symbolic interactionism

• symbolic interactionism - key thinkers

  • MEAD
  • BLUMER
  • COOLEY
  • GOFFMAN
• symbolic interactionism - symbol versus instinct

  • instinct = responding to stimulus in an automatic, pre-programmed way
  • symbol = the words, object, expressions and gestures that an individual attaches meaning to
  • e.g the shaking of a fist can mean many things
  • interpretive phase = the process between experiencing the stimulus and reacting to it, where the situation is interpreted in order to choose the appropriate response
• symbolic interactionism - taking on the role of the other MEAD

  • putting oneself in the place of the other person and seeing ourselves as they see us
  • we take this on through the process of social interaction
  • young children = imitative play
  • we start to see ourselves as our significant others sees us
  • then we see ourselves as the wider community do - generalised other
• key principles of symbolic interactionism - BLUMER

  1. our actions are based on the meanings we give to the situations, events and people
  2. these meanings are based on the interactions we have experienced and are not fixed but ate negotiable and fluid to some extent
  3. the meanings we give to situations are the result of interpretive procedures we uses - taking on the role of others
• symbolic interactionism - labelling theory

  THOMAS

  • the definition of something is its label therefore people label situations, events and people which can have real-world consequences
  • e.g a teacher labels a student as troublesome and will therefore act differently towards that student
• symbolic interactionism - labelling theory

  looking glass self - COOLEY

  • the way that we develop our self-concept
  • "I am not who I think I am, I am not who you think I am, I am who I think you think I am"
  • self fulfilling prophecy - we become what others see us as
• symbolic interactionism - labelling theory :career

  BECKER and LEMERT

  • the process of labelling, from identification to the label being attached, acceptance or rejection of the label but the labelled, to the creation of a master status
  • each stage has its own set of problems and issues
• Dramaturgical model - GOFFMAN

  Presentation of self

  • Front stage self - the act we put on for other people - the front stage is where we spend most of our lives
  • back stage - the private place where we can truly be ourselves and prepare to return to the front stage
• Dramaturgical model - GOFFMAN

  Impression management

  • the use of language, gestures, body language and props to help us pass for the type of person that we want the audience to see
  • this process requires us to constantly read the audiences responses to us and adjust our performance accordingly
• Dramaturgical model - GOFFMAN

  Roles

  • there is a gap between who we are and the roles we play - role distance
  • roles are loosely scripted by society so we have the freedom to choose how we play them
• symbolic interactionism AO3

  • ethnomethodology argues that although it is correct to focus on interaction, symbolic interactions fails to explain who the actors create meanings
• symbolic interactionism AO3

  • not all action is meaningful
  • Weber's idea of traditional actions which may hold little meaning for the actor
• symbolic interactionism AO3

  • fails to explain the origin of labels or the consistent patterns that we see in peoples behaviour
• symbolic interactionism AO3

  • it is more a loose group of descriptive concepts than an explanatory theory
• symbolic interactionism AO3

  • dramaturgical analogy has its limitation as everyone play both roles of actor and audience and interactions are often improvised and unrehearsed