Chapter 4Social Structure

Social Structure

• Social structure gives society its enduring characteristics and makes patterns of human interaction predictable.

• Social structure: the network of interrelated statuses and roles that guide human interaction.

Status

• Status: A socially defined position in a group or in a society.• Each status has attached to it one or more

roles.• Each individual in society occupies several

statuses.• Statuses are ways of defining where

individuals fit in society and how they relate to others in society

Ascribed Status

• Ascribed: Based on a person’s inherited traits or are assigned automatically when a person reaches a certain age.• Teen or young adult due to age…You didn’t

earn it, not can you do anything about it.• Ex. Sex, family heritage, race, etc. (write

down one example)

Achieved Status

• Achieved: Acquired through your own direct efforts, special skills, knowledge, or abilities.• Ex. the status of baseball player is achieved

because of physical ability and knowledge of the game.• People have some control over their achieved

status.• All occupations are achieved statuses, as are

husband/wife, parent, high school or college grad

Master Status

•Of all the statuses you have, one tends to take rank over all others.•Master Status: the status that plays

the biggest role in shaping a person’s life and determining his or her social identity.•Can be ascribed or achieved.

Master Status

•An adult in the U.S. usually has an achieved master status.•Ex. Occupation, wealth, marital status, parenthood, etc.

Master Status

•Master status can change throughout your life.• Teen- Student or athlete•Adulthood- Occupation• Late adulthood- Volunteer work,

hobbies, grandparenthood, past accomplishments

Roles

• Statuses are social categories, whereas roles are the component that brings social structure to life.• “You occupy a status, but you play a

role.” (Linton)•At home you play the role of son or

daughter. At school you may play the role of student.

Roles

• You may also perform roles that go along with the status of athlete, cast of the play, student mentor, etc.

Reciprocal Roles

• Reciprocal Roles: Corresponding roles that define the patterns of social interaction between related statuses.• Ex. one cannot fulfill the role associated

with the status of husband without having someone else perform the role that goes along with the status of wife.• Ex. doctor-patient, friend-friend,

employer-employee, sales clerk-customer

Role Expectations and Role Performance

• Ideally, when people interact with one another their behavior corresponds to the particular roles they are playing.• Role Expectations: Socially determined

behaviors expected of a person performing a role.•What are some examples of role

expectations?

Role Expectations and Role Performance

• Role Performance: Actual role behavior.• Unfortunately, role behavior does not

always match the behavior expected by society.• Problems can arise because role behaviors

considered appropriate by a certain segment are seen as inappropriate by society as a whole.

Role Conflict and Role Strain

• Even within a single status, there are many interested roles to perform.• Role Sets- The different roles attached to a single

status.• Because we hold many different statuses, we

must deal with many role sets in our daily lives.• Contradictions between our role sets can lead to

conflict and role strain

Role Conflict

•Occurs when fulfilling the role expectations of one status makes it difficult to fulfill the role expectations of another status.

Role Conflict

•Ex. To be a good employee an individual needs to go to work. However, to be a good parent, that person needs to stay home and take care of a sick child.

Role Conflict• http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJbtd1pzie0&NR=1&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WGNAwdkoGo&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Role Strain

•Occurs when a person has difficulty meeting the role expectations of a single status.

Role Strain

•Ex. A boss trying to maintain the morale of his workers while asking them to work long overtime hours.

Social Institutions

• Statuses and their related roles determine the structure of various groups in society.• Social Institutions- System of statuses, roles,

values, and norms that is organized to satisfy one or more of the basic needs of society.• Basic Needs: provide physical and emotional

support, transmit knowledge, produce goods and services, maintain social control.

Exchange

• Exchange- Individual, group, or social interaction undertaken in an effort to receive a reward in return for actions.• Almost all daily interaction involves

exchange.• “Exchange is the most common form of

interaction.” (Blau)• Dating, family life, friendship, politics all

involve exchange.

Exchange

•Reciprocity- The idea that if you do something for someone, that person owes you something in return.•Reciprocity is the basis of exchange.•Rewards for reciprocity can be

material and nonmaterial.

Exchange Theory

• Exchange Theory- Believes that people are motivated by self-interest in their interactions with other people.• Behavior that is rewarded tends to be

repeated.• When costs of an interaction outweigh

rewards; individuals are likely to end a relationship.• (Exchange Theory= Maximize Rewards,

Minimize Costs)

Assignment

•Page 68 Section 1 Review #2-3

•Page 70 think About It #1-2•Try to write 2 to 3 sentences for each question

Competition

• Occurs when 2 or more people or groups oppose each other to achieve a goal that only one can attain.• Competition is about achieving the goal.• Cornerstone of the capitalist economic

system and the democratic form of government

Competition

• Viewed as positive as long as it follows accepted rules of conduct.• Competition can lead to psychological

stress, a lack of cooperation in social relationships, inequality and even conflict.

Conflict

• The deliberate attempt to control a person by force, to oppose someone, or to harm another person.• Conflict is about defeating the enemy.• Conflict has few rules of conduct, and even

these are often ignored.

4 Sources of Conflict

• War• Disagreements• Legal Disputes• Clashes over ideology (religious or political)• Conflicts sometimes begin as competition

(businesses, politics)• Conflict can be positive by reinforcing group

boundaries and strengthening group loyalty by focusing on an outside threat.

Cooperation

• Cooperation: Occurs when 2 or more people or groups work together to achieve a goal that will benefit more than one person.• A social process that gets things done.• Competition can be used along with

cooperation to motivate group members to work harder.

Accommodation

•Accommodation is the state of balance between cooperation and conflict.• Ex. Staying at a hotel…

Accommodation

• 4 Types of Accommodation:• Compromise: Give up something to come

to a mutual agreement.• Truce: Brings conflict to a halt until a

compromise can be reached.

Accommodation

•Mediation: A form of accommodation involving a 3rd party who acts as an advisor or counselor to help the 2 parties reach an agreement.• Arbitration: When a 3rd party makes

decision that is binding on both parties.• Ex. child support or MLB

Group

•Group: A set of people who interact on the basis of shared expectations and possess some degree of common identity.

• Societies are the largest and most complex groups that sociologists study.

Groups

• Sociologists classify societies according to subsistence strategies; the way a society uses technology to provide for the needs of its members.• 3 Categories of Subsistence Strategies:• Preindustrial• Industrial• Post Industrial

Preindustrial

• Types of Preindustrial societies•Hunting and Gathering• Pastoral societies•Horticultural societies• Agricultural societies

What is a Group?

• In sociological terms, a group has four major features.• It must consist of two or more people.• There must be interaction between group

members.• The members of the group must have shared

expectations.• The members must possess some sense of

common identity.

What is a Group?

• The last three features- interaction, shared expectations, and a common identity- distinguish a group from an aggregate or social category.• An aggregate is a group of people gathering

in the same place at the same time but they lack organization or lasting patterns of interaction.• Ex. People on an airplane, people standing in

a ticket line at a movie.

What is a Group?

• In the case of social categories it is not necessary for people to interact in any way.• A social category is simply a means of

classifying people according to a shared trait or a common status.• Ex. Students, women, teenagers, left-

handed people

Organization of Groups

• Organization of groups can be formal or informal.• In a formal group, the structure, goals, and

activities of the group are clearly defined.• Ex. Student government• In an informal group there is no official

structure or established rules of conduct.• Ex. Your group of friends

Reference Groups

• People usually perform their social roles and judge their own behaviors according to standards set by a particular group.• They do not have to belong to this group, but

when people identify with the group’s standards and attitudes, the group influences their behavior.• Any group with whom individuals identify and

whose attitudes and values they adopt is called a reference group.