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In this article I examine the symbolic interactionist approach to the study of sexuality. The philosophical roots of symbolic interactionism are examined beginning with a review of the themes emphasized by the social philosophy of the Scottish Enlightenment as well as American pragmatism. The situational, structural, and biographical-historical approaches to contemporary symbolic interactionism are compared in terms of methodological orientations, assumptions, and concepts. Key symbolic interactionist concepts, including the definition of the situation, scripting, identities, self, self-concept, and socialization, are examined within the context of sex research. I conclude with a critique and an evaluation of the use of symbolic interactionism in the study of sexuality.
Sexual behavior, like all human behavior, is symbolic. Men and women use symbols and exist in a world of meaning created by those symbols. Sexual behavior is associated with a variety of activities, each with different meanings, including but not limited to having children, attaining physical pleasure, having fun, creating intimacy, achieving spirituality, and exerting power (Laumann, Gagnon, Michael, & Michaels, 1994). The symbolic meanings associated with sexuality affect how we think about ourselves, how we relate to others, and how others think and relate to us. As Kimmel and Fracher (1992, p. 473) stated, "That we are sexual is determined by a biological imperative toward reproduction, but how we are sexualwhere, when, how often, with whom, and why-has to do with cultural learning, with meanings transmitted in a cultural setting."
The meanings associated with sexuality are topics of research for symbolic interactionists. In this article, I explore the theoretical background of the symbolic interactionist perspective, including its historical emergence, basic assumptions, concepts, and explanations. Throughout the article, the empirical work on sexuality associated with this framework is examined. I conclude with a critique and an evaluation of the use of symbolic interaction in the study of sexuality. Historical Emergence
Symbolic interactionism is what Nye and Berardo (1966) called a conceptual framework, rather than a specific theory. Meaning, self, identity, and their relationships to behavior have been the central concerns of the sociological framework known as symbolic interactionism since the writings of C. H. Cooley (1902), William James (1915), John Dewey (1922), W. I. Thomas (1931), and G. H. Mead (1934). As a theoretical framework that emphasizes the...