Identity Theory Of Social Class
Statement of the Problem Identity is a powerful force that shapes the way individuals interact with
the world (Burke Reitzes, 1981). As a result, scholars have devoted much time toward
understanding how identities such as gender, race, and sexual orientation influence the human
condition (Farr, Forssell, Patterson, 2010; Kerr Multon, 2015; Smith, Bowman, Hsu, 2007).
However, among this growing body of literature, the study of social class as an identityis relatively
scarce (Ostrove Cole, 2003). Rather than examining social class as an identity, many scholars
have instead chosen to treat it as a demographic variable (Aries, 2008; Aries Berman, 2013;
Lubrano, 2004; Mantsios, 2007; Park Denson, 2013). Perhaps this has occurred because social class
is such an elusive concept to describe (Lareau, 2008; Ostrove Cole, 2003). Although scholars
generally agree that there are distinct differences among the speech patterns, mannerisms, and...
Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...
Identity theory is a theoretical framework that posits that individuals have many different identities
that intersect, such as social class, race, and gender (Burke Tully, 1977; Michalski Helmig, 2008;
Stryker, 1968; Stryker, 1987; Stryker, 2008). However, identity theory also acknowledges that
these varying identities tend to exist hierarchically (Stryker Burke, 2000). Therefore, identities that
are more central to a person s sense of self are more salient. That is, salient identities tend to be
higher on a person s salience hierarchy than other identities. For example, a person may identify as
a heterosexual woman, an African American, a Protestant, and a mother. However, if after
considering all of these identities, she were to indicate that her identity of being a mother was the
most important to her sense of self, and then researchers could infer that her mother identity would
be set highest on her salience
... Get more on HelpWriting.net ...