Symbolic
interactionism is a theory founded by George Herbert Mead but the term was
coined by Herbert Blumer (Griffin, 2009, p. 60). According to Charon (1989) in
his book titled Symbolic Interactionism:
an introduction, and interpretation, an integration stated that, “Symbolic
interactionism focuses on the nature of
interaction, the dynamic social activities taking place between persons”
(p. 22).
Blumer
(1986) defined symbolic interactionism as “a label for a relatively distinctive
approach to the study of human group life and human conduct” (p. 1). Griffin
(2009) defined symbolic interaction as a way of communicating through symbols;
the conversation between people and Mead claimed that by talking to each other,
he saw it as the most human and humanizing activity that people can engage in
(p. 60). Blumer came up with three core principles of symbolic interactionism:
meaning, language and thought (Griffin, 2009, p. 60).
MEANING
According to Blumer (1986), the
way human beings act toward things are based on the meanings of the other
things are presented to them for example physical objects such as chair, other
human beings such as mother, institutions such as school and many more. Hence this
is why meaning is said to be the construction of social reality.
LANGUAGE
The second premise is said to be
the source of meaning and this is because meaning could only be produced out of
the interaction that people have with each other (Griffin, 2009, p.60). Meaning
could only be achieved through the use of language – hence the term symbolic
interactionism.
THOUGHT
Blumer’s
final premise focus on how one’s interpretation of symbols is modified by his
or her own thought processes (Griffin, 2009, p. 62). Mead referred thought as minding which is a two second delay that
we took while mentally rehearsing our next step, the alternatives and anticipating
the reactions from others. Mead’s greatest contribution is his notion that we,
human beings, have the capacity to take
the role of the other.
As soon as
we understand the tight connections between these premises, we will then be
able to take hold of Mead’s concept of self. Mead claimed that we take the role of the other in trying to
imagine how we look like from another person’s view. This is what the
interactionists called as the looking
glass self and it is socially constructed. Mead also claimed that the self
is a continuous process combining the “I” which is the spontaneous self and the
“me” which is the self reflection based on other people’s reaction (Griffin,
2009, p. 63).
For example:
The image
above tells the story of Viola Hastings (played by Amanda Bynes) who is a passionate
soccer player. One day the Cornwall’s girls’ soccer team was cut off and Viola
asked the soccer’s coach if she could join the boys’ team but the coach refused
to accept her proposal. She decided to work her way in order to get her revenge
on the Cornwall’s team and join the Illyria’s soccer team which happened to be the
rival and Viola signed herself up and join the Illyria team as her twin brother
Sebastian Hastings, who was supposed to register at Illyria as a new student
but decided to take a flight to London with his band to try their luck. The movie
reflects Viola’s “I” and “me” where her true self is rather a tomboy-ish girl
who loves soccer to the point that she’s willing to transform herself to be her
twin brother, however being raised in a socialite family and as a debutante,
she has to wear dresses as expected by her mother and behave like a real young
maiden should.
References:
Blumer, H. (1986). Symbolic interactionism: perspective and method. Retrieved from http://books.google.com.bn/booksid=HVuognZFofoC&printsec= frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false
Charon, J.M. (1989). Symbolic interactionism: an introduction, an interpretation, an
integration. (3rd ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall
Griffin, E. (2009). A first look at communication theory. (7th ed). New York: The McGraw-Hill
Companies.
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