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Social interactions: conceptual
considerations and preliminary data
Emilio Ribes-Inesta
University
of Guadalajara, Mexico
Dyadic interactions represent
the minimal social behaviour unit. To distinguish human social
behavior from those interactions involving also two organisms
some definitory dimensions of human social organization must
be considered. These dimensions may be
conceived as different type of social contingencies regulating
individual's behavior in relation to one another. Three functional
dimensions grounding social contingencies are analysed: a) prescriptive-regulatory
contingencies reflecting the political structure of society;
b) production-exchange contingencies reflecting the economical
structure of society; and c) sanction-justificatory contingencies
reflecting the moral and juridical structure of society. A laboratory
methodology has been designed to analyse the parameters involved
in the three type of abovely mentioned contingencies. This methodology
may be extended to the analysis of social interactions in natural
environments. Some preliminary data involving the manipulation
of production-exchange
contingencies are shown and discussed.
Keywords: dyads, social interaction,
prescriptive contingencies, exchange contingencies, sanction-contingencies |