Understanding Social Identity and Self-Presentation: A Case Study Analysis

This essay delves into the concepts of social identity and self-presentation through a case study analysis. It explores the key issues of social identity and self-perception, background contexts, and objectives. The essay also examines the tactics of self-presentation used in daily interactions and analyzes the self-presentation tactic represented by the case study subject's nickname. Additionally, it discusses the potential use of retrospection to help the subject understand why her nickname is used in mockery rather than admiration. The essay concludes with a discussion on the use of grammar and composition to effectively communicate and create a positive social image.

Running head: SOCIAL IMAGE
Social Psychology
-Social Image (Case Study)
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
-scope of the essay.................................................................................................................2
-key issues..............................................................................................................................2
-background contexts.............................................................................................................2
-objectives..............................................................................................................................2
1a. Social Identity.......................................................................................................................3
2b. Three Self Presentation Tactics used in our daily interactions as seen in the case study....4
3c. the self-presentation tactic represented by Dianna’s nickname for herself..........................5
4d. Can retrospection help Dianne to understand why most persons use her nickname in
mockery rather than in admiration? What use of grammar and composition?..........................7
-Using retrospection to help Dianne......................................................................................7
-Usage of Grammar and Composition...................................................................................8
Conclusion:................................................................................................................................8
References:...............................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
-scope of the essay
The essay aims to understand the key concepts associated with social psychology,
particularly in terms of social identity and self-presentation and how to address a perception
of social identify and self-presentation, in context of the given case study.
-key issues
The key issues that can be identified from the case study is the perception of Dianne’s
social self where she uses a nickname to contradict her conditions of living and alleviate
herself from her surroundings as well as overburdening herself academically to maintain the
perception that she works hard. The subject in the case study shows a contradictory social
identity, from the rest of the people in her community ‘ghetto’, which caused her alienation
from others in her attempt to alleviate herself from the stereotype, common in her ‘ghetto’
community.
-background contexts
According to Goffman (2018), the deviant social identity can develop as a tactic of
self-presentation, in which the individual presents herself as being above her surroundings as
seen in case of the subject. Her self-perception however prevents her from understanding that
she is being rebuked and made fun of. Her attempts to attract attention have also caused her
to take up additional co-curricular activities thereby hampering her academic performance
(Hogg, 2016).
-objectives

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The objective of this study is to understand the concepts of social identity, tactics of
self-presentation seen in daily interactions and in the case subject (Dianne) and exploring the
possibility of using self-retrospection for Dianne to understand that her nickname is being
used as a tool of mockery against her, delineating the usage of grammar and composition for
effectiveness.
1a. Social Identity
Social Identity Theory was developed by Henri Tajfel in 1979, and can be understood
as a sense of an individual of their identity based on the perception of others in the group or
social circle and their membership within the group or social circle (Hogg, 2016; Bordens &
Horowitz, 2008). According to Tajfel, groups such as football teams, families, social classes
in which people belong to serve as vital sources of pride as well as self-esteem and the groups
gives the individuals a sense of social belonging and identity (Zeugneret al., 2015).
Bordens and Horowitz (2008) also suggested that improvement of the self-image,
within the social identity is an important aspect as it helps to improve social identity thorough
better self-esteem and confidence (Ibarra & Petriglieri, 2016). According to White et al.
(2018), we also tend to enhance the status of the groups to which we belong, in order to
improve our self-image, an aspect which can be seen in case of group based prides seen
among individuals (Binder & Blankenberg, 2017). On the other hand, in order to improve out
social and self-image, we can also discriminate and hold prejudice against individuals outside
the group (Grossman & Van der Weele, 2017; Bordens & Horowitz, 2008). In the context of
the given case study it can be noted that since Dianne wanted to differentiate herself from the
group she belonged to, she started considering herself outside the ‘ghetto’ community, giving
herself the nickname ‘princess Dianne’ and exuding an essence of class and royalty about
her. It can be seen therefore that Dianne attempts to improve her social and self-image, by

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identifying herself as a part of an elite group instead of the community she belonged to,
refusing to let her ghetto origins to define who she was and who she can be.
One of the central hypothesis of social identify is that members within the group
would tend to negate the aspects of another group, which is usually seen as a competitor to
the group. This behavior of negating the outside group, showing condescendence against
them can create a sense of superiority and improve the self-image as well as social image of
the people (Humberg et al., 2018; Bordens & Horowitz, 2008). Dianne’s behavior to select an
elite group and decisions to show condescendence to her own community, who she now
considered as outside group exactly exhibits such as behavior, thereby stereotyping the
community. According to Henri Tajfel, stereotyping is a product of the normal process of our
cognition that is our tendency to group things and while doing so, we start to differentiate and
exaggerate the differences between the groups we created and exaggerate the similarities of
aspects within the group (Hogg, 2016).
2b. Three Self Presentation Tactics used in our daily interactions as seen in the case
study
The type of self-presentation that can be seen in case of the given case study are:
Boasting: This behavior refers to the act of considering one own self as exceedingly
capable and competent, with strong sense of self satisfaction and self-admiration supported
by owns achievements, abilities and possessions (Eklund & Howle, 2017). Boasting can also
be understood as the characteristic of taking excessive pride or self-satisfaction. This is a
common type of self-presentation in which individuals attract attention to themselves through
self-proclamation of their own achievements, and even exaggerating them to maximize its
impression. Such type of behavior can be seen in case of Dianne, as she boasts about her
ability to take up multiple co-curricular activities.

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Abusive: This type of self-presentation is marked by the behavior of being abusive to
others, and a chronic habit of hurting others feelings, being rude and lacking sensitivity.
Abusive individuals can show this behavior to both their families as well as the social
surroundings (Herring & Kapidzic, 2015; Bordens & Horowitz, 2008). The parents and
family of Diane in the given case study seemed to be abuse of her and showed little respect to
her emotions. Her siblings were also abusive of her and used mean names even while
playing. This behavior shows that certain individuals portray themselves are very strong by
being insulting and abusive of others (Eklund & Howle, 2017).
Sarcastic: This kind of behavior uses more nuanced or subtle type of insults than
direct abuses, such as making sarcastic or condescending remarks about others, and their
weaknesses (Herring & Kapidzic, 2015). According to Chua and Chang (2016), sarcastic
presentation of self is a tactic in which people uses negative humor to make fun of other, uses
sarcasms to mean something they are not stating directly and belittling others in the process.
This type of behavior can be seen clearly in case of Diane’s friends and social circle, use call
Dianne by her nickname, but using it in a sarcastic manner, making fun of Dianne in the
process.
Aggression: This type of self-presentation is marked by physical aggression and show
of strength. Individuals showing such type of behavior often get into fights or bully’s others
(Eklund & Howle, 2017). According to Miller et al. (2016), an aggressive portrayal of self
can be caused to an inner sense of vulnerability and weakness that is being masked by the
aggressive stance. Members of the ‘ghetto’ community, often show such behavior, in order to
protect themselves from the daily crimes at plagues the neighborhood and therefore have
aggressive and violent personalities.
3c. the self-presentation tactic represented by Dianna’s nickname for herself

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Self-presentation tactic that was represented by Dianna’s behavior of nicknaming
herself as Princess Dianne shows the following types of self-presentation tactics:
Self-Promotion: This type of self-presentation is marked by the behavior of promoting
or publicizing oneself and ones activities, usually in a forceful way. According to Moon et al.
(2016), self-promotion is the deliberate act of presenting oneself in front of others as very
accomplished, successful, smart, capable and skilled. In the given scenario, Dianna seems to
promote herself based on her credibility to take on multiple extracurricular and co-curricular
activities, even at the cost of hampering her academics. Dianne also maintains a high self-
esteem, considering that she is better than others around her and would in the future deserve a
better life. She also promotes herself in front of her peers in the same way, acting out the
behavior of her imaginary ‘avatar’. This behavior strongly suggests the tactic of self-
promotion as method to present self in front of the friends and social circle (Fox & Rooney,
2015).
Exemplification: Diane showed the behavior of exemplifying herself with famous
people, comparing herself to people she considered successful, such as Princess Diane, who
she considered her role model. She chose the character of Princess Diane and related to her as
she looked up to her and considered to be of a superior league. Naming herself the same also
gave her a sense of superiority over others and helped her to feel that even though she was
‘from the ghetto, still she was not the ghetto’ meaning that she could chose not to let her
current situation decide her present and future potential. According to Miller et al. (2016),
these kinds of behavior are clear attributes of exemplification of self and thus a tactic f self-
presentation. It can however be noted that her need to exemplify herself with others could be
influenced by the lack of people who she could look up to in her immediate surroundings,
thereby also leading to her alienation from her own community (Fox & Rooney, 2015).

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Boastful and Assertive: Dianne also was boastful of her imaginary title as well as her
abilities to work harder than others. She showed confidence in her abilities and was self-
assured. This presented a very confident and even boastful presentation of self for Dianne.
According to Scopelliti et al. (2015) this is also a very assertive trait, as Dianne regularly
convinced herself that she was above others and better than others even after being repeatedly
rebuked for her nickname.
4d. Can retrospection help Dianne to understand why most persons use her nickname in
mockery rather than in admiration? What use of grammar and composition?
-Using retrospection to help Dianne
Retrospection refers to the process of reflecting back on previous experiences. This
method can be used to analyze how specific experiences influence behavior and vice versa. It
also helps to understand the underlying reasons for others behavior (Caplan et al., 2016).
Studies by Golub (2018) have shown that through retrospective analysis, it is possible to
understand and evaluate situations and the factors that have influenced the behavior of self or
others. Bordens and Horowitz, (2008) and Caplan et al. (2016) pointed that retrospection
also can help individuals to remember past incidents more clearly and overcome biases as the
process can facilitate a logical analysis of the events. Retrospection also allows to learn from
these experiences, identifying potential scopes of learning from those experiences, understand
how those learning experiences develop and developing strategies similar situations in the
future. Thus retrospection also increases readiness to challenging situations. It should
therefore be noted that through retrospection, it is possible for Dianne to understand how her
nickname was attracting rebuke towards her, by helping her analyze how others react to her
and understand their underlying reasons (Scopelliti et al., 2015; Bordens and Horowitz
2008z).

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Through retrospection, the following aspects can be identified by Dianne:
 Her friends found the nickname to be funny
 Her nickname ‘princess Dianne’ was a sharp contrast to her living condition, and her
denying the fact made other rebuke her more
 Her identification of herself as above others could have felt as being condescending
and boastful by others, which portrayed a negative social image
 The context in which her friends would call her all ‘Princess Dianne’ was more
sarcastic than being genuine and therefore showed that it was used as a tool of
mockery.
 Since nobody else agreed or endorsed the selection of the nickname, their usage of the
term to address her had to be sarcastic and condescending.
-Usage of Grammar and Composition
Dianne can use language effectively to further develop her image and create a genuine
impression of being better than others in the ghetto. One of the most significant way in which
she can achieve that is through the effective use of grammar and composition. According to
Golub (2018), effective communication skills, and the ability to use language effectively to
communicate ideas and thoughts can effectively create a good impression among others.
Thus, correct and good usage of grammar and composition is necessary in this regard.
Conclusion:
From the study above it can be concluded that Dianne have used the nickname of
‘Princess Dianne’ to psychologically separate herself from her surroundings, giving her the
feeling that she was not really a part of the ghetto culture. She worked extra hard and took
part in additional activities in order to maintain her image in front of others. In the study, the

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types of self-presentation that was shown by the subject and theirs around her included:
boastful, abusive, sarcastic, aggressive, self-promoting, exemplifying, boastful and assertive.
As Dianne fails to understand that her selection of nickname have attracted rebuke towards
her, it has been implied that through retrospective analysis of the situation, she might be able
to understand the situation better.

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