Part 2; Unit 2; Chapter 4: The Self and Interaction

Thomas theorem

Classic formulation of the way individuals define situations, whereby "if people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences".

Role-taking emotions

Emotions like sympathy, embarrassment, or shame that require that we assume the perspective of another person or many other people and respond from that person or group's point of view.

Autoethnography

Ethnographic description that focuses on the feelings and reactions of the ethnographer.

Role conflict

Experienced when we occupy two or more roles with contradictory expectations.

Expressions given

Expressions that are intentional and usually verbal, such as utterances.

Copresence

Face-to-face interaction or being in the presence of others.

Psychosexual stages of development

Four distinct stances of the development of the self between birth and adulthood, according to Freud; personality quirks are a result of being fixated, or stuck, at any stage.

Feral children

In myths and rare real-world cases, children who have had little human contact and may have lived in social isolation from a young age.

Backstage

In the dramaturgical perspective, places in which we rehearse and prepare for our performances.

Region

In the dramaturgical perspective, the context or setting in which the performance takes place.

Frontstage

In the dramaturgical perspective, the region in which we deliver our public performances.

Front

In the dramaturgical perspective, the setting or scene of performances that helps establish the definition of the situation.

Stereotyping

Judging others based on preconceived generalizations about groups or categories of people.

Expressions given off

Observable expressions that can be either intended or unintended and are usually nonverbal.

Expressions of behavior

Small actions such as an eye roll or head nod that serve as an interactional tool to help protect our definition of the situation to others.

Agents of socialization

Social groups, institutions, and individuals (especially the family, schools, peers, and the mass media) that provide structured situations in which socialization takes place.

Feeling rules

Socially constructed norms regarding the expressions and display of emotions; expectations about the acceptable or desirable feelings in a given situation.

Agency

The ability of the individual to act freely and independently.

Impression management

The effort to control the impressions we make on others so that they form a desired view of us and the situation; the use of self-presentation and performance tactics.

Personal front

The expressive equipment we consciously or unconsciously use as we present ourselves to others, including appearance and manner, to help establish the definition of the situation.

Preparatory stage

The first stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children mimic or imitate others.

Dual nature of the self

The idea that we experience the self as both subject and object, the "I" and the "me".

Self

The individual's conscious, reflexive experience of a personal identity separate and distinct from other individuals.

Looking-glass self

The notion that the self develops through our perception of others' evaluations and appraisals of us. Approach to the Self and Interaction: Cooley's theory of the self concept as derived from how we imagine others see us, and the feelings about ourselves based on the perceived judgements of others. Case Study; Identity in Childhood: Parents and significant others serve as a reflection to children, who develop a sense of self based on their appraisals, real or imagined.

Nature vs. Nurture Debate

The ongoing discussion of the respective roles of genetics and socialization in determining individual behaviors and traits.

Generalized other

The perspectives and expectations of a network of others (or of society in general) that a child learns and then takes into account when shaping his or her own behavior.

Particular or significant other

The perspectives and expectations of a particular role that a child learns and internalizes.

Social construction

The process by which a concept or practice is created and maintained by participants who collectively agree that it exists.

Emotion work (emotional labor)

The process of evoking, suppressing m, or otherwise managing feelings to create a publicly observable display of emotion.

Socialization

The process of learning and internalizing the values, beliefs, and norms of our social group, by which we become functioning members of society.

Role exit

The process of leaving a role that we will no longer occupy.

Resocialization

The process of replacing previously learned norms and values with new ones as a part of a transition in life.

Play stage

The second stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children pretend to play the role of the particular or significant other.

Role

The set of behaviors expected of someone because of their status.

Role strain

The tension experienced when there are contradictory expectations within one role.

Game stage

The third stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children play organized games and take on the perspective of the generalized other.

Hidden curriculum

Values or behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling because of the structure of the educational system and the teaching methods used.

Sociobiology

A branch of science that uses biological and evolutionary explanations for social behavior.

Status

A position in a social hierarchy that carries a particular set of expectations.

Saturated self

A postmodern idea that the self is now developed by multiple influences chosen from a wide range of media sources.

Achieved status

A status earned through individual effort or imposed by others.

Embodied status

A status generated by physical characteristics.

Master status

A status that is always relevant and affects all other statuses we possess.

Id, ego, and superego

According to Freud, the three interrelated parts that make up the mind; the id consists of basic inborn drives that are the source of instinctive psychic energy; the ego is the realistic aspect of the kind that balances the forces of the id and the superego; the superego has two components (the conscious and the ego-ideal) and represents the internalized demands of society.

Mass media

An agent of socialization: Entertains, informs, educates, and is responsible for the internalization of many values, beliefs, and norms of society.

School

An agent of socialization: Helps people become less dependent on their family, and provides a bridge to other social groups.

Peers

An agent of socialization: Provides young people with a way of exercising independence from, and possibly reacting against, adult control.

Family

An agent of socialization: The original group to which people belong, where early emotional and social bonds are created, language is learned, and where we first begin to internalize the norms and values of society.

Definition of the situation

An agreement with others about "what is going on" in a given circumstance; this consensus allows us to coordinate our actions with those of others and realize goals.

Dramaturgy

An approach pioneered by Erving Goffman in which social life is analyzed in terms of its similarities to theatrical performance. Approach to the Self and Interaction: Goffman's theory of the presentation of self; we are like actors on a stage whose performance strategies aid in impression management. Case Study; Identity in Childhood: Children learn the arts of impression management and may present a different self to their parents than to other children or teachers.

Ascribed status

An inborn status; usually difficult or impossible to change.

Total institution

An institution in which individuals are cut off from the rest of society so that their lives can be controlled and regulated for the purpose of systematically stripping away previous roles and identities in order to create new ones.

Psychoanalysis

Approach to the Self and Interaction: Freud's theory of the unconscious mind as composed of an interrelated system (id, ego, superego) that underlies human behavior; personality develops through psychosexual stages. Case Study; Identity in Childhood: Parents instill a conscience (superego) in children through rules that govern their instinctual behavior (id) until children mature and are self-governing (ego).

Mind, Self, and Society

Approach to the Self and Interaction: Mead's theory of the self that develops through 3 stages (preparatory, play, and game); in role taking the particular or generalized other, we learn to see ourselves as others do. Case Study; Identity in Childhood: Children gain a sense of self though imitation, play, and games, in which they learn various roles and take on the perspectives of others.

Cooling the mark out

Behaviors that help others to save face or avoid embarrassment, often referred to as civility or tact.