IDENTITY - The fact of being who or what a person or thing is e.g. "he knew the identity of the burglar." (dictionary)
State of being a specified person or thing: individuality or personality… (Collins Gem English Dictionary. 1991)
Identity may refer to:
Philosophical topics, specifications of persons, personal conception and expression, group expression and affiliation, mathematics, business, computer science, culture and the arts
Identity theory is a micro-sociological theory, which links self attitudes, or identities, to the role relationships and role-related behavior of individuals. Identity theorists argue that the self consists of a collection of identities, each of which is based on occupying a particular role (Stryker, 1968; Stryker & Burke, 2000). Identities can be defined as one's answers to the question 'Who am I?" (Stryker & Serpe, 1982). Many of the "answers" (e.g., "I am a father") are linked to the roles we occupy, so they are often referred to as "role identities" or simply, "identities." For example, familial identities might include those of spouse or parent and occupational identities might include those of accountant or salesperson. In turn, these role identities are said to influence behavior in that each role has a set of associated meanings and expectations for the self (Burke & Reitzes, 1981).
Identity theory should not be confused with social identity theory, which emphasizes group process and inter-group relations rather than role behavior. Identity theory focuses on the self as comprised of the various roles an individual occupies (e.g., mother, friend, employee), while social identity theory posits that the groups to which people belong (e.g., political affiliation, Sierra Club member, nationality) can provide their members a definition of who they are (Hogg, Terry, & White, 1995). This entry will focus on identity theory, rather than social identity theory. Because of our focus is on identity theory as formulated by Stryker and Burke, we do not review other sociological approaches to identity, such as identity construction, nor do we review the plethora of developmental and personality psychological perspectives on identity formation.
Althusser: The power of the mass media resides in their ability to place a subject in a way that their representations are taken to be reality.
COLLECTIVE IDENTITY - A collective identity refers to individuals' sense of belonging (the identity) to a group (the collective). From the perspective of the individual, the collective identity forms a part of his or her personal identity.
"Identity is complicated - everybody thinks they've got one." - David Gauntlett
"A focus on identity requires us to pay closer attention to the ways in which media and technologies are used in everyday life and their consequences for social groups." - David Buckingham
The term collective identity may refer to a variety of concepts. In general however, these concepts generally pertain to phenomena where an individuals' perceived membership in a social group impacts upon their own identity in some way. The idea of a collective identity has received attention in a wide variety of academic fields. In psychology, and in particular social psychology, this has led to a vast research literature and concerted scientific study. Most archetypal perhaps being Henri Tajfel’s and John Turner's work in developing social identity theory.
MEDIATION – a negotiation to resolve differences that is conducted by some impartial party .
Silverstone (2006) reiterates the concept of mediation as follows:
Mediation refers to what media do, and to what we do with the media. It is a term that defines the media, both the media of mass communication (radio, television, the world wide web, but also the press) and the media of interpersonal communication (fixed and mobile telephony, e-mail, but also the letter), as actively creating a symbolic and cultural space in which meanings are created and communicated beyond the constraints of the face to face, and which is becoming increasingly significant for the conduct of public, institutional and private life. Readers, viewers and audiences are part of this process of mediation, because they continue the work of the media in the ways they respond to, extend and further communicate what they see and hear on the world’s multitude of screens and speakers.
Mediation in Marxist theory refers to the reconciliation of two opposing forces within a given society (i.e. the cultural and material realms, or the superstructure and base) by a mediating object. Similar to this, within media studies the central mediating factor of a given culture is the medium of communication itself. The popular conception of mediation refers to the reconciliation of two opposing parties by a third, and this is similar to its meaning in both Marxist theory and media studies. For Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, this mediating factor is capital or alternately labor, depending on how one views capitalist society (capital is the dominant mediating factor, but labor is another mediating factor that could overthrow capital as the most important one).
REPRESENTATION -
2. Something that represents, as:
a. An image or likeness of something.
b. An account or statement, as of facts, allegations, or arguments.
c. An expostulation; a protest.
d. A presentation or production, as of a play.
Representation: The way reality is 'mediated' or 're-presented' to us.
The concept of a collective identity refers to a set of individuals' sense of belonging to the group or collective. For the individual, the identity derived from the collective shapes a part of his or her personal identity. It is possible, at times, that this sense of belonging to a particular group will be so strong that it will trump other aspects of the person's personal identity. To put it another way, Collective Identity is the idea that through participating in social activities, individuals can gain a sense of belonging and in essence an "identity" that transcends the individual. Therein are the rewards and risks of Social Networking. One can derive great satisfaction and sometimes great risks from participating. Within a typical collective, agreement is often valued over debate, though even more often fierce battles may erupt.
HEGEMONY -
Hegemony is the political, economic, ideological or cultural power exerted by a dominant group over other groups. It requires the consent of the majority to keep the dominant group's leader in power. While initially referring to the political dominance of certain ancient Greek city-states over their neighbours, the term has come to be used in a variety of other contexts, in particular Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci's theory of cultural hegemony. The term is often mistakenly used to suggest brute power or dominance, when it is better defined as emphasizing how control is achieved through consensus, not force.
Cultural hegemony is the philosophic and sociological concept, originated by the Marxist philosopher Antonio Grammar, that a culturally-diverse society can be ruled or dominated by one of its social classes. It is the dominance of one social group over another, e.g. the ruling class over all other classes. The theory claims that the ideas of the ruling class come to be seen as the norm; they are seen as universal ideologies, perceived to benefit everyone whilst really benefiting only the ruling class.
COLONIALISM and POST-COLONIALISM
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. Colonialism is a process whereby sovereignty over the colony is claimed by the metropole and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by colonists - people from the metropole. Colonialism is a set of unequal relationships: between the metropole and the colony, and between the colonists and the indigenous population.
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy "uses the term 'colonialism' to describe the process of European settlement and political control over the rest of the world, including Americas, Australia, and parts of Africa and Asia." It discusses the distinction between colonialism and imperialism and states that "[g]iven the difficulty of consistently distinguishing between the two terms, this entry will use colonialism as a broad concept that refers to the project of European political domination from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries that ended with the national liberation movements of the 1960s."
Post-colonialism (postcolonial theory, post-colonial theory) is a specifically post-modern intellectual discourse that consists of reactions to, and analysis of, the cultural legacy of colonialism. Postcolonialism comprises a set of theories found amongst anthropology, architecture, philosophy, film, political science, human geography, sociology, feminism, religious and theological studies, and literature.
IMPERIAL ‘OTHER’
The system of imperial units or the imperial system is the system of units first defined in the British Weights and Measures Act of 1824, which was later refined (until 1959) and reduced. The system came into official use across the British Empire. By the late 20th century, most nations of the former empire had officially adopted the metric system as their main system of measurement.
Imperialism, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years, as described by the above work, is primarily a western undertaking that employs "expansionist – mercantilism and latterly communist – systems." Imperialism is usually autocratic, and also sometimes monolithic (i.e. having a massive, unchanging structure that does not allow individual variation) in character. It can be relatively benign as in Canada, or murderously brutal as in the Congo Free State.
YOUTH SUBCULTURE -
A youth subculture is a youth-based subculture with distinct styles, behaviors, and interests. Youth subcultures offer participants an identity outside of that ascribed by social institutions such as family, work, home and school. Youth subcultures that show a systematic hostility to the dominant culture are sometimes described as countercultures. (Wikipedia)
Youth subcultures are often recognized by elements such as fashion, beliefs, slangs, dialect and behaviour. Specific music genres are associated with youth subcultures, such as punks, ravers, metal-heads, goths and chavs.
The study of subcultures often consists of the study of the symbolism attached to clothing, music, other visible affections by members of the subculture, and also the ways in which these same symbols are interpreted by members of the dominant culture.
The ultimate goal of post-colonialism is accounting for and combating the residual effects of colonialism on cultures. It is not simply concerned with salvaging past worlds, but learning how the world can move beyond this period together, towards a place of mutual respect. This section surveys the thoughts of a number of post-colonialism's most prominent thinkers as to how to go about this.
Post-colonialist thinkers recognize that many of the assumptions which underlie the "logic" of colonialism are still active forces today. Exposing and deconstructing the racist, imperialist nature of these assumptions will remove their power of persuasion and coercion. Recognizing that they are not simply airy substances but have widespread material consequences for the nature and scale of global inequality makes this project all the more urgent.
SYNCRETISM
Syncretism is the attempt to reconcile contrary beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. The term means "combining," but see below for the origin of the word. Syncretism may involve attempts to merge and analogise several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, and thus assert an underlying unity allowing for an inclusive approach to other faiths.
