1. 1 Lesson 9 Social Structure and Personality

2. 2 Lesson Outline Social Structure Status Social Influence on Health Alienation

3. 3 Position and Social Structure Every person occupies a social position - a designated location in a social system. The ordered and persisting relationships among these positions make up the social structure. Institutions are comprised of social structure Institutions, then, are organized, patterned, and enduring sets of social structures that provide guidelines for behavior and help each society meet its basic survival needs –if all of this sounds terribly abstract, that is because institutions are abstractions. –You cannot touch institutions, yet they are as real as air or love or happiness.

4. 4 Social Structure Influences  Social structure influences a person’s life in the following three ways. 1. Every person occupies one or more positions in the social structure; each position carries with it a set of role expectations. 2. Each of us is woven into several networks. 3. Each of us occupies several positions of differing status.

5. 5 Influence of Social Structure Role Expectations –Every person occupies one or more positions in the social structure. Each position carries a role; a set of expectations about the behavior of the occupant of that position. Role expectations are anticipations of how a person will behave based on the knowledge of his/her position.

6. 6 Influence of Social Structure Social Networks –Sets of relationships associated with the various positions a person occupies. Primary relationships are personal, emotionally involving and of long duration and have a substantial effect on one’s behavior and self image. Now in digital form! 

7. 7 Social Networks The strength of weak ties…

8. 8 Influence of Social Structure Status is the social ranking of a person’s position. Each of us occupies several positions of differing status. occupational status In the United States, occupational status is especially influential. Occupational status is associated with prestige.

9. 9 Occupational Prestige in the U.S. Occupation ScoreOccupation Score Physician86Lawyer75 College professor74Registered nurse66 Electrical engineer64 Elementary school teacher 64 Police officer60Social Worker52 Dental hygienist52Office manager51 Electrician51Housewife51 Office secretary46Data Entry keyer41 continued next slide

10. 10 Occupational Prestige in the U.S. OccupationScoreOccupationScore Farmer40Auto mechanic36 Beautician36 Assembly-line worker 35 Housekeeper34 Precision Assembler 31 Truck driver30Cashier29 Waitress/waiter28 Garbage collector 28 Hotel chambermaid 20Househusband14

11. 11 Factors of Intergenerational Mobility  Three factors have a major impact on intergenerational mobility. –They are: Socioeconomic background Gender Occupation

12. 12 Socioeconomic Background  In the U.S., occupational attainment rests heavily on educational achievement. –Socioeconomic background and grades have an effect on occupational status and a effect on educational attainment. –Children raised in poor families will complete fewer years of school, are less likely to attend college, and are more likely to be poor as adults.

13. 13 Determinants of Socioeconomic Status  Family structure plays an important role in the attainment process. –America is not a caste society. One’s socioeconomic status is not fixed; peoples’ occupational attainment and earnings can improve (upward mobility) or worsen (downward mobility). In a caste system people do not have an opportunity for social mobility.

14. 14 Occupational Status Attainment Socioeconomic background influences ability, aspiration and educational attainment. Occupational status is affected by education and also by ability, aspirations and significant others. Ability includes grades, which affect encouragement from significant others and aspiration for educational attainment.

15. 15 Gender  Men have a better chance of being promoted than women have. –One longitudinal study indicated that men gained 9 points in status and women lost status within 18 years after high school graduation. –Women’s work careers are often interrupted by marriage and by raising children. 18 years after graduation, women’s average occupational prestige was 2 points lower than that of their first job.

16. 16 Girls & Math Self-fulfilling Prophecy  Many teachers and guidance counselors (and parents) believe girls are inferior at math and so they caution girls not to take advanced math or science courses. –This limits the number of females with the skills to fill high-end scientific professions. –When a person, male or female, believes he/she can’t do it, they perform poorly.

17. 17 Support for the Theory of Differential Socialization  Multiple studies of math skills and abilities find no gender difference in math performance in elementary or middle school. –However, boys performed significantly better in high school math than girls.  These results support the theory of differential socialization by gender.

18. 18 Occupational Segregation by Gender Occupational segregation has serious consequences for a woman’s earnings and occupational prestige.

19. 19 Educational Attainment by Ethnicity and Gender, 2003 WhiteBlackAsianHispanic MFMFMFMF High School Graduate or More 84.585.779.680.389.58656.357.8 College Graduate or more 29.425.916.717.853.946.111.211.6

20. 20 Gender and Annual Pay Differences 2007 Census Bureau Statistics Median Annual Earnings White man $40,976 White woman $32,552 Black man $31,200 Black woman $27,716 Hispanic man $27,042 Hispanic woman $24,596

21. 21 Social Networks  Varied experiences move people into different social networks. –Networks expose people to varied social contacts, which significantly effect their opportunities for upward mobility. –Most high-end professional jobs are acquired by networking; not from newspaper and internet ads.

22. 22 Occupational Roles  Occupational roles affect physical health in two ways. 1.Some occupations directly expose workers to health hazards. Coal miners face hazardous environmental conditions, bar tenders are exposed to cigarette smoke, and construction workers are exposed to asbestos. 2.Many occupational roles expose individuals to stressors that indirectly affect physical health. Almost every occupation exposes workers to stress

23. 23 Marital Roles Married men and women are less likely to report conditions such as back pain and headaches and limited activity. Widowed persons are more likely than divorced or separated people are to experience health problems.

24. 24 Marital Roles Married persons are less likely to engage in behaviors that expose them to accidents and illness. Marital stress indirectly affects health by increasing depression. People who experience marital stress are less likely to engage in pro-active health behavior such as exercise or healthy eating.

25. 25 Social Class and Health  In the United States, lower socio-economic groups experience higher death rates. –Mortality rates are highest among the single and poor. –Infant mortality is 2x’s higher among poor black infants. –Explanations: Lower class people are exposed to occupational hazards, consume more alcohol and smoke more cigarettes; those in higher socio-economic positions have control of their job choices and their health.

26. 26 Mental Health Stress is a major influence on mental health. Short term stressors may produce a temporary increase in stress-related symptoms or depression. Long term stressors may produce impaired psychological functioning.

27. 27 Marital Roles and Mental Health A study of 18-24 year old men and women, found that marriage improves well-being. Married men have better mental health than married women. The well-being of married persons reflects the beneficial effects of social support. Spouses provides social and emotional support; i.e., care, advice, and aid in times of stress.  Spillover occurs when the stress experience at work or in the family is carried over into the other domain.

28. 28 Social Networks and Mental Health Social networks ease the impact of stressful events by providing: –Emotional support - letting us know they care –Esteem support - providing positive feedback about our abilities and worth as a person. –Informational support – information about available health and treatment options. –Instrumental support - money, labor, time.

29. 29 Alienation Alienation is the sense that one is uninvolved in the social world and/or lacks control over it. Two types of Alienation: –Self-Estrangement is the awareness that one is engaging in activities that are not rewarding in themselves. –Powerlessness is the sense of having little or no control over events.

30. 30 People Like Us  Social class’ impact affect every facet of our lives. Social class