Social interaction and its types. Question. Social ties, social relations, social interaction Social activities social ties interaction and relationships

society political power social

System analysis of public life

Throughout the history of sociology, one of its most important problems has been the problem: what is a society? Sociology of all times and peoples has tried to answer the questions: how is the existence of society possible? What are the mechanisms of social integration that ensure social order, despite the huge diversity of interests of individuals and social groups? Consideration of this problem is our task in this topic.

Let's start with how sociology interprets the concept of "society". E. Durkheim considered society as a supra-individual spiritual reality based on collective ideas. According to M. Weber, society is the interaction of people, which is the product of social, that is, other people-oriented actions. The prominent American sociologist T. Parsons defined society as a system of relations between people, the connecting beginning of which are norms and values. From the point of view of K. Marx, society is a historically developing set of relations between people that develop in the process of their joint activities.

It is obvious that in all these definitions, to one degree or another, an approach is expressed to society as an integral system of elements that are in a state of close interconnection. This approach to society is called systemic. The main task systems approach in the study of society is to combine various knowledge about society into a coherent system that could become a theory of society.

Consider the basic principles of a systematic approach to society. To do this, it is necessary to define the basic concepts. System- this is a certain way ordered set of elements interconnected and forming some integral unity. The internal nature, the content side of any integral system, the material basis of its organization is determined by the composition, the set of elements.

The social system is a holistic formation, the main element of which are people, their connections, interactions and relationships. These connections, interactions and relationships are stable and are reproduced in the historical process, passing from generation to generation.

social connection is a set of facts that determine joint activities in specific communities at a specific time to achieve certain goals. Social ties are established not at the whim of people, but objectively. The establishment of these connections is dictated social conditions in which individuals live and act. The essence of social ties is manifested in the content and nature of the actions of people who make up this social community. Sociologists single out connections of interaction, relations, control, institutional, etc.

social interaction is a process in which people act and are affected by each other. The mechanism of social interaction includes individuals who perform certain actions, changes in the social community or society as a whole caused by these actions, the impact of these changes on other individuals that make up the social community, and, finally, the feedback of individuals. Interaction leads to the formation of new social relations. social relations-- these are relatively stable and independent ties between individuals and social groups.

So, society is made up of many individuals, their social connections, interactions and relationships. But is it possible to consider society as a simple sum of individuals, their connections, interactions and relationships? Supporters of a systematic approach to the analysis of society answer: "No." From their point of view, society is not a summative, but an integral system. This means that at the level of society, individual actions, connections and relationships form a new, systemic quality. System quality-- this is a special qualitative state, which cannot be considered as a simple sum of elements. Social interactions and relations are of a supra-individual, transpersonal nature, that is, society is some kind of independent substance that is primary in relation to individuals. Each individual, being born, finds a certain structure of connections and relations, and in the process of socialization is included in it. Due to what is this integrity, that is, systemic quality, achieved?

A holistic system has many connections, interactions and relationships. The most typical are correlative connections, interactions and relationships, including the coordination and subordination of elements. Coordination- this is a certain consistency of elements, that special nature of their mutual dependence, which ensures the preservation of an integral system. Subordination - this is subordination and subordination, indicating a special specific place, the unequal significance of elements in an integral system.

So, as a result, society becomes an integral system with qualities that none of the elements included in it separately have. Due to its integral qualities social system acquires a certain independence in relation to its constituent elements, a relatively independent way of its development.

A social action involving at least two participants influencing each other is calledsocial interaction. The mechanism of social interaction includes the following components:

a) individuals who perform certain actions;

b) changes in the social community or society as a whole, caused by these actions;

c) the impact of these changes on other individuals that make up this community;

d) the feedback of these individuals.

Social interaction is considered by various sociological theories. D. Homans and T. Parsons developed the problem of social interaction most deeply. In his study of social interaction, Homans relied on such terms of exchange of actions as "doer" and "other", and argued that in this kind of interaction, each participant seeks to minimize his own costs and receive the maximum reward for his actions. He considered social approval to be one of the most important rewards. When rewards become mutual in social interaction, the social interaction itself is shaped into relationships based on a system of mutual expectations. The situation of non-compliance with the expectations of one of the participants in the interaction can lead to aggressiveness, which itself can become a means of obtaining satisfaction. In social interaction, which includes many individuals, social norms and values ​​play a regulatory role. An important feature of social interaction between two actors is the desire for a certain ordering of its nature - rewarding or punishing.

Parsons noted the fundamental uncertainty of social interaction, in conditions when each participant in the interaction strives to achieve their own goals. Although the complete elimination of uncertainties is not possible, they can be reduced by the action system. Parsons built the principle of social interaction on such concepts as motivational orientation, satisfaction and dissatisfaction of needs, role expectations, attitudes, sanctions, assessments, etc. Using these concepts, he sought to solve the problem of social order.

The structure of social interaction includes social connection and social relations. The starting point for the formation of a social bond is social contact, that is, a shallow, superficial social action of a single character.

A social action that expresses the dependence and compatibility of people and social groups is called social connection. Social bonds are established to achieve a certain goal, at a certain time and in a certain place. Their establishment is connected with the social conditions in which individuals live and act. In sociology, there are different types of connections:

interactions;

Relationships;

control;

institutional connections.

The concept of social connection was introduced into sociology by E. Durkheim. By social connection, he meant any socio-cultural obligations of individuals or groups of individuals in relation to each other. Durkheim believed that social ties exist in the group, organization and society as a whole.

The main elements of social communication are:

Subjects (individuals and groups);

Subject (travel in transport, going to the theater);

The mechanism of social connection and its regulation (payment of needs).

The purpose of social communication is to satisfy any need of an individual or group. With the development of society, social ties become more complicated.

Quite often, social ties are considered, characterizing small groups. Social ties allow individuals

identify with a given social group and feel the importance of belonging to that group.

social relations- a long-term, systemic, stable form of social interaction with extensive social connections. It requires social motivation.

social motivation- the internal motivation of the behavior (activity and activity) of an individual or a social group, caused by their needs and determining behavior. The basic needs are physiological (hunger) and emotional (love), but a cognitive assessment of the situation is also possible. Motivation happens internal- aimed at satisfying personal needs, and external- seeking to receive a reward that is not personally necessary. Allocate motivations that encourage activity, and motivations due to the influence on individuals of existing stereotypes.

D.K. McClelland introduced the concept - achievement motivation, involving the assessment of individual and cultural differences in the pursuit of achievement. According to his hypothesis, the need for achievement is stimulated by close relationships with relatives who set high standards of behavior.

There are various forms of interaction.

Cooperation - this is Team work individuals, groups and organizations to achieve the goal. Cooperation is closely related to conflict and competition. It is somewhat paradoxical, since the parties to the conflict cooperate to some extent to maintain the conflict. Therefore, the question of what exactly is the decisive social bond of society - cooperation or competition, remains open.

Under competition refers to an activity in which an individual or group competes with another individual or group to achieve a goal. Competition can be direct or indirect. It may be normatively or socially regulated, but it may not be regulated.

Many strands of social thought (eg social Darwinism, utilitarianism) emphasized the social benefits of competition and perceived competition as a universal and productive element in society. Representatives of Marxism, on the contrary, considered competition as a specific need of capitalism, in which the insignificant manifestations of fairness and efficiency that are on the surface are refuted by the real asymmetry of power, basic contradictions and conflicts.

The existence of different ideas about competition does not make it possible to consider it unambiguously positively or negatively. The most rational approach is M. Weber, who proposed to evaluate competition as a particular aspect of social relations, the consequences of which must be analyzed individually in each individual case. The concept of "competition" partially coincides with the concept of "conflict".

Social contacts.

social actions.

Social interactions.

social relations

1. Social ties are connections between the interaction of individuals and groups of individuals pursuing certain social goals in specific conditions of place and time.

Social ties can express the relationship between two or more social phenomena and features of these phenomena.

The starting point for the emergence of social ties is the interaction of individuals or their groups to meet certain needs. The social connections of individuals and their groups, based on a system of social statuses and social roles, social norms and values, form a social organization.

Social connections are different: from fleeting short-term contacts to persistent long-term relationships.

Circumstances confront each person with many individuals. In accordance with his needs and interests, a person selects from this set those with whom he then enters into complex interactions. This selection work is a special type of fleeting short-term connections, which are called contacts. There are several types of contacts:

Spatial contacts. In order to interact with other individuals, each member of a society or social group must first determine where these individuals are and how many there are. Each of us daily encounters many people in transport, at the stadium, at work.

N.N. Obozov identified 2 types of spatial contacts:

supposed spatial contact, when a person's behavior changes due to the assumption of the presence of individuals in some place.

visual spatial contact, when the individual's behavior changes under the influence of visual observation of other people.

Contacts of interest. Their essence lies in the choice of a social object that has certain values ​​or features that correspond to the needs of a given individual. The contact of interest can be interrupted or prolonged depending on many factors, but, first of all, on the strength and importance for the personality of the actualized motive and, accordingly, the strength of interest; the degree of reciprocity of interests, the degree of awareness of one's interest; environment. In contacts of interest, unique individual personality traits are manifested, as well as features of the social groups to which it belongs.

Exchange contact. Continuing to deepen and develop social ties, individuals begin to enter into short-term contacts, during which they exchange some values. Exchange contacts are a specific type of social relationship in which individuals exchange values ​​without having the desire to change the behavior of other individuals. Every day a person has many contacts of exchange: he buys tickets for transport, exchanges remarks with passengers in the subway, asks how to find any institution, etc. Social contacts are the basis of group-forming processes, the first step in the formation of social groups.

3. The concept of "social action" is one of the central ones in sociology. For the first time in sociology, the concept of "social action" was introduced and substantiated by Max Weber. He called social action “the action of a person (regardless of whether it is external or internal, whether it comes down to non-intervention or patient acceptance), which, according to the meaning assumed by the actor, correlates with the action of other people or is oriented towards him.” In Weber's understanding, social action has 2 features: it must be, firstly, rational, conscious, and, secondly, focused on the behavior of other people.

Any social action is preceded by social contacts, but unlike them, social action is a rather complex phenomenon, which includes:

actor;

the need to activate behavior;

the purpose of the action;

action method;

other actor to which the action is directed;

action result.

Social actions, unlike reflexive, impulsive actions, are never instantaneous. Before they are committed, a fairly stable impulse to activity must arise in the mind of any acting individual. This drive is called motivation. Motivation is a set of factors, mechanisms and processes that ensure the emergence of an incentive to achieve the goals necessary for an individual, in other words, motivation is a force that pushes an individual to perform certain actions. Any social action begins with the emergence of a need in an individual. Each social action is performed as a result of some subjective activity that forms motivation.

4. The starting point for the emergence of a social connection is the interaction of individuals or groups of individuals to meet certain needs.

What is social interaction? Obviously, when performing social actions, each person experiences the action of others. There is an exchange of actions, or social interaction. Social interaction is understood as a system of interdependent social actions associated with a cyclic causal dependence, in which the actions of one subject are both the cause and effect of the response actions of other subjects. This means that each social action is caused by the previous social action and at the same time is the cause of subsequent actions. Thus, social actions are links in an inextricable chain called interaction.

The mechanism of social interaction includes: individuals performing certain actions; changes in the outside world caused by these actions; the impact of these changes on other individuals and, finally, the feedback of individuals who were affected.

Interaction is a certain system of actions of one party in relation to the other and vice versa. The purpose of these actions is to somehow influence the behavior of the other side, which in turn responds in kind, otherwise it would not be an interaction. Interaction is the real content of the life of the group, the basis of all group phenomena and processes. Interaction between individuals is one of the ways of manifestation of the functioning of society, the result of these interactions is society.

One of the models of interaction between individuals is social exchange. In the social field, as it were, they exchange behavior. Behavioral events contain certain values ​​that provide participants in social interaction with a gain or loss in achieving desired material goals or desired status. In a divided society, people exchange the results of their labor among themselves and thus enter into a lively social exchange.

With a view to a winning social exchange, people are happy to come into contact with those individuals or groups who can be useful in achieving their goals. According to the theory of social exchange, attraction to a person or group increases to the extent that this contributes to the achievement of the goal. An important motive for interaction can also be the phenomenon of social comparability: a person tries to analyze and evaluate his abilities and successes in comparison with others. The motives of interaction, of course, can be both attraction and sympathy for another.

For social exchange, good prerequisites are created by competence, which means the possession of resources, i.e., power reserves. In this aspect, interaction can be understood as a social ability determined by social intelligence and social competence. Observation of the situation and response is an important part of the interaction: the analysis of the previous situation determines the subsequent stages of progress in the process of interaction.

The most obvious form of social interaction is communication by means of a socially accepted system of symbols. One of the most important symbol systems that provides the possibility of communication is, of course, language. There is an opinion that people do not react to each other's actions and deeds as such, but only to their meaning, just as a person in the course of communication weighs the statements of the interlocutor regarding his own activities, qualities, etc., and regards them in the light of his expectations.

5. Social relations are various interactions regulated by social norms between two or more people, each of which has a social position and performs a social role.

Sociologists consider social relations to be the highest form of social phenomena compared to behavior, action, social behavior, social action, and social interaction.

It can be argued that social relations arise:

Between people as part of a social group;

Between groups of people;

Between individuals and groups of people.

Despite the fact that the term "social relations" is widely used, but scientists have not yet come to a common conclusion about the concept of social relations. There are such definitions:

Public relations (social relations) - the relationship of people to each other, developing in historically defined social forms, in specific conditions of place and time.

Public relations (social relations) - relations between social subjects regarding their equality and social justice in the distribution of life's benefits, the conditions for the formation and development of the individual, the satisfaction of material, social and spiritual needs.

There are several classifications of social relations. In particular, there are:

class relations;

National relations;

ethnic relations;

Group relations;

Personal social relations;

Social relations develop in all spheres of public life.

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social interaction

The starting point for the emergence of a social connection is the interaction of individuals or groups of individuals to meet certain needs.

Interaction - it is any behavior of an individual or a group of individuals that is significant for other individuals and groups of individuals or society as a whole at the present moment and in the future. The category "interaction" expresses the content and nature of relations between individuals and social groups as permanent carriers of qualitatively various kinds activities that differ in social positions (statuses) and roles (functions). No matter in which sphere of the life of society (economic, political, etc.) interaction takes place, it is always social in nature, as it expresses the connections between individuals and groups of individuals, connections mediated by goals that each of the interacting parties haunts.

Social interaction has an objective and subjective side. The objective side of interaction- these are connections independent of individuals, but mediating and controlling the content and nature of their interaction. The subjective side of interaction - this is a conscious attitude of individuals to each other, based on mutual expectations (expectations) of the corresponding behavior. These are interpersonal (or, more broadly, socio-psychological) relations, which are direct connections and relationships between individuals that develop under specific conditions of place and time.

Mechanism of social interaction includes: individuals who perform certain actions; changes in the outside world caused by these actions; the impact of these changes on other individuals; feedback from affected individuals.

Under the influence of Simmel and especially Sorokin, interaction in his subjective interpretation was accepted as the initial concept of group theory, and then became the initial concept of American sociology. As Sorokin wrote: “The interaction of two or more individuals is a generic concept of a social phenomenon: it can serve as a model for the latter. By studying the structure of this model, we can also learn the structure of all social phenomena. Having decomposed the interaction into its component parts, we will thereby decompose the most complex social phenomena". “The subject of sociology,” says one of the American teaching aids according to sociology, is direct verbal and non-verbal interaction. The main task of sociology is to achieve a systematic knowledge of social rhetoric. The interview as a form of rhetoric is not just a sociological tool, but part of its subject matter.”

However, in and of itself, social interaction still explains absolutely nothing. To understand the interaction, it is necessary to clarify the properties of the interacting forces, and these properties cannot be explained in the fact of interactions, no matter how they change due to it. The very fact of interaction does not add knowledge. Everything depends on the individual and social properties and qualities of the interacting parties. That is why the main thing in social interaction is content side. In modern Western European and American sociology, this side of social interaction is considered mainly from the standpoint of symbolic interactionism and ethnomstodology. In the first case, any social phenomenon appears as a direct interaction of people, carried out on the basis of the perception and use of common symbols, meanings, etc.; as a result, the object of social cognition is considered as a set of symbols of the human environment included in a certain "behavioral situation". In the second case, social reality is seen as "a process of interaction based on everyday experience."

Everyday experience, the meanings and symbols that govern the interacting individuals, impart to their interaction, and it cannot be otherwise, a certain quality. But in this case, the main qualitative side of the interaction remains aside - those real social phenomena and processes that appear for people in the form of meanings, symbols, everyday experience.

As a result, social reality and its components social facilities act as a chaos of mutual actions based on the "interpreting role" of the individual in "defining the situation" or on ordinary consciousness. Without denying the semantic, symbolic and other aspects of the process of social interaction, it must be recognized that its genetic source is labor, material production, and the economy. In turn, everything derived from the basis can and does have an inverse effect on the basis.

Way of interaction

The way an individual interacts with other individuals and the social environment as a whole determines the “refraction” of social norms and values ​​through the consciousness of the individual and his real actions based on the comprehension of these norms and values.

The interaction method includes six aspects: 1) information transfer; 2) obtaining information; 3) reaction to the received information; 4) processed information; 5) receiving processed information; 6) reaction to this information.

social relations

Interaction leads to the establishment of social relationships. Social relations are relatively stable links between individuals (as a result of which they are institutionalized into social groups) and social groups as constant carriers of qualitatively different types of activities, differing in social status and roles in social structures.

Social communities

Social communities are characterized by: the presence of living conditions (socio-economic, social status, professional training and education, interests and needs, etc.) common to a given group of interacting individuals (social categories); the mode of interaction of a given set of individuals (nations, social classes, socio-professional groups, etc.), i.e., a social group; belonging to historically established territorial associations (city, village, settlement), i.e. territorial communities; the degree of limitation of the functioning of social groups by a strictly defined system of social norms and values, the belonging of the studied group of interacting individuals to certain social institutions (family, education, science, etc.).

Formation of social relations

Social interaction is an invariable and constant companion of a person who lives among people and is forced to constantly enter into a complex network of relationships with them. Gradually emerging connections take the form of permanent ones and turn into social relations- conscious and sensually perceived sets of repetitive interactions, correlated in their meaning with each other and characterized by appropriate behavior. Social relations are, as it were, refracted through the internal content (or state) of a person and are expressed in his activity as personal relations.

Social relations are extremely diverse in form and content. Each person in his own way personal experience knows that relationships with others develop differently, that this world of relationships contains a motley palette of feelings - from love and irresistible sympathy to hatred, contempt, hostility. Fiction, as a good assistant to the sociologist, reflects in its works the inexhaustible richness of the world of social relations.

Classifying social relations, they are primarily divided into unilateral and reciprocal. One-sided social relations exist when partners perceive and evaluate each other differently.

One-sided relationships are quite common. A person experiences a feeling of love for another and assumes that his partner also experiences a similar feeling, and orients his behavior towards this expectation. However, when, for example, a young man proposes to a girl, he may unexpectedly receive a refusal. A classic example of one-sided social relations is the relationship between Christ and the apostle Jude, who betrayed the teacher. World and domestic fiction will give us many examples of tragic situations associated with one-sided relationships: Othello - Iago, Mozart - Salieri, etc.

The social relations that arise and exist in human society are so diverse that it is advisable to consider any one of their aspects, based on a certain system of values ​​and the activity of individuals aimed at achieving it. Recall that in sociology values understand the views and beliefs shared by any community regarding the goals to which people aspire. Social interactions become social relationships precisely because of the values ​​that individuals and groups of people would like to achieve. Thus, values ​​are necessary condition social relations.

To determine the relationship of individuals, two indicators are used:

• value expectations (expectations), which characterize satisfaction with a value model;
• value requirements that an individual puts forward in the process of distributing values.

The real possibility of achieving one or another value position is value potential. Often it remains only a possibility, since the individual or group does not take active steps to occupy more value-attractive positions.

Conventionally, all values ​​are divided as follows:

• welfare values, which include material and spiritual benefits, without which it is impossible to maintain the normal life of individuals - wealth, health, safety, professional excellence;
• all others - power as the most universal value, since the possession of it allows you to acquire other values ​​(respect, status, prestige, fame, reputation), moral values(fairness, kindness, decency, etc.); love and friendship; also distinguish national values, ideological, etc.

Among the social relations are the relations social dependency, for they are present to varying degrees in every other respect. Social dependence is a social relationship in which the social system S1, (individual, group or social institution) cannot perform the social actions necessary for it d1 if the social system S 2 take no action d2. At the same time, the system S 2 is called dominant, and the system S 1 - dependent.

Suppose the mayor of the city of Los Angeles cannot pay wages public utilities until the money is allocated to him by the governor of California, who manages these funds. In this case, the mayor's office is a dependent system, and the governor's administration is seen as the dominant system. In practice, dual interdependence often occurs. Thus, the population of an American city depends on the head in terms of the distribution of funds, but the mayor also depends on voters who may not elect him for a new term. The line of behavior of the dependent system must be predictable for the dominant system in the area that concerns dependency relationships.

Social dependence is also based on the difference in status in the group, which is typical for organizations. Thus, individuals of low status are dependent on individuals or groups that are of higher status; subordinates depend on the leader. Dependence arises from differences in the possession of meaningful values ​​regardless of official status. Thus, the manager may depend on monetary terms from a subordinate from whom he borrowed a large sum of money. Latent, i.e. hidden, dependencies play an important role in the life of organizations, teams, groups.

Often in an organization, the leader relies in everything on the opinion of a relative working here, in order to please him, erroneous decisions are often made from the point of view of the interests of the organization, for which the whole team then pays. In the old vaudeville "Lev Gurych Sinichkin", the question of who will play the main role in the premiere performance instead of the ill actress can only be decided by the main "patron" of the theater (Count Zefirov). Cardinal Richelieu effectively ruled France instead of the king. Sometimes a sociologist, in order to understand conflict situation in the team where he was invited as an expert, one must begin with the search for a "grey eminence" - an informal leader who actually has real influence in the organization.

power relations are of the greatest interest among researchers of social dependence. Power as the ability of some to control the actions of others is of decisive importance in the life of a person and society, but so far scientists have not developed a consensus on how power relations are carried out. Some (M. Weber) believe that power is associated primarily with the ability to control the actions of others and overcome their resistance to this control. Others (T. Parsons) proceed from the fact that power must first of all be legalized, then the personal position of the leader makes others obey him, despite personal qualities leader and subordinates. Both points of view have the right to exist. Thus, the emergence of a new political party begins with the fact that there is a leader with the ability to unite people, create an organization and begin to lead it.

If the power is legalized (legitimate), people obey it as a force, resisting which is useless and unsafe.

In society, there are other, not legalized aspects of the manifestation of power dependence. The interaction of people at the personal level often leads to the emergence of power relations, paradoxical and inexplicable from the point of view of common sense. A person of his own free will, not urged on by anyone, becomes a supporter of exotic sects, sometimes a real slave to his passions, which make him break the law, decide to kill or commit suicide. The irresistible attraction to gambling can deprive a person of his livelihood, but he again and again returns to roulette or cards.

Thus, in a number of spheres of life, constantly recurring interactions gradually acquire a stable, orderly, predictable character. In the process of such ordering, special connections are formed, called social relations. Social relations - these are stable ties that arise between social groups and within them in the process of material (economic) and spiritual (legal, cultural) activities.

The problem of social interactions is most thoroughly considered in symbolic interactionism, the theory of social exchange and phenomenology. The main provisions of the theory of social interactions are as follows.

Social interaction is one of the types of social connection - a mutually directed process of exchanging social actions between two or more individuals.

Communication is always mutual, available and feasible (at least in the imagination).

There is two types of links: direct (as a rule, visual, interpersonal) and indirect (when communication is carried out through intermediaries; in this case, the phenomenon of deindividualization arises - the illusion that all social relations exist independently of the will and desire of people).

Types of links:

1) social contact (single or regular) - a connection of a superficial, fleeting nature in the absence of conjugated (interdependent, interdependent) actions of partners in relation to each other (you asked a passer-by: "How to get to the pharmacy?"; Do you regularly go to the bakery and make contact with the seller);

2) social interaction (interactionism) - systematic, fairly regular social actions of individuals directed at each other and aimed at evoking a well-defined response from the partner. In this case, the response generates a new reaction of the influencer (that is, a system of actions of partners in relation to each other arises).

Traits of social interaction:

1) conjugation of actions of both partners;

2) recurrence of actions;

3) sustained interest to the response of the partner;

4) coordination of partners' actions.

Types of Social Interactions:

1) rigid exchange (exchange on the basis of certain agreements (most often in the economic sphere, in the relationship between the leader and subordinate, in political life));

2) diffuse (non-rigid) exchange (mainly in moral and ethical interactions: friendship, neighborhood, relationships between parents and children, partnership);

3) direct-indirect interactions (direct - direct (two-way) interactions between individuals, indirect - complex, mediated through 3-4 persons (indirect interactions prevail in modern society));

4) individual-group interactions (individual-individual, individual-group, group-group).

I. Goffman, within the framework of a phenomenological perspective, offers a slightly different view of social interactions. To analyze them, he uses a "dramatic approach" based on the premise that individuals are actors playing social roles. Accordingly, interaction is a "performance", an "acting game", designed by an actor with the aim of "making an impression", corresponding to his goals. The actions of the actor, according to I. Goffman, correspond to the concept of "presenting oneself and managing the impression." "Presentation of oneself" includes gestures, intonations, clothes, with the help of which an individual seeks to make a certain impression on his partner, to cause him this or that reaction. At the same time, the individual in the process of interaction, as a rule, provides only selected, partial information about himself, trying to control the impression that he makes on others.

P. Blau, relying on the theory of exchange and structural functionalism, argues that not all social interactions can be considered as exchange processes. The latter include only those that are focused on achieving goals, the implementation of which is possible only in the process of interaction with other people and for the achievement of which funds are needed that are also available to other people. That part of human behavior which is governed by the rules of exchange lies at the basis of education. social structures, but the exchange rules themselves are insufficient to explain the complex structures of human society.

However, it is social exchange that largely determines the interactions of each individual. The success or failure of our interactions ultimately depends on the knowledge and ability (or ignorance and inability) to practically use the principles of their regulation, formulated in the framework of the theory of exchange.