Sociological Notion Of Impression Management

Sometimes it feels like, in this crazy world, we find ourselves living two different lives. You go to work and you are one person but when you get home you are someone completely different. Or you go to school and you act one way but as soon as the bell rings you act another way. Well, you are not alone. Everyone lives this way. The reason behind this is a sociological notion that is referred to as “Impression Management”. Impression Management is just how it sounds, when we try to manage the impression that we give others (Henslin, 2014). For us, life is like a movie. With Impression Management they use the terms: “Front Stages”, “Back stages”, and “Role Performance”. In this movie called “Life” when we act a particular way, in front of others, …show more content…
As a teacher I use the setting, appearance, and manner sign vehicles to communicate my role performance. Entering the Education work field at the age of 18 has been very challenging, especially since I work in the 5th grade unit. The way that we display ourselves in front of others effects the way others will behave and interact with us (Wright, 1987). When working with kids, I have to give them the impression that I am much older than them and that I have authority. That way, the kids will behave for me and understand that I mean business. I absolutely love my group of students and I tend to want to be their friend and support system. However; I have realized that I cannot act this way with these kids. Instead, I have to be the adult and put my foot down. When I do this, I use the “behavioral management” approach (Singh, 2013). I remain firm with my students so that they do not walk all over me and disrespect me and my position. This take a lot of practice because my “authentic self” wants to show them compassion and …show more content…
Playing the friendship role can be very difficult. You do not want your friends to feel betrayed, but you want to show your true personality at the same time. I have this one friend that is very near and dear to my heart. He met a girl this past year at college and he has completely changed. Some of our other friends have tried to tell him that she controls his life but, he does not want to admit it. Another one of our friends asked me if I liked our friend’s girlfriend and while I did not like her, I simply replied “If he’s happy that is all that matters”. It is extremely difficult for me to respond when my best friend comes to me about situations concerning his girlfriend. I do not put the girlfriend down, I just result back to saying, “If you’re happy, then I’ll be happy for you.” This is an example of “opinion conformity”. Opinion conformity is when you agree with someone’s opinion to stay on their “good side” (Deepak, 2014). While several of our other friends and I do not like our one friend’s girlfriend, it is my role as his best friend to stand by him through the good times and the bad times, no matter