Dramaturgical Theory - Research Paper Example

? Dramaturgical Theory Dramaturgical Theory Erving Goffman came up with the dramaturgy concept which contends that life is akin toa play where the actors are normal people. The concept holds that when people are born, everyday life becomes their stage with their socialization consisting of learning the roles they play from other persons (Brissett & Edgley, 2011). Individuals enact roles when in the presence of others, while these others also enact their roles during the interaction. He also distinguished between the back and front stage, saying that in everyday life, people spend the majority of their time on the front stage where they perform. Examples of these front stages are classrooms, sports arenas, and political campaign trails. Goffman also came up with the concept of impression management, which is referent to an individual’s desire to manipulate other people’s impression when they are on the front stage. People employ various vehicles to do so, including manipulating their social setting, their appearance, and their manner of interaction (Brissett & Edgley, 2011). In this paper, the manner athletes, college instructors, parents, physicians, and politicians use impression management will be discussed. Athletes Since fans, selectors, coaches, and teammates regularly assess athletes, awareness of this fact could be used as an opportunity to develop socially and personally or be viewed as threatening their current identities (Brissett & Edgley, 2011). Whichever the case, athletes need to make sure that these thoughts do not affect their performance, or they could risk passing across a negative impression of their motives when presenting themselves. Athletes are motivated to achieve inter- and intrapersonal aims through how they present themselves. When an athlete’s impression efficacy is not in step with their impression motivation, rather than view it as a threat, they take it as a challenge. There is also an association of increased impression motivation with improved performance instead of increased performance and distractibility decrement. In addition, athletes use impression management to develop their specific identities within sports subcultures, whereas impression management also affects negative and positive group dynamics (Brissett & Edgley, 2011). In today’s information technology world, athletes use Twitter and Facebook in their interactions. What they broadcast over social media consists of more than words since the messages they send out are meant to get to a particular audience. With social media, Goffman’s stage production concept mirrors the service’s intent (Brissett & Edgley, 2011). When athletes send messages, they are aware that the public will see the messages. This gives life to Goffman’s presentation of self-concept. Using social media, the athlete is able to convey a message of the personality which he wants his fans to identify him with, and to formulate an identity. College Instructors For college instructors, the first day in the classroom comes with various challenges, and it is important for them to ensure that the students leave the classroom with a positive impression of the instructor and the course (Wilson, 2009). The impression the instructor gives can last for a long time since even before they start the class, students may already have formed an impression about the course and the instructor. The impression that the students will have will be based on how the instructor manages them. The instructor’s attire is very important with regard to the impression created as it affects their credibility and dominance in the classroom. The instructor will use formal attire to communicate confidence, or they may use informal attire to look more approachable. They will also try to manage their physical environment through an arrangement of their classroom. Arrangement of seats in rows will convey a formal classroom and instructor environment whereas a U-shaped or circular arrangement will give an impression that the instructor wants an atmosphere that is more informal. The instructor also seeks to introduce effectively themselves by ensuring they get across the characteristics about themselves they wish the students to hold onto. This will involve what they want the students to know about their qualifications. They may also seek to establish themselves as an authority on the course in order to gain the trust of the students, which may also be aided through telling the students how to reach them and the best time to do so (Wilson, 2009). This gives an impression that they are reachable. College instructors seeking to manage their impression to create a positive one, consider the characteristics that they wish to convey and what they will tell the students to convey these characteristics (Wilson, 2009). Sometimes, an instructor may come across as proud or vain if they tell their students all about their qualifications. The students may feel that the instructor feels inadequate. Therefore, the way he or she talks about his or her characteristics is very important in creating a positive impression. The instructor also tries to figure out what the students think of him / her, and it is important to either debunk any wrong impressions, or add to them if they are positive. Parents Parents will normally use their children as props because they are not complete distractions as they are not complete persons. Goffman makes the argument that a parent can hold another conversation and engage their child without negative sanctions (Wenzel, 2010). Their children can also be viewed as open persons and can be approached at all times. While adults can only glance at people whom they do not know due to public behavior norms, it is accepted to stare at children. Therefore, the parent can use their child to affect how the public perceives them; for example, ensuring that the children are well behaved and neatly dressed reflects positively on the parent’s ability. Parents can use their children as associates by basking in their behavior. This makes the child a part of the parent’s self-presentation. As the child grows older, they get to become more individualized in what they do, accomplishing tasks and feats by themselves. Since the society judges people socially through the company they keep, their children become an influence on the perceptions of outsiders of the parents they are associated with (Wenzel, 2010). Over time, parents will begin to manage the impression they portray to the society through their children’s social worth. As either associates or props, children act as important tools for their parents to present and identify themselves. Parents use their children as a means to control their social situations, enhance their self-concepts, and confirm their salient identities. Parents will seek to manage their children’s appearance to use them as a way to establish an identity as a good parent. Physicians The way a patient perceives a physician on the first visit is very important in how they will view the physician for the rest of their interactions. Physicians manage the impression their patients have of them in various ways, the first being through hiring sincere and kind people as their receptionists (Bromley, 2009). The encounter with the receptionist is very important with regard to the impression the patient has of the physician. The physician also seeks to respect the confidentiality of the patient by avoiding sign-in sheets so that the patient feels that the physician respects them. The physician should also consider the signs in their office and the impressions that they convey. It would be insensitive for a physician to have signs that pertain to billing and costs of insurance, especially since some patients may not have insurance. Physicians who want to manage the impression they portray to their patients need to ensure their signs are helpful; they should also set their patients at ease. The above ascertains that the patient already has a positive impression of the office before they get in for treatment as the office has an official feel to it (Bromley, 2009). As physicians, by being the first one to greet the patient, he or she will not come away with the impression that the physician is indifferent. Using their names also gives the patient the impression that you are giving them individualized care. Finally, a physician who wants to portray a positive impression seeks to create favorable impressions in the first few minutes of their encounter with the patient. Giving the patient undivided attention assures the patient that the interaction was meaningful to the physician as well (Bromley, 2009). The physician must also ensure that they are prepared for patients if they want to create a positive impression about themselves (Bromley, 2009). Ways to do this include a review of patient charts and remembering their information, which impress patients. In addition, making note of the last thing said by the patient during the previous visit and recalling the topic in the next visit, as an introduction, makes patients feel that the physician values them. Where another doctor has referred the patient, the physician may start by talking about how he / she talked with the referring doctor about the patient and what they both think. This leaves the patient with the feeling that the physician cares about them, thus creating a positive impression about the physician (Bromley, 2009). Politicians For politicians, impression management has to do with the tactics and strategies they utilize as they seek to convincingly present or identify themselves, as well as the means they use to specify their own identity in order to gain a political advantage over their rivals (Slowik & Cantarella, 2010). Self-identification and impression management for politicians occurs in specific social contexts and is reflective of their interaction with their audience. They use various means to manage their impression in the eye of the electorate, including use of life narratives. Politicians will utilize forms of narrative as a way to present themselves to the public. Giving life narratives that resonate with the electorate is a very persuasive device as the audience can connect with the politician giving a feeling that he / she is one of the audience, thus creating a positive experience. Politicians also consider the voters’ expectations regarding their performance. The public will typecast the politician in a specific role and will insist that he conducts himself as the role deserves. They perceive the politicians in terms of credibility, interpersonal attraction, and homophily. The ideal candidate for the voter is the central role for the politicians; therefore, politicians will seek to promote good images to create a positive impression of themselves. For this reason, politicians involved in impression management ensure that they do not violate the type of leader as the public sees him or her (Slowik & Cantarella, 2010). References Brissett, D., & Edgley, C. (2011). Life as theater: A dramaturgical sourcebook. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers. Bromley, D. B. (2009). Reputation, image and impression management. Chichester: Wiley. Slowik, D. W., & Cantarella, C. (2010). The power of impression management. Evergreen: Evergreen Press. Wenzel, G. F. (2010). Impression management. Munich: GRIN Verlag GmbH. Wilson, A. J. (2009). First impressions through the constructs of impression management. San Bernardino: California State University Press. Read More