1972/06/01 by Gerald D. Berreman · 43 citations
Psychology · Social Sciences · #Cultural Differences and Values #Emotions and Moral Behavior #Cross-Cultural and Social Analysis #Terminology #Perspective (graphical) #Symbolic interactionism #Sociology #Social relation #Social psychology #Psychology #Epistemology #Linguistics #Computer science #Artificial intelligence
paper · pdf · doi:10.1525/aa.1972.74.3.02a00220
published in American Anthropologist 74(3), 567-586 (Wiley)
openalex publication_date 1972/06/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/12
Categories into which people classify themselves and others in a North Indian city were collected, together with identifying characteristics and stereotypes. Utilizing a symbolic interactionist perspective, these were analyzed with reference to social behavior: the manner in which interaction was conditioned or influenced by the system of social categories and the meanings attached to them. The complexity of the terminological system, its variability and manipulability, the crucial importance of situation and audience, and the tenuous relationship between terminology and behavior were revealed.