Relationships to Recognition Among Generation Z College Students
Abstract
The struggle for recognition represents the primary
motivation underpinning social conflict among humans
(Honneth, 1992). The human need for recognition refers
to the desire to be seen in a positive light (Lammont,
2018). Given that human consciousness and identity
formation take shape through reciprocal realization,
recognition is not merely a crutch for the needy, but a
fundamental human need that foregrounds the
constitution of one’s identity (Hegel, 1807; Honneth, 1992;
Mead & Morris 1967; Taylor 1994.). This study
investigates Generation Z college students’ relationships
to recognition and the factors that influence those
relationships. Self-report measures and individual
interviews indicate that participants experience tension
between concurrent orientations toward autonomy and
community. The presence of both orientations among
participants seems to have led them to experience their
need for recognition in a complex fashion. This complex
relationship is reflected by the misrecognition of the very
need for recognition constituting the cultural model
representing Generation Z college students’ relationships
to recognition.