Symbolic Interactionism

Overview

• Focuses on small-scale interactions between individuals.
• Analyzes how individuals in society interact and through these interactions, explains social order and change.
• Originated from the teachings of George Herbert Mead in the early 20th century.
• Mead proposed that individual development is a social process and meanings are assigned socially.

Key Concepts

• People change based on interactions with objects, events, ideas, and other people.
• Meaning is assigned to things to decide actions.

Example

• If someone frequently sits under trees for shade, they associate trees with rest.
• Interaction with others may alter this perception (e.g., being warned about ants).

Herbert Blumer's Contribution

• Continued Mead's work and coined "symbolic interactionism."
• Proposed three tenets:
  1. Action Based on Meaning
     • Individuals act based on the meaning they have assigned to something.
     • Example: Seeing a tree as shade prompts the action of resting under it.
  2. Meaning from Social Interaction
     • Different people assign different meanings based on social interactions.
     • Example: One person sees a tree as infested due to ants, another sees it as shelter.
  3. Changeable Meaning
     • The meaning isn’t permanent and can change with new experiences.
     • Example: After being bitten, one may associate trees with both shade and a risk of ants.

Summary of Central Ideas

1. Action depends on meaning.
2. Different people assign different meanings to the same thing.
3. Meaning can evolve over time.

Criticisms

• Considered supplemental rather than a comprehensive theory.
• Focuses on small interactions and lacks large-scale structural analysis.
• Despite criticisms, provides essential insights into how society changes and assigns equal importance to individuals and society.
• Helps understand societal changes through daily interactions, emphasizing the individual’s role in shaping society.