George Herbert Mead

An important American philosopher and one of the founders of social psychology, George Herbert Mead's main argument centered around the idea that the individual is a product of society; thus, with a foundation in such beliefs, he helped advance the concept of pragmatism.  In his work, he argued that the most basic unit of social psychological reality is the relationship between an organism and its surrounding environment.  Through such relationships, individuals are able to assume perspectives on objects, others, and themselves in both collective and solitary activity within their worldly context; this in turn helps to develop the "mind, self, and deliberative agency" (Martin, 2007).  The emergence of these perspectives depends on the nature of the interaction giving rise to the emergent and the nature of the preexisting conditions that highlight the realization of this interaction.  He argues that the mind and self are not present at birth but instead emerge through social experience; thus, to develop self-consciousness, the individual must view himself as an object through the perspectives of other individuals within a setting of social relationships.  For Mead, self-consciousness refers to "the response one makes  to his own conduct" (Martin, 2007).  In other words, self-consciousness emerges when the individual in development is able to react to perspectives evident in his own conduct as well as others who have participated in that personal history.  The self is a combination of the "I" and the "me" in a sociological existence, ultimately giving rise to the idea that one must participate in society and use such experiences to take the perspectives of others in order to become self-conscious (Martin, 2007).

For more information on Mead and his work, visit The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy's article on G.H. Mead.