The Looking Glass Self

The Looking Glass Self is a concept by sociologist Charles Horton Cooley, which suggests that a person’s self-concept is shaped by how they believe others perceive them. It involves three key components: we imagine how we appear to others, we imagine their judgment of that appearance, and we develop feelings about ourselves based on those perceptions. Essentially, our self-identity is influenced by social interactions and feedback from others, leading to an understanding of ourselves that can change depending on the society and relationships we engage with.