The Social and Moral Self

In this talk, I will discuss multiple lines of research about the self at different levels of analysis. I'll talk about how we define ourselves in relation to our "big groups" or social and cultural identities, specifically those related to religious and political affiliation. I'll also talk about how we define the self in our "little groups", our interpersonal relationships. Finally, I'll introduce a new line of research on how we define the self internally - what aspects of the self do we see as most essential, and what characteristics do we see as peripheral and likely to change over time? And how might definitions of the essential self vary cross-culturally and over the course of development?
This will be a practice job talk so suggestions for framing are welcome, as are methodological and analytical recommendations for the ongoing essential self work.