The Development of the Social Self

Drawing upon the perspective of social identity theory, The Development of the Social Self is concerned with the acquisition and development of children's social identities. In contrast to previous work on self-development, which has focused primarily on the development of the personal self, this volume makes a case for the importance of the study of the social self - that is, the self as defined through group memberships, such as gender, ethnicity, and nationality. A broad range of identity-related issues are addressed, such as ingroup identification, conceptions of social identities, prejudice, and the central role of social context. Based on contributions from leading researchers in Europe, Australia and the US, the book summarises the major research programmes conducted to date. Furthermore, the closing chapters provide commentary on this research, as well as mapping out key directions for future research. With a unique focus encompassing both social and developmental psychology, The Development of the Social Self will appeal to a broad spectrum of students and researchers in both disciplines, as well as those working in related areas such as sociology and child development.

Introduction. M.Bennett, F. Sani, Children and Social Identity. Basic Issues. D.N.Ruble, J.Alvarez, M.Bachman, J.Cameron, A.Fuligni, C.G.Coll, E.Rhee, The Development of a Sense of 'We': The Emergence and Implications of Children's Collective Identity. F.Sani, M.Bennett, Developmental Aspects of Social Identity. Identities. K.K.Powlishta, Gender as a Social Category: Intergroup Processes and Gender-Role Development. B.David, D.Grace, M.K.Ryan, The Gender Wars: A Self-categorization Perspective on the Development of Gender Identity. M.Barrett, E.Lyons, A.del Valle, The Development of National Identity and Social Identity Processes: Do Social Identity Theory and Self-categorization Theory Provide Useful Heuristic Frameworks for Developmental Research? M.Verkuyten, Ethnic Minority Identity and Social Context. Applications. D.Nesdale, Social Identity Processes and Children's Ethnic Prejudice. A.Rutland, The Development and Self-regulation of Intergroup Attitudes in Children. B.S.Banker, S.L.Gaertner, J.F.Dovidio, M.Houlette, K.M.Johnson, B.M.Riek, Reducing Stepfamily Conflict: The Importance of Inclusive Social Identity. Epilogue. D.Abrams, The Development of Social Identity: What Develops?K.Durkin, Towards a Developmental Social Psychology of the Social Self.

Mark Bennett is a Reader in Developmental Psychology at the University of Dundee, Scotland. Fabio Sani is a Lecturer in Social Psychology at the University of Dundee, Scotland