What is identity? More importantly, how do our various identities impact how we view the world, and how the world views us?

For people in the social work field and other helping professions, self awareness aids us in how to prepare for encounters with clients whose thoughts, attitudes, and lived experiences are different from ours. With my own consulting clients, we’ve had conversations about how our identities impact how we gain access to the communities we work with. The conclusion is this:

Just because we share similar identities doesn’t mean we share the same lived experiences.

Here’s an activity, adapted from the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts’ Inclusive Teaching Initiative called The Identity Wheel.

This activity is ideal for:

  • Encouraging reflection on the ways we identify personally and socially, and how we perceive the world and how the world perceives us
  • Identify settings and situations in which our identities are felt the most
  • Identify ways in which our identities afford us privilege

Here’s what you need:

  • White sheets of paper
  • Markers, pens, or pencils
  • Rulers, if needed
  • Round color-coding labels in four colors (like these)

The steps:

  1. Pass out the sheets of paper and writing utensils to participants. On the sheets, draw a circle and divided into 8 sections (using rulers, if needed), like this:

2. Have participants label each section with an identity they closely identify with. Here’s an example of my identities:

3. Using one color of the color-coding labels, place labels on the identities in which you think about most often in your everyday life. This represents the identities that you feel are most marginalized. Using a second color, place labels on the identities in which you don’t think of often in your everyday life. These represent the identities that you exercise a form of privilege in.(For my example, purple is my first color and gold is my second color).

4. Next, using your third color, label the identities that have the biggest impact on how you view yourself. Then using your fourth color, label the identities you believe have the biggest impact on how others perceive you. (For my example, gray is my third color and orange is my fourth color.)

Here’s my finished wheel:

Depending on the number of people, you can have participants share in small groups, or have participants share in the larger group. Whichever makes the participants most comfortable. Have participants reflect and share:

  • Did anything surprise you in this exercise?
  • Do the color label placement differ in your personal life versus professional/campus life?
  • Do the color label placements depend on the context I’m in? For example, do I think about my race if I’m in a primarily African American environment, or does it become more prevalent when I’m one of the few (or the only) African American in the space?
  • In what areas does a particular identity perceive to hold equal weight, regardless of the context? For me, being American holds privilege in the United States as well as globally.

Key takeaway

The Identity Wheel is a useful way to reflect on what identities hold importance to us, and how these identities play out in how we interact with others. Try this exercise and let me know how it goes for you.

Raise Your Voice: How can you use the Identity Wheel with your clients, students, staff, and community? Share below in the comments section.