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Rumor: An Examination of Some Stereotypes
Author(s) -
Miller Dan E.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
symbolic interaction
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.874
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1533-8665
pISSN - 0195-6086
DOI - 10.1525/si.2005.28.4.505
Subject(s) - rumor , irrational number , psychology , tribute , epistemology , sociology , social psychology , psychoanalysis , law , philosophy , political science , geometry , mathematics
Third in Symbolic Interaction's symposium tribute to Tamotsu (Tom) Shibutani (1920–2004), this article pays homage to Shibutani's work on rumor. In his book, Improvised News, Shibutani introduced a grounded theory of rumor that was a radical break from the dominant approach of the time. This break was based on the observation that rumor is not a deviant act, but rather the routine social act of defining ambiguous but important situations. Implicit in his work is a critique of rumor stereotypes including the notion that those involved in rumoring are highly suggestible, irrational, and dangerous; that rumors are inaccurate, distorted, and exaggerated; and that rumors threaten the social order. The article concludes by challenging assumptions about the spread of rumor and that rumors are single, stand‐alone statements.