HLTHAGE 1BB3 Lecture Notes - Disengagement Theory, Activity Theory
7 Dec 2013
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Conflict tends to be macro level. Interpretive tends to be micro level theories. Functionalist macro level theories (or bridges micro and macro) Theories very specific explanations, what we test. Focus is on individuals and how they create meaning through social interaction. Example of theories that take the interpretive perspective: social exchange (at any particular time we interact with someone else, the meaning we gain from that exchange of communication) Strengths: people play vital role in creating social world, social construction of reality, meanings of age and of aging experiences. Limitations: only one point of view of social life, little focus on social structures and social processes (we wouldn"t understand the broader structures that influence the persons experience), little focus on power or conflict (intergenerational issues) At the individual and society level, social interaction is viewed as a process in which we seek to maximize the rewards and reduce costs.
