Name of Assignment: Symbolic Interactionism Essay
Subject: Sociology
Facilitator/Teacher: Professor Jaqueline Perry
Description of Work/Assignment: Write a 500 word essay on a sociological theory of your choice (Symbolic interactionism, Structural Functionalism, Conflict theory, femenist theory), and choose a social issue (Racism, LGBTQI+, impact of social media) as an example of how it affects society on a mezzo level (in America).
Symbolic interactionism theorizes that actions are based on how individuals process reality.
Which 21st Century Skill do you feel this assignment addresses, and why?
The main 21st century skill that I used for this project is Interpersonal skills, because I worked with the advice and thoughts given to me by people that responded to my essay to improve it. Information skills were used a lot as well, as I spent about half of the time that I had to write the essay gathering information about racism and symbolic interactionism. I also used global awareness skills to understand different cultures.
What are you most proud of from this assignment, and why?
I am proud of the conclusion that I was able to come up with, because I wasn’t sure how much further I would get as to how society can affect someone’s view toward another race. Although I wasn’t able to come up with a new conclusion, I gained more understanding on the one that I already had.
How did you develop and/or improve upon your 21st Century Skill with this assignment?
I think that the skill that I improved the most was global awareness. I learned a lot about why people include racism in their society and culture, and how it can affect the lives of those around them.
What was most difficult about completing this task?
The most difficult part of completing the task was connecting all of my thoughts. In my essays, sometimes I have trouble when leading from one subject to another, and I will have to go back and heavily revise my paragraphs.
How could you improve this work? If you could start over, what would you do differently?
I could have improved my work by reading the directions a little closer. It was specified to write about our topics on a mezzo level, meaning in America. Instead, I started to write my paper on the Holocaust, because it is a very big example of the correlation between symbolic interactionism and racism. Once the essay was done, I was greatful for the research I did on the holocaust, because it gave me a better insight on how society can influence desicions or discussions.
How does this relate to what you have learned in the past?
Sociological theories is something that I have not learned about, but I have pondered the effects that society can have on individual perspectives. That is probably the closest I have gotten to learning about sociology.
How can you apply this to future learning?
I can apply what I have learned in this assignment to everyday life. It has helped me understand how easily perspectives can form and shift, and how to notice how my decisions are being affected by my community.
Racism and Symbolic Interactionism Essay
According to Mark Redmond of Iowa University, the Symbolic Interactionist theory is a micro-scale perspective that speculates how “the presence of symbols is fundamental to the existence of societies, our self-concepts, and our minds.” This means that people’s individual and societal actions depend on how they process reality, a vital aspect of conveying ideas and creating social structures. Symbolic interactionism can be summarized into two fundamentals: that we “consider, interpret, and adapt to other people’s acts," and that “our symbolic interactions connect us to the society, connect the society to us, and reflect the society in which we are acting.” (Retrieved on 2/8/2021 from https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=engl_reports)
Racism and symbolic interactionism are almost always intertwined. As of September 2020, 38% of the U.S. are not supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to Statistica Research Department (Retrieved on 2/9/2021 from https://www-statista-com.mccproxy.lib.hawaii.edu/statistics/1175879/share-adults-support-missions-black-lives-matter-movement-us-ethnicity/). The statistic also claims that while 73% of African-Americans are in support of the movement, only 53% of white Americans are. This is evidence that experience affects their views regarding race.
Lack of empathy and understanding doesn’t necessarily mean that people are not trying to see other perspectives, but trying to view the world sociologically can end up being counter-productive for people who have been handed perspectives by everyone around them. Trying to capture the ways of thinking of other races can be difficult when your only source of their feelings and thoughts come from your race. Symbolic interactionism explains how relationships are built, ideas are shared, and progress is made on a mezzo and macro scale. But it also explains how entire communities can be segregated and blatantly misunderstood for hundreds of years.
I can increase my understanding of the social world, just by knowing what symbolic interactionism is. By being aware of how easily perspectives can form, shift, and start a conflict, I can spot and use opportunities to be more socially mindful and empathetic. None of the theories can fully explain every social aspect of life, and all of them have gaps and holes. Symbolic interactionism only studies small, micro-level interactions, for the most part, making it difficult to transition onto a larger scale. The other side of this is that each sociological theory can fit into different situations, and keeping them all in mind to compare to social situations can create new ideas and perspectives. The study of any object or theory in the world could be considered sociological, to a point, because a new perspective is always gained. If I studied a glass cup for a week, I would begin thinking like the first guy who tried to burn sand in a kiln.
Subject: Sociology
Facilitator/Teacher: Professor Jaqueline Perry
Description of Work/Assignment: Write a 500 word essay on a sociological theory of your choice (Symbolic interactionism, Structural Functionalism, Conflict theory, femenist theory), and choose a social issue (Racism, LGBTQI+, impact of social media) as an example of how it affects society on a mezzo level (in America).
Symbolic interactionism theorizes that actions are based on how individuals process reality.
Which 21st Century Skill do you feel this assignment addresses, and why?
The main 21st century skill that I used for this project is Interpersonal skills, because I worked with the advice and thoughts given to me by people that responded to my essay to improve it. Information skills were used a lot as well, as I spent about half of the time that I had to write the essay gathering information about racism and symbolic interactionism. I also used global awareness skills to understand different cultures.
What are you most proud of from this assignment, and why?
I am proud of the conclusion that I was able to come up with, because I wasn’t sure how much further I would get as to how society can affect someone’s view toward another race. Although I wasn’t able to come up with a new conclusion, I gained more understanding on the one that I already had.
How did you develop and/or improve upon your 21st Century Skill with this assignment?
I think that the skill that I improved the most was global awareness. I learned a lot about why people include racism in their society and culture, and how it can affect the lives of those around them.
What was most difficult about completing this task?
The most difficult part of completing the task was connecting all of my thoughts. In my essays, sometimes I have trouble when leading from one subject to another, and I will have to go back and heavily revise my paragraphs.
How could you improve this work? If you could start over, what would you do differently?
I could have improved my work by reading the directions a little closer. It was specified to write about our topics on a mezzo level, meaning in America. Instead, I started to write my paper on the Holocaust, because it is a very big example of the correlation between symbolic interactionism and racism. Once the essay was done, I was greatful for the research I did on the holocaust, because it gave me a better insight on how society can influence desicions or discussions.
How does this relate to what you have learned in the past?
Sociological theories is something that I have not learned about, but I have pondered the effects that society can have on individual perspectives. That is probably the closest I have gotten to learning about sociology.
How can you apply this to future learning?
I can apply what I have learned in this assignment to everyday life. It has helped me understand how easily perspectives can form and shift, and how to notice how my decisions are being affected by my community.
Racism and Symbolic Interactionism Essay
According to Mark Redmond of Iowa University, the Symbolic Interactionist theory is a micro-scale perspective that speculates how “the presence of symbols is fundamental to the existence of societies, our self-concepts, and our minds.” This means that people’s individual and societal actions depend on how they process reality, a vital aspect of conveying ideas and creating social structures. Symbolic interactionism can be summarized into two fundamentals: that we “consider, interpret, and adapt to other people’s acts," and that “our symbolic interactions connect us to the society, connect the society to us, and reflect the society in which we are acting.” (Retrieved on 2/8/2021 from https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=engl_reports)
Racism and symbolic interactionism are almost always intertwined. As of September 2020, 38% of the U.S. are not supportive of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to Statistica Research Department (Retrieved on 2/9/2021 from https://www-statista-com.mccproxy.lib.hawaii.edu/statistics/1175879/share-adults-support-missions-black-lives-matter-movement-us-ethnicity/). The statistic also claims that while 73% of African-Americans are in support of the movement, only 53% of white Americans are. This is evidence that experience affects their views regarding race.
Lack of empathy and understanding doesn’t necessarily mean that people are not trying to see other perspectives, but trying to view the world sociologically can end up being counter-productive for people who have been handed perspectives by everyone around them. Trying to capture the ways of thinking of other races can be difficult when your only source of their feelings and thoughts come from your race. Symbolic interactionism explains how relationships are built, ideas are shared, and progress is made on a mezzo and macro scale. But it also explains how entire communities can be segregated and blatantly misunderstood for hundreds of years.
I can increase my understanding of the social world, just by knowing what symbolic interactionism is. By being aware of how easily perspectives can form, shift, and start a conflict, I can spot and use opportunities to be more socially mindful and empathetic. None of the theories can fully explain every social aspect of life, and all of them have gaps and holes. Symbolic interactionism only studies small, micro-level interactions, for the most part, making it difficult to transition onto a larger scale. The other side of this is that each sociological theory can fit into different situations, and keeping them all in mind to compare to social situations can create new ideas and perspectives. The study of any object or theory in the world could be considered sociological, to a point, because a new perspective is always gained. If I studied a glass cup for a week, I would begin thinking like the first guy who tried to burn sand in a kiln.