Deck 1: Symbolic Interactionism

Question 1

Symbolic Interactionism provides the means by which to study social interactions in a scientific fashion.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The "I" part of the self is those learned roles that are determined by interactions with others.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The Polish Peasant in Europe and America by William Isaac Thomas and Florian Znaniecki was one of the first books to state that the family has a role in the socialization process.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

According to this assumption, as people come into contact with different things and experiences, they interpret what is being learned, people are reactors who passively respond to surroundings.

Question 5

Meaning is learned and processed through our social interactions.

Question 6

Observations, interviews, interactions with others, and ethnographies are all examples of good data collection methodologies for symbolic interactionism theory application.

Question 7

We learn about meaning through interaction with others.

Question 8

People interpret what is being learned as they come in contact with new things.

Question 9

Humans will always reflect on what they experience and use this as a guide for future behavior.

Question 10

People learn the rules and values of society through everyday interaction within that culture.

Question 11

Infants are born with predetermined ideas about who they are.

Question 12

As long as you have a strong sense of self, it does not matter what others around you think, according to this theory.

Question 13

The culture in which you live will affect the way you behave.

Question 14

Those things that are most important to us are said to be most salient.

Question 15

A social norm is a nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else.

Question 16

A key contribution of the early pragmatic philosophers of symbolic interactionism was:

A) The belief that the world was always changing.
B) That social structure is constantly changing and developing.
C) That meaning is derived from interactions with objects.
D) All of the above.

Question 17

What major historical/societal event took place during the rise of symbolic interactionism?

A) World War I
B) The Industrial Revolution
C) The Sexual Revolution
D) The American Revolution

Question 18

During the Industrial Revolution, many Americans felt "as though they had little or no control over their lives… and society" (Smith & Hamon 2016). Symbolic Interactionism proposed that:

A) People are not victims of a predetermined course in history.
B) Communication and interactions can change how things happen in society.
C) Both A and B are correct.
D) None of the above.

Question 19

George Herbert Mead's contributions to symbolic interactionism focused on the development of the sense of self. The second stage, the game stage, is characterized by:

A) Using gestures to practice behaviors associated with different roles.
B) Taking on the perspective of another person.
C) Taking on the perspective of multiple people, simultaneously.
D) Anticipating how one's behaviors affect not only our immediate environment, but also our society.

Question 20

In the vignette provided at the beginning of the chapter, which concept best describes how Thanh's perfect evening at the party and his wife Keiko's worst night of her life coincide?

A) Thomas Theorem
B) Looking-glass self
C) Self-concept
D) Symbols

Question 21

Which is NOT an overarching theme of symbolic interactionism?

A) The world as a static structure.
B) Meaning is a central element of human behavior.
C) The self.
D) The role of culture in social interactions

Question 22

The capacity of people to step outside of themselves and treat themselves as an object in their own environment, to describe themselves and to act toward themselves, Mead called

A) the mind.
B) the self.
C) the definition of the situation.
D) the looking glass self.
E) the "I."

Question 23

What did Cooley call the internalized image of ourselves which is a reflection of others' appraisals of us?

A) the mind
B) the self
C) the definition of the situation
D) the looking glass self
E) the "I"

Question 24

Charles Horton Cooley developed which term to describe the process that happens when individuals think about how they appear to others, make a judgment about what the other person thinks about them, and then incorporates those ideas into their own concept of self?

A) generalized other
B) definition of the situation
C) looking-glass self
D) social norm

Question 25

Which of the following propositions about symbolic interaction is TRUE?

A) People will react to something according to the meaning that the thing has for them.
B) We learn about meaning through interactions with others.
C) As people come into contact with different things and experiences, they interpret what is being learned.
D) People learn the rules and values of society through everyday interactions within that culture.
E) All of the above are true.

Question 26

According to Smith and Hamon, which of the following is TRUE about symbolic interaction?

A) Gestures are expectations about how to act in a given situation.
B) Salience suggests that the more important a role is to us, the more time we invest
In this role.
C) Symbols are the product of social interaction and always have the same meaning across situations.
D) Strict discipline is the best way of learning about the rules and values of a culture.

Question 27

According to Smith and Hamon, which of the following is an overarching assumption/theme of symbolic interaction?

A) The nature of humans is that they are self-oriented.
B) People learn values from innate connections with the physical environment (e.g., nature, trees, sky).
C) Humans learn about meaning through their social interactions.
D) Infants are born with predetermined ideas about who they are.

Question 28

Which of the following is a contemporary critique of symbolic interaction theory?

A) Key concepts are confusing, difficult to define and difficult to test.
B) This is a linear model trying to explain complex families and situations.
C) Symbolic interaction gives too much attention to the importance of emotions and the role of the unconscious.
D) Symbolic interaction places too much emphasis on the ability of individuals to create their own realities and doesn't pay enough attention to the fact that we live in a world that we do not create ourselves.

Question 29

According to symbolic interaction theory, the stress generated within a person when he/she cannot comply or has difficulty complying with a role or set of roles is considered to be

A) role overload.
B) role strain.
C) role incongruity.
D) role enactment.
E) none of the above.

Question 30

According to symbolic interaction theory, the more important a role is to us, the greater its

A) salience.
B) gestures.
C) social norms.
D) none of the above

Question 31

Which person is most recognized of all of those who have influenced symbolic interactionism?

A) George Herbert Mead
B) Charles Horton Cooley
C) William Isaac Thomas
D) Herbert Blumer

Question 32

During which stage of play can children understand what each person's role in the family is, including their own, according to George Herbert Mead?

A) play stage
B) game stage
C) generalized other
D) symbolic stage

Question 33

William Issac Thomas coined which phrase below which means that in order to understand human behavior you have to also understand the subjective perspectives of the people involved in the interaction?

A) generalized other
B) looking-glass self
C) definition of the situation
D) Thomas theorem

Question 34

According to George Herbert Mean, which part of the self is involved in the spontaneous acts we engage in which are not predictable or stable?

A) I
B) Me
C) Superego
D) Id

Question 35

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Symbol

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 36

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Interaction

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 37

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Gesture

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 38

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Social Norm

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 39

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Ritual

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 40

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Role

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 41

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Salience

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 42

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Identity

A) a type of nonverbal communication during which an act represents something else
B) a set of social norms for a specific situation
C) level of importance
D) anything that has meaning
E) expectations about how to act in a given situation
F) social behavior between two or more people during which some type of communication occurs
G) social norms for how families interact with each other, including which symbols and gestures are appropriate
H) reflecting on past experiences as a guide for future behavior
I) the culmination of the roles that are most important to us

Question 43

Bring an object with you to class such as a tennis ball. Ask students to tell you what it is. Then ask "how do you know what it is, or what do you do with it?" A tennis ball is a symbol of something, which varies based on how it is described to be used. For example, it can be used to play the sport of tennis, to put on the bottom of a walker so it glides more smoothly across the floor, as a toy for a dog, or as an indicator of how far to pull your car into the garage when it hangs from the garage ceiling. You can also use gestures to show how you use it. Finally, our interactions with others tells us more about it and what it means.

Question 44

The "looking glass self" is a great class discussion topic. Show a video clip from the show "Say Yes to the Dress" and talk about how the looking glass is shown. For example, it is common in this show for a bride to love the dress she is wearing when seeing it alone in the dressing room, and then hate it after listening to her family and friends say why they do not like it. Have students come up with examples on their own.

Question 45

Have students discuss why two people who are experiencing the same event can have very different interpretations about how the event is going.

Question 46

Use examples of childhood games to describe the development of the "self" according to Mead.