See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259692390
Sociological concepts of culture and identity
Article in Society and Culture · May 2013
CITATIONS
READS
16
162,941
1 author:
Flourish Itulua-Abumere
University of East London
39 PUBLICATIONS 114 CITATIONS
SEE PROFILE
All content following this page was uploaded by Flourish Itulua-Abumere on 14 January 2014.
The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.
Sociological concepts of culture and identity
by: Flourish Itulua-Abumere
Published by uPublish.info
Culture
The concept of culture is among the most widely used notions in sociology. Normally, one can
presume culture to be equivalent to higher things of the mind such as art, literature, music and
painting. However, in the perspective of sociologist it goes beyond such activities. Culture refers to
the ways of life of the members of society, or of groups within a society. It includes how they dress,
their marriage customs, language and family life, their patterns of work, religious ceremonies and
leisure pursuits (Giddens, 2005). Cultural sociology is one of the main major and most popular areas
of the American Sociological Association. The sociology of culture developed from the intersection
between sociology, as shaped by early theorists like Marx, Durkheim, and Weber, and with the rising
specialization of anthropology where researchers lead the way of ethnographic approach for
unfolding and examining different diversity of cultures around the world (Macionis and Gerber,
2010). Culture can be conceptually distinguished from society but there are very close connections
between these notions. A Society is a system of interrelationships which connects individuals
together. All societies are united by the fact that their members are organized in structured social
relationships according to a unique culture. No cultures could exist without societies. But equally, no
society could exist without culture. Without culture, we would not be 'human' at all, in the sense in
which we usually understand that term. We would have no language in which to express ourselves,
no sense of self-consciousness, and our ability to think or reason would be severely limited
(Giddens, 2005; Itulua-Abumere, 2013).
Elements of culture
-Symbols: Symbols are those illustrations that are used to represent a particular meaning of
something that people who share the same culture can easily recognize (Lawley, 1994)
-Language: A system of symbols that permits people to communicate with one another (Swartz,
1997)
-Values: Culturally defined principles of desirability, goodness, beauty and many other things that
serves as broad guidelines for social living (Griswold, 2004)
-Beliefs: Certain words that people hold to be true (Swidler, 1986)
-Norms: Rules and expectations by which a society directs the conducts of its members. The two
types of norms are mores and folkways. Mores are norms that are widely observed and have a great
moral significance. Folkways are norms for routine, casual interaction (Corchia, 2010 quoted in
Wikipedia, 2013)
Cultural diversity
Cultural beliefs are one of the things that differ among cultures. However they are other things that
differ among cultures. The diversity of human behavior and practices is also remarkable. Acceptable
forms of behavior vary extensively from culture to culture and often contrast considerably with what
people form Western societies believe is 'normal'. For example, in the modern West we regard
children aged twelve or thirteen to be too young for marriage. But in some cultures, marriages and
arranged between children of that age as a matter of course. Jews do not eat pork, while Hindus eat
Page 1
pork but avoid beef. Westerners regard kissing as a normal part of sexual behavior, but in many
other cultures the practice is either unknown or regarded as disgusting. All these different traits of
behavior are aspects of broad cultural differences that distinguish societies from one another
(Giddens, 2005)
Culture plays an important role in perpetuating the values and norms of a society; however it also
offers significant opportunities for resourcefulness and change. Subcultures and countercultures
groups which largely discard the widespread values and norms of society can promote views which
show alternatives to the leading culture. Social movements or groups of people sharing common
lifestyles are powerful forces of change within societies. In this way subcultures allow freedom for
people to express and act on their opinions, hopes and beliefs. (Giddens, 2005)
Every culture has its own unique patterns of behavior, which seem alien to people from other
cultural backgrounds. When you travel to a different country, you usually get different sensation and
feeling because most of what you see, hear and even eats can be very different from what you do in
your own country. Aspect of your daily life style which you unconsciously take for granted in your
own culture may not be part of everyday life in other parts of the world. Even in countries which
share the same language, everyday habits, customs and behaviors may be quite different. The
expression culture shock is an apt one. Some times people feel disoriented when they become
immersed in a new culture. This is because they have lost the familiar reference points which help
them understand the world around them and have not yet learned how to navigate in the new
culture. (Giddens, 2005)
Identity
The concept of identity in sociology is a multifaceted one, and can be approached in a number of
ways. Broadly speaking, identity relates to the understandings people hold about 'who they are' and
what is meaningful to them. These understandings are formed in relation to certain attributes that
hold priority over other sources of meaning. Some of the main sources of identity include gender,
sexual orientation, nationality, or ethnicity and social class. They are two types of identity often
spoken of by sociologist which are social identity and self-identity or (personal identity). These forms
of identity are analytically distinct, but are closely related to one another. Social Identity refers to the
characteristics that are attributed to an individual by others. Social identities can include student,
mother, Anglican, homeless, doctor, Asian, married and so forth. Many individuals have social
identities comprising more than one attribute. A person could simultaneously be a mother, a doctor
and a Christian. Multiple social identities reflect the many dimensions of people's lives. Social
identities therefore involve a collective dimension. They mark ways that individuals are the same as
others. Shared identities predicated on a set of common goals, values, or experiences can form an
important base for social movements. Feminist, environmentalists, supporters of nationalist
movements are examples of cases in which a shared identity is drawn on as a powerful source of
meaning (Giddens, 2005)
Self identity (personal identity) set us apart as distinct individuals. Self identity refers to the process
of self development through which we formulate a unique sense of ourselves and our relationship to
the world around us. Self identity is said to be a set of values, ideas, philosophy's and beliefs about
one's self (Leflot et al, 2010) that consist of factors such as educational performance, gender roles
and sexuality, racial identity and many others. Normally, self identity symbolizes the answer to "who
am I" (Myer, 2009). Self identity is made up of one's self-schemas. Furthermore, self identities work
together with self esteem, self knowledge and social self to make up the self. Self esteem refers to
the link between one's self and self-schemas to constitute one's overall self-worth (Fleming &
Courtney, 1984). One's self identity can include the past, present and future selves. Future
represents a person idea of what they might become, what they would like to become, or what they
are afraid of becoming. These diverse selves match up with one's wish, fears, principles, aim,
Page 2
objective, and threats for their present selves. Possible selves may act as motivation for future
behavior and also provide an evaluative and interpretive framework for the present view of self that
is used when one self-evaluates, contributing to one's self esteem (Markus & Nurius, 1986). The
insight which individuals have about their past or future selves is associated with the insight of their
current self. The temporal self-appraisal theory (Wilson & Rose, 2001) argues that people have a
tendency to preserve a positive evaluation of the present self by isolating their self identity from their
negative selves and paying more concentration to their positive selves. Furthermore, people have
tendencies to assume the past self, less favorably (Ross & Wilson, 2002) e.g., I'm more beautiful
than I used to be and the future self more positively e.g., I will be richer than I am now (Wilson et al,
2012)
The notion of self identity draws heavily on the work of symbolic interactionists. It is the individual's
constant negotiation with the outside world that helps to create and shape his or her sense of self.
The process of interaction between self and society helps to link an individual's personal and public
worlds. Worldviews about the self in relation to others differs across and within cultures (Swann et
al, 2012). In Western cultures, an individualistic and independent approach is used where society
places exacting significance on becoming independent and to express one's own attributes (Markus
& Kitayama, 1991). Relationships, memberships, groups for instance tend to be secondary to the
self. Another aspect is Self-assessment. Self assessment of one's self identity also includes social
comparisons. The social comparison theory states that people endeavor to precisely identify
themselves and therefore make use of social comparisons to exactly describe the self during the
self-evaluative process (Preckel & Brull, 2010).
Within these social comparisons, one will find upward (e.g., positive) and downward (e.g., negative)
comparisons that can either enhance or threaten our self identity (Meyers, 2009). In such
circumstance where we feel threatened, it is not rare to make justification for why we are not
performing to meeting up to standard to the same degree as others, thereby protecting our self
identity. In Asian cultures, an interdependent observation of the self is more common and these
cultures often practice identity fusion more regularly (Swann et al, 2010). Interpersonal connections
are more vital than one's individual accomplishments, as individuals experience a sense of oneness
with the group. Previous studies have shown that this identity fusion can have positive and negative
consequences. The positive impact that identity fusion can have on individuals is that they feel that
their way of life is significant. On the other hand, such strong interdependence can attract to
disastrous event if care is not taken. (Swann et al, 2010)
Conclusion
The concept of culture is one of the most important notions in sociology. We can't talk about culture
without drawing links with identity. This article explains how culture plays an important role in
perpetuating the values and norms of a society. Culture also offers significant opportunities for
resourcefulness and change. Cultural values and norms often change over time. In today's we have
unprecedented opportunities to make ourselves and to create our own identities. Talking about
identity, we are our own best resources in defining who we are, where we have come from and
where we are going. The decision we take in our everyday lives about what we wear, eat, how to
behave and how to spend time help to make us who we are. Through our capacity as self
conscious, self aware human beings, we constantly create and recreate our identities.
References
Page 3
Corchia, L. (2010): La logica dei processi culturali. Jürgen Habermas tra filosofia e sociologia,
Genova, Edizioni ECIG, ISBN 978-88-7544-195-1.
Giddens, A. (2005): Sociology, (4th edition), Cambridge: Polity Press
Fleming, J. S. and Courtney, B. E. (1984). "The dimensionality of self-esteem: II Hierarchical facet
model for revised measurement scales". Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 46 (2):
404-421. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.46.2.404.
Griswold, W. 2004. Cultures and Societies in a Changing World. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge
Press.
Itulua-Abumere, F. (2013): The Christian and Culture. Dallas: Upublish.info
http://www.upublish.info/Article/The-Christian-and-Culture/816674
Lawley, E. (1994): The Sociology of Culture in Computer-Mediated Communication: An Initial
Exploration.
Leflot, G. O, P.& Colpin, H. (2010): Teacher-Child Interactions: Relations with children's self-concept
in second grade. Infant and Child Development, 19(4). 385-405. doi:10.1002/icd.672
Macionis, J., and Gerber, L. (2010): Sociology, (7th edition), Toronto: Pearson Canada
Markus, H. R. and Kitayama, S. (2011): "Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion,
and motivation." Psychological Review. 98 (2), Apr 1991, 223-253.
Markus, H.and Nurius, P. (1986). "Possible selves". American Psychologist 41 (9): 954-969.
doi:10.1037/0003-066X.41.9.954.
Myers, D. G. (2009). Social psychology (10th ed. ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
ISBN 0073370665.
Preckel, F., & Brull, M. (2010): The benefits of being a big fish in a big pond: Contrast and
assimilation effects on academic self-concept. Learning and Individual Differences, 20(5). 522-531.
doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2009.12.007
Ross, M., & Wilson, A. E. (2002). It feels like yesterday: Self-esteem, valence of personal past
experience, and judgments of subjective distance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology',
82, 792-803.
Swann, W.B. Jetten, J. Gómez, Õ, (2012): Whitehouse, Harvey; Bastian, Brock (1 January 2012).
"When group membership gets personal: A theory of identity fusion.". Psychological Review 119 (3):
441-456. doi:10.1037/a0028589.
Swartz, D. (1997): Culture & Power: The Sociology of Pierre Bourdieu. Chicago, IL : University of
Chicago Press.
Swidler, A. (1986): Culture in Action: Symbols and Strategies. American Sociological Review, Vol.
52, No. 2.
Wilson, A. E., Buehler, R., Lawford, H., Schmidt, C., & Yong, A. G. (2012). Basking in projected
glory: The role of subjective temporal distance in future self-appraisal. European Journal of Social
Page 4
Psychology, 42, 342-353.
Wilson, A. E., & Ross, M. (2001). From chump to champ: People's appraisals of their earlier and
present selves. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80, 572-584.
Page 5
View publication stats