New Sources of Self

New Sources of Self investigates the self and its origins, functions, development, and expression. A central theme in this book is that the psychobiological capacities of individuals are in the process of being replaced in ""modern"" society by the electromagnetic capacities of technology, by the decision-making and control capacities of business systems, and by the physical capacities of modern industrial machinery. Some of the consequences of this replacement are explored. This monograph is comprised of seven chapters and begins by reexamining the assumption, that self and society are intertwined and challenging the necessity of the social order being the primary source of ""human nature."" The next chapter considers the delineation and measurement of the self-system, the cybernetics of self-control, and the sociological and psychological perspectives of self. The argument that the separation of self and society is tragic is also analyzed, together with some contemporary social movements as ventures in the private construction and private use of self; the processes by which self is linked to social structure and whether these processes are operative in the large-scale organizations typically found in a complex industrial society; and some sources and uses of self. This text will be of interest to sociologists, psychiatrists, clinical and social psychologists, and psychiatric social workers.

1. Introduction

2. Self-structure and Social Structure

A Reexamination

The Emergence of Self

The Presentation of Self

3. Self-system: Delineation and Measurement

The Cybernetics of Self-Control

The Sociological Perspective

The Psychological Perspective

An Operational Definition of Self-system

Twenty Statements Test

Operational Definitions of Social Takes

Psyche Takes and Social Takes

Long Takes and Short Takes

4. Self and Society Separated: The Tragic Version

The Tragic Version

Alienated Labor

The Moral Order

The Organization Man

Marcuse

Sociotechnics

The Generation of Self in Modern Society

5. Society Without Self: The Rational Version

The Rational Version

Short Takes and Self-Systems

The Looking-Glass Process

The Sociology of Knowledge

Language and Self

Role Models

Social Control and Self-Structure

Advertising and Motivation in a Short Take Society

Differentiation and The Set of Social Identities

Processual Discontinuity and Self-structure

Rites of Passage

Solidarity

Disengagement Routines

The Dramaturgical Society

Summary

6. New Sources of Self

Computer Technology and Shrinking Middle Class Cadre

The Underground Church as a Source of Self

The Freak Community as Neo-Gemeinschaft

The Zodiac Identities

Encounter Groups and Sensitivity Groups

The Higher Learning

Mass Communication

Retirement Communities

7. Private Uses of Self

Corruption: Theory

Social Uses of Psychogenics

The Protestant Ethic

The Epicurean Ethic

Camp

Corruption: Practice

Style

Exploration

Activism

Instrumental

The Rackets

An Inventory

The Politics of Experience: R. D. Laing

References

Index