Sociology Chapter 5 Groups Show The Class Video Groups That

CHAPTER 5: SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND SOCIAL INTERACTION

BRIEF CHAPTER OUTLINE

I. What Is Society?

A. Macroanalysis and Microanalysis

B. Social Institutions

C. Social Structure

II. What Holds Society Together?

1. Define society and social interaction, contrasting macro- and micro-level analyses.

2. Compare and contrast different ways society is held together.

KEY TERMS (listed in text)

achieved status (114)

ascribed status (114)

impression management (121)

macroanalysis (105)

preindustrial society (109)

role (115)

role conflict (115)

social interaction (105)

social organization (106)

social structure (107)

KEY PEOPLE

Marilyn Frye (107)

Harold Garfinkel (121)

LECTURE OUTLINE

I. What Is Society?

1. Human society is a system of social interaction that includes both

culture and social organization.

4. Sui generis means that society is more than just the sum of its parts. It is an

organismic entity comprised of different parts working together to create a

unique whole.

a. The life of a society is patterned on social interactions and is

A. Macroanalysis and Microanalysis

1. Social organization – the order that brings regularity and predictability to

2. Macroanalysis – a sociological approach that takes the broadest view of

B. Social Institutions – established and organized systems of social

behavior with recognized purposes and objectives.

1. The major institutions in society include the family, education, work and

the economy, the political institution (or state), religion, health care, mass

3. Conflict theory notes that social institutions do not meet the needs of all

people equally. In the United States, race and ethnicity, class, and gender

C. Social Structure

1. Social structure, the organized pattern of social relationships and social

institutions that together compose society, is observable in the established

patterns of social interaction and social institutions, such as social class

distinctions.

II. What Holds Society Together?

1. Emile Durkheim argued that collective consciousness develops from

people’s participation in common activities and defines it as the body of

A. Mechanical and Organic Solidarity – Durkheim identified two types of

social solidarity:

1. Mechanical solidarity arises when individuals play similar roles within

2. Organic solidarity (or contractual solidarity) arises in societies in

B. Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft

1. Ferdinand Tönnies classified societies/communities in terms of their

predominant form of social solidarity. He contended that societies are held

 a sense of personal loyalty

3. In contrast, societies marked by gesellschaft (“society”) have

 an elaborated division of labor (organic or contractual

solidarity) that makes gesellschaft cohesive

III. Types of Societies

1. The key driving force that distinguishes these different societies from each

A. Preindustrial Societies – use, modify, and/or till the land as a major means

of survival, and can be any of four types: foraging (hunting-gathering),

pastoral (domestication of animals), horticultural (use of hand tools to

cultivate the land), or agricultural (large-scale farming).

B. Industrial Societies – use machines and other advanced technologies to

produce and distribute goods and services.

1. Industrial societies rely upon a highly differentiated labor force and the

intensive use of capital and technology.

C. Postindustrial Societies – are economically dependent on the

production and distribution of services, information, and knowledge.

1. Highly advanced technologies (such as computers and robotics) are central to

the economy.

IV. Social Interaction and Society

A. Groups are collections of individuals who interact and communicate with each

other, share goals and norms, and possess a subjective awareness of themselves

as a distinct social unit.

B. Status is an established position in a social structure that carries with it a

degree of social rank, value, and prestige.

1. A status set is the combination of statuses an individual occupies

simultaneously.

C. A role is defined as the expectations that others have for a person

occupying a particular status. Statuses are occupied, roles are acted or

“played.”

1. A role set includes all the roles occupied by a person simultaneously (for

D. Everyday Social Interaction involves both verbal and nonverbal

communication. Verbal communication includes language, what you say

and to whom you say it. The meanings of nonverbal communication depend

heavily upon race, ethnicity, social class, and particularly, gender.

Nonverbal communication can take several forms:

1. Touch. Tactile communication involves any conveyance of meaning

through touch. Patterns of tactile communication are strongly

influenced by gender.

2. Use of Personal Space

a. Meaning is conveyed by proxemic communication, the amount of

space between interacting individuals.

3. Interpersonal Attraction

a. Social forces pattern the formation of pairs—including friendships,

4. Attraction can be scientifically predicted by:

a. Proximity. A strong determinant of attraction to others is living,

working, or having frequent contact with others in our vicinity.

b. Mere Exposure Effect. Our attraction to someone else is greatly

affected by the exposure effect. Overexposure can result from too

V. Theories About Analyzing Social Interaction

A. The Social Construction of Reality

1. Society is held together by a shared social reality, which is for the

B. The social construction of reality is central to symbolic interaction theory.

Ethnomethodology is a technique for studying human interaction by

deliberately disrupting social norms and observing how individuals attempt

to restore normalcy.

fragile they are.

C. Impression Management and Dramaturgy

1. Impression management is a term coined by Erving Goffman and is a

process by which people control how others will perceive them. It can be

actors on a stage in the drama of everyday social life.

D. Social Exchange Theory

1. The social exchange model of social interaction holds that our interactions

are determined by the rewards or punishments that we receive from others,

VI. An interaction that is rewarded is more likely to be repeated than an interaction that

is punished.

A. Interaction in Cyberspace

1. When two or more persons share a virtual reality experience via

communication and interaction with each other by personal computer or

LECTURE/DISCUSSION SUGGESTIONS

1. Cyberspace Interaction. If you have had students engage in online discussions by

this point in the term, guide a discussion on how these interactions differ from in-class

2. Statuses and Roles. Have students construct a list of their ascribed and achieved

statuses and their role set. Using their lists, generate a discussion on status

3. Nonverbal Communication. Use photographs or video clips to demonstrate forms of

nonverbal communication, particularly ones that reveal gender and racial-ethnic

differences. If you have students of diverse racial-ethnic backgrounds represented in

4. Social Solidarity. After September 11, 2001, there was a great focus on national unity

in the country. Share some examples of social scientists reflecting on the impact of the

5. Foraging Societies in Jeopardy. Students are often fascinated by foraging societies.

The !Kung Bushmen of Africa, for example, have been studied, filmed, and reported

6. Industrialization. Examine global economic, urbanization, and development

patterns and have the class discuss how industrialization affects urbanization, from

where and to where immigration is likely to occur, and where in the world

7. Groups. Show the class a video on groups that demonstrates the essential

characteristics of groups (i.e., membership requirements, cohesion, leadership,

8. Impression Management. Have your students discuss the most important people and

9. Dramaturgical analysis. Have your students write a short play involving their

10. Better Together. Discuss social capital as articulated in the book Bowling Alone

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. Appropriate Distance. Have students violate personal distance norms by standing

2. Impression Management. Based on the example in Doing Sociological Research

Box: “Vegetarians versus Omnivores: A Case Study of Impression Management,”

3. Ethnomethodology. Assign students to engage in ethnomethodological experiments,

such as playing a game of Scrabble and altering the normative way the game is played

4. Cyberspace Interaction. If students in your class have access to both online

discussions and Twitter, post a question (or pose it in class) asking them to reflect on

5. Pairing. Ask students to describe a pair they are currently a part of. Based on

the research presented in the textbook, what do they think explains their

attraction and what do they think is the likelihood that the pairing will last

long-term? Does their own experience confirm or contradict the research?

6. Service Learning. One avenue for students to experience community or social

solidarity is to participate in a service-learning experience. Most communities have

7. Gender-An Ascribed Status. Have students write a brief description about their

8. What holds society together? According to Durkheim, societies like the United States

are held together by organic solidarity or contractual solidarity. Does this concept have

VIDEO SUGGESTIONS (Videos with a * next to them have corresponding activities

below.)

Media Education Foundation (http://www.mediaed.org) has a number of excellent videos

and DVDs related to social interaction, including, for example:

 The Codes of Gender, Identity & Performance in Popular Culture (2009, 72 min.)

From the description: Arguing that advertising not only sells things, but also ideas

about the world, media scholar Sut Jhally offers a blistering analysis of commercial

* The Breakfast Club (1985, 97 min.)

This classic 1980s movie explores the interpersonal dynamics of five prototypical

teenagers—each from, and representing, a markedly different social class and group—

A documentary that explores the question: In the age of manscaping,

metrosexuals, and grooming products galore, what does it mean to be a man?

Kid Nation (13 episodes, approx. 50 min. each)

This reality show gathered dozens of children and required them to create a functioning

Many Ways to See the World: A Thirty-Minute Tour of World Map Images (30 min.)

This short film looks at the political, social and scientific issues that influence how

Improv Everywhere

This group of improvisational performers organize and coordinate public spectacles that

are often useful in exploring norms, sanctions, statuses, etc. Perhaps most famous for

Gender and Communication: How Men and Women Communicate Differently (20 min.)

This DVD analyzes vignettes that illustrate the differences between male-male, male-

* TED Talks: Susan Cain: The Power of Introverts (19 min.)

In a culture where being social and outgoing are prized above all else, it can be

VIDEO ACTIVITIES

1. Students can view The Breakfast Club and analyze, either in a paper or in a

discussion, the process through which this disparate collection of representative

2. Have your students watch The Pill, then write a two-page essay on how the

3. Susan Cain makes some interesting points about introverts. Have a class discussion

about whether it is possible to be an introvert with all of the social networking going

INTERNET EXERCISES

1. Visit the website of Dr. John Suler’s online book, The Psychology of Cyberspace

2. The Rob Kling Center for Social Informatics website (https://rkcsi.sice.indiana.edu)

has several interesting topics on various social aspects of the Internet and

3. Virtual Community (https://www.well.com/about-2) is an excellent source of on-line

conversation and discussion. For more than 20 years it has captivated intelligent,

creative people. It is widely known as the place where the online community

4. The Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction (https://sssiorg.wordpress.com)

offers students a view of the topics and research used by symbolic interactionists.