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Human Behavior And The Social Environment
Effects of social environment on human behavior
The sociological analysis of symbolic interactionist theory
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INTRODUCTION A vital element of the study of sociology and social activity is the study of how individual actors interpret social situations. Deep within the discussion of how individual actors understand and react to social situations, there is an underlying dualism similar to that of ‘nature versus nurture’. Individuals understand and act in social situations based on both individual interpretation, as well as large underlying structural forces. The micro interpretation of this concept can be critically examined with theories such as interpretivist sociology and symbolic interactionism (Scott 2009:16, 24). This perspective sees the understanding of how to act in situations as deriving from previous experiences and individual interpretation. …show more content…
Symbolic interactionism distinguishes between the social self by separating it into the ‘I’ (the self that thinks and acts), and the ‘Me’ (The self that is presented to the world) (Ibid:23). Theorists believe that the ‘Me’ is the part of the individual that is shaped by society and managed by the ‘I’, others argue that the ‘I’ is equally influenced by external relationships and influences (Ibid:24). The concept of the “Looking Glass Self” shows how large structures of social feedback can influence individual behaviour (ibid). There are three elements within this concept; the individual visualizing how others see them; thinking about how others judge them; and, finally, the feelings that it gives an individual to influence their behaviour (Ibid). For example if a high school student is constantly getting into trouble at school, teachers, administration, and his peers may use social sanctions such as calling him/her ‘delinquent’ or gossip. As a result the student may realize that everyone thinks that he/she is a ‘delinquent’, and therefore, subconsciously plays the …show more content…
In order for this to happen, all participants must take on the appropriate role and act the correct way (Scott 2009:27). Individuals employ two different strategies to achieve this: defensive and protective strategies (Ibid). Defensive strategies may include for example, a star basketball player missing a shot and him/her blaming it on injury to save their role/image (Ibid). A protective strategy would include the referee verifying the injury, whether or not it is actually real (Ibid). Social actors work together agreeably to act out situations in their believable roles so that all of them may be sure of who they are and how their daily activity is defined. This notion of social actors working together to make sure that situations play out smoothly reflects the aforementioned notion of the “Looking Glass Self”. Returning to the high school student example, should this student change his behaviour while being in trouble suddenly (expressing great remorse for his actions perhaps), he is not playing into the expected role that has been placed on him. Administration may feel that his said students remorse is fake as it is ‘out of character’. The fact that an individual has the ability to change their demeanor instantaneously, yet it not able to practice it freely and acceptable, exhibits the power of the social structure in which one
In order to effectively interpret the research and information provided by interviewees, I will be looking through the lens of symbolic interactionism. As defined in You May Ask Yourself, it is, "a micro-level theory in which shared meanings, orientations, and assumptions form the basic motivations behind people's actions" (Conley 2015). In terms of the American dream, this way of thinking perpetrates itself through shared meanings and the motivation of the assumption that the American dream is plausible. "The American dream's endurance attests to most Americans' insistence on the dream as an ideal, if not as a reality (Cohen-Marks 2011: 825). "
In sociology symbolic interactionism explains the individual in a society and their interactions with others and through that it can explain social order and change. This theory was compiled from the teachings of George Herbert Mead in the early 20th century. Mead believed that the development of the individual was a social process. People are subjected to change based on their interactions with other people, objects or events and they assign meaning to things in order to decide how to act. This perspective depends on the symbolic meaning that people depend on in the process of social interaction. This paper will examine the movie “The Blind Side” through the symbolic interaction perspective.
Symbolic interactionism perspective is defined as “the study of how people negotiate the meanings of social life during their interactions with others” (Rohall, Milkie, and Lucas, 2014, p.27). It asserts that “we construct meaning about things that are important in our own lives and in our society” (Rohall, Milkie, and Lucas, 2014, p.28). These meanings derive from social interactions among individuals which
Society often pressures individuals within it to conform to different ideals and norms. This stems from the fact that individuals in a society are expected to act in a certain way. If a person or group of people do not satisfy society’s expectations, they are looked down upon by others. This can lead to individuals isolating themselves from others, or being isolated from others, because they are considered as outcasts. The emotional turmoil that can result from this, as well as the internal conflict of whether or not to conform, can transform an individual into a completely different person. This transformation can either be beneficial or harmful to the individual as well as those around them. The individual can become an improved version of himself or herself but conversely, they can become violent, rebellious and destructive. The novels Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk and A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess both explore the negative effects experienced by individuals living within the confines of society’s narrow-mindedness. In A Clockwork Orange, protagonist Alex was the leader of a small group of teenage criminals. He did not have a healthy relationship with either one of his parents or with others around him. Instead he spent most of his time alone during the day and at night roamed the streets in search of victims he could mug or rape. In Fight Club the unnamed protagonist was an outcast in his community. He chose to distance and isolate himself from others and as a result had no friends, with the exception of Tyler Durden and Marla Singer. Due to his isolation, he often participated in nightly fights that took place in Fight Club so that he could relieve his anxiety and stress. In this way, Alex and the unnamed protagoni...
Sociology is the study of society and the interactions that occur within society itself. There are numerous methods of analyzing societies and the way the function, nonetheless, most methods fall in micro and macro level theories. Micro level theories allow sociologist to study smaller relationships such as individual or compact groups of people. On the other hand, macro level studies permit for larger scale investigations to take place. With both of these theories there are three theoretical perspectives used in sociology. Micro level theories include symbolic interactionism which focuses in interactions done with language and gestures and the means which allow such interactions to take place. Macro level theories include structural functionalism
In both perspectives, acting solely for the sake of acting is not possible. All actions are social performances that give off impressions of “self” to other actors in society based upon past experiences and typifications. Berger and Luckmann offer a treatise on the social construction of reality that outlines how we formulate the idea of the “self” in social society and how reality itself is socially constructed. “Knowledge must always be knowledge from a certain position.” It is our social position that guides our perceptions of reality and allows us to embrace our idea of “self” within reality.
Sociologists view society in different ways. Sociologists use three major theories: symbolic interactionism, functional analysis, and conflict theory. The symbolic interactionist perspective, also known as symbolic interactionism, directs sociologists to consider the symbols and details of everyday life, what these symbols mean, and how people interact with each other (Cliff). Some examples of symbolic interactionism are the meaning of marriage, the meaning of divorce, the meaning of parenthood, and the meaning of love. Symbols may include wedding bands, vows of life‐long commitment, a white bridal dress, a wedding cake, a Church ceremony, and flowers and music. American society attaches general meanings to these symbols, but individuals also maintain their own perceptions of what these and other symbols mean (Cliff). Symbols have a shared social meaning that is understood by all members of society. Symbolical interactionism is analyzed at a micro-sociological level. It examines small-scale patterns of social interaction. It focuses mainly on face-to-face interaction and how people use symbols to create a social life.
...ry, it is easy to notice how people need different things, and require alternate ways of studying. You notice people’s emotions and how they react to their surroundings. Some people need silence, some need music, some need space, some need distraction and some people just do it to look good.
The sociology of everyday life focuses on studying people in their natural context, ie. the everyday social world. Social interactions is viewed as a fundamental aspect of understanding society and how social reality is constructed. The scrutiny of our social world in micro-sociology reveals that our everyday routines and social interactions produce an appearance of stability and continuity in our social life, when in fact, our social reality is profoundly fragile. This essay explores two different forms of sociological analysis, Symbolic Interactionism and Dramaturgy, through the arguments presented by George Herbert Mead and Erving Goffman respectively, and are both equally influential in their contributions to micro-sociology. Both sociologists
. Explain the looking glass theory and self-concept as they pertain to Shrek, Donkey, Princess Fiona, and Prince Farquar. Your answer needs to address the components of self. In your answer, include how self-concept affects the way that they communicate. Remember that communication includes cognitive, listening and speaking processes.
The approach theorizes that society is constructed of all of the everyday interactions between individuals (Macionis. 2015). Therefore, what an individual constantly learns from others, how they communicate with people, and respond to everything around them, is what makes up society. When studying crime and why it occurs, Symbolic Interaction states that criminal or deviant behavior is typically learned from the people and events around them (Macionis. 2015). It is important to note that this theory is mostly applied to less severe and moderate crimes such as drug use, theft, burglary, etc. rather than extreme violent crimes, such as
This essay will address actions of individuals and the contribution individual actions make to the social structure, how society flows to the actor via the “Me” and is constructed or reconstructed by the “I,” giving the “I” a place in creating society. I will further analyze the theories and explore the impact of norms and values on the decisions by the actors.
The sociological perspectives that best address the research question include the symbolic interactionist perspective, functionalism perspective as well as the conflict theory perspective. This is due to the reason that different authors take different perspectives and/ or approaches to communicate their ideologies based on the research question. Lastly, it can be concluded that the best approach to be used while conducting this research study would be to employ a literature review study since the material already exists in scholarly databases online.
George Herbert Mead begins his discussion of symbolic interactionism (talking with others) by defining three core principles that deal with meaning, language, and thought. The theory states that meaning is the construction of social reality. Humans act toward people or things on the basis of the meanings they assign to those people or things.
In relation to criminal behaviour, symbolic interactionists concentrate on processes of social interaction in which: