TEN ELEMENTS OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM

1. TEN ELEMENTS OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM • People construct their own actions – they are deliberate intentional and creative; • People attribute to, and construct meanings of, their situations and behaviour; people impose meanings on situations; situations themselves do not necessarily possess intrinsic meaning. • Significance of subjective meanings and the symbols and symbol systems (e.g. language and communication) by which they are produced and represented; • The need to understand individuals’ ‘definitions of the situation’ in their terms, i.e. in any situation there are many definitions of the situation – multiple realities; the self is a social product, constructed through interaction with ‘significant others’ which occurs in relation to multiple ‘reference groups’;

2. TEN ELEMENTS OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM • Significance of negotiation – the process by which meanings are constructed; • Significance of the natural, social context/environment/ setting in understanding meaning and meaning construction; • Situations and people are unique and individual (idiographic); • The nature of a ‘career’ – the moving perspective in which people regard their own and others’ lives, based on the meanings which are being formed; ‘career’ includes notions of commitment and identity; • Research must include ‘thick description’ – detailed accounts of the situation and participants’ meanings and behaviour; • Analysis is ‘emic’ rather than ‘etic’ – generating meaning through presenting participants’ subjective accounts rather than utilizing ‘objective’ research.