood all the way
through adulthood

(DIOKNO, 1997).
 The political self and identity
are developed through
socialization, through the
ways people learn the
knowledge, norms, values,
motives, and roles appropriate
to their positions in a group or
community.

 Through social
interaction, people learn
the status, duties, rights,
and power necessary to
interact successfully with
other people in the group
or community.

Over time, individuals internalize the

political attitudes, values, and views
of others, and incorporate them into
their political self. Throughout life, as
individuals meet new people and join
new groups, the political self is
influenced and modified by the
opinions, comments, and suggestions
of other people and generation.