Herbert Blumer, originator of the term "symbolic interactionism," had a profound effect on social theory and methodology. A respected critic and devotee of George Herbert Mead, Blumer expounded with fervour on the importance of meaning to the individual as an acting entity, the primacy of direct empirical observation as a methodology, and the centrality of the "definition of the situation" introduced by W. I. Thomas. Blumer's thought was also heavily influenced by John Dewey, the …showed first 75 words of 3112 total…

…showed last 75 words of 3112 total…nature of human social action and their relationship to the process of meaning formation. Out of these "images" derives a natural and useful research methodology -- which, it must be noted, is not entirely free of potential to distort the data collected by means of it -- that involves personal immersion into the world the researcher wishes to study in order to assure that the most direct possible observation of that world can be made.