Many of us would believe that social expectations, dominant paradigms and social interaction influence our sense of self. Social interaction provides a basis for comparison, which distinguish between others and I (the principle of `how can we know what we are, without knowing what we are not"'). Social forces directly influence the way in which we view ourselves (e.g the appearance of our bodies). An extreme view, social constructionism, holds that the self is merely a 'set of social roles and pressures'.

As correct as these statements may be, prima facie, they are in conflict with basic philosophical theories of the self. Generally speaking, we can divide views of the self into three categories;

• physicalism/materialism (a physical self)
• dualism (physical and nonphysical)
• idealism (nonphysical).

I assume social forces to be nonphysical - there is certainly nothing to suggest any physical dimension to the social forces...