professor who's students put his ideas into an insightful but confusing book "Mind, Self and Society" and lays out his theory symbolic interactionalism
George Herbert
mead
The ongoing use of
language
and
gestures
in anticipation of how the other will react; a conversation -
symbolic interactionism
Herbert Blumer (meads diciple) says what are the 3 core principles of the theory? what term did he coin
-Meaning, Language, and Thinking
-symbolic interactionism
Blumers first Premise? what did he say
1. Meaning:
"humans act towards people or things on the basis of the meanings they assign to those people or things
Blumers second premise?
Meaning arises and comes from
language
- taught in our environment
what are symbols?
arbitrary signs that have no logical or inherent connection between what it represents
comes along with language, ex.) learning Mr. Ms. to assign gender, military titles, Roman numerals family names/ middle names to assign personal connection
Naming
comes with names and colors how we see that word and the meaning attached to the word ex.) accountant- thinking nerdy and boring white guy, cheerleader, gangster, doctor, janitor, nurse, valedictorian, chef, athlete, lawyer, dressmaker.
Default Assumptions
Blummers 3rd premise:
interpretation of symbols is modified by ones
thought
process or inner dialoge
-taking the role of another
what is Minding (self talk/thought process)
inner dialogue to test alternatives, rehearse action, and anticipate reactions before responding; reflective pause or 2 second delay
The process of mentally imagining that you are someone else who is viewing you - mead calls this painting ourself image thru brush strokes
Taking the Role of another
how community and self tie together: 2 types of community
generalized others and specific others
image one has of their self based on community expectations and responses; big perspective of society
Generalized others
ex.) of generalized others; what has a big influence and communicates the voice of generalized others?
ex.) your favorite tv show
-
media
people in your life that shape the sense of who you are. How they make you feel reflects how you think of yourself ex.) parents, friends, BF can cancel out a comment made by generalized others
specific others
________________ describes how we construct our sense of self by imagining how we look to another person (social construction)
Looking Glass Self
what is the Looking Glass Self?
ex.
The mental image that results from taking the role of the other; the objective self/ "me"
tells you something about who you are physically but also lets us see our social self/ our identity in society
ex.) Keith knows he is a good trombone player because
The objective self; the image of self seen when one takes the role of the other, the view from outside ourselves
Me
The spontaneous driving force that fosters all that is novel, unpredictable, and unorganized in the self. - being true to yourself; spur of the moment, spontaneous, elusive, right brain, little known
I
When is your "I" most likely to strongly emerge
When enjoying some time hanging out with friends and talking about whatever comes to mind
Once you know your "I," it becomes
part of the "me
According to Mead, which of the following is the source of the self
Language
Mead suggests that the self is an ongoing process that combines the "I" and the "me." The "me" refers to
The image we have of how other people react to us
Brenda's parents told her she was a lazy student. Brenda believes she is a lazy student, and so she rarely turns her homework in on time. This is an example of
self fulfilling prophecy
According to Levinas, what is the ethical echo
A reminder that we are responsible to take care of each other
Which of the following research methods did Mead employ most chiefly in his work
Ethnography - a form and method participant observation
Why do Griffin, Ledbetter, and Sparks close the chapter with discussion of a boy who could not communicate - nerve disorder
To caution theorists who claim to have captured the essence of what it means to be human- overstatement of the theory
Griffin, Ledbetter, and Sparks compare symbolic interaction to what game
charades
Which scholar was close friends with George Herbert Mead and shared his applied approach to knowledge -
john Dewey
Sociologist Erving Goffman applied symbolic interaction by likening social life to
a dramatic performance