The Sociological Concept Of Social Structure

What is social structure, and how does it affect us as individuals? Thanks to our myriad of cultures around the world, we find ourselves comfortably situating ourselves into several groups within society. Within these groups, we each have our own statuses and roles to fulfill, which contribute to the way that society functions as a whole. The sociological concept of social structure is the foundation on which we can determine the individual and group behaviors that we study today.

Social structure is an underlying pattern of social relationships. We acquire these “mental maps” of how to behave when we are a part of a certain group; this behavior is not innate, but is learned from others. In learning these behaviors, we also must learn

A group is composed of people who are in contact with one another, share the same ways of thinking, take one another’s behavior into account, and have one or more interest or goal in common. Groups are important because they play a pivotal role in the lives of their participants, as well as influence the societies in which they exist. There are two distinctive types of groups: primary and secondary. A primary group is composed of people who are emotionally close, know one another well, and seek one another’s company. Primary groups are characterized by relationships that are intimate, personal, caring, and fulfilling. Secondary groups exist to accomplish a specific purpose, and are impersonal and goal-oriented. Although these secondary groups sound negative, they are oftentimes settings for primary relationships. Within both primary and secondary groups, cooperation is necessary, Cooperation is a form of interaction in which individuals of groups combine their efforts to reach some common

These organizations might include hospitals, high schools, colleges, and government agencies. Most formal organizations today are bureaucracies, which are formal organizations based on rationality and efficiency. These types of organizations have several distinct qualities, such as a division of labor based on the principle of specialization, a hierarchy of authority, organizational affairs which are based on a system of rules and procedures, and written records of activities kept by members of the organization. Statuses in the organization are considered full-time jobs, and employees of bureaucratic organizations do not own their positions. Many people today hear the word “bureaucracy” and immediately attach a negative connotation to it. Although bureaucracy is the most efficient type of organization, the formal rationality can possibly spread to all aspects of social life, “creating a dehumanizing social environment and entrapping everyone” (cite). Another disadvantage is Parkinson’s Law, which states that “Work always expands to fill the time available for its completion, and there is little relationship between the amount of work to be done and the size of the staff needed to do it” (cite). Bureaucracies, thus, can be extremely wasteful. The final true disadvantage of bureaucracy is that when people do well, they are promoted, but people are promoted again and again until they find