The Social Self

George Herbert Mead

Norman L. SantosDiscussant

OBJECTIVES

 1. Recognize George Herbert Mead and his significant contribution to social psychology.2. Explain the Social Self Theory3. Differentiate between the concepts of ‘me’ and ‘I’4. Describe the looking-glass self

MOTIVATION

George Herbert Mead

George Herbert Mead: The Social Self

The Self: the part of an individual’s personality composed of self-awareness and self-image

Social Self Theory is based on the perspective that the self emerges from social interactions

The self is not there from birth, but it is developed over time from social experiences and activities.

Mead’s Development of Self

Language develops self by allowing individuals to respond to each other through symbols, gestures, words, and sounds.

Play develops self by allowing individuals to take on different roles, pretend, and express expectation of others.

Games develop self by allowing individuals to understand and adhere to the rules of the activity.

Mead’s I and Me

The 'me' is considered the socialized aspect of the individual. The 'me' represents learned behaviors, attitudes, and expectations of others and of society.

generalized other, a phase of the self that is in the past

Mead’s I and Me

The 'I', therefore, can be considered the present and future phase of the self.

The 'I' represents the individual's identity based on response to the 'me.‘

The 'I' says, 'Okay.Society says I should behave and socially interact one way, and I think I should act the same (or perhaps different),' and that notion becomes self.

Charles Horton Cooley

The Looking-Glass Self 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 idea is that people in our close environment serve as the “mirrors” that reflect images of ourselves.