SOCIAL INTERACTION IN EVERYDAY LIFE Chapter 4 – Social Structure and Interaction

Social Interactions Social Interactions: What people do when they are in one another’s presence

Stereotypes Stereotypes: Our assumptions of what people are like. We often classify people according to their visible characteristics. Our assumptions about people can guide our behavior toward them.

Self-Fulfilling Stereotypes The behaviors of the person change to match our expectations, thus confirming the stereotype From how we act, the person gets ideas of how we perceive him or her How we expect the person to act shapes our attitudes and actions We fit what we see or hear into stereotypes, and then expect the person to act in certain ways We see features of the person, or hear things about the person

Personal Space

Touching

Eye Contact

Smiling

Body Language Body Language: The way in which we use our bodies to give messages to others.