The Approach To Solve The Dual Tension Between Individual And Society In The Research Of Self

Self is not only the center of individual psychological universe but also the central subject of modern physiology. As humankind is not only the existence of nature and society but also the existence of history and presence, this unique existence makes dual tension of psychological research on self between individual and society from start point. Perspective either from individual or from society correctly reflects the certain characteristic of self. But it makes individual broken and one-sided which inevitably infected the comprehensive master of self. This makes it necessary to integrate the present theories and construct a new theoretical viewpoint in order to make dynamic and all round comprehension on self. Based on the above this dissertation researched the dual tension between individual and society in the research of self. By investigating its historical vicissitudes of social psychology in western over a contrary, this dissertation tries a new approach to solve this problem. This dissertation includes introduction and four parts.Part I.By reviewing the research of self in social physiology, this dissertation inquires into the dual tension between self and society and analysis its source. There are two main primitive source in social psychology:psychology and sociology. Dual tension between individual and society will be created when the relationships among self, society and culture are explained from psychology and sociology respectively. So theoretical structure to explain the interrelationships among individual, society and culture in the research of self is to needed in culture and self research of social psychology. This will avoid the reduction of social psychological phenomenon into an epiphenomenon of biological or individual psychology reality (downward reduction) or an epiphenomenon of socio-cultural reality (upward reduction). This dissertation tries to solve the problem from the theory of G. Mead and S. Moscovici.Part II. W. James and G. Mead made the initial research on how to resolve the tension between individual and society in the self research of social psychology. James is the first thinker in history to make all round research on self from psychological perspective. James poured new physical content into the conception of self and enlarged it into the field of social life in a way different from his predecessors. The self theory of James made unprecedented enrichment of the self content and made great contribution to its development and perfect. Mead tried to construct a psychological theory which could both permit the expression of individual free will and maintain social order at the same time. Mead thought that the self as the center of social psychological phenomenon center reflected the tension between freedom and relativity of past and future, of social order and individual free will and creativity. Mead tried to mould a dynamic and reflective self in the mobile and coherent society. This made the basic structure to solve the dual tension between individual and society. But the field of conmen consensus in the concept of the generalized other is absolutely dominant and contains anything. The concepts of me and the generalized other are closely united to make absolute control of I by me. Therefore the self conception of Mead leads to a theory of social determinism.Part III.With the theory of social representation Moscovici tried to explain the innate tension between the power of social rules and the individual innovation and creativity. Moscovici did not build the theory of self, but he provided an approach of self to the society which could ensure the space of individual existence. The exposition of Moscovici on the conceptualization of social representation in the field of common sense makes social or cultural analysis available. The social representation theory hopes to know how individual works by putting individual into the circumstance of society, culture and group. The social representation theory does put individual side by side with the society, it thinks that they are the production of society and have dialectal relationship. As initiative participant the individual can also change the society. But contradiction is also latent in the theory. From social perspective social representation is the power of prescriptive and conventionalized, but from the individual perspective they are collection of individual ideas.Partâ…£. There are at least five important links between the theories of Mead and Moscovici. The generalized other and social representation have the functions of conversational medium, reflexive looping, cognitive regulation, and moral regulation. In order to reestablish the social psychology theories of Mead and Moscovici, at first the social representation is needed to take the place of"the generalized other"to refer to the field of common consensus. The second adjustment is related to the use of a trialogical scheme of I-You-Me, instead of Mead's I-Me, to be consistent with both Mead's own trialogical structure of meaning and Moscovici's trialogical relation of representation-stimulus-response. In order to solve the contradiction between self as construction and self as content, between internal self and external self, between coherence and vicissitudes, between sense of individual and cultural denotation. This can see self as a symbolic object from the viewpoint of social representation witch makes self have construe and content at the same time.Partâ…¤.The new approach to solve the dual tension between individual and society is self representation theory, which is obtained by combining the theories of Mead and Moscovici. Self representation theory can be used to explain the formation and development of self. There is not universal self who can override history; there is only concrete self in narrow sense. Self is inevitably the self in social culture. Mutual creation and construction among self, society and culture mould individual which has both common and unique characteristics. Self cannot be separated from social behavior and life-style which are formed in social groups. Humankind is not only of biology but also of culture and society. The factor of inherent, society and self have great effect on the psychological development of humankind. Humankind cannot only better realize nature, society and itself but also reform them. The process itself accepts social culture will become more and more conscious and creative process, and express subjectivity during psychological development.