In Search of the Generalized Other

• In Event: Joint Roundtables: Social Psychology Section and Sociology of Emotions Section
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 7 - Theory

Abstract

George Herbert Mead used the term generalized other to describe “the organized community or social group which gives to the individual his unity of self.” The concept is well-known in sociology, especially in symbolic interactionism. However, it has generally been used as a hermeneutical principle for understanding social life rather than as a proposition about how people think that can be examined or refined. In this paper, part of a project on internal conversations, we attempt to identify specific instances of the generalized other in records of internal conversations and examine how they may shape individual thinking and behavior. We identified five “manifestations” of the generalized other: The first manifestation is social anticipation, which involves the person anticipating that something they may do or say will bring about a response or judgment some community or group of people. The second manifestation is social normality, which involves the person comparing him- or herself to what is expected in the community, such as by using some version of the word “normal” or by making an explicit comparison between the person and some group or community. The third manifestation is social morality, which involves the person referring to community moral standards, such as by using words like “fair” and “unfair.” The fourth manifestation is social emotions, which involves the person feeling or anticipating feeling some emotional state connected to the perceived standards of the community. The fifth manifestation is social principles, which involves the person stating some social principle: an abstract principle or rule about how the social world works.

Authors

• David Schweingruber, Iowa State University

• David W. Wahl, McMurry University

• Laurie Jordan Linhart, Des Moines Area Community College

• George Weston, Iowa State University

• Steven Beeman, Suncrest Home Health and Hospice