Social Structure

Books on Social Structure, Abstracts, Bibliography, Syllabus, Journals, Social Class

Social structure is the patterned and relatively stable arrangement of roles and statuses found within societies and social institutions.

The idea of social structure points out the way in which societies, and institutions within them, exhibit predictable patterns of organization, activity and social interaction.

Stability of organization and behaviour provides the quality of predictability that people rely on in every day social interaction. Social structures are inseparable from cultural norms and values that also shape status and social interaction.

One of society's major functions is to facilitate the assimilation of its constituents. Successful assimilation serves two goals: it encourages the maintenance and growth of the social system, and it gives each person a sense of his or her location within the social structure. In consequence, it is to the advantage of both society and the individual that the latter comes to adopt an understanding of the social system and one's place in it that is shared by all its members; this understanding not only includes a sense of personal identity, but also an appreciation of the roles one will take as a participating member of society. - Professor Gregory Elliott

Social Institutions, Social Norms, Social Roles, Social Statuses and Social Values are intrinsic to social structure:

Social Institutions
A pattern of social interaction, having a relatively stable structure, that persists over time. Institutions have structural properties - they are organized - and they are shaped by cultural values. Thus, for example, the ‘institution of marriage’, in western societies, is structurally located in a cohabiting couple and regulated by norms about sexual exclusiveness, love, sharing, etc. There is not full agreement about the number or designation of social institutions in a society but the following would typically be included: family, economy, politics, education, health care, media.

Social Norms
A culturally established rule prescribing appropriate social behaviour. Norms are relatively specific and precise and elaborate the detailed behavioural requirements that flow from more general and overarching social values . For example, it is a value in Western society that one should respect the dead, it is a norm that one should dress in dark colours for a funeral.

Social Roles
A position, or status, within a social structure that is shaped by relatively precise behavioural expectations (norms). A role has been described as the active component of status. The individual, placed within a status in a social structure, performs their role in a way shaped by normative expectations. Individuals have varying ideas about normative standards and their own unique values, so role behaviour is not standardized, however radical departure from expected role behaviour will usually result in social sanctions.

Social Statuses
A position in a social structure regulated by norms and usually ranked according to power and prestige. Status differs from class in that it is a measure of a person's social standing or social honour in a community. Individuals who share the same social class may have very divergent status. For example, people's status is affected by ethnic origin, gender and age as well as their level of recognition in the community. While status is statistically related to class it is common for individuals to have inconsistent class and status locations. Most sociologists use both the concepts of class and status to describe the systems of social stratification (the way individuals are ranked in various hierarchies of income, wealth, authority and power) found in societies.

Social Values
Relatively general cultural prescriptions of what is right, moral and desirable. Values provide the broad foundations for specific normative regulation of social interaction.

Books On Social Structure

Social Structures Book by John Levi Martin
John Levi Martin closely examines social structures from a stunning range of scopes and eras.

Social Structure & Mobility in Economic Development Book by Neil J. Smelser (Editor), Seymour Martin Lipset (Editor)

The Social Structures Of The Economy Book by Pierre Bourdieu

Transition from School to Work: Individual Life Courses Within Social Structures (Issues In Education) Book by Chew Siew Ghee

Marginality, Power and Social Structure : Issues in Race, Class, and Gender Analysis (Research in Race and Ethnic Relations) Book by Rutledge Dennis

Change And Stability: Cross-national Analysis Of Social Structure And Personality Book by Melvin L. Kohn

The Social Structure of Postindustrial Societies : From Classes and Strata to Social Milieus and Lifestyles Book by Stefan Hradil

Human Behavior and the Larger Social Environment : A New Synthesis Book by Miriam McNown Johnson, Rita Rhodes

Social Structure and Party Choice in Western Europe : A Comparative Longitudinal Study Book by Oddbjorn Knutsen

Drug And Alcohol Consumption As Functions Of Social Structures: A Cross-cultural Sociology (Mellen Studies in Sociology) Book by James E. Hawdon, James Hawdon

Inequality: Structures, Dynamics and Mechanisms : Essays in Honor of Aage B. Sorensen (Research in Social Stratification and Mobility) Book by Arne L. Kalleberg, Stephen L. Morgan, John Myles, Rachel A. Rosenfeld

The Stag Hunt and the Evolution of Social Structure Brian Skyrms' study of ideas of cooperation and collective action.

Social Structure - Journals - The Journal of Social Structure (JoSS) is an electronic journal of the International Network for Social Network Analysis (INSNA). It facilitates timely dissemination of state-of-the-art results in the research area of social structure.   - cmu.edu/joss

Social Structure - Abstracts and Full Texts

Social structure and ethnicity
Sociologie Romāneasca, 2001, 1-4, 97-123.
Abstract - The paper attempts a theoretical and empirical analysis of the relationship between ethnic affiliation, social stratification and ethnic attitudes in Central and Eastern Europe, and in Romania in particular. In the first part of the paper I examine the main theoretical constructs involved in explaining the relationship between stratification and ethnic affiliation, ethnic stratification and class stratification, and the role of market mechanisms in the dynamics of social and ethnic stratification. Ethnic intolerance tends to be higher in the lower social strata.   sociologieromaneasca.ro/eng/2001/abstracts/sr2001.a05.htm

Kin Groups and Social Structure - by Roger M., Keesing
Abstract - This text examines the evolution of kinship and social structure.   amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0030128463/002-9971113-3616862

Cross-national Research on Social Structure and Personality - soc.jhu.edu/people/Kohn/410crossnatlres.pdf

History, social structure and individualism: a cross-cultural perspective on Japan. International Journal of Comparative Sociology; 2/1/1998; Schooler, Carmi

Social structure, political institutions, and mobilization potential.
Social Forces; 12/1/1995; McVeigh, Rory

Social structure and competition in interfirm networks: the paradox of embeddedness. Uzzi, Brian - Introduction Extract -Administrative Science Quarterly; 3/1/1997.

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