Symbolic Interactionism

# History

Symbolic interactionism as a theory started to develop in 1937 with Herbert Blumer coining the term and defining the features of this new branch of sociology. Blumer was a student of George Herbert Mead who had been teaching at the University of Chicago in what came to be known the *Chicago School* one of the leading sociology institutes. The institutes' research was especially aimed at conducting empirical studies in order to explore how individuals understand and negotiate their everyday life.

# Core ideas and concepts

George Herbert Mead's philosophy was very much influenced both by pragmatism and behaviorism. His basic premise was that there is no objective reality which could in any way be perceived by humans. According to behaviorism he was convinced that reality was a social construction and further according to pragmatism that humans constructed the reality around them in the way that is most useful to them. Humans would adhere to one particular interpretation of the world or of an object in particular so long as this interpretation 'worked' for them. As soon as the interpretation ceased to be useful humans would look for a different intepretation that would better serve their needs.

Blumer established three basic premises for the study in the field of symbolic interactionism

1. Humans act toward and interact with things on the basis of the meaning that these things have for them (these so called 'things' include everything from physical objects to other humans or other living beings, categories of other humans, like 'friend' for example, guiding values and ideas, actions of others and situations)
2. The meaning that each of these things has for a particular individual arises from interaction of the individual with others
3. These meanings are dealt with and modified through interpretation by the person who interacts with the things he or she encounters

The concepts of *meaning, interpretation and interaction* are central to symbolic interactionism.
**Meaning** is not an objective, inherent characteristic of an object but is rather *constructed* by the individual through **Interpretation**. This interpretation, however, is not something that takes place exclusively in the mind of the person encountering the variety of things, but rather in the **interaction** with the things themselves. The process of interpretation is carried out via a series of gestures that involve a number of symbols whose meaning is shared by all those involved in the conversation.

Self-consciousness, seeing oneself as others do, is seen as one of the most important features in social life because it is what makes 'joint action' possible. **Joint action** is defined as a collective form of action, achieved by fitting together behavior of the participants. Blumer clearly distinguished symbolic interactionism from other theories such as functionalism. While like functionalists he acknowledged the importance of values and ideas as element of a social structure he did not see this structure as ultimately responsible for and determinant of the behavior of individuals. Instead they acquire their meaning only through interpretation and can, thus, result in very different behavior depending on the social interaction they enter in.

# Labeling Theory

Studies how the self-identity of individuals are shaped and influenced by the terms used to describe them. Labeling theory uses concepts such as **stigma** to describe a very negative label that can ultimately even change the whole self-concept of a person and his or her social identity. It is a theory especially based on the work of George Herbert Mead and his followers.

They further concluded that both the identity of a person and the social role this person takes on are socially constructed. They are not objectively measurable realities.

# References

1. ↑  Appelrouth, Scott, Desfor Edles, Laura, *Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory*, pp. 476-477
2. ↑  Calhoun, Craig et.al., *Contemporary Sociological Theory*, p. 6