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Who Am I?: Individualistic and Collectivist Identities Essay

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In today's society, with the advent of modern digital communication and an increased focus upon global society and diversity, humans have a golden opportunity to evaluate themselves and how they identify both individually and in their broader culture. Although the question of “who am I” is perhaps one of the classical questions of the human cognizance of identity, our identity as both groups and individuals is directly related to the culture we are a part of, especially in regards to whether that culture is determined to be individualistic or collectivist. These differing mindsets have an inherent connection to the way that we view ourselves and the impact of interactions between different cultures. To examine the impact of culture upon …show more content…

Today, we group individuals based on material and social factors, be that age, race, status, or gender, to determine whether they share one or more identities with us (Flora). We must assign identities like this be able to function in our societies whether it be as parents, employees, students, or any of the other hundreds of roles that we can play. The reaction of other human beings to our self or socially assigned identities further clarifies in our own minds what our true identities are, therefore ensuring that others will always have a role in the way we view ourselves. Personally, people in my life have a huge influence on my identity, because I hold myself individually to high standards and wish to be perceived as a general good person—A good student, a good daughter, a good worker; these are all identities that I have for myself and I take other'sopinions when I evaluate if I am living up to these identities. However, societal influence can have a negative impact upon identity as well, especially when assumed identity expectations are not met. For example, there is an increasing rate of suicide among Asian American students after perceived failure, and this is attributed to a cultural tendency to avoid 'losing face' among their peers in a society where failure is not only an individual failure, but a familial and group failure as well. Asian American students see “...not getting

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