Selected Works of Herbert Blumer: A PUBLIC PHILOSOPHY FOR MASS SOCIETY

by Herbert Blumer

Provides a realistic appraisal and consideration of Blumer's work, as it addresses America's racial, political, and labor problems - his 'Public Philosophy' - refuting the characterization of Blumer as primarily a social psychologist of the self.

Paperback

First published May 11, 2000

About the author

Herbert George Blumer was an American sociologist whose main scholarly interests were symbolic interactionism and methods of social research.Believing that individuals create social reality through collective and individual action, he was an avid interpreter and proponent of George Herbert Mead's social psychology, which he labeled symbolic interactionism. Blumer elaborated and developed this line of thought in a series of articles, many of which were brought together in the book Symbolic Interactionism. An ongoing theme throughout his work, he argued that the creation of social reality is a continuous process. Blumer was also a vociferous critic of positivistic methodological ideas in sociology.