Colegio De Sta. Lourdes of Leyte Foundation Inc.

Barangay 1 Quezon Tabontabon, Leyte

Social Science 11: Unfolding the Social Self

Module No. 6: The Social Self
October 4 - October 8, 2021
Date of Submission: October 18, 2021

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of this module, you are able to:

 explain, elaborate, and give examples of social factors that shape the development of
oneself;
 create a conceptual diagram of how these social factors are intertwined and
interactively influence their sense of self; and
 analyze and evaluate one’s social behaviors and identify ways to manage them
effectively.

ACTIVITYLOG

Input Starter
Covid-19 Reminders
Focused Discussion
Assessment
Self-Evaluation
Enrichment
Point of Clarification

INPUT

Starter
Your safety is top priority during this COVID-19. Observe the following safety pre-cautions
below.

Safety Pre-Cautions
Sanitize hands on the way in and on the way out
Don’t touch your face
Wear a face mask at minimum when in the home doing any work
Limit interactions with the home
Don’t touch anything that you don’t need to
Maintain separation distance from others
Carry disinfectants such as sanitizers, alcohols and etc.

Focused Discussions

Chapter 3 | Section 1: The Social Self

This module focuses on the social aspects of the self. As social beings, individuals
interact with others and relate themselves to other people. Social institutions and
environments significantly contribute to one’s identity and self-development. Among millennial

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learners, technology and the internet have significantly influenced their social environments
and, consequently, their sense of self. In this module, the cultural, digital, and economic
aspects of one’s life and how they influence a person’s social self will be put to light. This
module aims to provide learners with a deeper understanding of themselves through a socio-
cultural perspective.

This section discusses the social and environmental factors that shape oneself. This
includes environmental systems, cultural, orientations, and other social factors that play a
crucial role to one’s social self.

The Self and Its Social Agencies

Human development is largely influenced by membership in crucial social groups that

shape various aspects of the self, from belief systems, values orientation, and behaviors. An
individual is born into a family and toward the end of his or her life, he or she is evaluated in
the context of his or her contribution to the society, the quality of his or her social relationships,
and how he or she has touched lives of people whom he or she has directly encountered.

At the beginning of life, one already belongs to a social group: his or her family. It is
the most pervading influential social group that impacts the self in its entire course of
development. The views one holds about the world, values upheld in making choices and
decisions, and the habits and persistent behavior one carries have been formed in the context
of one’s family and home environment. Parents are one’s frist teachers; from a very early age,
it is form them that one creates initial impressions of the world beyond his or her home, and
the first barometer in determining which acts are good and rewarded and those that are
unacceptable, for which one is reprimanded and punished. As one’s family grows, his or her
siblings become his or her first friend’s ad playmates. Relationships with siblings harness
one’s socialization skills, particularly in play moments and quarrels which help shape one’s
conflict resolution skills that he or she can carry throughout his or her life. These consistent
family experiences are crucial in shaping of one’s social self.

Next to family, schools and the general academic environment form a significant part
of the social life. Worldviews expand as one gets exposed to more people in different social
learning environments. Knowledge and social skills gained from mentors, relatives, and peers
contribute to how the social self is harnessed. The information gleaned from books, lectures
of mentors, and insights from classmates are assimilated and imbibed consequently in the
inner recesses of the self. One’s knowledge of the world is shaped by collaborative learning
conditions, as one is exposed to the insights of his or her learning peers. Values of social
harmony, emotional sensitivity to the needs of other people, and behavior with regard to he
personal spaces of others in the environment are just some learning insights that are
inculcated in one’s social self. Rougly, about a third of people’s lives are spent as students in
educational institutions. The experiences an individual gains in an academic environment
shape his or her social self as he or she embarks on the next stages of development.

Aside from one’s family and school environments, communities also shape one’s social
self to a large extent. From an anthropological and sociological perspective, one’s cultural
beliefs and practices are influenced by what communities and societies dictate. Values such
as respect for the elderly, persistence and dedication for tasks, and love for one’s country are
often the products of communal settings one belongs to and societal expectations imposed
on him or her. Specific practices such as attending workship, avoiding conflict and strife with
others, takin part in ritual and ceremonies such as weddings, baptisms, and other religious

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activities, are embedded in one’s social self as communities and the society have developed
shared meanings with regard to these milestones. Religion, politics, media, education, and
the government are all social institutions that directly impact one’s social self. The social slef
inevitably changes as one accommodates and eventually assimilates beliefs promoted by the
society as he or she thinks, appreciates, and behaves according to standards set by micro
and macrosystems.

Culture

According to Edward Tylor (1871), “culture is the complex whole which includes
knowledge, belief, law, art, moral, custom, and other capabilities and habits acquired by man
as a member of society.” Based on this definition, one can conclude that culture has s great
impact on a human being, and this is manifested in his or her thoughts, behaviors, and
expression. However, culture is highly relative; it varies in terms of geographical, traditional,
and individual contexts. A dominant characteristic of culture is that it is socially transmitted
and learned by groups of people, bound by ethnicity, geography, and personal orientations.

To further understand the nature of culture and its influences on oneself, the following
models illustrate how culture functions in relation to one’s social self.

Bioecological Systems Theory

Urie Bronfenbrenner’s (1935) Bioecological Systems of Development explains

an individual’s social development, using biological, environmental, and ecological
lenses. The theory explains the bidirectional influence of individual systems to each
other and posits five specific systems that shape an individual’s sense of self. These
systems are as follows:

1. Microsystem. This system refers to the institutions and social groups that
the individual has direct contact and interaction with, including families,
peers, schools, religious institutions, and the immediate community.
2. Mesosystem. This system refers to the interconnections among aspects of
the microsystems affecting the individual. Pragmatic examles of this would
include parent-teacher associations (PTA), parent and peer conections, and
community relations, among others.
3. Exosystem. This system refers to the social setting that an individual has
no direct interaction with but nevertheless affects his or her development.
An example of this could be the work setting of one’s parents where a major
company decision that results in the loss of job of either parent will have a
significant impact to the child.
4. Macrosystem. This system encompasses the larger cultural context in
which the individual resides in. A cultural context may include the
socioeconomic status of his or her country, issues of ethnicity, societal
values embraced by social institutions, cultural beliefs and practices handed
down from generation to generation, and how all these affect an individual’s
behavior and opportunities in the society. An example of a macrosystem
would be the Philippines as a third-world country where there is a notion
that life can be better when one works abroad. Acceptable values which are

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 defined by the society that are handed down from generation to generation
is inexplicably imbibed by the individual.
5. Chronosystems. This system focuses on patterns of environmental events,
including sociohistorical events from a specific to a general context. For
example, one’s graduation from college would entail changes in his or her
social self as he or she is expected to work to help his or her family and
contribute to the society. Socail events which push forth active citizenship
also influences the social self in a very vital way.

The following diagram shows how all these systems go together and influence
individual development:

Individualism – Collectivism Model

Another model that highlights the impact of culture to the self is the Individualism –
Collectivism model proposed by Hazel Rose Markus and Shinobu Kitayama (1991). Acoording
to the model, individualism as anorientation focuses on one’s individual attributes and personal
distinctiveness. People who are individualistic are observed to b competitive and self-reliant.
They are likely to

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 Stranger
Stranger

Ingroup
Ingroup

Friend

Outgroup Friend Friend Outgroup Friend

Self
Self

Brother Brother
Mother Mother

Stranger
Stranger

be independent in acieving their personal interests rather than becoming dependent on a

group. On the other hand, the collectivist orientation values relationship and harmony. People
who are collectivistic prioritize interests to maintain healthy relationships. They are likely to be
adaptive to other people, and cooperative in group tasks.

The Philippine society is traditionally perceived to be a collectivist one because of the

idea that Asian nations adhere to a collectivist mindset. In the context of collectivism, collective
interests are prioritized over personal ones and the functionality of relationships is maintained
through practices that would benefit everyone. For example, choosing a career that would
fulfill the expectations of the entire family and being non-confrontational with thoughts and
beliefs that are opposed to what the group accepts are some aspects of collectivism. In the
Philippine context, practices like staying in one’s family home, attending mass or going to
places of worship in groups and even the inappropriate practice of sharing the achievements
of other just because they are a relative or even simply because they are alos Filipinos
showcase a collectivist mindset.

Veering away from tradition, the Filipinos are no longer tightly bound to strongly
collectivist practices. Due to the rise of globalization and the influence of different nations with
individualistic mindsets, the Filipino society also adapts perspectives learning to the
individualist orientation. Many Filipinos strive to be independent and self-reliant, with goals
matching one’s individual needs. This is evident in behaviors that break away from the
collectivist outlook: moving out of one’s parent’s house after graduation, choosing a career
based on one’s personal inclinations, and the like. Although these oppose the traditional

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mindset of always adhering to what others ask of an individual, these behaviors show the
capacity of an individual to think for himself or herself.

Notions of individualism and collectivism show how the self is directly influenced by
the society and its standards. Being part of social groups impacts one’s thoughts and values
and also affects one’s social behavior.

I vs. Me

One’s behavior when he or she is alone differs

from his or her behavior when he or she is with others.
Different situations trigger particular behaviors because
of differing social expectations. In being alone, one
does not need to keep up apperances, which is
different when there are others observing. This is what
Herbert Mead (1934) posited in his theory of the social
self. He posited that the self is divided into two parts:
the “I” which is known as the unsocialized self, and the
“Me” which is known as the “socialized” self.

According to Mead, the “I” is who an individual really is. It is one’s opinion of himself or
herself as a whole. The “I” is manifested when one acts naturally for his or her own motivations
and not because of others. On the other hand, the “Me” is the awareness of how others expect
one to behave. This is also known as the social self. This part of the self, according to Mead,
is the careful and the conscious. When you know that there are people staring at you, you are
likely to take note of what others would think about you, and thus adjust your behavior
according to what you think about you, and thus adjust your behavior according to what you
think is acceptable to others. Based on Mead’s model, the state of the actual self is achived
when the “I” and “Me” become congruent.

These different models present ideas on the process of the self’s social development.
It is important to note that culture plays an important role in one’s social development. Studying
these models helps in understanding oneself and other people. It is not ideal, however, to
generalize a certain culture based on these models. Individual differences should always be
considered and respect should always be fostered among one another.

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ASSESSMENT

Learning Activity:
Name:_____________________________ Course and Section:____________________
Instructor:__________________________ Subject and Date:______________________
Instruction: Respond to the following questions and write your answer in a clean
sheet of papers. (10 points ech)
1. What beliefs, values, and behaviors do you consider to be helpful to your social self?
Why?
2. What beliefs, values, and behaviors do you consider as detrimental to your social
self? Why?
3. What new insights about your social self do you have at this point?

RUBRIC
Indicators Points Score
Content 5
Organization of Ideas 5
TOTAL 10

SELF-EVALUATION

Rate yourself from 1 to 5 (1 being the lowest while 5 being the highest) on the level of
understanding that you are able to attain for this module:
1 2 3 4 5

ENRICHMENT
For further learning kindly visit the link given below. http://www.media-
ecology.org/publications/MEA_proceedings/v3/bailey03.pdf

POINT OFCL AR IF IC AT ION

Please write any questions or points of clarification about the content of this module:
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________

REFERENCES

LEARNING RESOURCES:
▪ Chaffee, J. (2013) Who are you? Consciousness, identify and the self. In The philosopher’s
way: Thinking critically about profound ideas (pp. 154-155). Buston, MA: Pearson.
▪ Bandura, A. (1999). Social cognitive theory of personality. In Pervin and John (eds).
Handbook of Personality Theory and Research (pp 134 – 194) . 2nd ed. Guilford Press.
▪ Thinking Critical about Profound Ideas(pp 106 – 169). Pearson.
▪ Demello, M. (2014). Beautiful bodies. Body studies: An introduction (pp 173 – 188).
Routledge. Demello, M. (2014). Fat and thin bodies. Body studies: An introduction (pp 189
– 205). Routledge.

MA. JHYSAVIL E. ARCENA, LPT 09166013040 majhysavila@gmail.com

Instructor

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