Social action approach Socialisation: LT4 Flashcards
Social action approach
Micro approach: Focuses on individuals creating culture and identity rather than overall structure of society.
What does the social action approach suggest about socialisation?
. Individuals give meaning and interpretations to interactions.
. Individuals are not passive consumers of norms & values handed down to them.
. Identities are created by individuals.
What did Mead propose?
Symbolic interactionist
Mead
Our behaviour is not fixed, we convey these meanings through symbols, an interpretive phase comes between a stimulus and respond to it
Blumer (Interactionist)
Three basic functions:
1. people act in terms of symbols
2. meanings develop through interactions and can change
3. people interpret meanings by imaging their self in their position.
What did Cooley propose?
The looking glass self
The looking glass self
our image is reflected back at us in the views of others and we may change ourselves and behaviours based on what is reflected back to us by others.
Identity is socially constructed
What did Goffman propose?
Presentation of the self & Impression management
Presentation of the self
Society is a stage, with people acting out performances.
people in society try to project a particular impression of themselves
Impression management
People try to influence and manipulate the way others see them to convince them of the identities you are trying to assert.
Goffman: Stage
Argues that life is like the front and back of the theatre and suggests home (backstage) a person can discard there stage identity, stopping impression management
what did Becker propose?
The labelling theory (Interactionism)
The labelling theory (Interactionism)
Social life is social constructed.
Certain behaviours which people commit get labelled by power agents of social control.
These labels become a persons Master status dominating how others see them.
We see ourselves mirrored by how people responded so self-fulfilling prophecy occurs - we become what others see us.
Advantages of the social action approach to socialisation
. Interactionism overcomes the determinism of structural theories E.g. Functionalism. Individuals have feeling and a certain viewpoint
. Interactionism follow interpretivist methodology their findings are high in validity
Disadvantages of the social action approach to socialisation
. Social action theories are reductionist, too much emphasis on individuals controlling identity and ignores other factors E.g. social institutions
