1.4: Symbolic Interactionism Theory

Symbolic Interactionism claims that society is composed of ever-present interactions among individuals who share symbols and their meanings. This is a very useful theory for understanding other people, improving communication, and in understanding cross-cultural relations. Values, communication, witchhunting, crisis management, fear from crime, fads, love, evil and sin, what's hot and what's not, alien abduction beliefs, "who I am," litigation, mate selection, arbitration, dating joys and woes, and both personal and national meanings and definitions can all be better understood using Symbolic Interactionism.

Once you realize that individuals are, by their social natures, very symbolic with one another, then you begin to understand how to persuade your friends and family, how to understand others' points of view, and how to resolve misunderstandings. This theory is interested in meanings. Think about these three words, LOVE, LUST, and LARD. Each letter is a symbol. When combined in a specific order, each word

can be defined. Because we memorize words and their meanings we know that there is a striking difference between LOVE and LUST. We also know that LARD has nothing to do with either of the other two terms. Contrast these word pairs hate versus hope, help versus hurt, advise versus abuse, and connect versus corrupt. These words, like many others carry immense meaning and when juxtaposed sound like the beginning of philosophical ideas.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Photo of a Habitat for Humanity Home. ⁴

Symbolic Interactionism makes it possible for you to be a college student. It makes it so you understand your professors' expectations and know how to step up to them. Our daily interactions are filled with symbols and an ongoing process of interactions with other people based on the meanings of these symbols. Have you ever had anyone you've greeted actually answer your question of "How are you?" Most of us never have. It's a greeting, not a question in the U.S. culture and a Symbolic Interactionist would be interested in how it changed from a question to a greeting.

Symbolic Interactionism helps you to know what the expectations of your roles are and if you perceive yourself as doing a good job or not in meeting those expectations. The Thomas Theorem is often called the "definition of the situation." It says that if people perceive or define something as being real, then it becomes real in its consequences. An example of this is a woman who was diagnosed as HIV positive. She made her funeral plans, made sure her children would be cared for then prepared to die. Two-years later she was retested. It turned out her first test results were a false positive, yet she acted as though she had AIDS and was certainly going to die soon from it. She changed how she saw her remaining days. In a hypothetical case, a famous athlete (you pick the sport) defines himself as invincible and too famous to be held legally accountable for his criminal behavior. He is subsequently found guilty for a crime. A hypothetical politician (you pick the party and level of governance) believes that his/her constituents will tolerate anything and so he/she engages in morally undesirable behavior. The point is that when we define our situation as being real, we act as though it is real (regardless of the objective facts in the matter).

One of the major realizations that comes with Symbolic Interactionism is that you begin to understand the other people in your life and come to know that they are neither right nor wrong, just of a different point of view. They define social symbols with varying meanings.
To understand the other person's symbols and meanings is to approach a common ground. Listen to this statement by Rosa Parks (1913-2005), "All I was doing was trying to get home from work." In 1955 when she refused to give up her seat on the bus to a White person, it proved to be a spark for the Civil Rights Movement that involved the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr. and many other notable leaders. It was Rosa Parks' simple and honest statement that made her act of defiance so meaningful. The lion's share of the nation was collectively tired and sick of the mistreatment of Blacks. Many Whites joined the protests while others quietly sympathized. After all that was written in the history books about it, a simple yet symbolic gesture by Rosa Parks started the healing process for the United States. Table 1 provides a quick reference for comparing the three major sociological perspectives.

---

Footnotes

4. © } 2009 Ron J. Hammond, Ph.D.