Importance Of Social Identity

1171 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Gender inequality in the modern world

Social Importance of Identity in Population A person is not merely a single subject distinguished from all the others. It is especially a being too which is attributed a relative autonomy in relation to the environment with which it is most immediately in contact. Emile Durkheim Society is consisted of particulars groups of people who are united for a certain aim which is common for every member of that society. The latter has the greatest impact on the formation of each person. It is considered to be the very source that contributes to the development of identity of every person; moreover, it injects some general norms and values in each member of that particular society. Besides, Henri Tajfel (1979), British social psychologist, said that human beings obtain a sense of social identity when they know that they belong to some social groups. This means that human beings find and develop their identities in case of belonging to some kinds of social groups. Only in that point a person is able to define and clarify his or her social identity. Those groups can diverse from each other and can have different sizes. Examples of such groups can be family, community, university and even, the entire population. Consequently, one can have different identities in each group and can take on appropriate identity as long as he or she is part of that particular social group. Moreover, all people have a right to preserve and protect their identity regardless of their nationality, religion and skin color. In this very point, back then in the past women could not find their identity and could not protect it in the majority of countries in the world. Even now, there ... ... middle of paper ... ... what about their identity, they do not have any identity because of having limited rights and role in the Pakistani society. Social identity has a great role in every person’s life: once one finds his or her identity in the population he/she should try to preserve and not to lose it. Women’s identity is one of the widely discussed problems all over the world. Different countries have had and still have numerous problems according to protection of women rights in their countries. For this reason particularly, I picked several countries for exploring this issue in each of them. After investigating all the three countries, it can be concluded that both Sweden and Australia have really succeeded in improving women’s role in society, however, Pakistani government has a lot to do for defending women’s rights and help them find their identity in that particular society.

Show More
Related

  • Blacks and Latinos in America

    1038 Words  | 3 Pages

    Identity is one of the main questions throughout all of our readings, because it is hard for people to accept who they are in society. Accepting their identity as a minority with little if any freedoms sparks many of the social problems which I will show happening in all communities and cultures. The main issue we will discuss is how social environments effect the search for identity. The Mexicans in the U.S. module gives us examples how Mexicans try to keep their customs while living in a discriminated environment by the Whites. This module also gives us examples how people are searching for personal identity while struggling with cultural traditions. Finally, the African-American module gives us more examples to compare with the Mexicans in the U.S. module, because these readings deal with Blacks finding personal identity also through discrimination from the Whites. To properly understand the theme of identity, we must first look the factors influencing it.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Social Identity

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    People go through many obstacles when they face their social identity. Some can overcome their differences, but others may not have they change to even face them due to the treatment that they get from society. Social identity is the one of many controversial and complex problems that many individuals deal with. Because, sometimes it used to be misunderstood making reference to racism and/or others complex matters. “On Being a Cripple” and “How It Feels to Be Colored” are two essays in which both characters suffer from some kind of discrimination. Indeed, in “How It Feels to Be Colored Me” by Zora Neale Hurston and “On Being a Cripple” by Nancy Mairs, each author shows different attitude, endures challenges, and change toward social identity.

    Read More

  • Ethnic Identity and African Americans

    870 Words  | 2 Pages

    The establishment of identity is an important, complex task for all adolescents, and is considered a major developmental task for all adolescents. It is particularly complicated for adolescents belonging to ethnic and minority groups. Ethnic identity of the majority group of individuals is constantly validated and reinforced in a positive manner where as the minority group is constantly ridiculed and punished in a negative manner. What does this say for those adolescents who are the minority and not the majority? It is important to study or research ethnic identity because it provides better knowledge to help one understand striving for a sense of unity and connectivenesss in which the self provides meaning for direction and meaning of ethnic identity (Spencer, 1990). It is also important to study or research the differences between these groups due to beliefs and values.

    Read More

  • Social Identity: My Worldview

    2310 Words  | 5 Pages

    Social identities and factors and/or experiences that have shaped your worldview. My Ethnic and cultural traditions and values have molded my social identities, in which both my Ethnic and cultural traditions and values and social identities have formed my worldview. According to my social identity wheel: My race is Asian/Pacific Islander and Filipino American. My ethnicity is Filipino. My sexual orientation is heterosexual. My religion is Roman Catholic. My age is of a young adult. I am a female. My national origin is the United States of America. My sense of who I am is based on my ethnic group that I have identified myself to belong in.

    Read More

  • Identity and Culture

    1522 Words  | 4 Pages

    When we think about our identity we often think about the way we look. Such features as hair color, eye color, skin tone, height and weight come to mind. Whilst these features are part of our identity, there are many more complex factors that make us who we are. Whilst psychological issues are paramount to the formation of our identity, I will be addressing the nature of our identity in relation to socio-cultural factors (Austin, 2002, p.9). During the course of this essay I will be discussing the term of Identity and some of the axes of identity, including Race, Class and Gender. It is important to understand some of the significant issues of identity so that we have more of an understanding of who and what we are, which in turn may help us to begin to better understand others.

    Read More

  • Mary Anne Warren's Belief on Abortion

    930 Words  | 2 Pages

    In order to define personhood, one must first define a human. A Human can be thought about in two different senses, a moral human sense and a genetic human sense. In a moral sense, humans can be thought of as a person who is a member of the moral community. In a genetic sense, humans are merely any physical being categorized as a being in the human species. From this one can conclude that a person is a human in the moral sense. Furthermore, characteristics of a person must be defined in order to differentiate moral beings from genetic humans.

    Read More

  • Don’t Be a Sissy: Achieving Equality in America’s Public Schooling System

    2074 Words  | 5 Pages

    "Pakistan allows transsexuals to have own gender category." Host Aleem Maqbool. BBC News. BBC Online. 26 Apr. 2011. Web. 29 Apr. 2011.

    Read More

  • Evaluating the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Social Identity Theory

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Social Identity theory (SIT) was proposed by Henry Tajfel. It was then later developed by Tajfel and Turner in 1971 to help them understand inter group relations. The Social Identity theory assumes that individuals strive to improve their self-image by trying to enhance their self-esteem, through social (in and out groups) and personal identities. There are 4 main concepts within the social identity theory all of which will be discussed in the essay.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Social Identity Theory

    743 Words  | 2 Pages

    In all aspects of their lives we associate with various groups, for example demographic, cultural or peer groups. Social Identity theory developed by Henri Tajfel in 1979 explains how people develop a sense of belonging and membership in particular groups. This theory explains behaviors in terms of social groups, we form social groups and create perceptions of others and ourselves that are influenced by the various groups to which we belong. A social group is a set of individuals who hold a common social identification or view themselves as members of the same social category (Chen & Li, 2009). Individuals can have multiple, co-occurring identities which could vary. This paper aims to explain how the Social Identity theory is used to explain violence and prejudice behavior and it also looks at the advantages and disadvantages of this theory compared to other theories in explaining the same behavior.

    Read More

  • Charles Taylor

    394 Words  | 1 Pages

    In The Politics of Recognition, Charles Taylor explores the possibility that in order to affirm individuals' equal dignity, we must acknowledge their cultures. He claims that individual identities are socially and dialogically constructed. That is why recognition is important. It shows how the study of identity and its politics is very important in the effort to understand control and somehow reduce the occurrence of group conflicts. The views of others may not be the last word concerning our identities, but they are the first word.

    Read More

  • Henri Tajfel's Social Identity Theory

    1748 Words  | 4 Pages

    Henri Tajfel’s social identity theory has made significant contributions to psychology and social work for its attempts to better understand human behavior. This paper discusses the theory’s main concepts and principals, its contributions to understanding human behavior, its strengths and weaknesses, how it addresses diversity and how it addresses social and economic justice.

    Read More

  • Social Construction Of Identity Essay

    1404 Words  | 3 Pages

    Identity is a socially and historically constructed concept. Identity links to question “Who am I?” , it means our individual identities in a broader social historical context and in relation to other groups. Studying identity, it means we study the identity of others through interactions with family, friends, organizations, media and other connections we make in our everyday life. When we think about identity, we may focus on external markers (what we can see), on our biology or physiology, or how we were born; however, it’s also important to understand that our identities are consisted of ideas, ideologies, and ways of seeing the world around us.

    Read More

  • Essay On Social Identity Theory

    1218 Words  | 3 Pages

    Social identity theory is based on four interrelated concepts: social categorization, social identification, social comparison and positive distinctiveness. Social categorization is tendency to divide and therefore categorise individuals into in-groups (individual belongs) and out-groups (individual does not belong); it groups different social circles based on the members’ stereotypical culture and behaviour. This often leads to category accentuation effect, which is exaggerating of intergroup differences and intragroup similarities; individual underestimate perceived variability within groups but overestimate variability between groups. Social identification is way of identifying individual with a particular social group based on their in-group norms and by doing so, may adopt some of the values and behaviours of that particular group. Social comparison and positive distinctiveness is when social identity contributes to our self-image so we seek positive social identities to maintain and enhance self-esteem. We compare in-group with out-group and also discriminate the out-group to establish the superiority of in-group, enhance their self-image...

    Read More

  • Factors That Influence Identity Essay

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    In today’s society, there has been a greater emphasis on identity than in the past. The perception of identity has changed due to the growing human population, and being able to distinguish oneself from the general population. Identity is the uniqueness of a person. As people get older, their identity might change since they become more aware of the society and also are more independent. By creating and recognizing an identity, one can interact with others who have a similar identity. Identity can be formed socially. There are several factors that influence an identity.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Cultural Identity

    1113 Words  | 3 Pages

    How many times have people asked themselves, who am I? What defines me? Culture plays a very important role in the identity of people. People are born in a culture, their family's culture, but not with an already established culture. The term culture refers to the values, beliefs, customs, style of dress, food, songs and stories that are shared and learned in a characteristic group. On the other hand, identity is a set of features, attributes and characteristics that define a person. Identity is constructed by language, social structure, gender orientation and cultural patterns. Although many do not relate these two themes, there is a complex relationship between culture and identity.

    Read More

More about Importance Of Social Identity

Open Document