Groups & Organizations

Part 1: Social Structure

• DEFINITION: socially defined position within a group or society

• Status Set:• Refers to EVERY status

that an individual holds at any given point in time

Social Structure: Status

Ascribed v. Achieved Status

• Ascribed Status: • A status assigned according to

standards that are beyond a person’s control

• Achieved Status:• A status acquired by an individual

on the basis of some special skill, knowledge or ability

Ascribed v. Achieved Status?

• DEFINITION: a social position that holds exceptional importance for identity, often shaping a person’s entire life

• What is your master status right now?

Master Status

Social Structure: Role• DEFINITION: the behavior

expected of someone occupying a particular status

• The dynamic expression of status• Role Conflict:• The incompatibility among roles

corresponding to two or more statuses

Part 2: Social Groups

• Social Group• Social Category• Social Aggregate

Types of Social Gatherings

• Social Group: collection of people who interact, share similar characteristics and have a sense of unity

• Social Category: collection of people who do not interact, but who share similar characteristics

• Social Aggregate: at any given time, a collection of people who are together but who interact very little

Types of Social Gatherings

Primary & Secondary Groups

• Primary Group:• Small social group whose

members share personal & enduring relationships

• Secondary Group:• Large & impersonal social group

whose members pursue a specific interest or activity

Social Networks• Social Network:• The web of relationships that is

formed by the sum total of a person’s interactions with other people

• Includes direct & indirect relationships

Six Degrees of Separation?

• Experiment by Stanley Milgram in 1967

• Study has been questioned, but theory is interesting…randomly select 2 people in different parts of country and see how many connections would it take to link them

• 2011 Facebook study – average number of links 4.74 (less in US – 4.37)

Part 3: Group Dynamics

• Dyad: Group of 2• Most intimate• Each member has direct control

over group existence• Triad: Group of 3• No one person can disband group• Easier decision-making

Size Matters!

• What is happens to groups as they get larger?

Size Matters!

• Characteristics of In-Groups:

• Titles, external symbols & dress • Competition with members of the

out-group; strengthens unity within each group

• Apply positive stereotypes to the in-group; negative stereotypes to the out-group

In-Groups v. Out-Groups

• Conformity:• a change in beliefs

or actions that results in adherence to group norms

• How susceptible are individuals to group pressure?

Conformity within Groups

Conformity within Groups• Pressure to Conform:• Strength of social

pressure • Immediacy of social pressure• Number of people involved in

the source of social pressure

Conformity within Groups• Asch Experiment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYIh4MkcfJA

• WYFFT Elevator Clip:• http://

abcnews.go.com/WhatWouldYouDo/video/fall-elevator-19922451

• Compliance: a change in behavior prompted by a direct request rather than social norms; obedience

• 6 Primary Factors: • Friendship, commitment, scarcity,

reciprocity, social validation, authority…

Compliance in Groups

Compliance in Groups

• Milgram Experiment: • http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwqNP9HRy7Y

• Expressive Leaders:• Affiliation motivated• Cooperative style of management• Instrumental Leaders:• Achievement motivated• Directive style of management

Group Leadership

Part 4: Performance in Groups

Group Behavior

• Group-Think:• When members of a

cohesive group endorse a single explanation or answer, usually at the expense of ignoring reality

• No toleration of dissenting opinions

Group Behavior

• Group-Think happens when there is:

• A strong, persuasive group leader• A high level of group cohesion• Intense pressure from the outside

to make a good decision

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

• Social Loafing:• The tendency to

work less when responsibility for an outcome is spread throughout several members of a group

Loafing & Compensation

Loafing & Compensation

• Social Compensation:• The tendency to work harder

when one is part of a group, rather than when he or she is alone

Pro-social Behavior• DEFINITION: acting to benefit

others• More likely to help if:• Have a high need for approval• Personal and social responsibility • Sense of empathy

Pro-social Behavior• More likely to be helped by others

if:• Perceived as a potential leader• Not responsible for predicament• Member of helper’s group• Bystander Effect:• The more people present, the

less likely each individual is to help someone in distress

Part 5: Formal Organizations

• Utilitarian Organizations:

• An organization that provides material benefits in exchange for labor

Formal Organizations

• Normative Organizations:

• An organization that pursues what they believe to be a morally worthwhile goal

Formal Organizations

• Coercive Organizations:

• An organization that serves as a form of punishment & treatment

Formal Organizations