From mirror self‐recognition to the looking‐glass self: Exploring the Justification Hypothesis

Abstract

In his Tree of Knowledge (ToK) System, Henriques (2003) posits that the human ego or “self” has evolved because human beings are the only animals that have had to justify their behavior to others. This essay provides evidence for this Justification Hypothesis (JH) from everyday life sociology, starting with the work of George Herbert Mead and Charles Horton Cooley, and focuses on research related to the concept of the “looking‐glass self.” Special emphasis is given to the pragmatics of speech acts, the presentation of self in interaction rituals, the accounts given by actors in justification of their actions, and the role of social norms and conformity in the large‐scale justification systems commonly called “culture.” © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol.

A New Unified Theory of Psychology

“…A second explanation for the emergence and accelerating rate of cultural evolution provided by the Justification Hypothesis is the fact that sociolinguistic exchanges between individuals give rise to complex systems of justification (Shaffer, 2005). This process was examined empirically in the influential work of Muzafer Sherif.…”

“…Although some have struggled with both the specificity and the breadth with which the theory characterizes human nature, it is also the case that virtually all have been able to reconcile their religious vision of humanity with the unified theory. One of the biggest supporters of the unified theory, Leigh Shaffer (Shaffer, 2005(Shaffer, , 2008, is an Evangelical Christian. We have had many fruitful conversations articulating how these two systems could potentially live in harmony.…”

I Selfie Therefore I Exist: A Preliminary Qualitative Research on Selfie as Part of Identity Formation in Adolescents

“…This resonates with looking-glassself theory which highlights the element of imagined judgment from others (Cooley, 2011). Looking glass self, an archaic English term of a mirror is used to describe how a person looks at his/her reflection as a metaphor for understanding the development of social self (Shaffer, 2005). In doing so, they imagine others see them like an image reflected back in a mirror.…”

Putting a price tag on others’ perceptions of us

“…Indeed, our self-identity is developed through our understanding of how others perceive us (Cooley 1964). The sociology and social psychology literature call this the ''looking-glass self'' metaphor, which comprises three sequential components (Shaffer 2005). Firstly, we envision how we appear to others.…”