The Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction announces a call for papers for the 2025 annual meeting, which will be held at the Voco Chicago Downtown Hotel, August 5-7. The theme this year is "media of interaction," which invites exploration and emphasis on the diverse and dynamic media through which people communicate and interpret meaning. Media are essential aspects of social life and fundamental features of any social order, past or present. Discussions of “media” are often focused on mass or social media. However, a medium is any means or method used for the circulation of information and may include verbal and written language, music, clocks and calendars, clothing, memes, videos, emojis, and so on. A focus on media may emphasize the form through which symbolic interaction emerges, evolves, represents, and influences aspects of contemporary social life. These include face-to-face encounters, mass media representations (news, entertainment), digital media (texting messages, social media platforms, memes), Media interactionists may further distinguish among genres (ritualistic, journalistic, literary, instructional) and styles (formal or informal, persuasive or authoritative, experiential or reflective), among other analytical choices. “Media of interaction” is thus broadly conceived. Media play crucial roles in shaping interaction, selves, societies, and cultures, and investigations of media remain essential for understanding the accomplishment of everyday life in our rapidly evolving social world.

A limited number of rooms has been reserved at the Voco Downtown Chicago Hotel for conference attendees at a special rate of $189 plus tax (single/double occupancy). To access this rate, you must book your room by July 11, 2025.