SOCIOLOGICAL

PERSPECTIVE OF THE SELF

GROUP 2:
GUANZON, BABY JEAN L.

MACANDILI, KATHERINE A.
INTRODUCTION:
• With the advent of Social Science in 18th century, new ways of knowing have emerged. The new
discipline departed from Philosophy’s heavy reliance on speculation and shifted to observation as a
valid approach of knowing what is real and true. This new approach cultivated philosophical
objectivity in understanding the world, specifically in its nature. Humanity started to be considered as
being part of the natural world and gained attention as acceptable subject of study.
• Consequently, the self which was dominantly regarded by philosophers as whether or not a concept of
duality has been questioned by the social scientists. To re-examine the true nature of the self, their
focus shifted on the relationship of the self with its external world. That is, with its constant
interaction with the external reality, the self is shaped by external forces that constitute society,
community, and family among others.
• In this chapter therefore, the self is presented contrary to the philosophical view whereby self is
considered as having two components of the body and soul (or the body and mind). Self in this
chapter is emphasized as social by nature. Beginning from birth, it continuously interacts with its
external world that determines what it might be, what it can be and what it will be.
LEARNING OUTCOMES

• At the end, students should be able to:

1. explain the basic concept of self as a product of social reality;
2. describe how self is shaped by society and culture;and
3. examine one’s self relative his/her external world.
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WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY?
-IS THE STUDY OF HUMAN SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS AND INSTITUTIONS. SOCIOLOGY’S
SUBJECT MATTER IS DIVERSE, RANGING FROM CRIME TO RELIGION, FROM THE FAMILY TO THE
STATE, FROM THE DIVISIONS OF RACE AND SOCIAL CLASS TO THE SHARED BELIEFS OF A
COMMON CULTURE, AND FROM SOCIAL STABILITY TO RADICAL CHANGE IN WHOLE SOCIETIES.
UNIFYING THE STUDY OF THESE DIVERSE SUBJECTS OF STUDY IS SOCIOLOGY’S PURPOSE OF
UNDERSTANDING HOW HUMAN ACTION AND CONSCIOUSNESS BOTH SHAPE AND ARE SHAPED BY
SURROUNDING CULTURAL AND SOCIAL STRUCTURES.
-SOCIOLOGY IS AN EXCITING AND ILLUMINATING FIELD OF STUDY THAT ANALYZES AND
EXPLAINS IMPORTANT MATTERS IN OUR PERSONAL LIVES, OUR COMMUNITIES, AND THE WORLD.
AT THE PERSONAL LEVEL, SOCIOLOGY INVESTIGATES THE SOCIAL CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES
OF SUCH THINGS AS ROMANTIC LOVE, RACIAL AND GENDER IDENTITY, FAMILY CONFLICT,
DEVIANT BEHAVIOR, AGING, AND RELIGIOUS FAITH. AT THE SOCIETAL LEVEL, SOCIOLOGY
EXAMINES AND EXPLAINS MATTERS LIKE CRIME AND LAW, POVERTY AND WEALTH, PREJUDICE
AND DISCRIMINATION, SCHOOLS AND EDUCATION, BUSINESS FIRMS, URBAN COMMUNITY, AND
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS. AT THE GLOBAL LEVEL, SOCIOLOGY STUDIES SUCH PHENOMENA AS
POPULATION GROWTH AND MIGRATION, WAR AND PEACE, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
WHO IS THE FOUNDER OF
SOCIOLOGICAL
PERSPECTIVE?

•Auguste Comte (1798-1857) is credited with

creating the term sociology, and is considered
the founder of sociology (Henslin 2003).
Comte desired to understand society using the
scientific method, this is called positivism.
Comte believed that society operated under
laws similar to physical laws of nature.
WHAT IS THE ROLE OF SOCIOLOGY IN
UNDERSTANDING THE SELF?
-Sociology is about understanding the relationships that make society what it is.
Those relationships are social norms (how people interact, what is acceptable, etc),
past norms that impact present norms and present conditions, and other things.
The things you were exposed to growing up, which you might not remember, still
contributed to your identity, and those things were products of various aspects of
society. If you understand why certain social norms exist while others do not, how
past events and norms shaped present society, etc, then you can better (not fully)
understand the influences that affect you and contribute to your identity.
 SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES OF THE SELF
A. The Looking Glass Self by Charles Cooley
-pionerred one of the most prominent Sociological perspectives of the self. He
asserted that individuals develop their concept of self by looking at how others
perceive them, hence, coined his theory as ‘The Looking Glass of Self’.
-This process involve the following steps:
1. An individual in a social situation imagines how they appear to others.
2. That individual imagines others judgement of that appearance.
3. The individual develops feelings (of pride or shame) and responds to those
perceived judgments.
B. Theory of the Self-Development by George Herbert Mead
- similar to charle’s cooley’s theory of self, George herbeert mead also gave
emphasis to other’s perspective in view of one’s self. This can be derived from looking
at ourselves from the perspective of others.
By stages, Mead states that self develops through social interaction.
• Preparatory stage
• Play stage
• Game stage
• Generalized other
 THE SELF AND CULTURE
• The self should not be seen as a static entity which remains
constant through time. It persistently struggles with its external
reality and is malleable in dealing with it. Being active participant
in its social world, the self, through interaction, is made and
remade.
• Self being endlessly exposed to its social world and is subjected to
its influences here and there. While the social world is changing
and dynamic, being the same person across time and space
therefore id illogical. In this perspective, self is considered as
multi-faceted.
THE “I” AND THE “ME” SELF
• As an offshoot of his theory previously presented, George Herbert mead
characterized the self as ‘I’ and ‘ME’. Based on the theory, an individual imports
from the social process. As an individual organism, he/she may display gestures oh
his.her own but takes collective attitude of others and reacts accordingly to their
organized attitudes while in constant interaction with them.
• The process according to mead involves the creation of the two facets of the self.
The ‘ME’ is the social self and the ‘I’ is the response to the ‘ME’. Both arising from
the social process, the ‘I’ is the one responding to the attitudes of the others while
‘ME’ is the result of the ‘I’ assuming the organized set of attitudes of the others (it is
the result of the individual’s accumulated understanding of the generalized other).
The ‘I’ learns about ‘ME’, hence, it is the knower, while the ‘ME’ is the known.
Ultimately, self is developed through language and role-play where the child learns
to delineate his/her ‘I’ from the rest.
SUMMARY:

• Sociology is important in understanding the self because it

is the perceptions of who we are, relation to ourselves,
others and the social system . In mead theory we discuss
emerges from social interactions. At the end we learn what
is self in the perspective of sociology.
THANK YOU.