COMMUNICATION AND IDENTITY

The Relationship between Communication and Identity

The Relationship between Communication and Identity

Introduction

Communication is an integral part of our lives. Communication has been a priority in the lives of people, irrespective of their culture, beliefs, values, and generations. Since the earlier times, civilizations always engaged in communication, which included written or verbal. The written and verbal communication is still prevalent in the modern societies.

Discussion

Gender Identity

People send and receive messages as they experience changes in their behavior and cognitive ability. Theories pertaining to communication suggest how these processes take place. In the face to face setting, the development of individual's gender takes place while interacting with others. Children tend to establish knowledge about gender roles in the early part of their lives. In addition, they get awareness about gender-specific toys and activities when they turn three. Gender identity may be expressed in face to face communication through gestures and the use of language. Men and women have different physical expressions and gestures, which differentiate them in a face-to-face environment (Sea, 1997).

Social Identity

The main theme of this approach is that the development of self-concept takes place by members of social groups and categories. For instance, ethnic backgrounds, gender, occupation etc. Furthermore, Social identity can be expressed within an in-group and out-group social settings. Individuals communicate their social identities in a face-to-face setting by their actions, language, and their approach toward different areas of life.

Cultural identity

Issues may result while communicating with people from different cultural background. These problems may take place when a person fails to understand the other person properly. It is obvious that knowledge about the cultural context of another person does not guarantee a successful communication process. In a face-to-face environment, people may communicate their cultural identity by the language they speak, behavior, and their beliefs and values.

Different ...