EXAMPLE BLOG POST: SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM AND TEEN SMOKING

Society—or a group of people bound by common ways of life and a common land (Henslin 2012)—is made up of individuals. These individuals choose to behave in ways that are guided by their personal experiences, their own chemical make up—and the characteristics of the society they live in. Sociologists try to predict the behaviors of these individuals, based on what others like them do. Others with the same religion, who are the same age, gender or race, or who are exposed to the same television programs.  In trying to predict why people behave in a certain way, sociologists are guided by social theories.

The three main theoretical frameworks in sociology are symbolic interactionism, functionalism and conflict theory. Today I will be applying symbolic interactionism to a specific social behavior: teen smoking. Since smoking has long been considered seriously harmful to health, it puzzles many that there are still people who smoke, let alone young people.

Symbolic interactionists look at meanings and symbols behind certain behaviors (Henslin 2012). Sometimes it is described as a “micro” level theory since it deals with people’s interaction with others (such as with friends and parents).  A symbolic interactionist would look at the meanings behind smoking to explain that behavior,  as well as the messages given to teens, what they learn from their peers, and how they construct their “reality” when it comes to smoking.  To see the evidence that symbolic interactionism can help explain teen smoking, watch this short video interviewing teen smokers:

As you can see, 90% of young smokers start as teens, and many do because they see others smoking. Furthermore, they see older (cooler) people smoking. Many report feeling peer pressure and feeling uncool if they don’t smoke. This shows there is a meaning behind smoking (that it is cool).  So where do they get this idea? This news show reports that 38% of teens smoke because they see actors on tv smoking. The media is a central topic for a symbolic interactionist to study, because that’s where we get a lot of our meanings about behaviors.

Can symbolic interactionism help find a solution to teen smoking (given many people want to see their child quit smoking)?  I think that celebrities could spread the message that it’s uncool…however when I looked up “celebrity no smoking” and “celebrities against smoking” I found very little. In fact, super model Kate Moss lit up a cig on No-Smoking Day, Elija Wood spoke out against no-smoking laws, and mean while a young David Cassidy seems to be the only American celebrity that joined the cause.

What do you think? Why is smoking cool? Can you find any celebrities speaking out against it, or changing the meaning of smoking?

References:
Henslin, James M. 2012. Sociology: A Down to Earth Approach, 11th Ed. Boston: Pearson.