SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM
A symbol is often an ordinary object, event, person, or animal to
which we have attached extraordinary meaning and significance.
Symbolism can take different forms. Generally, it is an object
representing another to give it an entirely different meaning that
is much deeper and more significant. Sometimes, however, an
action, an event or a word spoken by someone may have a
symbolic value.
For instance, “smile” is a symbol of friendship. Similarly, the
action of someone smiling at you may stand as a symbol of the
feeling of affection which that person has for you.
Symbols do shift their meanings depending on the context they
are used in. “A chain”, for example, may stand for “union” as
well as “imprisonment”. Thus, symbolic meaning of an object
or an action is understood by when, where and how it is used. It
also depends on who reads them.
Where do symbols come from?
• Symbols can be inherited or invented
• The most familiar symbols have been inherited, meaning,
they have been handed down over time
Inherited Symbols
• For example: no one really knows who first thought of using
a lion as a symbol of power, courage and domination
• Once these qualities were associated with the animal, images
of lions appeared on flags, banners, coats of arms and castle
walls
Invented Symbols
 Writers often take a new object, character, or event and make
it the embodiment of some human concern.
 Some invented symbols in literature have become so widely
known that they often have gained the status of public
symbols.
 For example: Peter Pan is a symbol for eternal childhood
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM Blumer’s view of human society is that it consists of
Symbolic Interactionism emphasizes that human acting units and acting people, and all activity in society springs
behaviour is influenced by definitions and meanings that are from such acting units.
created and maintained through symbolic interaction with others.
Herbert Blumer coined the term symbolic Activities
Interactionism and he described Symbolic Interactionism. in the society
Acting People
“Symbolic Interaction,” refers to the peculiar and
Acting Units
distinctive character of interaction as it takes place between
human beings.
The peculiarities consist in the fact that humans interpret These acting units
or “define” each other’s actions rather than reacting to each imagine taking on the role of
other’s actions. others, using interpretation and considering meaning in action.
Their “response” is not made directly to the actions of
one another but instead is based on the meaning which they
attach to such actions. For Blumer, society is a pattern of joint action and interaction
where participants take account of each other.
Thus, human interaction is mediated by the use of
symbols, by interpretation, or by ascertaining the meaning of one
Interaction
another’s actions. This mediation is equivalent to inserting a Action
process of interpretation between stimulus and response in the
case of behaviour.
Characteristics of this approach:
 Human Interaction
 Interpretation or definition rather than mere reaction
 Response based on meaning
 Use of Symbols The content of social encounters in different situations
 Interpretation between the stimulus and the response and context is different in that there is communication within the
self and between selves with selecting, checking, suspending,
In Symbolic Interaction approach, Acting People are the regrouping, and transforming meanings in terms of the social
basic units of human society. c67099ontext and the individual’s intentions and interests.
NOTES:
Acting People
 PREMISES OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTION
PREMISES/BASIS
1) "Humans act toward things on the An example of this would be a person who views climbing the corporate
basis of the meanings they assign to ladder and making it to the top as the main goal of life. Their viewpoints of
those things."
2) "The meaning of such things is
derived from, or arises out of, the
social interaction that one has with
others and the society."
3) "These meanings are handled in,
and modified through, an
interpretative process used by the
person in dealing with the things
he/she encounters."
EXPLANATION
people, things, and ideologies are based on their goal or their meaning of
something. A person who wants only to reach the top of the ladder may
view fancy material objects as important and may view "free-spirited"
people as lazy and detrimental to society.
The "free-spirited" person on the other hand probably views the world
completely different. The free-spirit might have the belief that the corporate
ladder is unhealthy for humans and that the idea of having fancy material
possessions is harmful to society.
What a person believes or thinks about something is rooted in their
meanings of it.
An example for this would be America's (or Western societies') consumer
culture. People in said societies like to buy stuff, and a lot of it. The reason
why they want so much is because society (and their peers) is always
cramming products and wonderful images of having these products down
their throats. But if you were to travel to a third-world country, the "things"
that are important to most of these individuals would be food, water, shelter
and safety.
Meanings of things, whether it is a material thing or a belief, vary from
society to society.
An example of this would be a person who is a non-conformist, such as a
fiction writer or break dancer. This person, obviously, chose to go down the
road less travelled as he decided to be an artist rather than a corporate
accountant. But when faced by an encounter with an engineer (or
conformist) friend who questioned his decision, his mind ran through
multiple questions and events (time constraints, how close they are, how
well they know each other, how confident he is, etc.) that eventually helped
him arrive at an answer. This is interpretive analysis and everyone does it.
And everybody's answer or decision will be unique, as it is rooted in their
world and history.