You are to read “20. Play, Game, and The Generalized Other” in “Part III: The Self.” This section can be found on pages 70-75 of this document. Cahill, S., Sandstrom, K. and Froyum, C. (8th ed.). Inside Social Life: Readings in Social Psychology and Microsociology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Sentence starters are a good, guiding exercise to help you engage with what can be a challenging text. You task is to craft 10 sentences that reflect your understanding and application of the Mind, Self and Society excerpt.
Your sentences must:
* be listed and numbered (this is not a response paper);
* reflect a thorough reading of the text, i.e. reference play, game and generalized other;
* incorporate direct quotations in at least 3 of the sentences; and,
* apply the theory to your own experiences/socialization in at least 2 of the sentences, i.e. what connections can you make between you and the theory.
George Herbert Mead’s Mind, Self and Society (1967) is a classic piece of social psychology. In this section, Mead traces the development of the “social self.”
As you read, consider how Mead defines/describes the following:
* Play stage (imitation of a role)
* Game stage (fully internalizing and taking on a role, understanding of interdependent relationship)
* Generalized Other (dominant norms, values and expectations)
The social self is, for him, the highest form of self as we start to understand that the world does not revolve around us—that we are part of a society, and are in an interdependent relationship with others.
Here are the main ideas:
* Play Stage (“I”): The key word is “imitation.” Think of children playing a game of Cops and Robbers. At this stage, a child will simply imitate their respective roles, and do so based on what they have observed from family, media, other experiences etc.
They may put on the props and perform accordingly, but are not at the stage of fully recognizing the other person in the game. That is, they could be in opposite corners of a room performing their role without interacting with the other person.
* Game Stage (“Me”): Here, children more fully embody their role and recognize the other. That is, in the game, cop cannot exist without robber, and robber cannot exist without cop. The relationship, they understand, is interdependent. Mead uses an excellent baseball analogy.
* Generalized Other (Society): The generalized other is essentially one big game stage! The generalized other is the internalization of dominate norms, values and expectations. Think about it: when you get on a crowded elevator, do you face the people already in the elevator, or do you turn and face the door?
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