Chapter 3 Microsociology: Testing Interaction Theories

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Chapter 3 Microsociology Testing Interaction
Theories

• Social Psychology

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The Rational Choice Proposition

• Within the limits of their information and
  available choices, guided by their preferences
  and tastes, humans will tend to maximize.
• limits of info and available choices.. social
  forces powerful Stark people have different
  basis for making choice and different
  alternatives from which to choose
• Preferences and tastes define what the individual
  finds rewarding or unrewarding.
• Tend to maximize

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Altruism? Is there any such thing as selfless
behavior

• From a rational choice perspective perhaps not
• But people are selfless Mother Teresa
• Her behavior violates rational choice only if we
  adopt narrow definition of rewards
• Power of Christian message is NOT that we avoid
  rewards. It is that we should find rewards in
  serving others.

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Symbolic Interaction Theory

• Assumption is that much of what we want we can
  only get from others social beings
• People are endlessly influencing and being
  influenced by other people around them.
• Interaction through the use of symbols makes and
  keeps people human.

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Who are you? Self, IdentitySelf Conception
of who we are

• George H Mead Self develops when we can take
  the role of the other
• E.g., Soccer game with young vs. older children
• Charles Cooleys Looking Glass Self we see
  ourselves as we think others see us
• We imagine how we appear to others
• We judge ourselves
• We manipulate who we are

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Exchange Theory

• Central concern is to explain how people exchange
  rewards with one another.
• Exchanges occur because each partner values what
  the other offers more than what must be offered
  in return.

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Exchange Theory

• Relationships that are not reciprocal are
  unstable
• In the absence of restraints, cheating is
  expected try to get more than we give
• Law of liking cooperation and agreeing liking
• Law of agreement the more we like more
  agreement
• Law of inequality easier to like people of
  similar rank
• Law of conformity solidarity intense demand
  for conformity

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Famous Studies

• Solomon Asch A B C

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Asch study shows.

• Role of solidarity 33 gave wrong answer when
  all in agreement, only 5 when one disagreed
• Power of social influence we are vulnerable -
  perhaps far more than we want to realize
• Smart to consider implications
• E.g., Olympic judges, group meetings

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Lofland and Stark research on the Unification
Church

• People brainwashed? No, more a matter of
  understanding the principles of conformity
• Ideology/theology identification explain
  conversion?
• No attachment to others (and conformity that
  results) explains ideology/theology
• Only people who developed strong ties within
  converted
• People who could not neutralize outside group
  ties did not
• Beliefs came later

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Lofland and Stark study shows

• People are drawn to the commitments, beliefs,
  convictions of others
• Not so easy to believe the unbelievable
• But if people to whom we are attached believe.

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Measurement and Research

• Theorize. Hypothesize Collect data
• Hypothesis predicted relationship between
  independent and dependent variable
• Independent causal variable
• Dependent result/consequence variable

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Criteria for a Cause-and-Effect Relationship

• When any one is not met, a cause-and-effect
  relationship does not exist
• Time order A cause must occur before its effect.
  
• Correlation Changes in the cause must produce
  changes in the proposed effect.
• Nonspuriousness Two variables must actually
  have a cause-and-effect relationship
• Sexual behavior and heart attacks causally
  related?

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Two Research Methods

• Experimental research good at establishing
  cause and effect relationships
• Non-Experimental not so good. Field
  Research

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Non-Experimental

• Smoking and cancer - what do you do?
• Look at association (correlation) do people
  with lung cancer smoke more?
• 3 conditions of cause met?
• Spanking and Antisocial behavior what do you do
• Kids who are spanked more likely to engage in
  antisocial behavior
• 3 conditions of cause met?

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Experimental Design

• 2 fundamental features
• Manipulate the independent variable
• Random assignment
• Most desirable method because easier to establish
  cause and effect relationships. Why?
• Manipulation of I.V. solves time order problem
• Randomization solves spurious problem (everything
  essentially held constant)
• E.g., Drug Education Programs

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• What is a correlation coefficient?
• What is statistical significance?
• Why introduced to Asch and Lofland/Stark studies
  here?
• Asch is experiment (Independent variable
  solidarity)
• Lofland/Stark non-experimental field research