Chapter 5: Symbolic Interactionalism

what activity for symbolic interaction theory?

card game - all about feedback - jokers, like transgender, not know what to do with them - not only shapes identity- also what we want to be

what was Mead's view on society

consisted of individual actors who make their own choices - society in the making - NOT society by previous design - yet they align their actions with what others do i.e. form health care systems, legal systems, etc

What is Blumer's symbolic interaction basic premise #2?

(language) meaning arises out of the social interaction that people have with each other - human realities are socially constructed through communication - meaning is negotiated through the use of language - usually our symbols are arbitrary signs ---- EX: nothing cute about the word kitten. however, through talking to people, we come to ascribe that meaning and develop a universe of discourse - symbolic naming is the basis for human society - some words have default assumptions - language can be a prison or we can push back the wall - not just intelligent expression, but the way we learn to interpret the world - knowledge dependent on extent of meaning

What is Blumer's symbolic interaction basic premise #1?

(meaning) humans act toward people or things on the basis of the meaning they assign to those people or things - its our interpretation that counts - based on the belief of subjective reality - hard to know how to handle people who are different than you (EX: talking to a cyclops)

What is Blumer's symbolic interaction basic premise #3?

(thinking) an individuals interpretation of symbols is modified by his or her own thought processed - thinking: an inner conversation - inner dialogue: minding - humans require social stimulation and exposure to abstract symbol systems to embark upon conceptual thought processes that characterize our species - take the role of the other --- take a moment to respond how you think they want

Critique of Mead's ideas:

- if look at symbolic interactionism as objective and needs to be predictable and testable--> fail - doesn't take into account self esteem, EX: all the money in the world yet low self esteem - instead, look at it with the 6 criteria for interpretive/subjective theories: 1. clarification of values: does well. 2. new understanding of people: show us how humans socially construct their concept of self as well as how society influences that project. can gain a new appreciation for diversity. 3. community agreement: looking glass self hypothesis is now a truism in the field of sociology. Mead is called the "greatest sociological thinker" 4. ethnographic research: new appreciation of human diversity from this. inspired that describes individuals in similar situations responding in different ways - he doesn't call for reform of society. says little about power or emotion - doesn't have aesthetic appeal. bogged down in the baffling array of ideas. lack of clarity

what is the book's example of symbolic interaction theory?

-the movie Nell - wild child found in the wilderness - everyone reacts to her differently (doc want to experiment to become famous. sheriff think she is crazy. his wife thinks she is a free spirit. doc who found her thinks she is human) and all treat her differently

What are the 6 applications of symbolic interaction?

1. creating reality 2. meaningful research 3. generalized other 4. naming 5. self-fulfilling prophecy 6. symbol manipulation

what is participant observation

a method of adopting the stance of an ignorant yet interested visitor who carefully notes what people say and do in order to discover how they interpret their world - symbolic interaction method: meaningful research

What does Levinas believe about the "i"?

agrees with mead that the self is socially constructed - insists that the identity of our " responsive i" is formed by the way we respond to others

minding

an inner dialogue used to test alternatives, rehearse actions, and anticipate reactions before responding; self talk - pause that is reflective - two second delay while we mentally rehearse our next move etc - naturally talk to ourselves in order to sort out the meaning of a difficult situation - before we can think, we must interact symbolically

Book's chart about causality for symbolic interaction

humans act on their definition of a situation - interactionist chart: stimulus --> interpretation --> response

symbolic interaction and overstatement?

may suffer from overstatement - Mead repeatedly said that our capacity for language (ability to use and interpret abstract symbols) is what makes us different than other animals - book example: so does that mean that people who can't talk or interact on a symbolic level are less than human? - caution to any theorist who claims to have captured the essence of humanity

Questions about how Mead viewed the generalized other

not know if he regarded them as: 1. overarching looking-glass self that we put together from reflections we see in everyone we know or 2. the institutional expectations, rules of the game, or accepted practices within our society that influence every conversation that takes place in people's minds

what does "meaningful research" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - advocated research through participant observation - Mead did not like quantifiable research because the numbers were "lifeless"

what does "generalized other" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - book example: a boy in "cipher in the snow" is seen as nothing by his teachers, friends, and parents. they reduce him to what they think of him- nothing. he eventually collapses and dies for no reason. symbolic manslaughter.

what does "symbol manipulation" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - how people search for a symbol that would be powerful

What does "creating reality" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - metaphor of social interaction as dramaturgical performance - all involved in constant negotiation with others to publicly define our identity and the nature of the situation

what does "naming" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - name calling can be devastating because the labels force us to view ourselves in a warped mirror

what does "self-fulfilling prophecy" mean?

one of the symbolic interactions applications - we all have a significant impact on how others view themselves - interpersonal power is referred to as: self fulfilling prophecy - tendency for our expectations to evoke responses in others that confirm what we originally anticipated

symbolic interaction

ongoing use of language and gestures in anticipation of how the other will react; a conversation - MEAD - verbal and nonverbal responses that a listener then provides crafted in expectation of how the original speaker will react - after he died, students pulled together class notes - his protege, Blumer, coined the term symbolic interaction

What does: taking the role of the other mean?

process of mentally imagining that you are someone else who is viewing you - mead's greatest contribution to our understanding of the way we think is his notion that human beings have the unique capacity to take the role of the other

Life example for Premise 2 of Symbolic Interaction theory:

sapir whorf - escimo has 120 words for snow. we have 1. show it is not important to us. - language determines our reality "strong" - EX: immigrant come to US and they change their name because they don't get it. phuc-son --> ****-son --> change to bill even though grandpa given name - EX: different colors of red is infinite. china only has one. - EX: china has 230 names for family. never call someone "uncle". instead show birth order and the size of the family.

Self with "I" and "me"

self is an ongoing process combining the "i" and the "me" -I: spontaneous, driving force that fosters all that is novel, unpredictable, and unorganized in the self ---- subjective self ----of this moment --- who you are (what you believe) -ME: the image of self seen when one takes the role of the other ---- objective self ---- image of self seen in the looking glass of other people's reactions. seen as an object. ---- of the next moment ---- formed through continual symbolic interaction. not have "me" at birth --- limited. passive objects not active subject. interactions with other people --- Me controls spontaneous part of I --- predictable

generalized other

the composite mental image a person has of his or her self based on societal expectations and responses - organized set of information that the individual carries in his or her head about what the general expectation and attitudes of the social group are

looking-glass self

the mental self-image that results from taking the role of the other; the objective self; me - ability to take the role of others --- what you think other people think --- not always the case

what is ethical echo?

the reminder that we are responsible to take care of each other; i am my brothers keeper - existed since the beginning of human history - the way each of us meets that obligation shapes our "i" - every time we look at a persons face, it is a signpost to take care of each other

what is Mead's conception of the Self?

we paint our self portrait with brush strokes that come from taking the role of the other- imagining how we look to another person - dismissed the idea that we could get glimpses of who we are through introspection - this mental image: looking-glass self - self is a function of language - without talk, there would be no self concept - self arises from the interactions with others - ongoing process