Unit #4 – Social Organization

Living Together as Humans

Unit OverviewThe concepts and theories presented in the previous unit focused primarily on a process that is central to sociology—the transmission of culture to society’s members.

While culture and socialization are central themes in sociology, they represent only one aspect of its study.

Sociologists also focus on the structure, organization and operation of human societies, with particular emphasis on how interaction within these structures shapes human behaviour.

Unit OverviewOur examination of social organization begins with its smallest unit—the group.

Sociologists have developed several concepts and frameworks that provide a deeper understanding of the role that groups play in meeting basic social and physical needs as well as shaping human behaviour.

Cooley’s distinction between primary and secondary groups provides a basis for analyzing their role in the lives of individuals.

Other sociologists have examined the influence of groups on the behaviour of individual members. All of these studies provide us with a deeper understanding of the significant role of groups in our daily lives.

Unit OverviewThe social group also provides the basic unit upon which modern society is built.

Sociologists apply two key ideas—status and role—to the behaviour of humans in groups.

In turn, these concepts form the basis of social organization.

Sociologists use the term stratification to describe the structures of modern societies.

Stratification systems, like human cultures, come in a variety of forms that have evolved over time. This unit examines the two primary types of stratification systems, caste and class, providing several examples for analysis.

Unit Overview

Sociologists are particularly interested in the primary effect of stratification systems on society—the emergence of inequalities that can create prejudice and discrimination in human societies.

It is important that students develop an understanding of the relationship between these contemporary social problems and the stratification systems by which modern societies are organized.

Unit OverviewFinally, social institutions also make a significant contribution to social organization.

All human societies have developed specific institutions that perform important social tasks.

The three most important institutions—family, religion, and education—provide examples that illustrate the key role that institutions play in the organization and operation of modern societies as well as the daily lives of their members.

Mean Girls Lesson

Objectives:

To learn the terms:

StatusAscribed / Achieved

RolesRole ConflictRole StrainRole Exit

Process of Stages

Social Interaction

Status GameTreat each other according to what is placed on your forehead. However, do not tell that person what it says. Spend 10 minutes doing this activity.

Once we finish, take off the sticky notes and look at what was written. How did the exercise make you feel? Why do you think you felt that way?

Social Structure: A Guide to Everyday

Living Members of every society rely on social structure to make sense out of daily situations.

The world can be disorienting and even frightening when society's rules are unclear.

What is Status?

Status is one of the basic building blocks of social organization.

Status is the social position a person holds.

Status is part of our social identity and defines our relationships to others

Status set All the statuses a person holds at a given time

Example: Teenage girl is a daughter to her parents, a sister to her brother, a student at her school, and a goalie on her hockey team

 Think about some of your status sets. What are they?

Status sets change over the course of life

Example:THEN... Student, Athlete, …

NOW..... Teacher, Runner, …

How do people attain statuses?

Ascribed status  Social position a person receives at birth or takes involuntarily later in life. Little or no choice Daughter, an American, a teenager, a widower, an orphan

Achieved status Social position a person takes on voluntarily that reflects personal ability and effort Honor student, Olympic athlete, a wife/husband, a criminal

Do some statuses matter more than

others? Master status:

A status that has special importance for social identity, often shaping a person's entire life

A JobReveals a lot about social background and education

A nameA “Bush” or a “Kennedy”

 Can be both +/-

 Negative: diseases (cancer, AIDS) or disabilities

What is Role? Another building block of social interaction

Role is the behavior expected of someone who holds a particular status.

A person holds a status and performs a role. Student (status) Attend class, finishing assignments (roles)

Role set A number of roles attached to a single status

How do different roles cause conflict and

strain? People in the U.S. Juggle many responsibilities demanded by their various statuses and roles.

Role conflict Conflict among the roles

corresponding to two or more statuses

Working mothers: parenting vs, job

Role strain Tension among the roles connected to a single status

Manager: being friendly with workers and meeting deadlines

Can you ever leave a role behind?

Role exit The process by which people disengage from important social roles “exes” ex-nuns, ex-doctors, ex-husbands, and ex-alcoholics

Process of stages People begin to doubt their ability to continue in a certain role Imagine new roles Decide to pursue a new life

Past roles can continue to influence their lives Must rebuild relationships with people who knew them in their earlier life

What is Social Interaction?

5 types of social interaction are basic to group life

 Cooperation

 Social exchange

 Coercion

 Conflict

 Conformity

Cooperation

Interaction in which individuals or groups combine their efforts to reach a goal

Agreements

Conflict

Working against one another for a large share of the reward or outcome

Social Exchange

A voluntary action performed in the expectation of getting a reward in return

Doing something in exchange for something else

Coercion

Interaction in which individuals or groups are forced to behave in a particular way

Opposite of social exchange  Prisoners or War  Teens with Curfew

Conformity

Behavior that matches group expectations

Adapt to fit the behavior of those around us

How far would you go??

How can we become more aware of the social reality in which we

play a part? Ethnomethodology

The study of the way people make sense of their everyday surroundings.

Everyday behavior is based on assumptions “How are you?”

Interested in how the person is mentally, spiritually, or financially

The person assumes you are just being polite

Purposely break the rules From broken rules we learn what the rules are and how important our everyday reality is.

What are performances? How do we interact??

As we present ourselves in everyday situations, we reveal information to others

Consciously and unconsciously

The way we dress (costume)

What we carry (props)

Tone of our voice and gestures (manners)

We craft our performance according to the setting  Loud in a restaurant  Quiet in a church

Are we actually listening???

Human Communication55% Non-Verbal38% Vocal Tone7% Words

How do we use nonverbal communication in our

performances? Communication using body movements, gestures, and facial expressions rather than speech

 Facial expressions are the most significant Smiling

Eye contact is another crucial elementMake eye contact as an invitation to socially interact

Hand gestures As insults, a request for a ride

How is body language used to deceive others?

Unintended body language can contradict our planned meaning

A teen explains why they are getting home late but his mother doubts him because he will not look at her in the eye

Nonverbal communication is hard to control therefore it can be used to help detect deception

There is no way to rid the world of dishonesty Researcher have discovered ways to detect lying for nonverbal clues

Spotting Lies: What are the Clues?

Clues to deception can be found in 4 elements of performance Words

Good liars go over their lines A slip of the tongue might suggest the person is hiding something

Voice Tone and pattern Trembling, and speed Fast= anger Slow= sadness

Body Language Jitters Shallow or rapid breathing

Facial Expressions Fake smiles= less laugh lines

Gender and Performance

Women are more sensitive to nonverbal communication than men

 Men and Women differ in 3 ways  Demeanor  Use of space  Staring, smiling, touching

Demeanor The way we act and carry ourselves

A clue to social power

Powerful people enjoy more freedom in how they act

Cursing, being relaxed at work is ok for the boss

Women generally have lesser power--> demeanor of women is more reserved

Use of Space The more power you have the more space you use

 Men use more  Women less

 Personal space  The surrounding area over which a person makes some claim to privacy  US has the greatest amount of personal space  Invasion of personal space can make people feel uncomfortable or suggest sexual interest

Staring, smiling, and touching

Eye contact encourages interaction.  Women hold eye contact more than men  Men stare as a sign of interest

 Smiling is a symbol of appeasement or submission

Women smile more than men

Mutual touching conveys intimacy and caring

Shows dominance

MEAN GIRLS WHY MEAN GIRLS????Well... shows us great examples of:

Group

Social Status

In-group

Out-Group

It also talks discusses some aspects of Culture and how they affect Suburban High Schools.

After we will talk about social interactions

Groups, Aggregates, and Categories

A group consists of two or more people who interact over time, have a sense of identity and belonging, and have norms that make them act differently from nonmembers.

An aggregate is a collection of people who just happen to be in the same place at the same time.

A category is a collection of people who share a particular characteristic. They do not necessarily interact with one another and have nothing else in common.

Group Classifications

Primary groups tend to be small and are characterized by emotional intimacy among members.

Secondary groups tend to be larger and meet primarily for the purpose of accomplishing some kind of task.

An in-group is a group to which we belong and to which we feel a sense of loyalty.

An out-group is a one to which we don’t belong and to which we don’t feel a sense of loyalty.

Group ClassificationsFor purposes of self-evaluation, people often turn to reference groups. Reference groups can be either primary or secondary in nature, or they can be general categories or even celebrities.

Social IntegrationIt’s important to feel an emotional connection to one’s group or to one’s community. Such a feeling is called social integration.

Émile Durkheim coined the term anomie to indicate a lack of social integration. He concluded that anomie was one factor in putting single, male Protestants at greater risk for suicide.

Sociology also studies group dynamics, which is the term that implies that our thoughts and behaviors are influenced by the groups of which we are members. In turn, our thoughts and behaviors can influence those of other group members.

Social Integration

Georg Simmel studied how group size affects interactions between group members. He found that a dyad, a group of two people, is less stable than a triad, a group of three people.

Irving Janis coined the term groupthink to refer to the tendency of people in positions of power to follow the opinions of the group and to ignore any dissenting opinions.

Groups Within Society

Each society is made up of smaller groups and associations.

According to C. Wright Mills, the power elite, a small group representing the most powerful and influential people, runs the United States.

A voluntary association is a group that we choose to join, in which the members are united by the pursuit of a common goal. These associations can be temporary or permanent.

Groups Within SocietyAs societies modernize, groups change in size and purpose. A feature of modernized societies is the formal organization, a secondary group organized to achieve specific goals.

A bureaucracy is an example of a formal organization that arises as a result of modernization. Weber argued that bureaucracies gain increasing power over everyday life in a process called rationalization of society.

Groups Within SocietyA bureaucracy is characterized by a division of labor, written rules, hierarchy, official communication, and impersonal relationships within the organization.

Bureaucracies appear to be the most rational approach to accomplishing the stated goals, but human beings are not always rational. This conflict makes bureaucracies inefficient.

Sociologist Robert Michels theorized that bureaucracies tend to be run by an oligarchy, a small, ruling group.

Identify Terms and Find Examples

Status

Ascribed Status

Achieved Status

Master Status

Status Symbol

Role

Role Expectation

Role Conflict

Role Strain

Role Exit