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Social Interaction theory in Sports
The Symbolic interaction theory is a theory that majorly considers the relationships of individuals in the community. It says that people assign meaning to objects and thus determine the value of the objects (Aksan et al. 902-904). The theory has the notion that the way people interact and assign value to objects is determined by their previous interactions with other people and their interactions with that object. The theory relies heavily on communication. Communication is the sharing and transfer of ideas. Communication is widely accepted as the way people understand their social worlds. Social interaction theory recognizes that the way people communicate serves to show the relationship between the people communicating. Symbolic interactionism is premised on some basic principles and observations. The first premise, and observation, is that people interact with things based on the meanings of those things. A person gets to interpret these meanings when the person is dealing and interacting with these objects in very particular circumstances.
Symbolic interactionism can be seen in programs that people attend. It is useful to consider a plan and how people who participate in that program interact; for example, in Hong Kong people participate in sports such as swimming, basketball, cycling and football. Hong Kong is widely known for its participation in national and international tournaments; it also hosts some international games events like Lunar New Year cup. Such events promote interaction because people from all over the country and around the world come together to watch the games, and they learn about different cultures in the process.
During a tournament, everyone goes to the field or the stadium; the team members from both teams are always nervous, and so are their supporters. One of the teams might be anxious because the other team won the tournament the previous year and the other team might be nervous because they won the game and they want to win it again though they do not know whether they will win. When a team wins, their supporters are happy, and when a team loses their supporters are disappointed, the fans interact in the process, they celebrate together and comfort each other. Winning and losing give meaning to the game. The players also interact with some of their supporters after the game; they even sign autographs for their fans. The interaction and feelings of the people are shown and affected by the social interaction theory.
The social interaction theory in sports in Hong Kong shows the importance of the tournament program. An improvement to the tournament would be to air the events on screen. Adding some screens and headlights on the field will be a significant improvement. The social interaction theory works in sports to foster a sense of pride in the townspeople. Assigning meaning to an event or game is a way of interaction, and it is seen in these programs. Its two elements are shown here, serve to show how social interaction theory is applicable in practice.
Works Cited
Aksan, Nilgun et al. “Symbolic Interaction Theory.” Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences 1.1 (2009): 902-904. Print.