George 

Herbert Mead (1863 – 1931)

The self, I and Me

According to Mead's theory, the self has two sides or phases: 'me' and 'I. ' The 'me'
is considered the socialized aspect of the individual. The 'me' represents learned
behaviors, attitudes, and expectations of others and of society. ... The 'I' represents
the individual's identity based on response to the 'me.
Generalized other

Children pretend to be other people in their play and in so doing learn what these other
people expect of them. Younger children take the role of significant others, or the people,
most typically parents and siblings, who have the most contact with them; older children
when they play sports and other games take on the roles of other people and internalize the
expectations of the generalized other, or society itself.

Meaning

A child is born with certain instincts (we won't go into too much detail there).So, for
example, the child might experience a certain kind of discomfort, inresponse to which the
child instinctively cries. If this cry (a "gesture", inMead's terminology) is followed by food
from her mother and thus satisfaction(the "response"), the meaning we eventually attribute
to this interplay of gestures and responses is hunger. The meanings of things, therefore, are
constructed. Meaning is not somethingthat is inherent in our daily lives - it is something that
we create in our mindsand in our interactions with one another.

"Meaning as such, i.e., the object of thought, arises in experience through the individual
stimulating himself to take the attitude of the other in his reactions toward the object"
(Wallace and Wolf, p. 201). That is, meaning develops through experiences, as different
individuals develop a common understanding of social situations and symbols. When
symbolic interpretation is shared, people see things in the same light, and acts are
meaningful to actors. As a result of this common understanding, the gesture or symbol
arouses the same attitude in the individuals, and this is sufficient to trigger a reaction.

A significant symbol 

A significant symbol is a kind of gesture that only humans can make. Gestures become
significant symbols when they arouse in the individual who is making them, the same
kind of response they are supposed to elicit from those to whom the gestures are
addressed. Physical gestures can also be significant symbols but they are not ideally
suited to be significant symbols because people cannot easily see or hear their own
physical gestures. It is the vocal utterances made by us that are most likely to become
significant symbols although not all vocalizations are symbols.
The gesture is the basic mechanism in the social act and in the social process. What
distinguishes humans is their ability to employ significant gestures or those that require
thought on the part of the actor before a reaction. The vocal gesture is particularly
important in the development of significant gestures. It is the development of vocal
gestures in the form of a language that is the most important factor in making possible
the distinctive development of human life.
In a conversation of gestures ,only the gestures are communicated and not the
meanings.With language the gestures and their meanings both are communicated.
Another effect of language is that it stimulates the person speaking as it does to others
by eliciting the same response. A significant symbol works better in the social world than
a non-significant gesture as the former has better potential of making an effective
communication. In Mead’s theory, significant symbols perform another crucial function
as they make the mind, mental processes possible. It is only through significant symbols
especially language that human thinking is possible. Use of language has made it
possible that we can think beyond the limited. Mead defines thinking as simply an
internalized or implicit conversation of the individual with himself, by means of such
gestures or it is a conversation between I and Me. Thinking involves talking to oneself
and it is possible only when there is a language or significant symbols to facilitate that.
Significant symbols perform another crucial function – they make the mind, mental
processes and so on possible. It is only through significant symbols especially language
that human thinking is possible. Use of language has made it possible that we can think
beyond the limited. Mead defines thinking as simply an internalized or implicit
conversation of the individual with himself by means of such gestures or it is a
conversation between I and Me.  Thinking involves talking to oneself and it is possible
only when there is a language or significant symbols to facilitate that. Significant
symbols like language also make possible symbolic interaction. Mead sees mind as a
process. It is as an inner conversation with one’s self. It arises and develops within the
social process and is an integral part of that process. The social process precedes the
mind. Mind can be distinguished from other concepts like consciousness by its ability to
respond to the overall community and put forth an organized response. Mind involves
thought processes, oriented towards problem solving.

Self-development stages

Sociologist George Herbert Mead believed that people develop self- images through
interactions with other people. He argued that the self, which is the part of a person's
personality consisting of self-awareness and self-image, is a product of social experience.
Four Stages
During the preparatory stage, children are only capable of imitation: they have no ability to
imagine how others see things. They copy the actions of people with whom they regularly
interact, such as their mothers and fathers.
This is followed by the play stage, during which children begin to take on the role that one
other person might have. Thus, children might try on a parent’s point of view by acting out
“grownup” behavior, like playing “dress up” and acting out the “mom” role, or talking on a
toy telephone the way they see their father do.
During the game stage, children learn to consider several roles at the same time and how
those roles interact with each other. They learn to understand interactions involving different
people with a variety of purposes. For example, a child at this stage is likely to be aware of
the different responsibilities of people in a restaurant who together make for a smooth dining
experience (someone seats you, another takes your order, someone else cooks the food, while
yet another clears away dirty dishes).
Finally, children develop, understand, and learn the idea of
the generalized other, the common behavioral expectations of general society. By this stage
of development, an individual is able to imagine how he or she is viewed by one or many
others—and thus, from a sociological perspective, to have a “self” (Mead 1934; Mead 1964).

George Herbert
Mead’s Theory of
Social Behaviorism
Sociologist George
Herbert Mead believed
that people develop
self-
images through
interactions with other
people. He argued that
the self,
which is the part of a
person's personality
consisting of self-
awareness
and self-image, is a
product of social
experience.
Four Stages
During the preparatory
stage, children are only
capable of imitation:
they
have no ability to
imagine how others
see things. They copy
the actions of
people with whom
they regularly interact,
such as their mothers
and
fathers.
This is followed by the
play stage, during
which children begin
to take on
the role that one other
person might have.
Thus, children might
try on a
parent’s point of view
by acting out
“grownup” behavior,
like playing
“dress up” and acting
out the “mom” role, or
talking on a toy
telephone the
way they see their
father do.
During the game stage,
children learn to
consider several roles
at the
same time and how
those roles interact
with each other. They
learn to
understand interactions
involving different
people with a variety
of
purposes. For example,
a child at this stage is
likely to be aware of
the
different
responsibilities of
people in a restaurant
who together make for
a
smooth dining
experience (someone
seats you, another
takes your order,
someone else cooks
the food, while yet
another clears away
dirty dishes).
Finally, children
develop, understand,
and learn the idea of
the generalized other,
the common
behavioral
expectations of general
society. By this stage
of development, an
individual is able to
imagine
how he or she is
viewed by one or many
others—and thus, from
a
sociological
perspective, to have a
“self” (Mead 1934;
Mead 1964).