Social Construction of Reality Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to the social construction of reality.

Social Construction

The concept that events are open to interpretation and a common base of communication must be found.

Social Reality

A common base that is developed based on the most common interpretation of physical reality within a society.

Physical Reality

The concrete, provable reality (e.g., two planes flew into the World Trade Center on Sept 11th 2001).

Social Reality

A reality that is not concrete, difficult to prove, and open to interpretation (e.g., who caused 9/11 and why).

Social Constructs

Shaped by shared realities, including language, food, gestures, color, and people constructs (concepts/categories).

Language Construct

A system of sounds to which we collectively attach meaning, serving as a system of representation.

Language

A system that determines how we experience the world around us by constructing the world through naming it.

Colour Construct

When certain colors are socially associated with certain ideas, things, or groups of people/gender/race.

Gesture Construct

Many bodily gestures are socially constructed and vary in meaning across cultures.

Social Construction Change

Social constructions do and can change over time as groups may actively try to renegotiate meanings.

Looking-Glass Self

As children grow up, they learn to develop a sense of themselves – their self-concept – and the qualities they have that make them different from others.

Social Construction on Identity

Self-concepts and identities of individuals are changing and developing all the time as they go through daily life in society.

Individual Identity

Our self-concept or our individual identity is a social construction, and not a purely individual one.