Interaction Ritual Chains (Princeton Studies in Cultural Sociology)

Collins, Randall

ISBN 10: 0691090270 / ISBN 13: 9780691090276

Edité par Princeton University Press, 2004

A propos de cet article

Appears unread. May have a retail sticker on back cover or remainder mark on the text block.

N° de réf. du vendeur 9780691090276-2

Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: Interaction Ritual Chains (Princeton Studies in Cultural Sociology)
• Éditeur: Princeton University Press
• Date de parution: 2004
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN à 10 chiffres: 0691090270
• ISBN à 13 chiffres: 9780691090276
• Reliure: Couverture rigide
• État de l'article: as new

A propos de ce titre

Synopsis

Sex, smoking, and social stratification are three very different social phenomena. And yet, argues sociologist Randall Collins, they and much else in our social lives are driven by a common force: interaction rituals. "Interaction Ritual Chains" is a major work of sociological theory that attempts to develop a "radical microsociology." It proposes that successful rituals create symbols of group membership and pump up individuals with emotional energy, while failed rituals drain emotional energy. Each person flows from situation to situation, drawn to those interactions where their cultural capital gives them the best emotional energy payoff. Thinking, too, can be explained by the internalization of conversations within the flow of situations; individual selves are thoroughly and continually social, constructed from the outside in. The first half of "Interaction Ritual Chains" is based on the classic analyses of Durkheim, Mead, and Goffman and draws on micro-sociological research on conversation, bodily rhythms, emotions, and intellectual creativity. The second half discusses how such activities as sex, smoking, and social stratification are shaped by interaction ritual chains. For example, the book addresses the emotional and symbolic nature of sexual exchanges of all sorts - from hand-holding to masturbation to sexual relationships with prostitutes - while describing the interaction rituals they involve. This book will appeal not only to psychologists, sociologists, and anthropologists, but to those in fields as diverse as human sexuality, religious studies, and literary theory.

À propos de l?auteur

Randall Collins is Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of eleven books, including "The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change, Four Sociological Traditions", and "The Credential Society".