Be True To You
Social psychology can be defined as the scientific study of how people’s thoughts, feelings,
and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Due to
this definition, this field is injected into several aspects of psychology, which is why it is
an important topic to discuss. When you initially think about the term social psychology
most would think of language, or more specifically, how we utilize language. However, my
first impression of social psychology addresses the social self, whether that be our
individual self or collective self, as well as the personalities interacting inside a group.
When first beginning to formulate an opinion about social psychology remember that
being social starts with yourself (individual self) and is projected to others around you
(collective self). In order to continue a thought process about social psychology you must
first address the issue of self. This is referring to how well you know yourself and how do
others understand you. Before you can be involved in a group situation, you must first
understand where you fit into that group. Are you the shy one, or do you enjoy all attention
being on you? Once you are able to address the issue of self then you are free to
concentrate on how your personality interacts with others. If your personality is to be
outgoing, then you must present that to the people around you for them to perceive you as
being outgoing.
The Social Self is a concept that was introduced by William James in his book “The
