Lesson 2: The Self, Society, and Culture

• Lesson Objectives
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
1. explain: the relationship between and among the self, society, and
culture;
2. describe and sicuss the different ways by which society and culture
shape the self;
3. compare and contrast how the self can be influenced by the different
institutions in the society; and
4. examine one’s self against the different views of self that were
discussed in the class.
• Self, Society, and Culture
• Across time and history, the self has been debated, discussed, and
fruitfully or otherwise conceptualized by different thinkers in
philosophy. Eventually, with the advent of the social sciences, it
became possible for new ways and paradigms to reexamine the true
nature of the self.

• (nagiisip???)
• Thinkers just settled on the idea that there are two components of
the human person and whatever relationship these two have is less
important than the fact that there is a self.
• What is SELF?
• Self is always unique and has its own identify
• Self is self-contained and independent
• Self is unitary in that is the center of all experiences and thoughts that
run through a certain person
• Self is private
A. The Society
In this section, we will consider and more detail these and other
social aspects of the self by exploring the many ways that the social
situation influences our self-concept and esteem.
This beliefs are determined by observation and interaction with
others. The self has meaning only within the social context, and it is not
wrong to say that the social situation defines our self-concept and our
self-esteem. We called it “social reality”
B. Elements of Society
1. Likeness of Similarity
2. Difference
3. Interdependence
4. Cooperation
5. Organization
6. Social Relationship
7. We-Feeling
8. Social Groups
9. Society is Dynamic
10. Social Control
• C. The Social Self
• Social refers to how we perceive ourselves in relationship to others. It involves
relationship building, empathizing, and communicating. A healthy, or not so
healthy, social self will also impact your overall mental wellbeing and ability to
meet life goals. That’s because much of our world is social and involves
interaction with others.
• D. The Socio-digital self
• This section examines the role of technology and the internet in shaping an
individual’s social self, with emphasis on the use of social media platform and
membership in virtual communities. This section highlights the crucial role of
the internet in forming the self and identity of millennial learners.
• E. The material economic self
This section focuses on how people maintain extensions of themselves through
material possessions and maintenance of particular lifestyles. In the context of
what the society values as needs and wants, this section discusses how an
individual acquires goods, the factors that shape his/her economic decisions,
and what these things say about one’s sense of self.
• F. Sociological Theory of Self
1. George Meed’s Theory
• 2. Charles Horton Cooley’s Theory
• According to sociologist Charles Horton Cooley, individuals develop their
concept of self by observing how they are perceived by others, a concept of
self by observing how they are perceived by others, a concept Colley coined
as the “looking-glass self.”
The looking-glass self describes the process wherein individualsbase
their sense of self on how they believe others view them.