McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-1 McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. SOCIOLOGY: A Brief Introduction Richard T. Schaefer Sixth Edition

chapter McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. CHAPTER OUTLINE Social Interaction and Reality Elements of Social Structure Social Structure in Global Perspective Social Policy and Social Structure: The AIDS Crisis 5 SOCIAL INTERACTION AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-3 Social Interaction and Reality █ Reality is shaped by our perceptions, evaluations, and definitions █ Social reality literally constructed from social interactions (Berger and Luckman 1996) █ Our response to someone’s behavior is based on meaning we attach to his or her actions

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-4 Social Interaction and Reality

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-5 Social Interaction and Reality –The ability to define social reality reflects a group’s power within society Members of subordinate groups challenge traditional definitions and begin to perceive and experience reality in a new way █ Defining and Reconstructing Reality

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-6 Social Interaction and Reality –Negotiated Order Negotiation: attempt to reach agreement with others concerning the same objective. –People reshape reality by negotiating changes in patterns of social interaction Negotiated order: social structure that derives its existence from the social interactions through which people define and redefine its character █ Defining and Reconstructing Reality

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-7 Elements of Social Structure █ Statuses –Status Refers to any of the socially defined positions within a large group or society. A person holds more than one status simultaneously.

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-8 Elements of Social Structure Ascribed Status: status one is born with Achieved Status: status one earns –Master Status Status that dominates others and determines person’s general position in society Societies deal with inconsistencies by agreeing that certain statuses are more important than others. █ Statuses –Ascribed and Achieved Status

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. 5-9 Elements of Social Structure █ Figure 5.1: Social Statuses

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved –Sets of expectations for people who occupy a given status Significant component of social structure –Role Conflict Occurs when incompatible expectations arise from two or more social positions held by the same person. █ Social Roles Elements of Social Structure

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved –Role Strain Difficulties that arise when the same social position imposes conflicting demands and expectations –Role Exit Process of disengagement from a role that is central to one’s identity in order to establish a new role and identity █ Social Roles Elements of Social Structure

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved █ Groups –Any number of people with similar norms, values, and expectations who interact with each other on a regular basis. Every society composed of many groups in which daily social interaction takes place Elements of Social Structure

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Elements of Social Structure –Social network: series of social relationships that links person directly to others, and indirectly links them to still more people –Networking: involvement in social network; valuable skill when job-hunting We can now maintain social networks electronically with advances in technology █ Social Networks and Technology

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Elements of Social Structure –Organized patterns of beliefs and behavior centered on basic social needs Provide insight into structure of society █ Social Institutions

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved █ Functionalist View –Five major tasks (functional prerequisites) a society or major group must accomplish Elements of Social Structure Preserving order Providing and maintaining a sense of purpose Replacing personnel Teaching new recruits Producing and distributing goods and services

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved –Social institutions have inherently conservative nature –Social institutions operate in gendered and racist environments Elements of Social Structure █ Conflict View –Major institutions help maintain privileges of most powerful individuals and groups within society

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved –Social behavior conditioned by roles and statuses Elements of Social Structure █ Interactionist View –Social institutions affect our everyday behavior

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective –Mechanical solidarity: refers to collective consciousness that emphasizes group solidarity, implying that all individuals perform the same tasks –Organic solidarity: refers to collective consciousness that hinges on need a society’s members have for one another █ Durkheim’s Mechanical and Organic Solidarity

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective –Gemeinschaft (guh-MINE-shoft): small community in which people have similar backgrounds and life experiences –Gesellschaft (guh-ZELL-shoft): large community in which people are strangers and feel little in common with other community residents █ Tönnie’s Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective Continued…

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective –Views human societies as undergoing change according to a dominant pattern, known as sociocultural evolution. █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach “Process of change and development in human societies resulting from growth in their stores of cultural information” (Lenski et al. 2004:366)

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective –Society’s level of technology critical to way it is organized █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach Technology: “Cultural information about how to use the material resources of the environment to satisfy human needs and desires” (Nolan and Lenski 2004:366)

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective Hunting-and-Gathering Society: people rely on whatever foods and fibers are readily available █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach –Preindustrial Societies Composed of small, widely dispersed groups

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective People plant seeds and crops Less nomadic –Agrarian Societies: primarily engaged in production of food. █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach –Horticultural Societies Use technological innovations like the plow for dramatic increases in food production

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective Depend on mechanization to produce their goods and services –Rely on inventions and energy sources –Change the function of the family as a self-sufficient unit. █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach –Industrial Societies

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective Postindustrial Society: economic system is engaged primarily in the processing and control of information Postmodern Society: technologically sophisticated society preoccupied with consumer goods and media images Continued... █ Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach –Postindustrial and Postmodern Societies

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Structure in Global Perspective

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure While there are encouraging new therapies developed to treat AIDS, there is currently no way to eradicate AIDS by medical means. How can people be protected and whose responsibility is it? █ The AIDS Crisis –The Issue

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure AIDS is on the increase, with an estimated 40 million people infected and over 3 million dying annually. █ The AIDS Crisis –The Setting Not evenly distributed Developing nations of sub-Saharan Africa face greatest challenge

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure A dramatic crisis like AIDS epidemic likely to bring about certain transformations in a society’s social structure Functionalist perspective: If established social institutions cannot meet a crucial need, new social networks are likely to emerge to fill that function █ The AIDS Crisis –Sociological Insights

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure Conflict Perspective: Policymakers slow to respond to the AIDS crisis because those in high- risk groups—gays and IV drug users—were comparatively powerless. Interactionists widely forecast AIDS would lead to a more conservative sexual climate █ The AIDS Crisis –Sociological Insights Also concerned about impact of AIDS treatment on daily lives of those stricken with disease.

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure AIDS has struck all societies, but not all nations can respond in the same manner High cost of drug treatment generated intensive worldwide pressure on major pharmaceutical companies to lower prices Cultural practices may prevent people from dealing with AIDS epidemic realistically █ The AIDS Crisis –Policy Initiatives

McGraw-Hill © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Social Policy and Social Structure █ Figure 5.2: People Living with HIV/AIDS, 2003