Social Identity (Key Ideas)

This third edition builds on the international success of previous editions, offering an easy access critical introduction to social science theories of identity, for advanced undergraduates and postgraduates. All of the previous chapters have been updated and extra material has been added where relevant, for example, on globalization. Two new chapters have been added; one addresses the debate about whether identity matters, discussing, for example, Brubaker; the second reviews the postmodern approach to identity. The text is informed by relevant topical examples throughout and, as with earlier editions, the emphasis is on sociology, anthropology and social psychology, focusing on the interplay between relationships of similarity and difference; on interaction; on the categorization of others as well as self-identification; and on power, institutions and organizations. Identity Matters -- Similarity And Difference -- A Sign Of The Times? -- Understanding Identification -- Selfhood And Mind -- Embodied Selves -- Entering The Human World -- Self-image And Public Image -- Groups And Categories -- Beyond Boundaries -- Symbolising Belonging -- Predictability -- Institutionalising Identification -- Organising Identification -- Categorisation And Consequences -- Identity And Modernity Revisited. Richard Jenkins. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [207]-237) And Index. Developing the argument that identity is both individual and collective, the author explores the work of major social theorists such as Mead, Goffman and Barth to explain the experience of identity in everyday life