Identity formation responds to external social pressures rather than pure self-selection

Evidence

While I single out the agency of subaltern subjects within contradictory locations, I do not mean to suggest that the formation of subjectivity is a self-selecting phenomenon. Subjects become who they are in relation to larger sociocultural politics, and they learn to maneuver within ever-increasing attempts to stifle their growth, progress, and creativity. — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 2510

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Social reproduction sustains individuals through group identity, not just purposive-rational adaptation — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 2428; Adolescents lack defenses against social pressure before identity forms — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1445; Joint creative production generates collective identity beyond external-threat response — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 1225 (+5 more)