Theories of identity as summarised by Gauntlett — AQA A-Level Media Studies
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Theories of identity as summarised by Gauntlett explained
Theories of identity as summarised by Gauntlett covers 4 specification points, including Fluidity of identity and Constructed identity.
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Open a point below for its explanation and revision guidance.
Fluidity of identity
Gauntlett's summary of identity theory treats the self as fluid rather than fixed: who a person is can shift across time, situations and media encounters. Fluidity means identity is not a single settled core but something continually made and remade, so a learner should be able to explain how a media text offers audiences resources they may take up, adapt or set aside. A concrete method is to take one example, such as a lifestyle magazine or social media profile, and trace how it presents more than one possible version of the self, then ask whether the audience is positioned to try on that version. Fluidity does not mean identity is meaningless; it means identity is changeable and negotiated.
Constructed identity
In Gauntlett's summary, constructed identity means the self is actively built rather than simply given at birth. People assemble a sense of who they are from available materials, including media representations, and they present that self to others. A useful method is to examine a media text and ask what materials it supplies, such as images, role models or lifestyle cues, and then ask how an audience member might use them to build a presented self. Construction does not mean the process is fake; it means identity is made through choices and social interaction. Distinguish this from fluidity: construction names the making, fluidity names the changeability.
Negotiated identity
Gauntlett's summary of identity theory treats identity as something people actively make and remake through media, not a fixed label handed to them. 'Negotiated identity' names the middle position: media offer frameworks, prompts and representations, and audiences take them up selectively, accepting some, bending others and refusing the rest. A learner should be able to distinguish this from a fully imposed identity (media simply dictate who you are) and from a wholly self-invented identity (media play no part). A useful method is to take one representation, such as a lifestyle advert or a social media profile trend, and ask what the media text offers, what the audience accepts, and what it modifies or rejects. The negotiation is the adjustment between offer and uptake, and it happens repeatedly rather than once.
Collective identity.
Collective identity refers to the shared sense of who 'we' are that forms around a group, generation, nation, subculture or fandom, and which media representations help to shape. In Gauntlett's summary, identity is not only personal; media supply common reference points, symbols and stories that groups draw on to recognise themselves and to be recognised by others. A learner should separate collective identity from individual identity while showing they interact: a person's sense of self is partly built from group materials that media circulate. A practical method is to pick a group, such as a music subculture or a national audience, and identify the shared representations, language or symbols media provide, then ask how members adopt or contest them. Collective identity is therefore shared, media-resourced and open to dispute.
Your focus
- Define fluidity of identity accurately.
- Explain how media texts offer changeable resources for identity.
- Apply the concept to a specific media example.
Show all 12 objectives
- Define constructed identity accurately.
- Explain how media texts supply materials for building identity.
- Distinguish construction from fluidity in a media example.
- Define negotiated identity in Gauntlett's terms
- Contrast negotiation with imposed and self-made identity
- Apply the concept to a named media example
- Define collective identity in Gauntlett's terms
- Explain how collective and individual identity interact
- Apply the concept to a named group and its media representations
Theories of identity as summarised by Gauntlett exam tips
Marking Points
- Identifies fluidity as the idea that identity changes across time, context and experience rather than staying fixed.
- Explains that media texts can supply resources audiences use to shape and revise their sense of self.
- Distinguishes fluidity from the claim that identity is entirely random or without any continuity.
- Applies the idea to a named media example by showing more than one available version of the self.
- Defines constructed identity as the self being actively built from available social and media materials.
- Explains that media representations supply materials people may use when presenting themselves to others.
- Distinguishes construction from the claim that identity is simply innate or fixed at birth.
- Applies the concept to a named text by identifying the materials it offers for building a self.
- Identifies negotiated identity as a two-way process between media frameworks and audience uptake
- Distinguishes negotiation from a wholly imposed identity and from a wholly self-made identity
- Explains that audiences accept, adapt or refuse media material rather than absorbing it uniformly
- Applies the idea to a concrete example by naming what the text offers and what the audience does with it
- Recognises that identity is continually made and remade through media rather than fixed once
- Defines collective identity as a shared sense of belonging to a group shaped partly through media
- Distinguishes collective identity from individual identity while showing how the two interact
- Identifies shared media resources such as representations, symbols, language or stories that groups draw on
- Applies the concept to a named group and explains how members adopt or contest the shared identity
- Recognises that collective identities are contested and change rather than fixed
Examiner Tips
- 💡Define fluidity in one precise sentence before applying it.
- 💡Use a named text and say which version of the self it makes available.
- 💡Link the concept to Gauntlett's summary rather than to a general claim about youth.
- 💡State clearly that construction is an active process.
- 💡Name the specific materials a text offers for building identity.
- 💡Keep construction and fluidity distinct in your answer.
- 💡Anchor the definition in Gauntlett's framing of identity as actively made through media
- 💡Use a short worked example so the offer-and-uptake structure is visible
- 💡Contrast negotiation with the imposed and self-made extremes to sharpen the definition
- 💡Name a specific group so the shared identity is concrete
- 💡Show the interaction between collective and individual identity rather than treating them as opposites
- 💡Note contestation to demonstrate that collective identity is not simply handed down
Common Mistakes
- Treats fluidity as meaning identity has no stability at all; keep the idea of change alongside some continuity.
- Confuses fluidity with audience passivity; stress that audiences negotiate and select media resources.
- Offers a definition with no media example; anchor the point in a specific text or platform.
- Treats construction as meaning identity is false or inauthentic; explain that construction describes making, not fakery.
- Confuses construction with fluidity; separate the making of identity from its changeability.
- Gives a definition without linking it to media materials; name the images or cues a text supplies.
- Treats negotiated identity as media simply imposing an identity on a passive audience; correct this by stressing audience selection and adjustment
- Confuses negotiation with complete freedom to invent any identity regardless of media; correct this by keeping the media offer in the account
- Describes negotiation as a single decision rather than an ongoing process; correct this by showing repeated uptake and revision
- Ignores the concrete example and stays abstract; correct this by naming a text and an audience response
- Treats collective identity as identical to personal identity; correct this by separating shared group belonging from individual selfhood
- Assumes media wholly create collective identity; correct this by showing groups also adopt, adapt and contest representations
- Leaves the group unnamed and the account abstract; correct this by naming a group and its shared media resources
- Presents collective identity as permanent; correct this by noting that shared identities shift and are disputed