Chapter 5 How Society Is Organized PDF

MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY CHAPTER 5: HOW SOCIETY IS ORGANIZED OBJECTIVES: ✓ Analyze aspects of social organization ✓ Identify one’s role in social groups and institutions ✓ Demonstr...

MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY CHAPTER 5: HOW SOCIETY IS ORGANIZED OBJECTIVES: ✓ Analyze aspects of social organization ✓ Identify one’s role in social groups and institutions ✓ Demonstrate a better understanding about the groups within the society TIME TO LEARN! GROUPS WITHIN SOCIETY Social Group - A social group is two or more humans who interact with one another, share similar characteristics, and collectively have a sense of unity. - A social group exhibits some degree of social cohesion and is more than a simple collection or aggregate of individuals. Renowned social psychologist Muzafer Sherif formulated a technical definition of a social group. It is a social unit consisting of a number of individuals interacting with each other with respect to: 1. common motives and goals; 2. an accepted division of labor; 3. established status relationships; 4. accepted norms and values with reference to matters relevant to the group; and Page | 1 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY 5. the development of accepted sanctions, such as raise and punishment, when norms were respected or violated. Social Cohesion - It can be formed through shared interests, values, representations, ethnic or social background, and kinship ties, among other factors. - It expects group members to ask “who am I attracted to?” Social Identity Approach - Posits that the necessary and sufficient conditions for the formation of social groups is the awareness that an individual belongs and is recognized as a member of a group. - Expects group members to simply ask “who am I?” Social Categorization - is the process of classifying people into groups based on similar characteristics: nationality, age, occupation, race etc. Primary Groups - It is typically a small social group whose members share close, personal, enduring relationships. - Families and close friends are examples of primary groups. - The concept of the primary group was introduced by Charles Cooley in his book, Social Organization : A Study of the Larger Mind. **Charles Cooley The concept of the primary group was introduced by Charles Cooley, a sociologist from the Chicago School of sociology, in his book Social Organization: A Study of the Larger Mind (1909). Primary groups play an important role in the development of personal identity. Cooley argued that the Page | 2 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY impact of the primary group is so great that individuals cling to primary ideals in more complex associations and even create new primary groupings within formal organizations. To that extent, he viewed society as a constant experiment in enlarging social experience and in coordinating variety. **Functions of Primary Groups A primary group is a group in which one exchanges implicit items, such as love, caring, concern, support, etc. Examples of these would be family groups, love relationships, crisis support groups, and church groups. Relationships formed in primary groups are often long lasting and goals in themselves. They also are often psychologically comforting to the individuals involved and provide a source of support and encouragement. The goal of primary groups is actually the relationships themselves rather than achieving some other purpose. Primary groups are marked by concern for one another, shared activities and culture, and long periods of time spent together. They are psychologically comforting and quite influential in developing personal identity. Secondary Groups - They are large groups whose relationships are impersonal and goal oriented; their relationships are temporary. - People in a secondary group interact on a less personal level than in a primary group, and their relationships are generally temporary rather than long lasting. - Some secondary groups may last for many years, though most are short term. - This groups also begin and end with very little significance in the lives of the people involved. - It involves weak emotional ties and little personal knowledge of one another. - In contrast to primary groups, secondary groups don’t have the goal of maintaining and developing the relationships themselves. **Functions of Secondary Group Since secondary groups are established to perform functions, people’s roles are more interchangeable. A secondary group is one you have chosen to be a part of. They Page | 3 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY are based on interests and activities. They are where many people can meet close friends or people they would just call acquaintances. Secondary groups are also groups in which one exchanges explicit commodities, such as labor for wages, services for payments, etc. Examples of these would be employment, vendor-to-client relationships, a doctor, a mechanic, an accountant, and such. **Difference between Primary Group and Secondary Group - The distinction between primary and secondary groups was originally proposed by Charles Cooley. - He labeled groups as “primary” because people often experience such groups early in their life and such groups play an important role in the development of personal identity. - Secondary groups generally develop later in life and are much less likely to be influential on one’s identity. In-Groups and Out-Groups In-Groups - A social group to which an individual feels he or she belongs. Out-Groups - A social group with which an individual does not identify as a member. Group Bias - A phenomenon were people tend to hold positive attitudes towards members of their own groups Henri Tajfel: The in-group and out-group concepts originate from social identity theory, which grew out of the work of social psychologists Henri Tajfel and John Turner. In-group favoritism - refers to a preference and affinity for one’s in-group over the out-group or anyone viewed as outside the in-group. This can be expressed in evaluation of others, linking, allocation of resources, and many other ways. Page | 4 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY Intergroup Aggression - is any behavior intended to harm another person because he or she is a member of an out-group. - It is a by-product of in-group bias, in that if the beliefs of the in-group are challenged or if the in-group feels threatened, then they will express aggression toward the out-group. Ingroup Favoritism or Affinity Bias - makes us like people who are similar to ourselves. - When someone does something we don’t like, we may think of the act being very predictable of other group’s member. We then jump to the conclusion that all people from that particular culture, race, religion etc behave like that. This generalisation seeds the development of discrimination and racism. We are strengthened by the notion that we are better than them and view Outgroups as threatening, angry, and untrustworthy. Outgroup Homogeneity - one’s perception of out-group members as more similar to one another than are in-group members, e.g. “they are alike; we are diverse. ” Reciprocal Altruism - is a behaviour whereby an organism acts in a manner that temporarily reduces its fitness while increasing another organism’s fitness, with the expectation that the other organism will act in a similar manner at a later time. - Robert Sapolsky’s book, Behave, explores this foundation of cooperation in detail. It can be traced back to kin groups (a very small “us” group). Prejudice - is a hostile or negative attitude toward people in a distinct group, based solely on their membership within that group. - refers to a negative attitude about others, although one can also have a positive prejudice in favor of something. **There are three components. 1. Affective Component - represents both the type of emotion linked with the attitude and the severity of the attitude. Page | 5 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY 2. Cognitive Component - involves beliefs and thoughts that make up the attitude. 3. Behavioral Component - relating to one’s actions – people do not just hold attitudes, they act on them as well. Stereotype - is a generalization about a group of people in which identical characteristics are assigned to virtually all members of the group, regardless of actual variation among the members. Reference Groups - A collection of people that we use as a standard of comparison for ourselves regardless of whether we are part of that group. - We rely on reference groups to understand social norms, which then shape our values, ideas, behavior, and appearance. This means that we also use them to evaluate the relative worth, desirability, or appropriateness of these things. - We use reference groups in order to guide our behavior and attitudes and help us to identify social norms. - Reference groups become the individual’s frame of reference and source for ordering his or her experiences, perceptions, cognition, and ideas of self. It is important for determining a person’s self-identity, attitudes, and social ties. These groups become the basis of reference in making comparisons or contrasts and in evaluating one’s appearance and performance. Informal & Formal Reference Groups 1. Informal Reference Groups - which means that they are based on the group members' shared interests and goals. Informal groups are not structured with a specific goal in mind. Group members interact on a very personal level. Examples of informal reference groups include: *Families *A group of local mothers Page | 6 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY *Peer groups 2. Formal reference groups - have a specific goal or mission. They also have a specific structure and positions of authority. Examples of formal reference groups include: *Labor unions *Mensa, a society for people with high IQ *Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Social Comparison Theory - is centered on the belief that there is a drive within individuals to gain accurate self-evaluations. Individuals evaluate their own opinions and define the self by comparing themselves to others. Social Networks - a social structure between actors, connecting them through various social familiarities. - a sociological concept for a set of social relations between network elements that interact and that are especially individuals. - It indicates the ways in which they are connected through various social familiarities, ranging from casual acquaintance to close familial bonds. - Social networks are the basic tools used by individuals to meet other people, recreate, and to find social support. “social network analysis” and “social network theory - It is the study of social networks. - Social network theory views social relationships in terms of nodes and ties. Nodes - are the individual actors within the networks. Ties - are the relationships between the actors. Basic types of social network in the organization are: 1. Formal organizational structure Page | 7 MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY - Its influence on the events and decision making in the organization is greater in less authoritative management styles and types of the organizations. 2. Informal organizational structure - It is more influential on what is happening in the organization than the formal organizational structure. Page | 8  MODULE: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND SOCIETY For further reading, please refer to the links below: https://www.thoughtco.com/reference-group- 3026518#:~:text=A%20reference%20group%20is%20a,ideas%2C%20behavior%2C%20and %20appearance. https://www.britannica.com/topic/network-sociology https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/society-and-culture/social- structures/a/what-are-social-groups-and-social-networks https://www.sociologygroup.com/primary-secondary-groups-meaning/ https://www.optimisticlearner.com/ingroup-vs-outgroup/ https://study.com/academy/lesson/reference-group-in-sociology-definition-examples- types.html References: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/boundless-sociology/chapter/types-of-social- groups/#:~:text=primary%20group%3A%20It%20is%20typically,close%2C%20personal%2C%20endu ring%20relationships.&text=Secondary%20groups%3A%20They%20are%20large,are%20impersonal %20and%20goal%2Doriented. https://www.sociologygroup.com/primary-secondary-groups-meaning/ https://www.optimisticlearner.com/ingroup-vs-outgroup/ https://study.com/academy/lesson/reference-group-in-sociology-definition-examples-types.html https://managementmania.com/en/social-network#:~:text=Social%20Psychology- ,Social%20network%20is%20a%20sociological%20concept%20for%20a%20set%20of,network%20el ements%20in%20the%20organization.&text=Informal%20organizational%20structure https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/society-and-culture/social-structures/a/what-are- social-groups-and-social-networks Page | 9