Identity Wheel Activity

The identity wheel is an activity to better understand how our own identities impact our lives. Using the wheel, first write down how you identify yourself in each category and then place numbers in each of the relevant categories (e.g. 1 could go in both race and gender).

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Image description: A donut shape is broken into 11 categories: ethnicity, socio-economic status, gender, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, first language, physical/emotional/developmental (dis)ability, age, religious or spiritual affiliation, and race. In the center of the donut are five categories: 1. Identities you think about most often; 2. Identities you think about least often; 3. Your own identities you would like to learn more about; 4. Identities that have the strongest effect on how you perceive yourself; 5. Identities that have the greatest effect on how others perceive. 

Looking at your identity wheel, consider whether the identities you think about most (1) represent your most marginalized identities. Is that the case? If yes, why? If no, why do you think about them most often? 

Identities you think about least often (2) may represent your most privileged identities, why (or why not)? 

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Your own identities you would like to learn more about (3) may represent the identities that are deemphasized in your culture. What would you like to learn? 

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Identities that have the strongest impact on self-perception (4) may be different from how others perceive you (5). When do these identities align and in which spaces do they differ (at home, at work, in mixed company)? 

Within identities where you hold privilege, how do these identities and their associated social power, control, or advantage impact your relationships to your peers and patients? 

Within identities that are marginalized, how do these identities impact your relationships to your peers and patients?

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