Collective Consciousness and Gender

Alexandra Walker

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2018
• ISBN:
  9781137544148
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Personality in Psychology
• Index: Psychology

This book explores collective consciousness and how it is applied to the pursuit of gender justice in international law. It discusses how the collective mode of behaviour and identity can lead to unconscious role-playing based on the social norms, expectations or archetypes of a group. Alexandra Walker contends that throughout history, men have been constructed as archetypal dominators and women as victims. In casting women in this way, we have downplayed their pre-existing, innate capacities for strength, leadership and power. In casting men as archetypal dominators, we have downplayed their capacities for nurturing, care and empathy.
The author investigates the widespread implications of this unconscious role-playing, arguing that even in countries in which women have many of the same legal rights as men, gender justice and equality have been too simplistically framed as 'feminism' and 'women's rights' and that giving women the rights of men has not created gender balance. This book highlights the masculine and feminine traits belonging to all individuals and calls on international law to reflect this gender continuum.

© The Author(s) 2018

Alexandra WalkerCollective Consciousness and Genderhttps://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-54414-8_1

Begin Abstract

1. I Versus We: Introduction to Collective Consciousness

Alexandra Walker¹

(1)

Centre for Social Impact, UNSW Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia

Alexandra Walker

End Abstract

There is a difference between our identity as individuals and our identity as group members. Think about that. As individuals we exist and behave in terms of our personal identity: ‘I’ or ‘me.’ This mode of identity is linked to our autonomous experiences, for example, ‘I am hungry,’ ‘I feel happy,’ or ‘That email was sent to me.’ We behave differently when we are with others. This seems self-evident, but it has important consequences for our lives, as we often develop our plans and goals as individuals, and then execute those plans as group members.

In social settings, we understand and make sense of ourselves through the groups in which we participate. Thus, our sense of self encompasses our social identity, defined as ‘that part of an individual’s self-concept which derives from his [or her] membership of a social group (or groups), together with the value and emotional significance attached to this’ (Tajfel, 1978, p. 63). Examples of our social identity may be: ‘I am a university student,’ ‘I am a parent,’ ‘I am a passenger on an aeroplane,’ or ‘I am an Australian.’ Our social identity is a part of our self-concept; it adapts over time as our circumstances change.

There is another mode of identity—the collective identity—that becomes salient when we merge with the groups in which we are members. To merge is to combine with others to form a new, larger identity. When a group of any size comes together and shares a strong and aligned emotional experience, a new collective identity or collective self is created. A collection of individuals can become, for example, a relationship, a team, a council, a family, a corporation, or a city. In the collective mode, we are not just members of families and workplaces; we are also a part of larger identities such as the systems in which we work, our gendered experiences, the international community, and nature as a whole. As we continue to share the same environment and/or experiences with other people, we develop a shared or collective consciousness with that group. Examples of collective consciousness include ‘our thoughts on the subject,’ ‘our strategy against the other team,’ ‘our goals and intentions for this organisation,’ and ‘our patriotic duty.’ Collective consciousness exists where there is a shared identification with a particular community that encompasses a strong sense of being ‘who we are’ and ‘what we do, or do not do’ (Burns & Engdahl, 1998a). When participating in collective consciousness, individuals adopt a collective identity, defined as ‘an individual’s cognitive, moral, and emotional connections with a broader community, category, practice, or institution’ (Polletta & Jasper, 2001, p. 284).

Collective consciousness is defined in this book as ‘the shared acquired awareness, reflectivity and mental states that result from membership in a group or collective’ (Burns & Engdahl, 1998a). Collective consciousness is based on the identity and behaviour of the group as a whole rather than the separate identities of its members. It produces a new identity based on the distributed mental states, emotions, and experiences of all the participants in the group. Our mental states and behaviour are overlaid with the group’s mental states and behaviour, and as such, ‘our sense of being an individual ‘I’ gets replaced by the feeling of being a collective ‘we” (Kotler & Wheal, 2017, p. 68). At a certain level of cohesion, groups become collective selves with an identity, autonomy, and consciousness, apart from their individual members. There is a diverse range of collective consciousness, from partnerships to nation-states and the global collective self.

People participate in collective consciousness when they live in an area and know the way around. They may have a home or a place to stay, a social network, and a sense of belonging. They are familiar with where to go and where to avoid. They know the atmosphere of different streets. They understand the local vernacular and recognise the change of seasons and the patterns of traffic. They are a part of the consciousness of that region.

People participate in collective consciousness when they work in an organisation. They know how to dress, speak, and behave in the working environment. They know the behaviours that are rewarded and the behaviours that are penalised. They understand the power hierarchy and their role. They are a part of the consciousness of that organisation.

People participate in collective consciousness when they are members of a particular religion. They are familiar with its tenets and beliefs. There are education and community institutions for them to join. They participate in its rituals and share a connection with other members. If they are committed to their religion, it may mark the milestones of their life. They are a part of the consciousness of that religion.

People participate in collective consciousness as members of a family. They understand the emotional dynamics. They know the topics and tones of voice that are likely to escalate into either heated arguments or icy silence. They know the acceptable range of conversation and humour. They know what their family values and what their family fears. They are a part of the consciousness of that family.

The key argument of this book is that when individuals actively join together as group members and share an environment and experiences, a new entity or agent is formed. Or, put in another way, when the shared awareness of individuals in a group becomes salient, a new ‘collective self’ is created. A collective identity or self exists when people think, feel, and act primarily as group members rather than as autonomous individuals in the temporal and spatial context of that group. These new ‘collective selves’ have unique ideas, rituals, values, symbols, and behaviours. In this mode, we behave in alignment with the groups in which we are direct participants. In all aspects of life, such as relationships, work, religion, and politics, collective consciousness can influence our interactions with individuals and groups.

Here are two examples of how one individual moves among the personal identity, the social identity, and the collective identity:

Example 1:

• I play soccer: this is personal identity (individual consciousness).
• I am in a soccer team: this is social identity (an extension of individual consciousness).
• We could read where our teammates were going to place the ball, and because of these instincts, we won the game: this is collective identity (collective consciousness).

Example 2:

• I am excited to see my friends: this is personal identity (individual consciousness).
• I am meeting my friends for dinner at our favourite restaurant: this is social identity (an extension of individual consciousness).
• When we meet, we laugh all night about all of the fun times we have shared and we end up finishing each other’s sentences. It doesn’t matter how any of us felt at the start—we always have a great time: this is collective identity (collective consciousness).

Collective consciousness can produce positive and negative behaviours. It can lead to flow and coherence, for example, the transcendence of group meditation, a sense of pride in volunteering, and singing in harmony. The collective mode might be activated by the sense of belonging engendered by a family ritual, or the tendency of a particular social group to dress in a similar way. In the collective mode, we may say, ‘I hope we win the game on the weekend,’ or ‘Our company is well placed to handle your request.’ However it can also create anarchy and hysteria, for example, in intergroup conflict and property bubbles.

Based on shared experiences in the group and the group’s identity in the world, members of the group acquire similar awareness, the capacity to reflect on the group’s experience, and mental states. Collective consciousness is more than just shared knowledge and practices; it is the strong intersubjectivity that results from mutual awareness and normative (emotional) interactions (Burns & Engdahl, 1998a, 1998b). It arises when you think, feel, and act in similar ways to other members of your group as a result of your membership in that group. Collective consciousness has also been referred to as thought communities: groups that share unique beliefs and social experiences (Zerubavel, 1997).

When minds are changed on a group or mass scale, this is collective consciousness at work. This might be expressed as the global participation in various forms of social media, a new cultural attitude to ageing (e.g., the idea that ‘sixty is the new forty’), the popular overthrow of regional governments, as seen in the Arab Spring of 2011, or the Women’s Marches that took place in the United States and elsewhere around the world on 21 January 2017.

We can also observe collective consciousness in animals, when a flock of birds suddenly changes direction mid-flight or a school of fish moves together in perfect coherence. There appears to be an internal intelligence in these groups of animals, and emerging research on this type of animal behaviour has been adapted by Dr. Mitch Mooney, performance analyst for the Australian netball team. Mooney applied the insights of the collective behaviour of animals to predict the patterns of behaviour in opposition netball te...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• 1. I Versus We: Introduction to Collective Consciousness
• Part I. Collective Consciousness in Theory
• Part II. Collective Consciousness in Practice: Gender in International Law
• Back Matter