Symbolic capital

sociologist Ernest Burgess (1926), the family represents a unified set of interacting individuals, that is, unity in family life comes about as a result of interactions among various family members.”(Schwartz and Scott, 2013, pg. 49). Therefore, the symbolic interactionism theory suggest that the structure of the family is not definite but instead it is socially constructed. The reason that family has become important to individuals and to society is merely due to the meaning associated with the…

Communication is the study of social science, a collaborative construction and negotiation of meaning between the self and others as it occurs within cultural contexts. It is the process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information or to express ideas, thoughts, feelings, and so forth, to someone else. The goal of this discourse community is to inform members of the community about new research ideas and understand how people use messages to generate meanings…

As mentioned in the present chapter, symbolic interactionism is an important theory in sociology that examines “how we [as humans] construct meanings, how we use symbols to communicate with one another and how symbols are the foundation of our world” (Henslin, 2012). In the field of sociology this theory consists of three fundamental themes –“humans have a self,” “people construct meanings, and act on the basis of those meanings” and “people take into account the possible reactions of others”…

SIT maintains that people use different processes to define their social reality and their own position in relation to others (Ellemers & Haslam, 2012). These processes are social categorisation, social comparison and social identification. Social categorisation is the process of deciding which group you or others belong to and is a psychological process that provides a way of responding to complex social situations. Individuals think of people in terms of certain social categories in order to…

way to justify the mistreatment of someone because of their race. You’ve seen that side of race being used heavily in the United States just for that reason. This paper will analyze the idea of race in society from a functionalist, conflict, and symbolic interactionist point of view. From a functionalist perspective, race in society serves a purpose, as to give someone something non-material to call their own. Something that a whole group of people share in common, and can interact with each…

When analyzing information it is important to keep in mind how perspective shapes the reality through which information is analyses. Sociologists have formed different perspectives to attempt to explain behavior in particular social situations. Symbolic interactionism, phenomenology/ethnomethodology, and feminist theory perspectives all take different approaches and angles towards trying to answer questions about behavior and reality in society. No one perspective is seen as correct, but all are…

It is said without a doubt, that pop culture has profound influence on our lives every day. From advertisements before YouTube videos to the ads that sponsor our favorite radio station, we are surrounded by pop culture. Whether the effect is subliminal or prominent, there is no denying it. From a young age, we are subject to our environment. Things don’t just “go in one ear and out the other,” they stick and we learn from them, we are influenced and socialized because of them. As we grow up,…

Sociology is the study of the structure of society, human relationships, and the behavior of organized groups. It analyzes social worlds and the individuals that live within them (Dykstra-Crookshanks 2017). These studies include a wide range of subjects such as culture, gender, ethnicity, and race. Our world is filled with social issues and movies are a way for filmmakers to portray social conflicts. These movies can be made to increase awareness of issues or to simply make a statement about…

Symbolic interactionism is studies the relationships that individuals have in a society. It focuses on how people interact and form meanings through their language and symbolisms. This theory was developed in the early 20th century from the work of George Herbert Mead and Charles Horton Cooley. George believed that people respond to certain things based on what it means to them, and these meanings come from social interactions within a society and are modified by interpretation. Social…

Social philosophy claims to have prominent places for protest and mass movement. This paper is an attempt to explore these concepts in the eyes of three Modern Indian philosophers, i.e., Rabindranath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. People protest for many reasons. Social psychology has lots to offer the study of protest. At the heart of every protest are grievances, such as experience of illegitimate inequality,…