My Social Identity
Labels and Comparisons: My Social Identity
In order to explore our identities regarding class, race, gender, religion, and other aspects of human life, we must look at the ideas that make up social identity. Social identity consists of four elements: Categorization, or attaching labels to people; Identification, which refers to associating oneself to certain groups; Comparison, or viewing other groups differently from our own; and Psychological Distinctiveness - we each want to be different from other groups.
Allow me to categorize myself. I am a "white female" of European descent. I am a "Massachusetts resident."I am a"Green Party member."I am a"graduate student."I am a "Unitarian Universalist."I am a"poor person,"but my parents are"rich people."What do these labels say about me? Can people make assumptions about my beliefs if I tell them I am a white female? When someone hears me called a"poor person,"what will they assume about my upbringing and employment situation? As for Identification, I associate myself with several groups, including the Green Party, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the State Radio fan club. The assumptions I make about people who, for example, are members of the Republican Party, fall under the category of Comparison. I have found that I tend to focus on Comparison more than Psychological Distinctiveness. My economic situation as a child and teenager shows that I put a great deal of energy into comparing myself to other groups and people with different labels.
I grew up in a white, affluent family in the suburbs of Boston. As children my sisters and I used to play a game called "Rich Girl," in which we pretended our dad had a "good job" and we could buy whatever we wanted. We didn't know it, but we were "rich girls." As I grew older I developed an increasing sense of guilt regarding my class. My schools were always well-funded, and 15 miles away in Boston kids my age were being treated very poorly. In the same way, I
In order to explore our identities regarding class, race, gender, religion, and other aspects of human life, we must look at the ideas that make up social identity. Social identity consists of four elements: Categorization, or attaching labels to people; Identification, which refers to associating oneself to certain groups; Comparison, or viewing other groups differently from our own; and Psychological Distinctiveness - we each want to be different from other groups.
Allow me to categorize myself. I am a "white female" of European descent. I am a "Massachusetts resident."I am a"Green Party member."I am a"graduate student."I am a "Unitarian Universalist."I am a"poor person,"but my parents are"rich people."What do these labels say about me? Can people make assumptions about my beliefs if I tell them I am a white female? When someone hears me called a"poor person,"what will they assume about my upbringing and employment situation? As for Identification, I associate myself with several groups, including the Green Party, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the State Radio fan club. The assumptions I make about people who, for example, are members of the Republican Party, fall under the category of Comparison. I have found that I tend to focus on Comparison more than Psychological Distinctiveness. My economic situation as a child and teenager shows that I put a great deal of energy into comparing myself to other groups and people with different labels.
I grew up in a white, affluent family in the suburbs of Boston. As children my sisters and I used to play a game called "Rich Girl," in which we pretended our dad had a "good job" and we could buy whatever we wanted. We didn't know it, but we were "rich girls." As I grew older I developed an increasing sense of guilt regarding my class. My schools were always well-funded, and 15 miles away in Boston kids my age were being treated very poorly. In the same way, I