Discussion
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Question 1,
Cooley’s hypothesis on Looking-Glass Self tries to help us establish our identities based on various aspects construed to be the most compelling ways of self-awareness. Looking-glass self focuses on describing the process in which individuals relate their sense of self to the perceptions created about them by other people with whom they interact (Squirrel, 2015). According to the looking-glass, self-awareness is a creation of the way the society sees, knows and judges you. In this, one has to imagine how he/she appears to other people, believe the various judgments that different people make about him/her and relate them with the feeling that emerges from the idea of others judging and perceiving him/her in a certain way. After an analysis of all these imaginations of perception and judgments that others create about you, one should own the various opinions as part of his/her identity.
Question 2,
Theory of mind and looking-glass theory are two theories derived from the socialization aspect of the human race. Though the two have the same origin and entail relatively similar attributes, they are quite different in application, especially in establishing one’s identity. Theory of mind involves examining our beliefs, values, thoughts and imaginations as well as those of others and trying to create a connection between the two (Fuller, 2016). Now that one cannot be that sure about what others perceive about him/her, the theory calls for much emphasis on what one thinks about himself as the critical basis of establishing his/her identity. The looking-glass theory focuses on what others think about a person rather than what the person thinks of him/herself. According to the looking-glass, self-awareness is a creation of the way the society sees, knows and judges you. In this, one has to imagine how he/she appears to other people, believe the various judgments that different people make about him/her and relate them with the feeling that emerges from the idea of others judging and perceiving him/her in a certain way.
Question 3,
The theory of mind and that of looking-glass theory are instrumental in the establishment of one’s self-identity. This relationship is because the identity of a person is defined by a set of character traits and unique values that provide a good understanding of self-awareness (Rahman, 2017). No single theory can be able to establish all these character traits as some character traits are best known by oneself and others that are best understood by others. For instance, a character trait like walking style is best known by others than one’s self. Consequently, a character trait such as feelings, past experiences and fears will best be known by you and not others.
Question 3,
The two theories are helpful in our daily lives in that they enable us to understand different aspects of our identity. I have been in situations; I had to apply the looking-glass theory to complete a self-assessment in a bid to understand my personality. For instance, some of the aspects I needed to know could only be explained by others; a case that made me use the perception of others to complete the assessment. These were aspects like my voice and my walking style. Other aspects of my assessment needed the application of the theory of mind, and the method proved instrumental in making the evaluation effective. These were aspects like my fears, worries and my past experiences.
References
Fuller, K. (2016). Visual Sociology Project: Charles Cooley’s Looking-Glass Self Concept. Retrieved 17 April 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8EVMJfZH3M
Rahman, T., (2017). DIFFERENT | Award Winning Short Film. [online] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yu24PZIbkoY> [Accessed 17 April 2020].
Squirrel, T. (2015). Understanding Charles Cooley’s “Looking Glass Self” — Tim Squirrell, PhD. Retrieved 17 April 2020, from https://www.timsquirrell.com/blog/2017/5/15/understanding-charles-cooleys-looking-glass-self