Unit 4

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UNIT 4 MEAD: INTERACTIONAL SELF

Mead: Interactional Self

Structure
4.0 Objectives
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Mead: Life and Times
4.3 Ideas of George Herbert Mead
4.3.1 Mental Processes and Mind
4.3.2 Mind, Language and Role Taking
4.3.3 Play, Game and Generalised Other
4.3.4 The I and Me
4.4 Let Us Sum Up
4.5 References
4.6 Specimen Answers to Check Your Progress

4.0 OBJECTIVES

After studying this Unit, you should be able to:


• Explain the social origin of human mind and mental processes;
• Note the role of language in the development of self;
• Grasp the stage of development of self;
• Discuss the importance of ‘significant others’ in society;
• Reflect on the concept of ‘I’ and ‘Me’ as part of self.

4.1 INTRODUCTION
One of the significant theoretical ideas that began to emerge in the beginning of
the twentieth century was the understanding that individuals through their
everyday activities create and maintain the larger structures of society. This came
as a new insight, contrary to the previous understanding that society has its own
unique origin and it is originated on its own. This understanding motivated many
theorists to focus on the everyday activities of the individuals and the ways in
which it creates conditions for the existence of society as a whole. Significant
attention was given on the nature and the underlying principles of interaction
processes and the ways in which they shape our social world in which we live.
Wide range of theories emerged focusing on the micro aspects of interaction


Contributed by Dr Pravati Dalua, Assistant Professor, Kamala Nehru College, Delhi University.
57
Self and Social process to understand the macro structure of society and of which interactionism
Reality
perspective is one. Few of the key questions remained significant to these
theorists such as how is society and the individuals related? How do individual
acts and social structure influence each other? How do societies reproduce
themselves through the acts and interactions of individuals? How does society
shape people’s thoughts and behaviours? Interactionism owes its origin to the
scholars of American Sociology in its early years as a theoretical source of
knowledge.
In section 4.2 we will discuss about the nature and development of individual self
from an interactionist perspective through an examination of Mead’s most
influential work ‘Mind self and society’ (1934) published posthumously. The
matters pertaining to the book was obtained by his students from a series of
classroom lectures. This section has been divided into four subsections. Before
we try to understand Mead’s idea, let us take a look at his life and the social
context.

4.2 MEAD: LIFE AND TIMES


Box 1. George Herbert Mead
Mead’s main
contribution was his
attempt to show how
the human self arises
in the process of
social interaction. He
thought that spoken
language played a
central role in this
development.
Through language the
child can take the role
of other persons and
guide his behaviour
in terms of the effect
his contemplated
behaviour will have
upon others. Thus,
Mead’s psychological
approach was
behaviouristic.
(pic credit: Wikicommons)

George Herbert Mead, (1863-1931), American philosopher prominent in both


social psychology and the development of Pragmatism. Mead studied at Oberlin
College and Harvard University. During 1891–94 he was instructor in philosophy
58
and psychology at the University of Michigan. In 1894.He went to the University Mead: Interactional Self

of Chicago, where he remained until his death. Mead never published his work.
After his death his students edited four volumes from stenographic recordings
and notes on his lectures and from unpublished papers: The Philosophy of the
Present (1932); Mind, Self, and Society (1934); Movements of Thought in the
Nineteenth Century (1936); and The Philosophy of the Act (1938).
A philosopher at the University of Chicago, George Herbert Mead (1863-1931),
was most influential and is often credited to be the founding father of symbolic
interactionism. He made a breakthrough in understanding the symbolic elements
of human interaction and the ways in which individual selves emerge in the early
years of one’s childhood and gets matured while coming in contact with others in
society.

4.3 IDEAS OF GEORGE HERBERT MEAD


George Herbert Mead his book Mind, Self and Society (1934), describes how the
individual mind and self-arises out of the social process of interaction. In other
words for him all our thought, experience and conduct are essentially social and
arise out of interaction process. Interaction is a process of communication
involving others in society and through which we experience our social world in
which we live. For instance, think about a human infant the ways in which he
grows up as a person having an individualised self of his/her own. In the early
years of his/her childhood children would not know anything about others and
their own selves but gradually by coming in contact with others they develop a
sense of their own self as to who they are and how they are different from others.
Thus, he observes that human self is not inborn or biologically given rather it is
learnt from others in the early years of one’s childhood that is mediated through a
process of communication symbols as contained in the language structure.
Elaborating the discussion further in this direction he brings in the phenomenon
of mind and metal processes self and society emerge and sustain through
interaction process. He has been thus mainly credited for his contributions to the
development of biological self to a social self and his recognition of the
significance of symbolic communication through language.

4.3.1 Mind and Mental Process


To Mead mind is not biological like any part of our body. It is essentially a social
phenomenon that develops by coming in contact with others in society. The
process through which a human child comes in contact with others is called as
interaction. Mead viewed that mind implies thinking and it is not just any
thinking but intelligent thinking that can solve the problems that we face in our
everyday life. To him the foremost function of mind is to induce an individual
towards doing something that can solve the problems that the person is facing in
his life and also permit people to operate more effectively in the world. In simple
words Mead argued that mind involves thought processes oriented toward
problem solving. 59
Self and Social 4.3.2 Mind, Language and Role-taking
Reality
After defining the primary function of Mind, Mead turned towards the question
vital to understand the nature of Mind and mental processes. How Mind arises or
develops? Is Mind present among all animal species? How does a mind think and
act? For Mead “Mind” is a type of behavioural response that emerge out of the
processes of interaction with others. In other words without a continuous and
ongoing process of social interaction, mind could not exist. The social process in
which mind emerges is one of communication with gestures as contained in
language. Language that we speak is nothing but conversation of gestures,
symbols and this conversation of gestures is continuously happening in our
society when people meet and communicate and act. It is not something that one
single individual can make it possible. An individual always acts in a community.
Community is only possible with the existence of others groups of people. Take
the example of family, where there is the male and the female and the child
which has to be cared for after his birth. Here is a process which can only go on
through interactions within this group. It cannot be said that the individuals come
first and the community later, for the individuals arise in the very process itself,
just as much as the human body which arise out of a process of evolution.
With the development of language as a significant gesture human beings are able
to act with others and transforms to a thinking being. It means when we speak we
also think and without thinking we cannot speak. Mead gave the German
psychologist Wilhelm Wundt credit for understanding the central significance of
the gestures in the process of communication and interaction. Wundt recognized
gesture as a part of behaviour of one individual that make the behaviour of
another individual possible. In other words, gestures of the first person acts as
stimulus for the second person and calls out an appropriate response. This
stimulus and response behavior is common in all animal species including human
beings. Consider the example of a barking dog. When a dog barks, a second dog
barks or runs away. The “meaning” of the “barking gesture” is visible in the
response of the other dogs in the sense that the other dog will bark or run away.
But dogs do not understand the “meaning” of their gestures. They simply give a
behavioral response, that is, they use symbols without what Mead refers to as
“significance.”

Activity 1
Make a list of five gestures that are not raised at the level of self-conscious
self and therefore do not qualify as significant symbols as per Mead's theory.

Mind is not simply a behavioural response or any arbitrary ways of


communication or interaction. Rather “Mind arises through communication by a
conversation of gestures in a social process or context of experience – not
communication through mind” (Mead, 1934: 50). Conversation through gestures
form the basis of mind and mental processes at the micro level and at the macro
60 level it serve the basis of creation, maintenance and change of society. Only
human beings are capable of making these meaningful and signified gestures, Mead: Interactional Self

therefore, mind arises in them not among the lower animals. Mead took this basic
idea from Wundt and extended it in ways that became the basis not only for the
emergence of mind and self but also for the creation, maintenance, and change of
society. According to Mead “Gestures become significant symbols when they
implicitly arouse in the individual making them the same responses which the
explicitly arouse, or are supposed to arouse, in other individuals” (Mead, 1934:
47). In other words, for a gesture to be significant it must “mean” the same thing
to both organisms.
Mead’s next question was to understand how do animals who have the capacity
to respond understand the meaning of a gesture? We do so through our capacity
to consciously anticipate how other organisms will respond to our own symbols
or gestures. This capacity of consciousness is a part of the mind and mental
processes and is not present among the lower animals. The gestures of “lower
animals”, Mead felt, do not call out the same response in the organism emitting a
gesture and the one interpreting the gesture. For instance, the roar of the lion
does not mean the same thing to the lion and its potential victim. Hence roaring
gesture even though reflects use of vocal cord, is not a significant gesture
according to Mead. Mind emerges in an individual because human infants, if they
are to survive, must adjust and adapt to a social environment – that is, to a world
of organized activity. At first, an infant is like a “lower animal” in that it
responds reflexively to the gestures of others and emits gestures that do not evoke
similar responses in it and those in the environment. But such a level of
adjustment, Mead implied, is neither efficient nor adaptive. A baby’s cry does not
indicate what he/she wants, whether food, water, warmth, or whatever accurately.
But gradually the child learns to make gestures that are meaningful.
Now the question is to see how does this capacity of making significant gestures
arise in the process of interaction? In which way human mind is involved in the
process of making such significant gestures? According to Mead it does so
through the vocal gestures and the ability of the individuals to speak and
understand language. So invention of language is a significant thing to the
emergence of mind and mental processes and the self in Mead’s theory.
Language act as a stimulus for arousing a reaction in oneself and also in others
while speaking. Therefore, “the critical importance of language in the
development of human experience lies in this fact that the stimulus is one that
can react upon the speaking individual as it reacts upon the other” (Mead,1934:
69). A vocal gesture can be thought of as a word or phrase. When a vocal gesture
is used the individual making the gesture responds (implicitly) in the same
manner as the individual hearing it. If you are about to walk across a busy street
during rush hour, I might shout out, “Don't walk!” As I shout, I hear my own
gesture the way in which you hear it, that is, I hear the same words, and I might
feel myself pulling myself back, stopping my walk and stand because I hear these
words. But, of course, I don't hear them exactly as you do, because I am aware of
directing them to you. 61
Self and Social
Reality
What Mead suggested as characteristic of the mind is the reflective intelligence
of the human animal which can be distinguished from the intelligence of lower
forms. This reflective intelligence is the essential condition, within the social
process, for the development of mind (Mead, 1934: 134). The reflexivity in
human beings is aroused when we speak using our vocal cords to interact with
each other. Reflective intelligence means one is aware of the action and reaction
of his own action by others. Consider the example of shouting again. The
“turning back” of experience after listing to the big shout, allows the mind and
the mental process to develop. Speaking a language allows individuals to hear
their own gestures in the way that others hear them. If I shout “Boo” at you, I
might not only scare you, I might scare myself too as I too have learned its
meanings and internalised expected responses. In other words, vocal gestures
allow one to speak to oneself when others are not even present.
Let us now discuss in what way, then, does language make mind possible? For
Mead, mind involves several behavioural capacities such as the capacity to
understand objects and their symbols. For instance, we have learnt that red traffic
light suggest ‘stop’. And by understanding this we make our gesture of stopping
near a traffic light. Similarly, we have the capacity to understand the gestures of
others and act accordingly. We are also capable of suspending our own as well as
‘others’ behavioural response for a short period of time. Consider the example
your father scolded you for mistake and you stopped yourself scolding your
father considering his status. This shows that human beings have the capacity to
judge alternative lines of conduct and visualise their consequences and select a
better response. For Mead, then, ‘mind’ is behaviour, not a substance or entity. It
is rather an “internal conversation of gestures” using significant symbols because
an individual with mind talks to itself. A symbol does not simply stand for an
object or event: it defines them in a particular way and indicates a response to
them. Thus, the symbol ‘bed’ not only represents object and defines them but it
also indicates a line of action that is the action of ‘sleeping’. Hence, without
symbols neither communications is possible our society is not possible. Thus, any
attempt to understand human behaviour must begin with a careful understanding
of the symbols that individuals use during social interaction.
Mind is developed not only through the use of significant vocal gestures, but also
by what Mead termed as role-taking. So having merely the capacity of reflexivity
cannot ensure emergence of a matured self. Here it is worth noting that although
we often employ our this capacity of reflexivity while acting but yet mostly all
human beings conduct themselves in a routine, habitual, without being aware of
what we say and what we do. For instance we follow many traditions,
conventions without understanding those in our everyday life. We have a host of
beliefs and assumptions about our life about others which are not raised at the
level of (self) conscious reflection unless some problems occur in our life owing
to it and that need addressing it urgently. Mind according to Mead arise out of
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consciousness of one’s self about others. Use of language is only possible when Mead: Interactional Self

we become conscious of our selves. We have learnt from the above discussions
that mind emerges out of social processes and creates conditions for the
emergence of individual social self. Symbol and gestures as part of language
helps individuals to get their matured mind as well as their social self. Thus
Social life can only proceed if the meanings of symbols are largely shared and
understood by the members of society. If this were not the case meaningful
communication would be impossible. Think of the situation when two people
meet and communicate with language that is alien to both. Thus, there has to be
common symbols that can be understood by both in order to effectively
communicate with each other. Common symbols provide only the means by
which human interaction can be established.
In order for interaction to proceed each person involved must interpret the
meanings and intentions of others. This is made possible by the existence of
common symbols and is actually accomplished by a process of ‘role-taking’.
Role taking is the process of mentally assuming the perspective of another and
responding by imaginatively placing himself in the position of the person with
whom he is interacting. For example, if he observes another smiling, crying
waving his hand or shaking his fist, he will put himself in that person’s position
in order to interpret his intention and meaning. On the basis of this interpretation
that occurs in our thought process that requires the involvement of mind, he will
make his response to the action of the other. Thus, if he observes someone
shaking his fist, he may interpret this gesture as an indication of aggression but
his interpretation will not automatically lead to a particular response. He may
ignore the gesture, respond in kind, and attempt to diffuse the situation with a
joke and so on. The person with whom he is interacting will then take his role,
interpret his response and either continue or close the interaction on the basis of
this interpretation. In this respect human interaction can be seen as a continuous
process of interpretation with each taking the role of the other. Mead argues that
role-taking is essential for the emergence of mind. Since mind and self both arise
though a continuous process of adjustment and readjustments, hence without the
ability to assume the perspective of others with whom one must deal, it is
difficult to adjust to, and coordinate responses with, others. Mead argues that
there is nothing mysterious or mystical about the human mind. It is a behavior
like much other behaviour of ours that is acquired by human beings while
adapting to its surroundings. And it is a behavioural capacity acquired in
chorological stages (that we will see in the next section while discussing the
stages of development of self) with each stage setting the conditions for the next.

63
Self and Social Check Your Progress 1
Reality

Note: i) Use the space given below for your answer.


ii) Check your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
1) Complete the following sentences
a) According to Mead………is a conversation of gestures.
b) Speaking is equivalent to the process of ………
c)……….is essential for the emergence of Mind.
2) What is a significant symbol in Mead’s theoretical formulation? Answer in
five sentences.
…………………………………………………………………………...……
…………………………………………………………………………...……
…………………………………………………………………………...……

4.3.3 Play, Game and Generalized Other.


In addition to language Mead provided a useful model of process by which the
self among human beings emerges through the example of child development.
However, we can also refer it from the attitude of more primitive people out of
which our civilization has arisen (Mead, 1934:166).The first stage of the
development of self is called as the preparatory stage. In this stage the human
infant merely imitate the people around them especially the family members with
whom they continually interact. For example, when adults laugh and smile the
child would also laugh and smile too. As they grow older, children become more
adept at using symbols in the form of gestures and words that form the basis of
human communication.
The play stage: at this stage, the children become more aware of social
relationships. They develop skill in communicating through symbols and role
taking of others occur. In other words they begin to pretend to be other people.
They start to implement the "role taking". They learn things like good and bad
characters, doctors, patients, and teachers and so on. At this stage children also
learn for instance when it is a suitable time to ask for favours from their elders. In
The Game Stage the children of the older age group such as 8 to 9 begin to
consider several tasks are relationships simultaneously. They grasp not only their
own social positions but also those of others around them. These ‘others’ are
what, Mead called as the “generalized other", which means, the attitudes,
viewpoints as a whole that a child takes into account in his or her behaviour. For
example, the child understands which is expected to do and recognise the
responsibilities of his own as well as of others in his activities. Emphasis on the
existence of others in society for the development of one's own self has been
significantly addressed by others great sociologists. Mead's generalized other
64 resembles Charles Cooley's "looking glass self" theory in its expanded form.
Continuing our discussion further Mead observed that in order to play any role as Mead: Interactional Self

a responsible member of society individuals must internalise the expectations or


attitudes of others in relation to their own roles. These generalized others or the
community in concrete cases can take different forms such as the family
members, political parties, clubs, and corporations. In abstract cases social
classes or subgroups individuals are related to each other more or less in indirect
ways such as the class of poor people and the class of rich ones.
Box 4.1 C. H Cooley : The Looking Glass Self
The concept of the looking glass-self theory constitutes the cornerstone of
the sociological theory of socialization. The idea is that people in our close
environment serve as the “mirrors” that reflect images of ourselves. Actually,
how we see ourselves does not come from who we really are, but rather from
how we believe others see us. The main point is that people shape their self-
concepts based on their understanding of how others perceive them. We form
our self-image as the reflections of the response and evaluations of others in
our society. As children we were treated in a variety of ways. If parents,
relatives and other important people look at a child as smart, they will tend to
raise him with certain types of expectations. As a consequence the child will
eventually believe that he is a smart person. This is a process that continues
when we grow up. For instanse, if you believe that your closest friends look
at you as some kind of superhero, you are likely to project that self-image,
regardless of whether this has anything to do with reality. According to
Cooley, this process has three steps. First, we imagine how we appear to
another person. Sometimes this imagination is correct, but may also be
wrong since it is merely based on our assumptions. Second, we imagine what
judgments people make of us based on our appearance. Lastly, we imagine
how the person feels about us, based on the judgments made of us. The
ultimate result is that we often change our behavior based on how we feel
people perceive us.

When individuals take the attitude of others then they tend to develop a self-
similar to the attitude of the others who me the person is getting influenced. This
is an insight that is borrowed from William James who viewed that individuals
possess multiple of selves, carry the attitudes and images of them in their
everyday life. We generally show a different side of ourselves to each of the
different groups whom we interact with.

Check Your Progress 2


Note: Check your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
a) The phase of self that is considered the present and the future self is known as
the.................
b) It is through ................................................that language and human thinking
are possible.
65
Self and Social c) Children learn to take the attitude of others to themselves during the
Reality
..........................stage.
d) Mead refers to the ability of the entire community into account
as:....................................

4.3.4 The “I” and the “Me”


One of Mead's most significant arguments presented in his book is his distinction
between the “I” and the “Me.” It is also important to note that the “I” and “Me”
are functional distinctions for Mead, not metaphysical ones that occur in our
theological debates. He refers to them as phases of the self (Mead, 1934: 178,
200), although he more typically used the word self to refer to the “Me”
(Aboulafia, 2016).
The 'me' is considered the socialised aspect of the individual. In other words it
represents learned behaviors, attitudes, and expectations of others and of society
that we tend to learn from our childhood days. This is sometimes referred to the
attitude or images of generalized other. The 'me' is considered a phase of the self
that is in the past and it can be known by reflecting on what and how things were.
The 'I', therefore, can be considered the present and future phase of the self. The
'I' represents the individual's identity based on response to the 'me.' The 'me' is
what prevents someone from breaking the rules or boundaries of societal
expectations whereas the 'I' allows the individual to still express creativity and
individualism and understand when to possibly bend and stretch the rules that
govern social interactions. This part of our self thus allows human beings to go
for innovation and stretch the inflexible boundaries of our tradition, customs and
regulations. For instance, if you accidentally put your hand in a fire then the
expression that how you feel has to come from the ‘I” but how you choose to
express your feeling has to come from the socialized part of yourself.

Activity 2
Write your own autobiography. Make a list of a series of events that
represent and defines the "me" part of your present self by reading your own
autobiography.

Check Your Progress 3


Note: Check your answer with those given at the end of the unit.
a) The phase of self that is considered the present and the future self is known as
the.................
b) It is through ................................................that language and human thinking
are possible.
c) Children learn to take the attitude of others to themselves during the
..........................stage.
66
d) Mead refers to the ability of the entire community into account Mead: Interactional Self

as:...................................

4.4 LET US SUM UP

The ‘self’ occupies a central place in Mead's theory. In this unit we have tried to
understand the social origin of human self through the process of interaction
referring to his most widely read work Mind, Self and Society where he gives
priority to society over the mind and highlights the idea that the social leads to
the development of mental states. We first tried to understand the basic principles
of act and the ways in which lower animals differ from human beings in terms of
their mental capabilities by bring in language as significant symbol in human
society. In this context we discussed the unique capacities of human beings to
use and understand significant gestures in the form of language. Then we
proceeded to understand how human self develops by taking roles of other in
society under three stages: the preparatory stage, the play stage and the game
stage. This discussion then followed by differentiating the "I" and the "me"
component of self that emerge though a process of social interaction.

4.5 REFERENCES
Aboulafia, Mitchell. (2016). "George Herbert Mead", The Stanford Encyclopedia
of Philosophy (FallEdition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.
stanford.edu/archives/fall2016/entries/mead/>.
Andrew J. Reck (ed.) (1964). Selected Writings: George Herbert Mead.
Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill.
Blumer, Herbert. (1966). "Sociological Implications of the Thought of George
Herbert Mead," American Journal of Sociology, 71, 534-544.
Mead, G. H. (1972). Mind, Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social
Behaviorist: Ed., with Introd., by Charles W. Morris. University of Chicago
Press.

4.6 SPECIMEN ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR


PROGRESS
Check Your Progress 1
1) a) I
b) thinking
c) role-taking
2) A “significant symbol” is anything with a shared meaning to a group of
people or collectivity. It may be an object, gesture, sound, color, person,
event, or any other thing; its distinctiveness lies in the fact that it means the 67
Self and Social
Reality
same thing to most members of a group or collectivity. For most citizens of
India, for example, the tri-colour flag is a significant symbol signifying the
country; it has a shared meaning of peoplehood. Mead stated that human
species are uniquely capable of using, understanding the meaning of
significant symbols which are mostly expressed though language. Language,
in Mead's view, is communication through significant symbols.

Check Your Progress 2


a) I
b) significant symbols.
c) play stage
d) generalized other

Check Your Progress 3


a) False
b) False
c) True
ii) a) The 'me' is considered the socialized aspect of the individual whereas the I
aspect of self represents creativity and innovation. The 'me' represents
learned behaviors, attitudes, and expectations of others and of society that
is an outcome of one's past experiences and the I can be considered the
present and future phase of the self.
b) Play develops self by allowing individuals to take on different roles,
pretend, and express expectation of others. Games help individuals to
develop self by understanding and adhering to the rules of the activity in
order to win the game or be successful at an activity.

68

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