Social Interaction Terms

 By  Akhmad Zamroni

Source: Foto Akhmad Zamroni

Not all meetings between individuals or between groups are called interactions. A meeting, contact, or relationship between two parties that meet certain conditions is classified as an interaction. This shows, social interaction requires a number of certain requirements.

Social interaction will not occur if two conditions are not met. According to Soerjono Soekanto (2005: 64), two conditions for the occurrence of social interaction are social contact and communication. These two conditions will be discussed in more detail.

A.   Social Contact

What is social contact? What kind of event is classified as social contact? What are the characteristics of social contact? What and what social contacts have you had or frequently had?

The word contact comes from the Latin con or cum and tango. The word con or cum means 'together', while tango means 'to touch'. Thus, literally, contact means "touching together".

Physically, contact will occur if there is physical or physical connection. However, as a social phenomenon, contact does not have to and does not necessarily mean 'physical contact', such as shaking hands, holding hands, hugging, hugging, wrestling, fighting, or fist fights. In the context of social interaction, contact can also mean making relationships in the form of "not physically touching". Activities without physical contact, such as chatting on the phone and exchanging ideas via cellphone short messages (SMS), can also include contact. In fact, according to Kingsley Davis (in Soekanto, 2005: 65), physical touch does not need to be the main condition for contact.

Thus, social contact can occur with or without physical contact. Social contact in the form of physical relationships, for example, two people who meet greet each other and shake hands. Social contact in the form of no physical connection, for example, two people communicate by mail via post or electronic mail (e-mail) on the internet.

Based on the perpetrator, social contact can be divided into contact between individuals, contact between individuals and groups, and contact between groups.

1.   An example of social contact between individuals is a vocational school student talking to one of his teachers.

2.   An example of social contact between individuals and groups is a company director speaking on the pulpit to provide work motivation to his subordinate employees.

3.   An example of social contact between groups is a book publishing company giving a book printing job order to a printing company.

As for social contact itself has several characteristics. Social contact can be positive and negative, it can also be primary and secondary. The following is a further explanation of the four characteristics in question.

1.   Social contact is positive when it results in cooperation (cooperation). For example, OSIS from two high schools held joint social service activities in areas stricken by natural disasters.

2.   Social contact is negative when it results in conflict. For example, a number of workers in a garment company went on strike and complained against the directors of the company where they worked with the Ministry of Manpower due to the low monthly wages they received and the arbitrariness and inhumanity of the board of directors in imposing working hours.

3.  Social contact is primary if in making contact, the perpetrators meet face to face. For example, a speaker makes a presentation and questions and answers in front of an audience at a seminar.

4.   Social contact is secondary if in making contact, the perpetrators use certain intermediaries. For example, a bank director exchanges ideas with one of his managers over the phone to improve service to customers.

From the following understanding, the examples of contact presented are clear that social contact is a condition for social interaction. Without contact, social interaction will not occur. If a relationship between two individuals or two groups is not characterized by reciprocal actions that influence each other - in the sense that there is no contact - then the relationship does not lead to or does not include social interaction.

B.   Communication

In terms of language, communication means sending and receiving messages between two or more people so that the message in question can be understood (Big Indonesian Dictionary, 2002: 585). As for sociologically, communication is defined as the process of delivering messages, ideas, or desires from one party to another to form a common understanding (Purwito, 2005: 56). The substance of communication, both semantically and linguistically as well as sociologically, is the delivery or delivery of messages between two parties which causes them to obtain relatively the same understanding of something.

In simple terms, communication can also be defined as a relationship or relationship. In communication, there are five defining elements, namely communicators, communicants, messages, media, and effects. The explanation of the five is as follows.

1.   Communicator is a person or group of people who convey or transmit messages, feelings, opinions, ideas, or thoughts to other people or groups.

2.   A communicant is a person or group of people who receive messages, feelings, opinions, or thoughts from other parties.

3.   Message is something or something conveyed by the communicator. Messages can be in the form of data, information, instructions, thoughts, feelings, and ideas.

4.   Media is a means or tool used to convey messages. Communication media can be in the form of spoken, written, pictures, newspapers, telephone, and so on.

5.   Effects are changes that occur to the communicant after receiving a message from the communicator.

Communication is a prerequisite for social interaction because communication greatly determines the emergence of relationships between individuals and individuals, between individuals and groups, or between groups and groups in community life. Communication allows the delivery and reception of messages so that conversation, dialogue, discussion, exchange of information, exchange of ideas, and so on occurs. From here emerge various reciprocal relationships between two or several parties in various forms.

Communication is a complementary contact for social interactions. Without communication, contact will not lead to social interaction. Two people can make contact, but if they both do not complete it with communication, they can be said to have not interacted. For example, an Indonesian woman meets and shakes hands with a Japanese woman, then the Indonesian woman greets and speaks in Indonesian, even though the Japanese woman doesn't understand Indonesian at all so she doesn't understand messages (feelings, thoughts, or information) delivered by the Indonesian woman. In this example, contact (as the first condition for interaction) has occurred, but because one of the parties does not understand the other's conversation, no communication takes place and thus social interaction does not occur.

From these descriptions and examples, it can be seen that communication plays a crucial role in social interaction. With communication, the feelings, thoughts, desires, attitudes, or ideas of a person or group can be known by other people or groups. This then becomes the material to determine the reactions, responses, or actions that will and need to be done to provide a response.

As a determinant of social interaction, communication can take place in various forms or models. At least, there are four communication models that usually occur in social interactions. The four forms or models of communication are unidirectional communication, two-way communication, direct communication, and indirect communication.

1.   One-way or one-way communication is communication that takes place only from the communicator to the communicant; in a sense, the active communicator fully holds the conversation, while the communicant only passively accepts (listens) without giving feedback. For example, a kiai gives a sermon in front of a number of Muslims in a Friday prayer assembly or a state official addresses the people on television.

2.   Two-way communication is communication in which both the communicator and the communicant are active and give and respond to messages. For example, price bargaining between a seller and a buyer at a traditional market or a dialogue between a resource person and a farmer in a face-to-face activity to discuss the issue of high fertilizer prices.

3.  Direct communication is communication in which the communicator and the communicant communicate directly, either face to face or face to face (face to face) or at a distance using communication tools or media (telephone, hanphone, teleconference, HT, internet , etc). For example, two students talk to discuss plans to carry out an assignment given by a lecturer or a retailer who orders goods to a wholesaler by telephone.

4.   Indirect communication is communication in which the delivery and reception of messages and responses to messages by communicators and communicants is carried out through third party intermediaries. For example, a dispute between the board of directors of a company and employees / laborers is resolved through a dialogue initiated and brokered by the Ministry of Manpower or two teenagers greeting each other through another teenager as a third party.

Definition and Characteristics of Social Interaction

By  Akhmad Zamroni

Source: Foto Akhmad Zamroni

In daily routine life, actual interaction is not something foreign to most of us. This word is often used in various occasions. However, the interactions that we are discussing or studying have a specific meaning. Before explaining the meaning of social interaction, consider the following two examples.

One day a new student of a vocational high school named Raka on the first day of school meets another new student named Hari. When they met, the two became acquainted by shaking hands, asking each other for addresses, and exchanging cellphone numbers. The next day, they were involved in various discussions about lessons and school activities that they would attend. In the following days, they became closer to each other until they became close friends who often did activities together, such as doing teacher assignments, doing lab work, participating in extracurricular activities, being active in sports clubs, and watching art performances.

Meanwhile, in another place, due to her brilliant work performance, Bu Yanti was appointed to be the manager of the production division of a company. As a new manager, Bu Yanti routinely gives assignments and instructions to her subordinates, while her subordinates also periodically provide reports on their work to Ms. Yanti. Bu Yanti herself once a week participates in routine meetings with the company's management and reports to the general manager.

From these two examples, can you formulate a definition of the meaning of 'interaction'? Which of the occurrences in the two examples is actually called 'interaction'? Is each person's action an "interaction"?

If you pay close attention to the actions that Raka, Hari, and Bu Yanti did, you will get a clearer picture of the interactions. And indeed, the actions of Raka, Hari, and Bu Yanti in that example are actions called interactions. Raka's and Hari's introduction until the two of them become friends is an interaction. Likewise, the actions taken by Bu Yanti and her subordinates and superiors were also interactions.

Then, what is a concrete understanding of the interaction itself? From these examples, it can be formulated that interaction is a reciprocal relationship that affects each other that occurs between one individual and another, between one group and another, or between individuals and groups. In the two examples above, it can be seen that the actors carry out a reciprocal relationship that affects each other. Raka and Hari met each other, exchanged addresses, talked, and did many activities together. As for Bu Yanti, routinely gave assignments and instructions, while her subordinates carried them out and gave reports to her.

Etymologically, interaction comes from the word inter- and action. Inter- means "reciprocating", whereas action means "action" or "action". Thus, interaction means an action or deed that is performed or occurs between two parties reciprocally.

Kimball Young and Raymond W. Mack (in Soekanto, 2005: 61) say that interactions are dynamic social relationships involving relationships between individuals, between individuals and groups, or between groups. When two people meet, social interaction begins. Interaction is characterized by meeting each other, greeting each other, shaking hands, talking to each other, and working together.

Relationships called interactions do not always and do not have to end in a positive light. Two people or two groups that meet, get acquainted, talk, exchange information, and then even mutilate because of a misunderstanding can be classified as an interaction. This shows that interactions can be both positive and negative.

Even according to Soerjono Soekanto (2005: 61), if two people or two groups meet, but do not greet each other or exchange signs, social interaction has occurred. It is still an interaction if each party is aware of the other party causing changes in their feelings or nerves caused by the smell of sweat, scent of perfume, the sound of footsteps, and so on. All of this creates an impression on their minds which then determines the form of action to be carried out next.

Social interaction is a general form of social process because social interaction is the main condition for the occurrence of various social activities. Social activity can only take place when in community life, both between individuals and between groups, there is interaction. According to Kimball Young and Raymond W. Mack (1959: 137), social interaction is the key to all social life because, without social interaction, there will be no life together.

The meeting of individuals or groups physically alone will not result in the association of life in society. The social life in question will only occur when individuals and / or groups meet, talk, cooperate, compete, fight, and so on. Therefore, it can be said, social interaction is the basis of social processes.

From the definition of interaction that has been stated above, you can of course mention the characteristics of social interactions or, at least, you can identify the characteristics of social interactions. According to your analysis, what are the characteristics of this social interaction? Related to what are the characteristics referred to?

From some of the examples and definitions of social interactions that have been discussed, we can find some characteristics or characteristics of social interactions. These characteristics, among others, are as follows:

a.   involving more than one party (either individually or as a group);

b. there is awareness of the other party's presence;

c.   the relationship that occurs is reciprocal;

d. there is action (action) and reaction (response);

e.   there is a change in feeling or attitude;

f.   there is a desire or initiative to take further action; and

g. often followed by actions in the form of cooperation, friendship, competition, or perhaps conflict (disputes, quarrels, fights, and the like).

Meanwhile, Charles P. Loomis (in Purwito, 2007: 53) argues that social interaction has four main characteristics. The four characteristics are as follows.

a.   The number of perpetrators is more than one person.

b. Communication between actors takes place in two directions.

c.   There are dimensions of past, present, and future time.

d. There are certain goals to be achieved.

Humans as Social Beings

By  Akhmad Zamroni

Source: Foto Akhmad Zamroni

Have you been constantly living alone in order to provide for all the many and varied necessities of your life? Is it true that you can live a normal life without the presence of other people? To your knowledge, is there a human being who is able to live and exist continuously in total solitude, completely without contact with others? Of course 'no', right?

Even in the smallest environment, namely family, it will be clear that you, as well as other people, always live with the help of others. In the family environment, to pay for school and daily living, you still need help from your parents. To study at school and hang out in the village, you also need the help of teachers and the presence of friends and community members around you. Your friends and others who are much older and more economically established will still need the presence and help of others.

The difficulty in escaping from the presence and help of others shows that you and everyone else around you are social creatures. As a social being, you need other people, and vice versa, other people need you too. Several characteristics can then be recognized related to human existence as social beings, among others, that humans: (a) cannot live alone, (b) need the presence and assistance of others, and (c) need to make contact /contact and cooperation with each other.

As social beings, humans have an instinct called gregariousness, which is the instinct to always live in groups or together. In humans, the instinct for gregariousness appears to be a natural nature that cannot be eliminated. According to Elwood (in Purwito, 2007: 52–53), the instinct of gregariousness arises because of the impulse or necessity of life that needs fulfillment, which are more detailed, including the urge to meet the needs of eating and drinking, to defend oneself from threats and dangers. as well as to channel biological needs and obtain offspring. These three impulses or needs can then be explained as follows.

a.  To fulfill their food and drinking needs, humans must cooperate with other humans in various forms, such as buying and selling, contracts, and working.

b.  In order to defend themselves from threats and dangers, humans must have self-defense by forming cohesiveness and collectivity with others.

c.  To channel biological needs (especially sexual desire) and get offspring, humans need a partner (opposite sex) to marry (marriage).

Meanwhile, human needs themselves, in fact, do not only include the three things above. When human life has entered the modern era, as it is today, human needs are very complex and are often difficult to list in detail. To fulfill all or most of these needs, humans clearly need the presence of other humans. The presence of humans or other people is needed to establish cooperation (in the social, cultural, economic, and so on), form groups (associations, organizations, political parties, ethnicities, nations, states, etc.), and create a defense and security system (military and so on).