SOCIOLOGICAL
PERSPECTIVE
OF THE SELF
Presentation by: Dannia G. Bondoc, CHRA
Don Honorio Ventura State University
Understanding the Self
Prayer
Lord our God, in your wisdom and love you surround us
with the mysteries of the universe. Send your Spirit
upon these students and fill them with your wisdom and
blessings. Grant that they may devote themselves to
their studies and draw ever closer to you, the source of
all knowledge.
Objectives
1. Recognize what sociology tells about understanding the self and others.
2. Understand how individuals view the self as a product of socialization.
3. Explain the theories of the social self.
4. Discuss the self as a product of modern and postmodern societies.
5. Appreciate own social experiences that have been particularly helpful in
understanding the self.
Sociology
a science, study social groups and human relationships which help
shed new insight into the interconnectedness between the self and
other people. Hence, sociologists offer theories to explain how the
self emerges as a product of social experience.
What is the relationship
between the external world
and the self?
The Self in the External World
Feral child or Wild child
Is a human child who has lived isolated from human contact
from a young age with little no experience of human care,
behavior, or human language. They are typically portrayed at
being raised by animals
Feral children challenged the long standing notion of humans
being special
The different qualities of the self
Separate
This means that it is distinct from any other selves, the
self is always unique and has its own identity.
Consistency
allows it to be studied, described, and measured.
The different qualities of the self
The self is private, self-sorts out information, feelings, emotions, and
thought processes within the self.
Self is isolated from external world. Because of this, the clash of self
and external reality is the reason for the self to have a clear
understanding on what it might be, what it can be, what it will be.
Self is unitary because it is the center of all experiences and thoughts
that run through a certain person. Basically the command center or an
individual where all processes, emotions, and thoughts converge.
The self should not be seen as static.
Rather, should be seen or something that is
in unceasing flux, in constant struggle with
external reality and is malleable in its
dealings with society.
Marcel Mauss
a French sociologist, believes
that the self has two faces; the
personne and moi
Moi
Is person’s sense of who he is, his body, basic identity, biological givenness.
Personne
is a social concept of what it means to be who he is. What it means to live in a
particular institution, family, religion, nationality, or how to behave in given
expectations/influences
OFWs jaywalking in Philippines but respect traffic when in another country
The Self and the
Development of
the Social World
George Herbert Mead
a philosopher, psychologist and
sociologist, supports the view that
a person develops a sense of self
through social interaction
The “I” and “Me”
"I"
The or the social self, is what is learned in interaction with others and with
the environment: other people's attitudes, once internalized in the self, all
form the Me.
"Me"
Is the response to the “me” and to the attitude of others. This means that the
“I” is when the individual identity and one’s unique trait is stepping in on our
personal responses to what society thinks
The "Me" disciplines the "I" by holding it back from breaking the law of the
community
The full development of the self is not
present at birth but develops only with social
experience in which language, gestures, and
objects are used to communicate meaningfully.
Theory of Self Development
Preparatory Stage
Play Stage
Game Stage
Preparatory Stage (0-3 years old)
Also called as the imitation stage. In this stage, we see
children mimic/imitate those around them and this is
why parents of young children do not want you to use
foul language around kids. They do not have any idea or
understanding of what they are saying or doing
Play Stage (3-6 years old)
Children are believed to learn self-development and interaction
through pretend play in this stage. Children also start to play more
formalized games because they begin to understand the
perspective of others or the perspective of their significant others.
Game Stage (6-9 years old)
At this stage, children become concerned about and take into
account in their behavior the generalized others or how they are
viewed.
In response, children become influenced by the expectations or
perceptions of the society and they become concerned about the
reactions of others by what they say or do. However, they mainly
focus on the perceptions of “significant others”.
Game Stage (6-9 years old)
The generalized others refers to the viewpoint of the social group at
large. Is loosely Sigmund Freud’s concept, Superego which is the ethical
component of the personality and provides the moral standards by
which the ego operates. The superego’s criticisms, prohibitions, and
inhibitions form a person’s conscience
The Significant others are all of the people who haveimportant
relationships with the individual. Parents, family, teachers, peers.
The Social
Development
Theory
Lev Vygotsky
a Russian psychologist, argues that social
interaction comes before development;
consciousness and cognition are the end
product of socialization and social
behavior.
Social Interaction
Social level l(Interpsychological) This is where social learning
takes place because in this stage, they interact, connect and
reach out to other people
Individual level(Intrapsychological), after acquiring social
learnings, the functions will appear a second time and, this
time, more developed and thus, leading to cognitive
development(self-reflection).
According to Vygotsky
Without learning, an individual won’t function and develop fully
but that does not mean that people are born with absolutely zero
abilities.
He claimed that infants are born with the basic
materials/abilities for intellectual development that are called
the elementary mental functions.
Elementary mental functions
Sensation
hot, cold, sweet, or bitter are delivered automatically to the
brain by the senses.
Hunger
bodily processes. An infant doesn’t need to be told that he is
hungry since hunger will manifest the fact.
Memory
Young children commit things to memory in a natural manner.
Higher mental functions
Language Attention
As we grow older and undergo Attention –They are now able
a multitude of other social to decide which objects,
processes, language learning actions or thoughts to focus
will also advance, as well as our on
thought processes
Memory Perception
Memory can be cultivated and Social interactions help the
controlled by this time and they child’s level of perception,
know how to make relevant increasing his awareness and
associations and memorized stuff capacity to understand why
they think is necessary. things are as they are.
The More Knowledgeable other (MKO)
Anyone who has a better understanding considerably higher
or superior level of ability, skill or knowledge about a
particular subject, task or process, than the person who is
attempting to learn. Normally thought of as being a teacher,
coach, or older adult, but could also be peers, a younger
person, and even a computer.
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
This is where the child will be
given a lot of encouragement
but just the right amount of
guidance to allow the child to
develop his skills.
Thank You!
