Who are you?Groups & individuals

(A lecture to prompt you to think)R. Fielding.

Individuals

Generally, people are considered to be independently functioning beings - is this true?

When people do function “independently”, are they really independent of others?

Are individuals born or are they made?

What makes people different?

Are people independent?

Babies born into a social environment immediately exposed to others.

Brain pre-wired to respond to social stimuli over other stimuli - temperamental differences

Are people independent?

Early social behaviour detectable at 12 hours post birth in term babies.

Language structures environment and child; speech internalization (“thinking”) regulates behaviour as external speech once did.

Are people independent?

Behaviour regulated by context and social context (internal and external) is semiotic in nature.

So, people respond to what things mean to them, not what they actually are.

Are people independent?

Meanings acquired through social processes - interactions with others define self.

People therefore are social creations.

Groups

Groups of people share common norms, values and expectations of behaviour.

Groups feature power relations (dominance heirarchies)

Groups

Acquiescence with norms & values leads to inclusion, similarities of behaviour (in-group)

Rejection of norms / values leads to exclusion, (out-group)

Groups

Main grouping is Family.–Extended

–Extended nuclear

–NuclearClans represent extended

extended families.

Groups

Tribes groups of families.Accumulation of genes, and

accumulation of behaviours, values & norms (culture).

Emphasis of in-group / out-group differences - identity generation

Summary

So, individuals are group products, and they in turn shape groups in mutual influence.

Language and symbols super-imposed on temperamental features,

Summary

Experiential influences shape meanings and hence values / norms of group (mainly relating to others).

Why is this important in health care?

Most disease in lifestyle / environmental in origin, reflecting individual & group norms / values / contextual influences on behaviour.

Why is this important in health care?

Therefore interventions to reduce risk must consider these factors and try to influence them.

So, who are you?

Write down 5 defining features of yourself that makes you unique.

Now write down what 5 pieces of information you would give to a new & unknown pen pal about yourself to inform them who you are.

What do you have?

The information you have written down is almost certainly social in nature; gender, age, appearance, occupation, activities, preferences, ambitions, etc. Why? Think about this.