Chapter McGraw-Hill © 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. CHAPTER OUTLINE Building Blocks of Social Structure Types of Social Interaction

chapter

McGraw-Hill © 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

CHAPTER OUTLINE

•Building Blocks of Social Structure•Types of Social Interaction•Types of Societies•Groups within Societies•The Structure of Formal Organizations

4SOCIAL STRUCTURE


2 Sec. 1: Building blocks

█Social Structure: The way in which a society is organized into predictable relationships.



█ Statuses– Status

• Status refers to any of the socially defined positions within a large group or society.

• A person holds more than one status simultaneously.

• Examples of statuses:– president

– daughter

– student

– neighbor



█Statuses– Ascribed and Achieved Status

• Ascribed status is a status one is born with.• Achieved status is a status one earns.

– Master Status• Master status is a status that dominates others

and determines a person’s general position in society.



█ Figure 5.1: Social Statuses



█Social Roles– Social Roles

• Social roles are sets of expectations for people who occupy a given status.

– Role Expectations v Performance• What you SHOULD do vs what you

ACTUALLY do.

Continued...



█ Social Roles– Role Conflict

• Role conflict is the challenge of occupying two social positions simultaneously.

– Role Strain• Role strain describes the difficulties that result from the

differing demands and expectations associated with the same social position.

– Role Exit• Role Exit describes the process of disengagement from a

role that is central to one’s identity, and the establishment of a new role.



█Social Institutions– Social institutions are organized patterns of

beliefs and behavior centered on basic social needs.

– Social institutions provide insight into the structure of society.


9 Sec. 2: Social Interactions

█Exchange – reciprocity

█Competition – rules; pros and cons

█Conflict – control, dominance

█Cooperation – shared benefit

█Accomodation – compromise, truce, mediation, arbitration


10 Sec. 3: Types of societies

█ Table 5.3: Stages of Sociocultural Evolution

Hunting-and-gathering Beginning of human life Nomadic; reliance on readily available food and fibers

Horticultural About 10,000 to 12,000 More settled; development of agriculture years ago and limited technology

Agrarian About 5,000 years ago Larger, more stable settlements; improved technology, increased crop yields, and specialization of labor

Industrial 1760–1850 Reliance on mechanical power and new sources of energy; centralized workplaces; economic interdependence; formal education

Postindustrial 1960s Reliance on services, especially the processing and control of information; expanded middle class

Postmodern Latter 1970s High technology; mass consumption of consumer goods and media images; cross-cultural integration

Societal Type First Appearance Characteristics


11 Sec. 3: Types of Societies

█Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– A society’s level of technology is critical to

the way it is organized.

– Preindustrial Societies• Hunting-and-Gathering Societies

– These societies are composed of small, widely dispersed groups.

– These societies use minimal technology.Continued...



█Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– Industrial Societies

• These societies depend on mechanization to produce its goods and services.

• These societies rely on inventions and energy sources that facilitate agricultural and industrial production.

• These societies change the function of the family as a self-sufficient unit.



█Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– Postindustrial and Postmodern Societies

• Postindustrial Society– A postindustrial society is one whose economic

system is engaged primarily in the processing and control of information.

– The main output of postindustrial society is services.

Continued...



█Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– Postmodern Society

• A postmodern society is a technologically sophisticated society preoccupied with consumer goods and media images.



█ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– Horticultural Societies

• People plant seeds and crops.

• People are less nomadic than in hunter-gatherer societies.

• People use technology in a limited way.

– Agrarian Societies• People are primarily engaged in production of food.

• People use technological innovations like the plow for dramatic increases in food production.



█Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach– This approach views society as undergoing

change according to a dominant pattern, known as sociocultural evolution.

– Sociocultural evolution refers to the “process of change and development in human societies resulting from growth in their stores of cultural information.”



█Durkheim’s Mechanical and Organic Solidarity– Mechanical solidarity refers to a collective

consciousness that emphasizes group solidarity, implying that all individuals perform the same task.

– Organic solidarity refers to the collective consciousness that hinges on the need a society’s members have for one another.



█ Tönnie’s Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft– Gemeinschaft (guh-MINE-shoft)

• The Gemeinschaft is defined as a small community in which people have similar backgrounds and life experiences.

– Gesellschaft (guh-ZELL-shoft)• The Gesellschaft is defined as a large community in

which people are strangers and feel little in common with other community residents.


19 Sec. 3: types of societies

█ Table 5.2: Comparison of Gemeinshaft and Gesellschaft

Rural life typifies this form. Urban life typifies this form.

People share a feeling of community that People have little sense of commonality.results from their similar backgrounds and Their differences appear more striking than life experiences. their similarities.

Social interactions, including negotiations, Social interactions, including negotiations, are are intimate and familiar. likely to be impersonal and task-specific.

People maintain a spirit of cooperation Self-interest dominates. And unity of will.

Tasks and personal relationships cannot The task being performed is paramount; Be separated. relationships are subordinate.

Gemeinschaft Gesellschaft



█ Table 5.2: Comparison of Gemeinshaft and Gesellschaft

People place little emphasis on individual Privacy is valued. privacy.

Informal social control predominates. Formal social control is evident.

People are not very tolerant of deviance. People are more tolerant of devianc

Emphasis is on ascribed statuses. More emphasis is put on achieved statuses.

Social change is relatively limited. Social change is very evident, even within a generation.

Gemeinschaft Gesellschaft


21 Sec. 4: Groups within society

█Groups– A group is any number of people with

similar norms, values, and expectations who interact with each other on a regular basis.

█Groups vary by:– Size– Time together– Organization (formal, informal)



█Types of groups

– Primary Group• This term refers to a small group characterized

by intimate, face-to-face association and cooperation.

– Secondary Group• This term refers to formal, impersonal groups in

which there is little social intimacy or mutual understanding.



PRIMARY GROUPS SECONDARY GROUPS

█ Generally small Usually large

█ Relatively long Relatively short duration, █ period of interaction often temporary

█ Intimate, face-to-face Little social intimacy █ association or mutual understanding

█ Some emotional Relationships generally █ depth in relationships superficial

█ Cooperative, friendly More formal and impersonal



- Reference Groups (ex. Peer Group)– A reference group is any group that

individuals use as a standard for evaluating their own behavior. • Reference groups set and enforce standards of

conduct and belief• Reference groups serve as a standard against

which people can evaluate themselves and others.



– In-Groups• In-groups are any groups or categories to which

people feel they belong.

– Out-Groups• Out-groups are any groups or categories to

which people feel they do not belong.

– E-communities• Facebook, MySpace – Primary group?



- Social Networks and Technology– A social network is a series of social

relationships that links a person directly to others, and indirectly links them to still more people.

– Networking is a valuable skill to have when job-hunting

– Advances in technology, such as browsing web pages or text-messaging, help us to maintain social networks.


27 Sec. 4: Groups within Society

█ Table 5.1: RU Ready for Texting Lingo?

@ wrk At workA3 Anytime, anywhere,

anyplaceAbt 2 About toAFAIR As far as I rememberAML All my loveA/S Age/Sex?AWCIGO And where can I get one?AYT Are you there?CU2NYT See you tonightGrr I’m angryRUF2T Are you free to talk?RUMF Are you male or female?UOK Are you OK?WRU Where are you?

Lingo Meaning



█Group functions

– Define boundaries (clothes, uniform, lang.)

– Select leaders

– Goals, tasks, decisions

– Control member behavior



█Factors that inhibit group “cohesion”– Frequent changes in membership– Disagreements over goals– Poor communication among members– Power struggles– Conflicting personalities– Lack of clear vision by leadership– Public & ongoing criticism by leaders– Role conflict among members


30Sec. 5: Structure of formal organizations

█ Formal Organizations and Bureaucracies– Formal Organization

• A formal organization is a special-purpose group designed and structured for maximum efficiency.

– Examples of formal organizations:• U.S. Post Office, McDonald’s, NPHS

– Voluntary Associations• Organizations established on the basis of common

interest, whose members volunteer or even pay to participate.

• “Formal organizations” and “voluntary organizations” are not mutually exclusive.


31 Sec. 5: Formal organizations

█Characteristics of a Bureaucracy


32 Sec. 5: Formal organizationsCharacteristics of a bureaucracy:

Characteristics

Positive

Consequence

Negative consequence for the individual

Negative consequence for the organization

Division of labor Produces efficiency

Trained incapacity Produces a narrow perspective

Hierarchy of authority

Clarifies who is in charge

Little voice in decision making

Concealment of mistakes

Written rules and regulations

Shows workers what is expected

Does not promote creativity

Leads to “ritualism”

Employment based on formal qualifications

Less favoritism Discourages some to move on

Peter Principle

Specific lines of promotion & advancement

Job security & seniority

Too long to move up the ladder

Good people move on


33


34 Sec. 5: Formal organizations

█Characteristics of a Bureaucracy– Bureaucratization

• Bureaucratization is the process by which a group, organization, or social movement becomes increasingly bureaucratic.

– Oligarchy• Bureaucracy ruled by a few.

– Iron Law of Oligarchy• Tendency of a bureaucracy to become ruled by

a few

Documents

Chapter McGraw-Hill © 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. CHAPTER OUTLINE Building Blocks of Social Structure Types of Social Interaction