Social-Interaction Theory

Conceptual Overview and Discussion

It is disappointing that sociology and psychology continue to remain distinct disciplines. Rarely do psychologists and sociologists come together to share their insights with the purpose of creating a viable synthesis, yet the inner world of the individual and the outer social setting in which personal lives are formed are intensely influenced by one another. The sum total of their interrelations form that which, for want of a better word, we call society or culture.

This dualistic view of self and society is in great part due to the neglect of a vital area of social studies: the powerful force of emotions. As recently as the 1960s, the word emotion was not included in psychology course titles. This omission has led to theories of human interaction that view individuals and their cultures as an amalgamation of behavioral units; the individual is observed according to his or her actions, while the social setting is evaluated via its supposed structural properties and needs.

Although such behavioral/structural approaches reveal useful facts about learning, cognition, and motivation, and their role in social organization, they gloss over the deep primal emotions without which social interaction would not even be possible. Such partial explanations shortchange our knowledge of human cooperation and conflict.

The implications of this for studies of human settings involving face-to-face interactions are numerous. If we recognize that emotions are involved in most social exchanges we become better able to design studies that not only observe behavior but also probe at the feelings, visible and invisible, that affect those behaviors.

In brief, in addition to understanding “how” human interaction occurs, we understand “why” it occurs in one way and not in another. Most important, we see what makes for harmonious and conflicted exchanges.