Sociology

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SOCIALINTERACTIONGROUPSSOCIALSTRUCTURE.ppt
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SOCIAL INTERACTION &
SOCIAL STRUCTURE

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

  • Patterns and trends
  • Individuals, groups, societies

INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL STRUCTURE

  • Statuses –

- positions we hold

  • Ascribed Statuses –

- positions we are born into

  • Achieved Statuses –

- positions we achieve

INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL STRUCTURE

  • Roles –

expected behaviors

  • Role Conflicts –

problems in fulfilling

our roles

Role Conflict

Homework

  • Do your individual social structure
  • Statuses: 5 ascribed, 5 achieved
  • Roles: 3 roles for each status
  • Role conflicts: one of each

GROUPS

  • What is a group?

- 2 or more people who are socially interacting

  • Types of Groups:
  • Primary
  • Secondary
  • Reference

Primary Group

  • A group that we hold membership in, means a great deal to us, and is usually small
  • Examples?
  • Family, friends, etc.
  • (Significant Others)

Secondary Group

  • A group that we hold membership in, means something to us but not as much as a primary group, and is usually bigger in size
  • Examples?
  • Work, school, teams, etc.

Reference Group

  • A group to which we do NOT hold membership but still influences us
  • Examples?
  • Sports teams, music groups, etc.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF
GROUPS & ORGANIZATIONS

  • Hierarchy
  • Norms
  • Division of Labor

FORMAL ORGANIZATIONS

  • Also called secondary groups
  • Secondary groups can get so large they form Bureaucracies

What is a Bureaucracy?

  • A large formal organization/secondary group where hierarchy, norms, division of labor are found to an extreme
  • Examples?
  • Government, big corporations, military, education, religion, Motor Vehicles!

Consequences of a Bureaucracy

  • Karl Marx –
  • Alienation –

not feeling a part of

  • Impersonalization -

unfriendly

Importance of Groups

  • Groups are so important to us we often do anything or whatever it takes to belong to one…

MORTIFICATION EXERCISES

  • Shaming exercises
  • Military, sports, police
  • Fraternity/Sorority Hazing”

BINGE DRINKING

CONFORMITY VS. OBEDIENCE

  • Conformity
  • Agreeing to a particular behavior – you may or may not want to do it, but do it anyway because of perceived pressure to do so
  • Obedience
  • Complying to a particular behavior even though you may not want to do it because of perceived authority

GROUP STUDIES

  • Obedience to Authority, Dr. Stanley Milgram (1933-1984, was only 51 died of heart attack)
  • Social psychologist at Yale, Harvard, CCNY

ASCH CONFORMITY EXPERIMENT

  • Solomon Asch (1907-1996)
  • Ph.D., Columbia U.
  • Supervised Milgram’s Ph.D. at Harvard

SOCIETIES & SOCIETAL
SOCIAL STRUCTURE

  • Society: Geographic boundary that contains people and their culture(s)
  • About 200 societies (nations) worldwide

Mass Society

  • Mass Society:
  • 250,000+ (cities)
  • About 50 mile radius
  • Therefore, can contain: urban, suburban, and rural areas

COMMUNITIES

  • Urban
  • Suburban
  • Rural

Urban Community

  • Characterized by?
  • Dense population, large buildings (commercial and residential), mass transportation, sanitation, medical, legal, educational centers, increase in social problems

Suburban Community

  • Characterized by?
  • Single family houses, apartment bldgs.
  • Retail shopping
  • Parks, some open

spaces

Rural Community

  • Characterized by?
  • Farm lands
  • Small towns

Mass Society

  • Large urban area w/ more than 250K population, 50 mile radius
  • Can contain urban, suburban, and rural communities

SOCIETAL SOCIAL STRUCTURE

  • Gerhard and Jean Lenski named:
  • Pre-Industrial Societies
  • Industrial Societies
  • Post-Industrial Societies

Pre-Industrial Societies

  • Hunting and Gathering Societies
  • Subsistence living; must meet

needs daily

Horticultural Societies

  • Plant; surplus

Agrarian Societies

  • Plant and farm animals; surplus

Industrial Societies

  • Rely on machines and manufacturing industries

Post-Industrial Societies

  • Rely on information and service industries

SIMPLE & COMPLEX SOCIETIES

  • Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
  • Looked at Division of Labor in a society
  • Said how society divides labor influences social structure in a society

Mechanical Solidarity in Simple Societies

  • Minimal division of labor
  • Collective consciousness develops with an emphasis on group solidarity
  • Few options, so little regard for individual needs
  • Small groups, intimate social interactions, few social roles

Organic Solidarity in Complex Societies

  • Greater division of labor
  • Little collective consciousness develops with an emphasis on the individual now
  • More options, many positions
  • Larger groups, less intimate social interactions, more specialized roles

SIMPLE & COMPLEX SOCIETIES

  • Ferdinand Tonnies (1855-1936)
  • Looked at Social Interactions, Social Control, and Social Change in societies

Gemeinschaft in Simple Societies

  • Small community, people have similar backgrounds and life experiences
  • Everyone knows one another and social interactions are intimate
  • Commitment to the group
  • Social control informal
  • Social change slow

Gesellschaft in Complex Societies

  • Larger communities, people have different backgrounds and life experiences
  • Most people don’t know each other and social interactions are not intimate
  • Commitment to the individual
  • Social control formal
  • Social change more likely and

quicker