Social Identity And Change: How Social Class, Gender, Ethnicity And Age Identities May Be Changing Due To Globalisation, Increased Choice And The Creation Of New/hybrid Identities. (Copy)

Functionalism (Émile Durkheim, Talcott Parsons)

Core Idea

• Social identities change gradually but still serve social stability and cohesion

Application to Changing Identities (Globalisation, Choice, Hybrid Identities)

• Social Class
  • Increased social mobility → more fluid class identities
  • Meritocracy allows movement between classes
• Gender
  • Movement towards greater equality
  • Decline of traditional roles (instrumental/expressive becoming less rigid)
• Ethnicity
  • Greater cultural integration due to globalisation
  • Multicultural societies promote shared values
• Age
  • Changing roles (e.g. longer education, delayed adulthood, active ageing)
• Globalisation & Choice
  • Increased exposure to different cultures → some variation in identity
  • However, core values remain stable
• Application
  • Identities are changing but still contribute to overall social order and integration

Marxism (Karl Marx)

Core Idea

• Changes in identity are shaped by capitalism and global economic forces

Application to Changing Identities

• Social Class
  • Still the most important identity despite globalisation
  • Inequality persists or increases
• Gender
  • Women entering workforce due to economic demands
  • However, exploitation continues
• Ethnicity
  • Globalisation may intensify ethnic divisions to divide working class
• Age
  • Youth culture shaped by capitalism (consumerism)
• Globalisation
  • Spreads capitalist ideology worldwide
  • Creates global inequalities
• Increased Choice
  • Choice is an illusion → shaped by economic constraints
• Hybrid Identities
  • Seen as superficial, underlying class inequality remains
• Application
  • Identity changes are driven by capitalism but do not remove inequality

Feminism (Ann Oakley)

Core Idea

• Identities are changing due to challenges to patriarchy, but inequality remains

Application to Changing Identities

• Social Class
  • Women gaining economic independence → changing class identity
• Gender
  • Traditional gender roles weakening
  • Growth of diverse gender identities
• Ethnicity
  • Intersectionality → identities shaped by both gender and ethnicity
• Age
  • Changing expectations of women across life stages
• Globalisation
  • Spreads feminist ideas and awareness
• Increased Choice
  • More freedom in lifestyle and identity
• Hybrid Identities
  • Women may combine multiple identities (e.g. career and family roles)
• Application
  • Identity is becoming more flexible but still influenced by patriarchal structures

Interactionism (George Herbert Mead)

Core Idea

• Identities are continuously constructed and reconstructed through interaction

Application to Changing Identities

• Social Class
  • Less fixed → depends on perception and labelling
• Gender
  • Gender identity shaped through interaction → increasingly fluid
• Ethnicity
  • Identity formed through shared meanings and experiences
• Age
  • Age roles negotiated rather than fixed
• Globalisation
  • Increased interaction between cultures → new meanings and identities
• Increased Choice
  • Individuals actively construct identity
• Hybrid Identities
  • Result from mixing cultural influences and interactions
• Application
  • Identities are changing because individuals actively create and negotiate them

Postmodernism (Jean Baudrillard)

Core Idea

• Identities are fluid, fragmented and based on choice

Application to Changing Identities

• Social Class
  • Declining importance → identity based on lifestyle and consumption
• Gender
  • Wide range of gender identities
  • Breakdown of traditional binary roles
• Ethnicity
  • Hybrid identities emerge due to globalisation (cultural mixing)
• Age
  • Traditional life stages becoming blurred
• Globalisation
  • Creates global culture and exposure to diverse lifestyles
• Increased Choice
  • Individuals free to choose identities
• Hybrid Identities
  • Combination of multiple cultural influences (e.g. global youth culture)
• Media Influence
  • Media shapes identity choices and representations
• Application
  • Identities are increasingly diverse, flexible and self-constructed

Key Synoptic Application

• Functionalists → identities changing but still maintain stability
• Marxists → changes driven by capitalism, inequality remains
• Feminists → identities more flexible but patriarchy persists
• Interactionists → identities constantly negotiated through interaction
• Postmodernists → identities fragmented, fluid and shaped by choice and globalisation