Skip to main content

Theoretical Paradigm(continue)

Critical Evaluation
This school of thought has a large following.
This paradigm highlights inequality and division in society, but it largely ignores how shared values and
interdependence can generate unity among members of a society.

To a great extent, this paradigm has political goals, therefore it cannot claim objectivity. Conflict theorists
counter that all approaches have political consequences.

3. The Symbolic-Interaction Paradigm
The structural-functionalists and social-conflict paradigms share a macro-level orientation,meaning a focus
on broad social structures that shape society as a whole.

The symbolic interaction paradigm provides a micro-level orientation, meaning a focus on social interaction in specific situations.

The symbolic-interaction paradigm sees society as the product of the everyday interactions of individuals. “Society” amounts to the shared realitythat people construct as they interact with one another.

  • Human beings are the creatures who live in the world of symbols, attaching meaningto virtually everything. 
  • Symbols attached to reality (material or non material). 
  • Meanings attached to symbols. 
  • Symbols are the means of communication. Therefore: 
  • Symbols as the basis of social life 

•  Without symbols we would have no mechanism of perceiving others in terms of relationships
(aunts and uncles, employers and teachers). Onlybecause we have these symbols like aunts and
uncles that define for us what such relationships entail. Compare these symbols with symbols like
boyfriend or girlfriend; you will see that the relationships change quite differently.

•  Without symbols we cannot coordinate our actions with others; we would be unable to plan for a
future date, time, and place. Without symbols there will be no books, movies, no schools, no
hospitals, and no governments. Symbols make social life possible.

•  Even self is symbol, for it consists of the ideas that we have about who we are. May be changing.
As we interact with others we may constantly adjust our views of the self, based on how we
interpret the reactions of others.

We define our realities. The definitions could vary. The definitions could be subjective. For example who
is a homeless? Who is a police officer – a provider of security or creator of anxiety. It has a subjective
meaning.

Max Weber is an exponent of this paradigm. He emphasized the need to understand any social setting from
the point of view of the people in it.

A person is the product of his experiences with others

Critical Evaluation 
Without denying the usefulness of abstract social structures like the family, and social class this paradigm
reminds us that society basically amounts to people interacting.How individuals experience society.
This approach ignores the widespread effects of culture as well as factors like socialclass, gender, and race.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SOCIAL DISTRIBUTION OF CRIME: EXPLANATIONS

Background There is a growing and widespread perception among the population that, over time, crime has grown more prevalent and serious. During the last half century it has been reported that people are now much more fearful of crime than in earlier times. They are experiencing heightened anxiety about going out after dark, about their homes being burgled, and about becoming the victims of violence. Statistics about crime and delinquency are probably the least reliable of all officially published figures on social issues. We cannot take official statistics at face value, but must pay attention to the way in which those statistics were generated.   The most basic limitation of official crime statistics isthat they only include crimes actually recorded by the police. There is a long chain of problematic decisions between possible crime and its registration by the police. The majority of crimes, especially petty thefts, are never reported to the police at all. Even in the case...
Post a Comment
Read more

Benefits of Sociological Perspective

Applying the sociological perspectives to our daily lives benefits us in four ways: 1.  The sociological perspective helps us to assess the truth of community held assumptions (call it “common sense”). We all take many things for granted, but that does not make them true. A sociological approach encourages us to ask whether commonly held beliefs are actually true and, to the extent they are not, why they are so widely held. Consider for yourself: gender differences; ethnic differences; racial differences; and social class differences. Where do these differences come from? 2.  The sociological perspective prompts us to assess both the opportunities and the constraints that characterize our lives. What we are likely and unlikely to accomplish for ourselves and how can we pursue our our goals effectively? 3.  The sociological perspective empowers us to participate actively in our society. If we do not know how the society operates, we are likely to accept th...
1 comment
Read more

CULTURE (continued)

Values: Culturally defined standards of desirability, goodness, and beauty that serve as broad guidelines for social living. What ought to be. Examples of values: Equal opportunity, Achievement or success, Material comfort, Activity and work. Science, Freedom, Physical fitness, Health, Punctuality. Wealth, Education, Competition and Merit. Honesty, Dignity of labor, Patriotism. Justice and Democracy. Environmental protection, Charity and Development. Sometimes there could be inconsistency in the values which can lead to conflict. Beliefs: Specific statements that people hold to be true. Values are broad principles that underlie beliefs. Values are abstract standard of goodness, while beliefs are particular matters that individuals consider to be true or false. Norms: Rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members. These are the shared expectations of the people that govern their behavior. Proscriptive norms: Mandating what we should not do. Fo...
Post a Comment
Read more