Symbolic Interactionish

1) Symbolic interactionism emphasizes the constructed and negotiated aspects of the self and social life more generally. As a result, it shifts attention from analyses of the structural and institutional features of society. How might some of the key concepts in this framework (for instance, meaning, impression management, and definition of the situation, interaction rituals, front and backstage) used to explore social relations in the family, peer groups, religious groups and sporting teams? Reference should be made to Symbolic Interactionism and Dramaturgy.

A person constructs a sense of identity in relation to family, other people, cultural practices, gender, social class, social/political systems, sexuality, geographic location and physical and mental abilities. Social relations in the family, peer groups, religious groups and sporting teams are all dependent of the individuals self awareness and of things around them. The general concern of symbolic interactionism is how social actors interpret social interactions and make meanings of self and social context. Accordingly, sociologists view social actors as reflexively and actively regulating their feelings and displays based on their understanding about the self and situation (Charon, 2010). This means that social actors will try to regulate their emotional activities in order to confirm their expectations about their roles and behaviors in a given social context, or to fulfill their perceived requirements of the social context and interaction which they participate in (Turner & Stets, 2006). Therefore, emotion management is viewed as a social practice referred to as emotional practice (Denzin, 1984). According to Turner (2007), a basic principle is the convergence/ divergence between expectations and reality. According to symbolic interactionism, social actors will reflexively interpret and define a situation where they locate and thus form certain situational expectations about: with whom they will...