What is Symbolic Interactionism? The Social Construction of Reality and Microsociology Explained

What is symbolic interactionism and how can sociological theory help us understand the influence of society and culture on our perception of reality? Drawing from the work of George Herbert Mead and Herbert Blumer, symbolic interactionism has become a vital theoretical perspective in qualitative social science and was instrumental in the development of microsociology. In this episode, we cover the history, definition, and central premises of symbolic interactionism, as well as the most prevalent criticisms of the concept.
The host, Dr. Alexander K. Smith, holds an MA from Oxford University and a PhD in the anthropology of Tibet and the Himalayas from the University of Paris, France.
This video is an excerpt from our two-part series on the ten most important theories in the history of social science, which you can find here: • The 10 Most Important ...
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[@mithridatesviiofpontus]

I remember reading about non-symbolic interaction and symbolic interaction and its influence on Labeling Theory while taking Criminology. Thank you.

[@ahmedbellankas2549]

Symbolic interactionism
1- behavior is conditionned by subjective symbolic meaning ascribed to objects;
2- subjective symbolic meaning is derived from social interaction.
For 1,Suppose john knows that p is sacred and knows if x is sacred then you should bow in front of x,but john wants preferdly to not bow in front of p and he knows how to not bow in front of p,so john didn't bow in front of p despite the symbolic meaning of p.
P1- if an individual acts then his act is volontary;
P2- if his act is volontary then he wanted to do it and knew how to do it;
P3- if he wanted to do it and knew how to do it and he did it and there are many other things he might want and many other ways known by him in which he might do it then his want is prefered and his known way of doing it is prefered;
P4- prefered want and known prefered known way of doing it = intention;
P5- individual acts (individuals act);
P6- there many other things he might want and many other known ways in which he might do it;
C- so individuals acts are a function of individuals intentions (individuals act according to their intentions ).
So,if C then symbolic interactionism is not sufficiant in explaining individuals acts (choices ).
- john can make his own symbolic meaning without any social interaction.
Also if john sees p and sees sally seeing him and intended to not hurt sally (if he didn't bow sally would be hurt),so he bowed,his bowing is due to his intentions and not to the symbolic meaning of p.
We can add:
Individuals are rational
Individual i is rational iff Individual i acts according to his prefered want.
So, A- individuals are rational and individuals act according to their intentions,and individuals intentions are reasons for those individuals who have them (the intention of john is a reason for john).
- if A then socioeconomic status or historical contexts or both of them are not sufficiant for explaining individuals acts if they don't appear (they are not part of ) the individuals intentions and epistemic reasons.
Even historical contexts or socioeconomic status seem irrelevant.

[@TheEighthDwarf]

You stated that micro-sociology is at its strongest when put into a larger context and is supplemented with forms of quantitative data so it is the same for the reverse with macro-sociology.

[@AlbertoTonda]

Very interesting! Could you provide some examples of informative aspects of identity being understood and symbolized differently in different cultural contexts?

[@min_g2608]

Thanks Dr. Smith

[@saratabojang8734]

This is well articulated. Is the imam leading prayers when a cat jumped on his shoulder without him flinching an example of SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM ??

[@haidyhossam6919]

Realy amazing ❤

[@anetebutkevica4565]

Very useful. Thank you

[@ArmchairAcademics]

Really glad to hear it! Thanks for posting. 🍻

[@noeditbookreviews]

Do you have videos on structural functionalism and conflict theory?

[@ArmchairAcademics]

Hey noeditbookreviews! Sorry to take so long in responding. We do! We have a short primer on functionalism here: czcams.com/video/3yTiqzZzlBw/video.html and a video on Marxist theory (as it has impacted anthropology, specifically) that foreground conflict theory: czcams.com/video/DP-lvdFnz-A/video.html. Hope that helps! Thanks for watching :)

[@haidyhossam6919]

I need your help withe a thesis title

[@ArmchairAcademics]

Well... the title of my own doctoral thesis was famously long. Like, ridiculously, almost embarrassingly long (and in three languages). So my judgement on good and bad thesis titles might be... a bit off.
Nevertheless, my advice is this. Stage One: boil the project down to one sentence. That can be a difficult process; but, if you're able to do that, then you'll be able to rework the sentence into a concise, suitably academic sounding title.
For example (and I stress -- this is just a random example), something a bit opaque and overly academic like:
"Assessing the viability of emerging multidisciplinary praxis as multisite ethnography in [location/community]"
Stage Two: select a topical phrase or pun and add it either before or after the main title using a colon. For example:
"Squaring the qualitative circle: Assessing the viability of emerging multidisciplinary praxis as multisite ethnography in [location/community"
Rinse and repeat stages one and two until you have something that feels authentic and acceptable to you. It might sound pedantic, but that's really more or less all there is to it.
Best of luck!
EDIT:
Just to be clear, the title "Squaring the qualitative circle: Assessing the viability of emerging multidisciplinary praxis as multisite ethnography in [location/community" is a joke. I 100% do not recommend using this as a thesis title. Although, if I'm being honest, I would probably read that ^^ thesis.

[@inlander_dye_4242]

Mac miller still got it

[@XOXrisandyXOX]

lmaaoo

[@georgemontgomery7423]

Symbolic interactionism is an art form

[@DEClarked]

It's also a form of communication re media studies.

[@JBNL1]

This is just straight up Anthropology

[@ArmchairAcademics]

Thanks for posting, @JBNL1. That's pretty close to the truth. Symbolic interactionism is one of the areas where sociology really does bleed over into socio-cultural anthropology. As they are taught in the classroom, though, the literatures quite different (which leads to different methodological approaches being emphasized at different times). And, in practice, the approaches to fieldwork and data collection differ, as well.