Self and Identity - TCE Sociology (Tasmania) - Level 3
“Explain and evaluate how the self and social identity are constructed through socialisation”
The self is not inborn but constructed through social interaction. George Herbert Mead argued the self develops by taking the role of the other, balancing the spontaneous I against the socialised me. Charles Horton Cooley called this the looking-glass self: we see ourselves reflected in how others react to us. Erving Goffman added that we actively manage the impressions we give. Identity is therefore social, multiple and changing rather than fixed and biological.
What this dot point is asking
The TASC course states that the concepts and theories of socialisation are used to explain the construction of identity. This dot point asks you to explain how a sense of self and a social identity are built up through social interaction, not given at birth. You need the key interactionist thinkers, an account of how identity can be multiple and changing, and an evaluation of how much identity is freely chosen versus socially imposed.
Why the self is social
A newborn has no sense of self. Sociologists argue that self awareness and identity emerge only through interaction with others, which is why cases of extreme isolation, such as feral children, show a failure to develop a normal self. Identity is the sense of who we are, built from the social categories we belong to and the meanings others attach to us. Because it is learned through socialisation, identity varies across cultures and changes over a lifetime.
Mead: the I and the me
George Herbert Mead, a founder of symbolic interactionism, explained that children develop a self by learning to take the role of the other. First they imitate significant others such as parents, then through play and games they internalise the generalised other, the wider expectations of society. Mead distinguished two parts of the self: the I, the spontaneous and creative part that acts, and the me, the socialised part that reflects on how others see us. The self is the ongoing conversation between them.
Charles Horton Cooley's looking-glass self is the idea that we form our self image by imagining how we appear to others, imagining their judgement of us, and then feeling pride or shame as a result. Our self concept is, in effect, a reflection of other people's reactions, so identity is built socially rather than from inside.
Cooley and the looking-glass self
Cooley's metaphor captures how identity depends on others. If a student is consistently treated as clever, they tend to come to see themselves that way and act accordingly; if treated as a troublemaker, the reverse can happen. This links directly to labelling in the deviance topic. An Australian example is how a young athlete praised within a sporting club builds a sporting identity that becomes central to who they are.
Goffman: presenting the self
Erving Goffman used a dramaturgical analogy, treating social life as a theatre. We are all actors managing the impressions we give, performing on a front stage where we present an idealised self and relaxing in the back stage. Impression management means we actively shape our identity for different audiences. An everyday Australian example is the different self a person presents on a job interview, with friends, and on social media, each a tailored performance.
Sociologists stress that we hold several identities at once, for example as a student, a sibling, a worker and a member of an ethnic or religious group, and these can shift over time and across situations. Identity is fluid and socially constructed, not a single fixed essence we are born with.
Evaluating the construction of identity
How freely is identity chosen? Interactionists emphasise agency: we negotiate and perform our identities. Structural theorists reply that the categories available to us, such as class, gender and ethnicity, are imposed by society and limit our choices. Feminists note that gender identity is heavily socialised, and writers on ethnicity point out that ethnic identity can be both chosen and ascribed by others. The balanced view is that identity is constructed within social constraints: we are active authors, but we write with a limited vocabulary supplied by society.
A common task asks you to explain and evaluate how identity is constructed. Work through it in steps.
Step 1: Establish that the self is social
Open by arguing the self is not inborn but emerges through interaction, using cases of extreme isolation as evidence.
Step 2: Build through the interactionist thinkers
Develop Mead (the I and the me, the generalised other), Cooley (the looking-glass self) and Goffman (impression management), each with an example.
Step 3: Show identity is multiple and changing
Argue we hold several identities at once that shift across situations and time, rejecting a single fixed essence.
Step 4: Evaluate choice versus constraint
Weigh interactionist agency against structural constraints (class, gender, ethnicity) and conclude that identity is constructed within social limits.
Students often describe identity as something private and unchanging that comes from within. The sociological point is the opposite: identity is built through interaction, depends on the reactions of others, and shifts across situations and time. Always link identity back to socialisation and named interactionist theorists.
This dot point connects forward to deviance, where labelling shows how a deviant identity can be imposed, and to the inequality module, where gender, ethnicity and Indigenous identity shape life chances and self image.
Exam-style questions
Questions in the style of TASC exam questions on this dot point, each with a worked answer. They are written by ExamExplained unless tagged "Past paper"; the year shows the paper a question is modelled on.
Practice4 marksExplain Cooley's concept of the looking-glass self.Show worked answer →
A 4 mark short-answer response needs the concept stated with its key steps.
The concept. Charles Horton Cooley argued that we form our self-image by seeing ourselves reflected in others, as if in a mirror.
The steps. We imagine how we appear to others; we imagine their judgement of us; and we then feel pride or shame as a result, building our self-concept from these reflected reactions.
The point. The self is therefore social: our identity is built from the reactions of other people rather than from inside us. An example is a student treated as clever coming to see themselves that way.
Markers reward the three-step process and the conclusion that identity is socially formed. A common loss of marks is describing the term as simply caring what others think, without the reflective steps.
Practice14 marksExplain and evaluate how the self and social identity are constructed through socialisation.Show worked answer →
A 14 mark extended response needs the interactionist thinkers, an account of multiple and changing identity, and an evaluation of choice versus constraint.
Why the self is social. A newborn has no sense of self; self-awareness emerges only through interaction, shown by cases of extreme isolation.
Mead. The self develops by taking the role of the other, moving from imitating significant others to internalising the generalised other; Mead distinguished the spontaneous I from the socialised me.
Cooley and Goffman. Cooley's looking-glass self shows identity built from others' reflected reactions; Goffman's dramaturgical model shows us managing impressions on front and back stage.
Multiple identity. We hold several identities at once (student, sibling, worker, ethnic or religious member) that shift over time and across situations.
Evaluate. Interactionists stress agency; structural theorists reply that categories such as class, gender and ethnicity are imposed and limit choice. A strong answer concludes identity is constructed within social constraints: active authorship with a limited vocabulary. Markers reward named theorists, the multiple-identity point and a balanced judgement.