Part 3: Symbolic Interactionism and the Selfie

So far it can seem as if the selfie is a combination of the looking glass self theory with the addition of the ideas of Irving Goffman.  The looking glass self theory can demonstrate that the person is creating a profile that the person believes that other people want to see and then Goffman explains how this performance happens by producing a front.  Both of these theories demonstrate there is more to the selfie than it being regarded as a disposable image created to represent a person’s online identity.

However, both of these can serve as an introduction to a sociological theory called Symbolic Interactionism.  Symbolic Interactionism originally started in the 1920s with a sociologist and philosopher named George Herbert Mead and developed further by Herbert Blumer in the 1960s.  As the name suggests, the theory is centred upon how people interact with symbols and how they act and react in social interactions with those symbols.  This initially can seem as simple as someone stopping when they see a stop sign as they are interacting with a symbol and their behaviour is modified by that symbol.  Consequently, to summarise this dynamic, symbolic interactionism can be defined as “Symbolic interactionism theory assumes that people respond to elements of their environments according to the subjective meanings they attach to those elements, such as meanings being created and modified through social interaction involving symbolic communication with other people.” (Nickerson, 2023)

So, when symbolic interactionism is applied to the selfie it produces a range of subjective meanings in relation to social media.  Initially it is worth mentioning of what is classified as a symbol as symbolic interactionism does not limit the definition to just artifacts, such as a stop sign, but also includes the social roles that people inhabit, “such as meanings being created and modified through social interaction involving symbolic communication with other people.” (ibid).  Thus, an elderly man could become a Father figure, a boss at work could be a symbol for authority and power or a partner becomes a symbol of love and affection. 

With social media being built upon the way people interact with symbols such as images and text, it becomes consequential as to how people interact with those symbols.  For instance, the selfie above is just another random image that has been taken from Instagram.  As a selfie it performs its function quite well in that it produces, I assume, a strong likeness between the person and their depiction without expressing a large amount of character or personality.  It shows an outdoors setting that could be a local park and so does not have, for instance, the formality of an office environment.  The young woman herself looks presentable and approachable, there is no hint of a threat or unease within the selfie, and appears to be welcoming and amiable. 

Overall, it is a safe symbol to interact with.  The selfie collected 514 Likes and a range of comments complimenting her on her appearance and her personal beauty. The interaction between the image and the wider world of social media has been a positive experience and it can be assumed that the selfie struck a chord with people and had some qualities to encourage other users to react in a positive way.  Most of the comments are symbols and single word responses, such as “nice” or “hot”, demonstrating the positive nature of this interaction.  However, with this interaction it becomes possible to analyse the actions from the perspective of symbolic interactionism, and more specifically, the three premises proposed by Herbert Blumer.  In Symbolic Interactionism: Perspective and Method Blumer summarised the three premises as being:

·      Premise 1: Human beings act toward things on the basis of the meanings that the things have for them.

·      Premise 2: The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interaction that one has with one’s fellows.

·      Premise 3: These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretative process used by the person dealing with the things he encounters.

 With these premises the interaction can be formed into being a structure of values and explains the role of the selfie in producing this interaction.  The first premise of the agent (the human being) is acting towards the thing (the selfie) on the basis of the agent’s meaning that the selfie has for them.  For the agent, that particular selfie complies to the definition of beauty that is held by the agent, and so they act by leaving a positive comment on the personal beauty of the person depicted within the selfie. 

This is further reinforced by premise 2.  The definition of personal beauty that the agent has used in premise 1 is formed by the wider community and is not independent from outside influences.  The agent that is using the values of beauty which are expressed in the first premise, values have been derived from previous social interactions and it is these values that are internalised.  In other words, the agent is presented with something they are told is beautiful enough times that they then internalise these values and express the same values. 

These values are further modified in premise 3.  The values further built upon and modified through interpreting new situations and interactions.  This in itself helps the symbol to be altered and modified through further social interaction and prevents the value from becoming stale and irrelevant to contemporary values.  For instance, the use of filters that can be applied to the selfie in post-production has increased in popularity and can drastically alter the look of the person depicted, such as making skin look smoother with the removal of wrinkles. 

It is these three premises that can help to explain the dynamic of the selfie.  A photograph is produced to appeal to a wide range of people using pre-determined values that have become internalised by the use of social interaction.  So, when the selfie is posted upon a social network, the socially pre-defined format supports the existing values and, in effect, produces a positive feedback loop in producing what people want to see and receive affirmation, which in effect, encourages them to post another selfie.