Lyn H. Lofland: Exemplary Symbolic Interactionist

Lyn H. Lofland is an exemplary symbolic interactionist. I support this claim by considering her research contributions and their continuing significance for interactionists. This discussion is organized around a comparison of Lofland's scholarship in her many articles and books ( A World of Strangers , The Craft of Dying , and The Public Realm ) against the ideals presented in her own evaluation of the work of Spencer E. Cahill. I further contend that Lofland's research program demonstrates how interactionists should operate with curiosity and humility. In closing, I argue that her work provides guidance for how interactionists can contend with perennial concerns that our work is astructural and irrelevant.