1. Personal Identity Chapter 9
By: Kelsi Didier, Tiffany McCulley, and
Areli Valero

2. Icebreaker On a notecard write 5 things that make up your identity
Categories that can help guide your choices:
Race
Religion
Family (sister, brother, daughter, mother, father, etc.)
Traits (smart, athletic, funny, outgoing, sensitive, etc.)
Activities (sports, community service, binge watching Netflix, cooking, etc.)
Future/current occupation
Be prepared to share with the class

3. Question What did you want to be when you were little?
Firefighter/police officer
Doctor/vet
Singer/dancer
Surely, over the years you have changed your mind many times…
Ballerina  Chef  Nurse  Teacher
Childhood is the stepping stone to understanding your true self. Originally put into motion by either your parents or guardian.

4. What is there to explore?
Define the self
Discuss factors that shape the self
Four communication processes that explain how we come to know ourselves
Digital media’s role in personal identity
Three guidelines to encourage personal growth

5. The Self
The self is defined as “a multidimensional process that involves forming and acting from social perspectives that arise and evolve in communication with others and ourselves” (Wood 174).

6. Did you know that others perspectives influence how we see ourselves?
There are two kinds of others whose perspectives influence how we see ourselves and what we believe is possible and desirable for us:
Generalized Others
“… represents one’s perception of the rules, roles, and attitudes endorsed by one’s group or community”
(Wood 175).
Particular Others
“Specific people who are significant to the self and who influence self’s values, perspective and esteem” (Wood 175).

7. The Self: Key Points Developed through communication with others
generalized others
particular others
Multidimensional:
Physical self
Emotional self
Cognitive self
Social self
Professional self
Perspectives on the self are a system-> all parts are interrelated
Not innate/born with
Not static or fixed but rather dynamic
(5:30)

8. Society Shapes The Self
There are four key social categories recognized and considered important to identity in the United States today:
Race
Socio-
economic class
Gender
Sexual Orientation

9. Particular Others Shape The Self
Attachment Styles:
- Secure
- Fearful
- Dismissive
- Anxious/ Ambivalent
Life Scripts

10. Secure Attachment Style
“Develops when a child’s primary caregiver responds in a consistently attentive and loving way to a child” (Wood 178).
Learn a sense of self-worth
“I am loved”
Positive view of others
“People are loving
and can be trusted”

11. Fearful Attachment Style
“… when a caregiver communicates in negative, rejecting, or abusive ways with a child” (Wood 178).
They are unworthy of love
They fear that others will not love them
Leads to them to be apprehensive and insecure in relationships

12. Dismissive Attachment Style
“…promoted by caregivers who are uninterested in, rejecting of, or abusive toward children” (Wood 178)
Does not accept the caregiver’s view of them as unlovable
They dismiss others as unworthy*
The children develop a positive view of themselves and a low regard for others and relationships
Tend to view relationships as unnecessary/undesirable

13. Anxious/Ambivalent Attachment Style
Most complex out of the four attachment styles
Created by inconsistent* treatment from the caregiver
Loving/attentive  indifferent/rejecting
Unpredictable
Create anxiety in a child
Child assume they are the problem

14. Life Scripts
“Guides to action based on rules for living and identity” (Wood 179).
Initially your family communicates to you
Our initial life scripts are formed when we are a child, usually before we are the age of five
As adults life scripts...
are an active process
can be reviewed and changed
Examples:
“Save your money for a rainy day”
“Always help others”
“Look out for yourself”

15. How Do We Learn About The Self?
Four communication processes:
Reflected Appraisal
Direct Definition
Social Comparison
Self-Disclosure

16. 1. Reflected Appraisal “Looking-glass self” or mirror
“The image and estimate of ourselves that we perceive others communicate to us” (Wood 179).
Continue throughout our lives
The start of self-concept

17. 1. Reflected Appraisal
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days:
Mean Girls:

18. 2. Direct Definition
“Communication that tells us who we are by explicitly labeling us and reacting to our behaviors” (Wood 180).
Usually, family members are the first ones to give us a direct definition of ourselves
Peers also give direct definitions of us
Examples:
“You’re my smart little girl”
“You’re a big, strong boy”
Dad’s pep talk:

19. Self-fulfilling Prophecies
Reflected appraisals and direct definitions impact our self through the self-fulfilling prophecy
“Acting in ways that bring about others’ or our own expectations or judgments of ourselves”(Wood 181).
Can be upward or downward
We often believe wrong things about ourselves
Use labels that were once true
Use labels that were never true

20. Self-fulfilling Prophecies
Zootopia- Nicholas Wild (fox): (0:40) (0:00-1:15) (4:50-5:06)
Shrek: (2:30)

21. 3. Social Comparison
“Comparing ourselves with others to form judgments of our talents, abilities, qualities, and so forth” (Wood 181).
We do this in two ways:
Compare ourselves with others to decide if we are like them or if we are different from them
Compare ourselves to others to judge specific aspects
It is normal for people to do this, but it is important to be cautious

22. 3. Social Comparison

23. 4. Self Disclosure
“The revelation of personal information about ourselves that others are unlikely to discover in other ways” (Wood 182).
Vary with amount of openness
It is most likely to occur in a positive communication climate
Example:
The Other Woman:
Johari Window
Uncertainty reduction theory

24. Johari Window

25. Johari Window Hidden area: Unknown area:
Frozen:
Unknown area:
Finding Nemo:

26. Uncertainty Reduction Theory
“The theory that people find uncertainty uncomfortable and so are motivated to use communication to reduce uncertainty” (Wood 184).
High during initial encounters
Self disclosure lowers uncertainty (be careful)
Decreases over time in relationships
Gender differences
Example:
UP:

27. Digital Media’s Role in Personal Identity
Importance of social media in providing us with direct definitions and reflected appraisals
Examples
Amongst teens
Gender differences
Cyber bullying
Social media is a key source for social comparison
Social media is a platform for skilled face work
Edit, reedit our page
Photoshop
Post best photos
High potential for manipulation and misrepresentation

28. Guidelines Reflect critically on social perspectives
Commit to personal growth
Set realistic goals
Assess yourself fairly
Create a supportive context for the change you seek
Settings
People (uppers, downers, vultures)
Others: (0:07-0:35)
Self sabotage:

29. Discussion Question
Do you think people change which parts of their self they choose to show in different environments? And if so, what are some examples?

30. Works Cited
Wood, J. T. (2017). Communication mosaics: An introduction to the field of communication. 8th Edition. Boston, MA: Wadsworth.