Understanding the Self — Vocabulary Flashcards (100)

Philosophical Perspectives on the Self

  • Socrates

    • First philosopher to engage in systematic questioning about the self.

  • Plato

    • Proposed the idea that man has a dual nature: body and soul.

  • Augustine

    • Agreed that man has a bifurcated nature.

  • Thomas Aquinas

    • Stated that man is composed of two parts: matter and form.

  • René Descartes

    • Conceived the human person as having a body and a mind; methodic doubt.

  • David Hume

    • Argued that the self is not an entity over and beyond the physical body.

  • Immanuel Kant

    • Argued there is necessarily a mind that organizes the impressions received from the external world.

  • Gilbert Ryle

    • Claimed that the
      -
    • "self" is not an entity one can locate and analyze.

  • Merleau-Ponty

    • Saw the living body, thoughts, emotions, and experiences as a unified whole.

  • John Locke

    • Perceived the self as represented by tabula rasa (blank slate).

  • Sigmund Freud

    • Presented the different levels of self and the three parts of the mind: Id, Ego, and Superego.

  • Summary takeaway

    • Despite disagreements, most philosophers agree that self-knowledge is a prerequisite to a happy and meaningful life.

Sociological Perspectives of the Self

Lesson objectives

  • Explain the relationship between and among the self, society, and culture.

  • Understand how individuals view the self as a product of socialization.

  • Discuss theories about the self as a product of modern and post-modern societies.

  • Appreciate one's own social experiences that have helped in understanding the self.

  • Privacy, Separate SELF, Self-Contained, Independent, Unitary, Consistency

    • A set of descriptors/qualities related to how the self is conceptualized in sociological terms.

  • What is Sociology?

    • Sociology is the study of human social relationships and institutions.
    • Its subject matter is diverse, ranging from crime to religion, family to state, race and social class to shared beliefs of culture, social stability to radical change in whole societies.

  • Philosophy vs. Sociology

    • Preliminary contrast of two fields: philosophical inquiry into the nature of self vs. sociological study of self as shaped by social structures and culture.

  • The Self and Culture (Mauss and language)

    • Marcel Mauss proposed that the self has two aspects: moi (basic identity) and personne (social roles that vary by context like family or culture).
    • Language is a salient aspect of culture and significantly affects how the self is crafted.
    • If a self is born into a particular society or culture, the self will have to adjust according to its exposure.

  • The Self and the Development of the Social World

    • People actively participate in shaping the self beyond their givenness (personality, tendencies, propensities, etc.).
    • The ongoing metamorphosis of the self is mediated by language.

  • Mead and Vygotsky

    • Both argue that human development occurs through language acquisition and interaction with others.
    • The mind is made/constituted through language as experienced in the external world and encountered in dialogues with others.

  • Self in Families

    • Family context, available resources (human, spiritual, economic), and development opportunities shape the self.
    • Humans are born dependent; the extended period of nurturing is crucial.
    • The family initiates ways of living; this initiation forms the basis for future self-development.

  • Gender and the Self

    • Gender is a locus of the self subject to alteration, change, and development.
    • The social teaching of gender can constrain self-determination and growth if not allowed to be freely expressed.
    • Individuals should have space to discover and assert their own gender identity rather than having it dictated by culture or society.

  • Theory of Self (Social Interactionist framework)

    • Two parts of Self: Self-awareness and Self-image.
    • The body ages biologically, but the self emerges through social interaction.
    • Self develops and changes as we age through ongoing social contact.
    • Self is developed by interacting with others, reflecting on those interactions, and considering how others perceive us.
    • The self is mirrored in the reaction of others; imitation helps us understand others' perceptions.
    • Once cultural norms, mores, and expectations are internalized, they become the generalized other guiding behavior.
    • By taking the role of the other, we become self-aware.

  • The I and the Me (Symbolic Interactionism)

    • The 'I': Spontaneous, subjective sense of self; reality as I experience it inside; my deepest feelings about who I think I am.
    • The 'Me': The social self; how I think others in society see me; involves reflecting on social roles.

  • Symbolic Interactionism: The I and the Me

    • The I represents personal, internal experience.
    • The Me represents the socialized aspect, formed through interactions and expectations of others.
    • The interplay of I and Me shapes self-concept.

  • The Looking-Glass Self (Cooley)

    • The self is formed through how we imagine others perceive us.
    • We look to others to gauge our worth and behavior; this reflected perception contributes to self-identity.

  • CORGIST (Cooley's stages of self development)

    • The Preparatory Stage: Children imitate significant others to learn the meaning behind symbols, gestures, and language.
    • The Play Stage: Children engage in role-taking, mentally adopting the perspective of another and responding from that viewpoint.
    • The Game Stage: Children become aware of their position in relation to others and understand multiple roles in society.

  • Agents of Socialization

    • School, Media, Family, Peers, Religion, Work, Neighborhood, Sports Teams, etc.

  • Charles Horton Cooley

    • Emphasized that a child cannot develop a sense of self without others reflecting back to them.
    • The autonomous role in choosing which judgments to attend to in identity formation, as well as controlling and evaluating others' responses.

  • The Looking-Glass Self (Illustrative example)

    • How my mom and dad see me; how my girlfriend sees me; how my older brother sees me; how my ex-girlfriend sees me.

  • Herbert Spencer

    • Noted for Synthetic Philosophy, which spans physical, psychological, biological, sociological, and ethical realms.

  • Synthetic Philosophy and Ethics

    • Social Statistics are a component of this broad framework.
    • Principles of Ethics include a basic law of ethics and morality:
    • Moral dictum: Once physical and biological realms are discovered, humans should obey them and cease trying to construct social forms that violate these laws.
    • Scientific position: The laws of social organization cannot be violated any more than the laws of the physical universe; external regulation should be minimized.

  • Albert Bandura

    • Social Learning Theory explains how socialization shapes self-development.
    • Formation of identity is a learned response to social stimuli; the self is not purely unconscious but shaped by modeling oneself to meet others' expectations.
    • Behaviors and attitudes develop in response to reinforcement and encouragement from people around us.

  • Self-Efficacy (Bandura)

    • People's beliefs about their capabilities to perform at designated levels influence thoughts, feelings, motivation, and behavior.
    • High self-efficacy leads to approaching difficult tasks as challenges to master, setting challenging goals, and persisting after failures.
    • Failure is often attributed to insufficient effort or lack of knowledge/skills which can be acquired.

  • Four Main Sources of Self-Efficacy
    1) Mastery Experience

    • Successes build a robust belief in personal efficacy; overcoming obstacles through perseverance strengthens efficacy.
      2) Vicarious Experience
    • Observing others similar to oneself succeed through effort raises belief in one's own capabilities.
      3) Social Persuasion
    • Verbal encouragement can mobilize greater effort and persistence; lack of encouragement can hinder willingness to tackle challenges.
      4) Psychological Responses
    • Somatic and emotional states influence judgments of capability; interpretting stress as vulnerability can undermine performance.

  • Karl Marx

    • Theory of Self-Estrangement or Self-Alienation: The alienation of man’s essence, loss of objectivity and realness as self-discovery and realization.
    • When a person feels alienated from others and society, they may feel alienated by work, losing meaning in work and thus their sense of self at the workplace.

  • Max Weber

    • (Note: content available but not detailed in the transcript above.)

  • Exercise: Self-Help Imagination

    • Personality in modern usage is limited; there is an inner devotion to the subject that raises one to the subject’s height/dignity.
    • You gain personality within a field by stepping out of your own self.
    • A recommended approach: teach the subject, not your own interpretation of the subject.

  • The Self as a Product of Modern and Post-Modern Societies

    • Gerry Lanuza: Modern societies allow self-identity stability through free choice, not strictly bound by customs or traditions.
    • In postmodern societies, self-identity continuously changes due to multiple social contexts, information flow, globalization, technologies, and new social demands.
    • Jean Baudrillard (postmodernist view): Identity is achieved through prestige symbols consumed; advertising and mass media influence individuals to seek goods not for primary value but to feel superior to others.
    • The postmodern self tends toward insatiable consumption and may experience an endless search for prestige rather than lasting satisfaction.

  • Activity 03: Short Quiz

    • A planned assessment to check understanding of the material.

Key Terms and Concepts to Review

  • Self-knowledge as a prerequisite to meaning and happiness (philosophical perspective).

  • Tabula rasa, Id/Ego/Superego, I vs. Me, Generalized Other, Looking-Glass Self.

  • Language and social interaction as mechanisms for shaping self (Mead, Vygotsky, Cooley).

  • Agents of socialization and their roles in self formation (family, peers, school, media, religion, work).

  • Modern vs. postmodern conceptions of self (certainty vs. negotiated identities, consumerism).

  • Self-efficacy and its four sources as a predictor of motivation and performance.

  • Important figures to recall and their core contributions:

    • Socrates, Plato, Augustine, Aquinas, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Ryle, Merleau-Ponty, Locke, Freud, Mead, Vygotsky, Cooley, Mauss, Spencer, Baudrillard, Marx, Weber, Bandura, Lanuza.

  • Core connections across perspectives:

    • Self is both a mental/inward phenomenon and a social product.
    • Language and social interaction are central to forming the self.
    • Modernity and post-modernity offer distinct trajectories for how identity is formed and reformed.

  • Ethical and practical implications:

    • Recognizing the social shaping of self invites critical assessment of norms, gender roles, and consumer pressures.
    • Understanding self-efficacy can guide educational and organizational practices to foster resilience and achievement.
    • Awareness of alienation and identity negotiation in work and life can inform workplace design and personal well-being.

  • Equations and numerical references present in the material

    • None explicitly provided in the transcript; the content is theoretical and descriptive rather than mathematical.

Quick Reference for Exam Prep

  • Major philosophers and their self-theory contributions (Socrates, Plato, Augustine, Aquinas, Descartes, Hume, Kant, Ryle, Merleau-Ponty, Locke, Freud).
  • Socialization and self-formation processes (Mead, Vygotsky, Cooley).
  • The I and the Me; Looking-Glass Self; stages of socialization (Preparatory, Play, Game).
  • Bandura’s Social Learning Theory and four sources of self-efficacy.
  • Marx and Weber: economic and institutional influences on self and identity; alienation and rationalization.
  • Modern vs Post-Modern self-conceptions and the role of consumption and media (Baudrillard, Lanuza).

Activity Notes (Study Quick Tips)

  • Activity 01: Group presentations (5 minutes per group) with Q&A; penalties for overrunning time.
  • Activity 02: Short Quiz to test recall and understanding.
  • Activity 03: Cognitive Defusion exercise:
    • List problems hardest to simplest.
    • Mark those with solutions/evidence/in your control as ✓; others as x.
    • Concept: Be a librarian – categorize problems and prioritize solvable ones.