Social Structure Chapter 4

Truth or Fiction? An individual’s statuses and roles are limited an unchanging TRUE: Individuals cannot affect the statuses and roles into which they are born FALSE: Individuals will take on many different statuses and roles throughout the course of their lives

Truth or Fiction Informal interaction has little effect on the functioning of formal organizations TRUE: There are few or no informal interactions in formal organizations FALSE: Although formal organizations are dominated by formal interactions, informal interactions have a strong influence on these organizations as well

Building Blocks of Social Structure Society is made up of interrelated parts Social structure gives us enduring characteristics Makes patterns of human activity predictable

Building Blocks Social Structure: network of interrelated statuses and roles that guide human interaction Status: socially defined position in a group or in a society Role: the behavior-the rights and obligations-expected of someone occupying a particular status

Status We can hold multiple statuses Male, on, brother, teacher, American, etc. Statuses help define where we fit in society and how we relate to each other

Ascribed and Achieved Status We can control some statuses, some we cannot Ascribed status: assigned status according to qualities beyond a person’s control Not based on abilities, efforts, or accomplishments Inherited traits or assigned at an age Teenager/adult/retired Achieved status: status through direct efforts Skills, knowledge, or abilities

Master Status We all have many statuses…but we rank one the most important Master status: status that plays the greatest role in shaping our life and determines social identity Achieved or ascribed Changes over lifetime

Roles Statuses serve as social categories Roles bring statuses to life You occupy a status, you play a role You play roles associated with your status Reciprocal roles: roles that define the patterns of interaction between related statuses In order to be a husband…you need a wife Doctor/patient, athlete/coach, boss/employee, etc.

Role Expectations and Performance Role Expectations: socially determined behaviors expected of a person performing a role Parents: love and protect their children Doctor: treat patients with care Role performance: actual role behavior Doesn’t always match expected behavior

Role Conflict/Strain It’s possible we have multiple roles to play in one status Different roles attached to a single status is a role set Possible contradictory expectations within/between role sets Role conflict: occurs when fulfilling the role expectations of one status makes it difficult to fulfill the role expectations of another. Doctor/Parent

Role Conflict/Strain Role strain: occurs when a person has difficulty meeting the role expectations of a single status Coach making team practice long hours to win

Social Institutions When statuses and roles are organized to satisfy one or more of the basic needs of society, the group is called a social institution Providing physical and emotional support, transmitting knowledge, producing goods and services, and maintaining social control

4.2 Types of Social Interaction Name some ways we interact 5 common ways we interact: exchange, competition, conflict, cooperation, and accommodation

Exchange When we interact to receive a reward or return for our actions that is an exchange Suggested as the most basic and common interaction Reciprocity: the idea that if you do something for someone, they owe you something in return Basis for exchange Rewards may be material and nonmaterial Exchange theory: ppl are motivated by self-interest in their interactions with other people

Competition What is competition? Competition: occurs when 2 or more ppl or groups oppose each other to achieve a goal that only one can attain Promotes many advancements; business, school, gov’t As long as comp follows accepted rules of conduct…mostly seen as positive Negative aspects: stress, inequality, conflict, lack of cooperation

Conflict Competition we focus on achieving the goal Conflict we focus on defeating the opponent Conflict: deliberate attempt to control a person by force, oppose someone, or to harm someone Few rules of conduct, most are ignored anyway 4 sources of conflict: wars, disagreements w/in groups, legal disputes, and clashes over ideology Religion, ideology, politics Businesses, loyalty, social change

Cooperation What does it mean to cooperate? Football team, fans, band…shared win Cooperation: 2 or more people or groups work together to achieve a goal that will benefit multiple people

Accommodation Many of our interactions we neither cooperate nor have conflict. What do you think we do^^^^^^^^^^? Accommodation: state of balance between cooperation and conflict Hotel stay Compromise Mediation

4.3 Types of Societies Role behavior often takes place in groups Group: set of people who interact on the basis of shared expectations and who possess some degree of common identity Largest/complex groups are societies Sociologists classify societies according to: Subsistence strategies: the way a society uses technology to provide for the needs of its members

Preindustrial Societies Preindustrial: food prod. carried out by human and animal labor, is the main economic activity Subdivisions of preindustrial societies Hunting & gathering: collection of wild plants and hunting wild animals Nomads, small societies, relatively equal

Preindustrial Societies Pastoral society: rely on domesticated herd animals to meet food needs Nomadic, larger societies Division of labor: specialization of individuals or groups in the performance of specific economic activities Craft workers, weapons, jewelry, farmer, smith Promotes trade = inequality

Preindustrial Societies Horticultural societies: fruits and vegetables grown in a garden specifically cleared Crop rotation = semi/permanent settlements (villages) Surplus food = complex division of labor Craftspeople, religious leaders, traders Large amount of artifacts Economic and political systems

Preindustrial Societies Agricultural societies: animals are used to pull plows to till the fields Plant more crops, irrigation, terracing High crop yields = very large populations Even more specialized roles Development of cities, power to single people Building of armies, construction of roads, more trade Abandon barter: exchange of good for a service $ invented, system of writing, statuses

Industrial Societies Industrial societies: shift from food production to manufactured goods Machines instead of humans Advanced technologies More food = ^ pop. More industry = < farmers (focus more on goods)

Industrial Societies The advancements in technology make it possible to manufacture a wider variety of goods Changes the location of work Rural farm to the cities. Urbanization: concentration of the population in cities More productivity, less skill required Religion is challenged by science Freedom to compete for social positions

Postindustrial Societies Postindustrial: much of the economy is involved in providing information and services (73% of U.S. workforce) 2% agricultural 25% goods production Standard of living is greater along with wages Emphasis on science and education Individual rights and personal fulfillment

Contrasting Societies Durkheim believed preindustrial societies were held together by mechanical solidarity: when ppl share the same values and perform the same tasks, they become united as a common whole As division of labor becomes more complex, MS gives way to organic solidarity: individuals can no longer provide for all their own needs, they depend on others to survive

Contrasting Societies Ferdinand Tönnies (German) interested in simple/complex societies Gemeinschaft: close relat. Activities center around family/community Gesellschaft: based on need rather than emotion. Impersonal relationships. Individual goals > group

4.4 Groups Within Society Every individual in society participates in a group What is a group? A group has 4 major features: 2+ people Interaction among members Shared expectations Posses sense of common identity The last 3 distinguish a group from an aggregate or social category

Groups Within Society Aggregate: when ppl gather in the same place at the same time but lack organization or lasting patterns Ppl on an airplane, waiting for tickets, checkout Social Category: means of classifying people according to a shared trait or common status Students, women, teenagers, left-handed people Groups differ in size and length of time they’re together

Size Dyad: smallest group possible, 2 members Triad: 3 person group Small group: few enough members to interact face to face Sociologists have found 15 is the largest #

Time Some groups meet once, then never again Some exist for many years (who would?) Interaction is not continuous (not 24 hours a day)

Organization 2 types of organization Formal: structure, goals, and activities are clearly defined Student council Informal: no official structure or est. rules of conduct Your circle of friends

Types of Groups Primary group: small group of people who interact over a relatively long period of time on a direct personal bias entire self of the individual is taken into account Intimate relationships, often fact-to-face Deep communication, often informal Family is probably most common

Types of Groups Secondary group: interaction is impersonal and temporary in nature Only part of the individual is involved Casual and limited in personal involvement Classroom, factory, political party

Types of Groups Reference group: any group with whom individuals identify and whose attitudes and values they adopt Students: Friends or school clubs Adults: members of a particular occupation As we grow we change our reference groups Both positive and negative effects on behavior

Types of Groups When a groups boundaries are clearly marked, we think in terms of in-groups and out-groups In-groups: group that a person belongs to and identifies with Have 3 things: separate from other groups through symbols, members view themselves positively and out-groups in negative terms, and in-groups compete with out-groups Out-groups: any group a person does not belong to or identify with

Types of Groups Social network: the web of relationships that is formed by the sum total of a person’s interactions with other people Direct and indirect relationships Unlike groups, social networks don’t have clear boundaries and no common sense of identity Sense of community

Group Functions Must determine boundaries to determine who belongs and who doesn’t Must select a leader: ppl who influence the attitudes and opinions of others 2 types of leaders: Instrumental: task-oriented. Find means that will help the group reach its goals expressive: emotion-oriented. Find ways to keep the group together and maintain moral Other group functions: goals, tasks, decisions

Structure of Formal Organizations Formal organization: large, complex, secondary group est. to achieve specific goals School, business, gov’t, religious & political orgs, unions Bureaucracy: ranked authority structure that operates according to specific rules and procedures Most formal organizations work under one Rationality: subjecting every feature of human behavior to calculation, measurement and control

Weber’s Model of Bureaucracies According to Weber, bureaucracies have these charact. Division of labor Ranking of authority Employment based on formal qualifications Rules and regulations Specific lines of promotion and advancement Voluntary association: non-prof to purse common interest

Effectiveness of Bureaucracies? Create order, define tasks/rewards, stability Lose sight of original goals Abandon them for self-continuation (EPA) Strict adherent to rules/regs “Red Tape” Tendency to end up like oligarchies Peter Principle