What is a social aggregate in sociology

Sociology

The Importance of Groups

Human behavior cannot be properly analyzed in purely individual terms.

Groups provide a foundation for shared meaning.

Groups are vital to identity formation.

Human life is lived largely in group contexts.

One of the foundational assumptions of sociology is that we—human beings—are social creatures. We do not live in isolation or exist in a state of nature. Because of this, we must be understood within the context of the various groups of people with whom we associate, ranging from family to nation, from social groups to student groups, and beyond.

“Genie”-Susan Wiley https://www.youtube.com/watch?v =6H2POnmvbPo

Genie lacked social skills that are learned in the process of group interaction; she wasn’t socialized. She was unable to do many things, including learning to use a toilet, learning to walk upright, and generally displayed a lack of interest in the human activity around her. She seemed mentally impaired and had great difficulty learning a human language.

Group life is essential to the social construction of reality or:

The ongoing, iterative, and interpretive process of creating and recreating the worlds in which we live.

The process of social construction is group work, from the intimate (Family and friends) to the institutional (Schools, cities, global economies).

Group interaction impacts our lives on a fundamental level.

Groups and Shared Meaning

Group interaction is where we learn how to operate within the culture/society of which we are a part.

Groups are where we learn:

Language - influences Perception

Provides Cultural continuity.

Values-Ideas held by individuals or groups about what is desirable, proper, good and bad.

Norms-Rules of Conduct that specify appropriate behavior in a given range of social situations.

Social Groups

Social groups are:

People who interact with each other and share a sense of identity

People who have a shared set of social expectations and values (a set of social norms)

Typically, there is some awareness of social boundaries.

© 2014 W.W. Norton & Co., Inc.

Groups are more than collections of people in the same place (a social aggregate). Classes, for example, are social aggregates consisting of rooms full of students. Groups are also more than people who share some characteristic like race or gender; that would be a social category. All people with blue eyes or dark skin, for example, make up social categories, but they may or may not be groups. Sometimes social aggregates and social categories are groups, but this is not necessarily so.

So what exactly are groups? Social groups consist of people who feel a sense of membership, interact with each other, and have some shared set of social norms.

Groups differ from…

Social Aggregate: A collection of people who happen to be together in a particular place but do not significantly interact or identify with one another (e.g. People shopping in a grocery store)

Social Category: People who share identity characteristics but who do not interact with one another (e.g. Women)

SOCIAL AGGREGATE NOT A GROUP!!!

IN Group/Out Group

In-groups and out-groups: “us” and “them”

Belonging

In-Groups: Groups for which one has a particular loyalty to or respect.

Out-Groups: Groups towards which one has antagonism or contempt

Levels of Group Organization

Primary Group: Small groups characterized by face to face interaction, intimacy, and a strong sense of commitment. (e.g. Friends and Family)

Secondary Group: Large and impersonal groups that often involve fleeting relationships. (e.g. Workplace, schools)

How we locate our groups in relation to others

Reference Group: a group that provides as standard for judging attitudes and behaviors

How does group belonging effect our lives?

Social Capital: The social knowledge and connections that enable people to accomplish their goals and extend their influence

:It’s Not What you Know, but Who you know.”

It is about both what AND who you know.

Impression management, class, and status

Class and status aren’t just about having money, there is also a certain degree of impression management, in addition to loads of money, that must happen for one to be accepted into the realms of the upper class

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf2dScTlvOQ

LEADERSHIP

Group Leadership

Leader: person who is able to influence the actions and direction of the group.

Transformational Leaders: Go beyond the routine and instill in group members a sense of mission or higher purpose which thereby changes the nature of the group itself.

Transactional Leaders: concerned with accomplishing tasks, getting members to do their jobs, and making sure the group achieves its goals.

CONFORMITY

Conformity: The Research

People largely conform to group norms.

Three important studies to know:

Solomon Asch: Group pressure

Stanley Milgram: Obedience to authority

Irving L. Janis: Groupthink

© 2014 W.W. Norton & Co., Inc.

In groups the vast majority of people conform to the norms and expectations of the group. Even so-called nonconformists typically conform to a set of norms, just a different set than more “mainstream” individuals. For example, think about skateboarding culture, which is often presented as a rebellious, outsider type of culture. If you look the world over—and there are actual studies that have done this—there is a common culture, a shared set of norms and values, that permeates those who adopt this group as their own. Those who do not conform to certain basic values will ultimately feel uncomfortable in the group.

Three studies that are cited repeatedly when discussing conformity are Asch (1952), Milgram (1963), and Janis (originally 1972). Asch found that in response to group pressure, study subjects would choose an answer they knew was incorrect rather than challenge the group. Milgram found that people would violate their own values under the weight of authority. And Janis found that members of a group will tune out information that contradicts firmly held positions of the group; he called this groupthink. Each of these well-known studies illustrates the power of the group over the individual.

Conformity

Group influence is POWERFUL!!!

Studies have shown evidence that group members will go against known truths to side with a group’s position (Asch)

We have also talked about studies where someone in authority was able to get subordinates to hurt people (Milgram)

Groupthink: The process by which group members ignore ways of thinking that go against group consensus.

Dangers of Conformity

WHEN NOBODY ACTS

Networks

Network: A set of formal and informal ties that Link people to one another

The Internet: It is now possible to radically extend one’s social networks across the globe to reach like minded people in a way that was impossible 15 years ago

Because of the internet, shared interests rather than social location have become a primary marker of group identification

We have seen the power of internet based social networking in the Arab Spring and the Occupy protests.

Thanks Internet!!!

The internet has allowed communities to flourish online and helped individuals find allies and friends where they once couldn‘t.

The internet is a revolutionary tool for expanding and diversifying group life by making groups more accessible, and easing organizational processes.

The Innovators

…the people who were actually building this system, they weren't really thinking about Russian attacks. They were kind of rebellious anti-authoritarian types — they wanted power to the people. They called it "computing power to the people." And so they created a system in which every node on the Internet has the ability to store, to forward, to originate information. ... This decentralized system made it hard for the Russians to blow it up, but it also made it hard for the government or corporations to control the Internet. ...

Open Networks

…notion of controlling information is obsolete in the Internet age, “when anyone with a cellphone can spread offensive views around the world with the click of a button.”-Barack Obama, 2012

But it doesn’t mean that the powers that be aren’t fighting tooth and nail to wrangle the free flow of information via the internet…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-xSP_T0VqU

INTRO TO SOCIOLOGY

WELCOME!!!

Please file in, take a seat, and enjoy the music.

We will begin shortly…

Groups, Networks, and Organizations

Organizations

Organization: A group with an identifiable membership that engages in concerted collective actions to achieve a common purpose

What are some examples of organizations?

Bureaucracies

Bureaucratic organizations are rationalized systems rooted in 4 basic elements:

Efficiency

Calculability

Predictability

Control

Organizational Theory

Bureaucracy:

Clear cut hierarchy of authority

Written rules govern conduct of officials

There is a clear separation between the bureaucracy and the personal lives of the bureaucratic officials

None of the officials have any moneyed interest in the organization

Bureaucracy (Cont’d)

Minus: Overly strict reliance on rules impedes creative solutions to problems

The top down rule of a bureaucracy impedes democratic practices because much of the decisions are made by a handful of managers

Embedded in bureaucracies is a gender segregation that is unequal. Women tend not to rise as high as men (Glass Ceiling).

Bureaucracy and Democracy

The iron law of oligarchy: large organizations tend toward centralization of power. Because of this, democratic decision making is difficult.

Oligarchy: Rule by a small minority within an organizations or society.

New Organizational Models:

Lateral and Bottom up organization

Valuing voices that aren’t managers

Two other sociological approaches to organizations are the iron law of oligarchy and feminist approaches.

Very briefly, oligarchy theories emphasize the anti-democratic tendencies of bureaucracies, noting their hierarchical authority structures, which by definition concentrate power in the hands of a few at the top. Robert Michels, who was a student of Weber’s, explicated this position, arguing that in modern societies constituted by bureaucracies, the rule of the few jeopardizes democratic systems.

Organizational Alternatives to Bureaucracy

New organizational models that encourage bottom up, lateral, and decentralized decision making have made their way into modern corporate life.

In many cases they have replaced the top-down traditional bureaucratic model.

Review

Groups are collections of people with shared identity and regular interaction.

Groups have clearly defined boundaries (In/Out).

Larger groups, with more formal rules, are called organizations.

Belonging to groups gives people Social Capital, or the ability to accomplish goals and extend influence.

Groups help us form our identities.

Group Belonging, Identity & Social Capital

On a sheet of paper:

Write about a group to which you belong.

How does it give you social capital?

How does it reinforce your social identity? How does belonging influence your self identity?

How is your group Organized?

Is there an out group to your in group? If so, explain.

Review

Groups are collections of people with shared identity and regular interaction.

Groups have clearly defined boundaries (In/Out).

Larger groups, with more formal rules, are called organizations.

Belonging to groups gives people Social Capital, or the ability to accomplish goals and extend influence.

Groups help us form our identities.

Example of a group to which you belong

You are a student at Laney College (Organization, Reference group).

You are now in the group “Students of Nathaniel Pyle PhD”

Does that give you any social capital???