SOC382 Lecture Notes - Lecture 25: Symbolic Interactionism, Impression Management, Social Rejection
7 Nov 2016
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Lecture 8: stigma and the presentation of self (feb. 29/16) We act towards things on the basis of the meanings that they have for us, where those meanings are both created and modified through interactions with others. The self we show to others is a performance: life is on a stage (others observing; we present) Impression management: we all try to shape how others perceive us with the hope that we will make a favorable impression on our audience. A performance can be successful when it conveys that we are normal; it is unsuccessful when we are perceived as different or deviant (recall: illness = moral status) Successful when we can manage our performance to others. Discounted = no values; reasons to discount that indiv as a real human being. Stigma is an attribute that is deeply discrediting and that characterizes the bearer as tainted and discounted: sociologists originally came up with this definition: problems later discussed.
