Identity is shaped by a number of things that are only partly biological. In fact, who we are and what we perceive ourselves to be is heavily grounded in socialization. From the time a parent knows the gender of their child, colors are picked out for their nurseries and clothing: pink for girls; blue for boys. Then of course, at a later stage, the toys become important: cars for boys; dolls for girls. This does not seem to be an aspect that we necessarily think about, it simply appears to be something that we have always undertaken. If we look critically at this, we undertake to determine our children’s identity before they are conceived. Not only do we wish to make the most masculine or feminine person out of them, we also like to indulge in what they may become professionally when they are adults. In this case, parent’s try to live their own dreams through their children. These aspects all seem to be part of the human condition of defining things by their appearance. How this happens and how it is implemented remains effective throughout our lives. Through the use of a review of social identity practices and theories we are able to understand or better our understanding of our identities. We also make use of interviews in order to ascertain how the individual defines themselves in the context of gender and social identity.
It must be noted at this point that society is changing at a rapid rate, encouraging other ways of bringing up children and other ways of viewing the world. Social psychology, the study of the interaction between psychology and social institutions, has many different branches that focus on what it is that makes people who they are. There are aspects of sexuality, social cognition and social identity that all span across theories of which the most popular is social identity theory. George Herbert Mead became one of the most influential proponents of this theory and is important in understanding its nuances. Mead was concerned with how we...