|
 |
|
|
The Study of Daily Life
 Many apparently trivial aspects of our day-to-day behavior turn
out on close examination to be both complex and important aspects
of social interaction. An example is the gaze—looking at other
people. In most interactions, eye contact is fairly fleeting. To stare
at another person could be taken as a sign of hostility—or on some
occasions, of love.
The study of social interaction is a fundamental
area in sociology, illuminating many aspects of social life and revealing how humans act creatively to shape their reality.
Nonverbal Communication
Nonverbal communication involves the exchange of information and meaning through facial expressions, gestures, and movements of the body.
Many different expressions are conveyed by the human face. It is
widely held that basic aspects of the facial expressions of emotion
are innate. Cross-cultural studies demonstrate quite close similarities
between members of different cultures both in facial expression
and in the interpretation of emotions registered on the human
face.
In U.S. culture there are gender differences in both verbal and nonverbal communication, given the gender differences in power and status that are found within our society.
Social Rules and Talk
The study of ordinary talk and conversation has come to be called
ethnomethodology, a term first coined by Harold Garfinkel. Ethnomethodology
is the analysis of the ways in which we actively—
although usually in a taken-for-granted way—make sense of what
others mean by what they say and do.
Sometimes conversational rules are violated, causing us to feel anxious and confused. Sociologists use the term interactional vandalism to describe situations in which a person in a subordinate social position intentionally breaks the tacit rules of everyday interactions that are of value to the more powerful person.
Although it is expected that we will maintain continuous control over our appearance and our actions when we interact, sometimes there is a breakdown in our performance. Goffman suggested that we use response cries to convey to others that a loss of control (either our own or a person with whom we are interacting) is minor or monentary.
Face, Body, and Speech in Interaction
Unfocused interaction is the mutual awareness individuals have of
one another in large gatherings when not directly in conversation
together. Focused interaction, which can be divided up into distinct
encounters, or episodes of interaction, is when two or more individuals
are directly attending to what the other or others are saying
and doing.
Social interaction can often be illuminatingly studied by applying
the dramaturgical model—studying social interaction as if those
involved were actors on a stage, having a set and props. As in the
theater, in the various contexts of social life there tend to be roles and statuses, as well as clear
distinctions between front regions (the stage itself) and back regions,
where the actors prepare themselves for the performance
and relax afterward.
There are cultural differences in the definition of personal space. Edward T. Hall, who has studied nonverbal communication extensively, distinguishes four zones of personal space: intimate, personal, social, and public.
Interaction in Time and Space
All social interaction is situated in time and space. We can analyze
how our daily lives are "zoned" in both time and space combined
by looking at how activities occur during definite durations and at
the same time involve spatial movement.
Some mechanisms of social interaction may be universal, but
many are not. The !Kung of southern Africa, for example, live in
small mobile bands, where there is little privacy and thus little opportunity
to create front and back regions.
Modern societies are characterized largely by indirect interpersonal
transactions (such as making bank deposits), which lack any copresence.
This leads to what has been called the compulsion of proximity,
the tendency to want to meet in person whenever possible, perhaps
because this makes it easier to gather information about how others
think and feel, and to accomplish impression management.
Linking Microsociology and Macrosociology
Social encounters on crowded urban sidewalks provide illustrations of the link between microsociology and macrosociology. The verbal harassment of a single woman by a group of men can be understood in terms of the social background of gender inequality. The pattern of interaction in public spaces between blacks and whites is influenced by the larger structure of racial stereotypes in our culture.
|
|
|
W. W. Norton | Credits | Site Feedback | Technical Support | Print This Page