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Unit 2: Groups & Culture

Unit 2: Groups & Culture. Unit II Sociology Notes. Social Structure. Social group: 2 or more people who identify & interact with each other (couple, family, friends, churches, clubs, businesses, neighborhood, teams)

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Unit 2: Groups & Culture

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  1. Unit 2: Groups & Culture Unit II Sociology Notes

  2. Social Structure • Social group: 2 or more people who identify & interact with each other (couple, family, friends, churches, clubs, businesses, neighborhood, teams) • Social institution: major sphere of social life designed to meet human needs (economy, family, politics, religion) • Status: social position a person occupies • Role: behavior expected of someone who holds a particular status (student, teacher)

  3. Types of societies • Hunting & gathering: use simple tools to hunt animals & gather vegetation (Bushmen, Aborigines, Pygmies) • Horticultural & pastoral: use of hand tools to raise crops (Tuareg of N. Africa) • Agrarian: large scale cultivation using plows harnessed to animals/energy sources (Amish) • Industrial: production of goods using advanced sources of energy for large machinery • Postindustrial: technology supporting an information based economy

  4. Groups in Society • Primary: small social group whose members share personal & enduring relationships; spend a lot of time together, do a lot of things together, feel they know each other well • Secondary: large & impersonal social group whose members pursue a specific goal or activity; weak emotional ties, little personal knowledge of each other (people in a class with you, some people you work with)

  5. In groups: social group commanding a member’s esteem & loyalty • Out groups: social group toward which one feels competition or opposition • Examples: race vs race, jocks vs nerds, etc. • Reference groups: social group that serves as a point of reference when making evaluations and decisions (family, co-workers, peers) • Social networks: social structure made up of people/ organizations & the ties between them

  6. Group Leadership: 3 styles • Authoritarian: takes charge, makes decisions, expects strict compliance (good in crisis) • Democratic: include everyone, more creative; not as effective in a crisis • Laissez-faire (“to leave alone”): allows group to function on its own—least effective methods of leadership

  7. Group Conformity • Solomon Asch’s research: groups of students who looked at lines, chose which was longest. Chose wrong on purpose—others chose wrong answer, too! • Stanley Milgram’s research: shocking another person until the level reached fatal amounts • Janis’ “Groupthink”: tendency of group members to conform, resulting in a narrow view of an issue (Bay of Pigs, 1961)

  8. Group Size • More than 6 people leads to groups breaking up into smaller groups • 7 people result in 21 conversational “channels” • Dyad: social group with 2 members; most intense, but unstable– requires more work • Triad: social group with 3 members: more stable—have mediator, but can unbalance

  9. Social Diversity • Race, Class, Gender: play a part in group dynamics • Large groups turn inward—associate less with outsiders • Heterogeneous groups turn outward: more diverse, more interaction with outsiders • Social equality promotes contact: same social standing leads to more interaction • Physical boundaries create social boundaries: own building leads to less interaction with others

  10. Formal Organizations: Types • Utilitarian: paid for your efforts (job) • Normative: join to pursue a goal (Red Cross) • Coercive: involuntary membership—forced to join as punishment (prisons)

  11. Bureaucracies • Organizational model rationally designed to perform tasks efficiently • Strengths: specialization, hierarchy of personnel (pyramid), rules/regulations, technical competence, impersonality (all treated the same), formal written communications • Examples: internet, phone system, gov’t.

  12. Problems with bureaucracies • Dehumanize workers: alienate them—may not meet your personal needs as you’re all treated the same (the cubicle) • Inefficiency: failure to carry out a job (delays, “red tape”) • Ritualism: preoccupation with rules & regulations to the point that you thwart the organizations goals (US Post Office) • Inertia: tendency to perpetuate themselves—to protect their jobs • Oligarchy: use of available information by a few to benefit themselves at the cost of others

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