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Reflexive Action and Interaction

Much interaction operates to sustain a particular vision of reality. For example ritual activity directed towards the gods sustains the belief that gods influence everyday affairs. Such ritual activity is an example of reflexive action; it operates to maintain a certain vision of reality. Even when the facts would seem to contradict a belief, human interaction upholds the contradicted belief.

Much human interaction is reflexive. Humans interact cues, gestures, words and other information from each other in a way that sustains a particular vision of reality. Even contradictory evidence is reflexively interpreted to maintain a body of belief and knowledge.

The concept of reflexivity thus focuses attention on how people in interaction go about maintaining the presumption that they are guided by a particular realty .Much of ethno methodological inquiry addresses this question of how reflexive interaction occurs. That is what concepts and principles can be developed to explain the conditions under which different reflexive actions among interacting parties are likely to occur.