Journal article
Copresence: Revisiting a Building Block for Social Interaction Theories
Sociological theory, Vol.31(2), pp.168-192
06/01/2013
DOI: 10.1177/0735275113489811
Abstract
Copresence, the idea that the presence of other actors shapes individual behavior, links macro- and micro-theorizing about social interaction. Traditionally, scholars have focused on the physical proximity of other people, assuming copresence to be a given, objective condition. However, recent empirical evidence on technologically mediated (e.g., e-mail), imaginary (e.g., prayer), and parasocial (e.g., watching a television show) interactions challenges classic copresence assumptions. In this article we reconceptualize copresence to provide theoretical building blocks (definitions, assumptions, and propositions) for a revitalized research program that allows for the explicit assessment of copresence as an endogenous, subjective variable dynamically related to social context. We treat copresence as the degree to which an actor perceives mutual entrainment (i.e., synchronization of attention, emotion, and behavior) with another actor. We demonstrate the ramifications of this reconceptualization for classic theorizing on micro-macro linkages and contemporary research questions, including methodological artifacts in laboratory research and disparities in patient-provider rapport.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Copresence: Revisiting a Building Block for Social Interaction Theories
- Creators
- Celeste Campos-Castillo - Dartmouth CollegeSteven Hitlin - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Sociological theory, Vol.31(2), pp.168-192
- Publisher
- Sage
- DOI
- 10.1177/0735275113489811
- ISSN
- 0735-2751
- eISSN
- 1467-9558
- Number of pages
- 25
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 06/01/2013
- Academic Unit
- Sociology and Criminology
- Record Identifier
- 9984306241902771
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