Social structure is the organized set of social institutions and patterns of institutionalized relationships that together compose society. Social structure is both a product of social interaction and directly determines it. Social structures are not immediately visible to the untrained observer, however, they are always present and affect all dimensions of human experience in society. Show
It is helpful to think about social structure as operating on three levels within a given society: the macro, meso, and micro levels. Social Structure: The Macro Level of SocietyWhen sociologists use the term "social structure" they are typically referring to macro-level social forces including social institutions and patterns of institutionalized relationships. The major social institutions recognized by sociologists include family, religion, education, media, law, politics, and economy. These are understood as distinct institutions that are interrelated and interdependent and together help compose the overarching social structure of a society. These institutions organize our social relationships to others and create patterns of social relations when viewed on a large scale. For example, the institution of family organizes people into distinct social relationships and roles, including mother, father, son, daughter, husband, wife, etc., and there is typically a hierarchy to these relationships, which results in a power differential. The same goes for religion, education, law, and politics. These social facts may be less obvious within the institutions of media and economy, but they are present there too. Within these, there are organizations and people who hold greater amounts of power than others to determine what happens within them, and as such, they hold more power in society. The actions of these people and their organizations behave as structuring forces in the lives of all of us. The organization and operation of these social institutions in a given society result in other aspects of social structure, including socio-economic stratification, which is not just a product of a class system but is also determined by systemic racism and sexism, as well as other forms of bias and discrimination. The social structure of the U.S. results in a sharply stratified society in which very few people control wealth and power — and they have historically tended to be white and male — while the majority has very little of either. Given that racism is embedded in core social institutions like education, law, and politics, our social structure also results in a systemically racist society. The same can be said for the problem of gender bias and sexism. Social Networks: The Meso Level Manifestation of Social StructureSociologists see social structure present at the "meso" level — between the macro and the micro levels — in the social networks that are organized by the social institutions and institutionalized social relationships described above. For example, systemic racism fosters segregation within U.S. society, which results in some racially homogenous networks. The majority of white people in the U.S. today have entirely white social networks. Our social networks are also a manifestation of social stratification, whereby social relations between people are structured by class differences, differences in educational attainment, and differences in levels of wealth. In turn, social networks act as structuring forces by shaping the kinds of opportunities that may or may not be available to us, and by fostering particular behavioral and interactional norms that work to determine our life course and outcomes. Social Interaction: Social Structure at the Micro Level of Everyday LifeSocial structure manifests at the micro level in the everyday interactions we have with each other in the forms of norms and customs. We can see it present in the way patterned institutionalized relationships shape our interactions within certain institutions like family and education, and it is present in the way institutionalized ideas about race, gender, and sexuality shape what we expect from others, how we expect to be seen by them, and how we interact together. ConclusionIn conclusion, social structure is composed of social institutions and patterns of institutionalized relationships, but we also understand it as present in the social networks that connect us, and in the interactions that fill our everyday lives. Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D. Cite this Article Format mla apa chicagoYour Citation Crossman, Ashley. "The Concept of Social Structure in Sociology." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/social-structure-defined-3026594 (accessed December 22, 2022). refers to divisions in society based on economic and social status. People in the same social class typically share a similar level of wealth, educational achievement, type of job and income.Class and Education Please enable JavaScript Class and EducationSocial Class is one of the most important concepts within AS and A Level Sociology because of the relationship between social class background and life chances (or lack of them) and the debate over the extent to which social class background determines an individual’s life chances. The concept of social class is certainly relevant today – according to the latest 2022 data from YouGov 68% of young people think that their life chances are ‘broadly determined’ by their parents socioeconomic backgrounds…  Many people in the United Kingdom have an idea of what social class is, but Sociologists define the concept in more precise terms. Below I look at ‘common conceptions’ of social class before moving on to look at two ways of measuring social class – The Registrar General’s Social Class Scale and The New British Class Survey Common Conceptions of Social ClassThe classic formulation of social class in Britain is to see Britain as being divided into three classes: working, middle and upper class. Social Class, is however, open to change, and most agree that the last two decades have seen the emergence of an underclass, with little prospect of full time employment. These four terms are in common usage and we have to start somewhere, so here are some starting definitions which you should aim to move beyond. Social Class Definition/ Defining Features Working class Those individuals engaged in manual work, often having low levels of educational achievement. The classic, traditional working class jobs include heavy labouring and factory based work. Middle class Those individuals engaged in non-manual work, often having higher levels of educational achievement. Classic middle class jobs include everything from doctors and lawyers to clerical workers. Upper class The elite class that controls the majority of wealth and power in British society. According to the UK government’s 2021 Social Mobility Barometer 48% of respondents defined themselves as working class, 36% as middle class and 0% as upper class. 79% of people said they felt there was a large gap between social classes today. This means that 84% of respondents were prepared to identify themselves with a particular social class background, which suggests that these broad ‘class divisions’ have meaning for people. The disadvantages of common conceptions of social class is that they lack clarity – although most of us have heard of social class and have some idea of what it means to be a member of a social class, exactly what constitutes middle or working class, for example, is subjective and varies from person to person. This is precisely why socologists have striven to develop more objective classifications of social class – and below I look at two of these – The registrar General’s Social Class Scale and the New British Class Survey The Registrar General’s Social Class Scale (1911)Sociologists use more nuanced categories of social class, than the common sense conceptions above. The way in which sociologists group people into social classes has changed considerably over time, mainly because of the changing occupational structure. To illustrate this just two examples are provided below. For most of the 20th Century social class was measured using the Registrar General’s Scale. When this was originally conceived in 1911 it was based on the alleged standing in the community of the different occupational groups. Occupations were divided into the following:
Registrar General’s Scale: 1911-Present Day Social Class Examples of occupation I Professional and managerial Accountant, doctor II Intermediate Teacher, farmer III Non-manual – skilled occupations Police officer, sales representative III Manual – skilled occupations Electrician, bus driver IV Semi-skilled manual Farm worker, postman/woman V Unskilled manual Labourer, cleaner Strengths and Limitations of the Registrar General’s Social Class ScaleThe problems with the above scale is that the occupational structure in the UK has moved on – there are many more unskilled non manual jobs – in call-centres for example, and there is no room for the long-term or intermittently unemployed in the above scale either. However, even today the majority of occupations fit pretty unambiguously into one of the categories, and six categories broadly organised along educational achievement and income is very easy to manage if we wish to make comparisons, and if we stick to these six simple categories, there does appear to be a historical relationship between these social class groupings and life chances – especially where life expectancy is concerned. The New British Class SurveyThe New British Class Survey was an attempt to update the Registrar General’s Social Class Scale and make it more relevant to contemporary Britain. The survey was conducted by the BBC in 2011, in conjunction with The London School of Economics, recently conducted an online survey of 161 000 people. The survey measured three aspects of social class – economic capital, cultural capital and social capital. Economic Capital – Measured by a combination of household income, household savings and the value of house owned. Cultural Capital – The level of engagement in ‘highbrow’ and ’emerging’ culture. The amount of ‘Highbrow’ culture people consumed was measured by scoring how engaged they were with classical music, attending stately homes and so on. How much ’emerging’ cultural capital people owned was measured by scoring engagement with video games, a preference for hip-hop etc. Social Capital – Measured using the average status or importance of people’s social contacts and the number of occupations people said they knew. According to this survey, there are now 7 new classes in the United Kingdom…..
Strengths and Limitations of the New British Class SurveyThis seems to be a clear improvement on previous class scales – it seems to describe social class divisions as they actually are in the UK (you might say it’s a more valid measurement of social class) – and the inclusion of ‘lowest’ class – the precariat reflects the important fact that many people are in low-paid work are in poverty because of the precarious nature of their flexible and/ or part-time employment. It also includes more indicators (or aspects of class) and reflects the importance of property ownership which only typically comes with age. However, because it includes more aspects of class and because it is more subjective, it is simply harder to ‘get your head around’ – the divisions aren’t as clear cut, and it’s more difficult to make comparisons – of which there are few available because this is such a new measurement. Still, these aren’t necessarily weaknesses if that’s the way social class really does manifest itself in reality in contemporary Britain. Related Posts – Mostly on ‘why class matters’Social Class, Income and Wealth Inequalities The Reproduction of the Social Class Inequality in Education Three ways in which family life varies by social class Research Task – Use this link to do the survey and find out more about your class background (you could either enter your parents‘ details, if you know them, or think about where you think you will be in 5-10 years time and enter those details. What are the types of social hierarchy?Sociologists generally posit three classes: upper, working (or lower), and middle. The upper class in modern capitalist societies is often distinguished by the possession of largely inherited wealth.
What are the three social statuses?There are three types of social statuses. Achieved status is earned based on merit; ascribed status is given to us by virtue of birth; and master status is the social status we view as the most important.
What are the 3 common basis of social stratification?Social stratification refers to the unequal distribution around the world of the three Ps: property, power, and prestige.
What is the highest social hierarchy?The term upper class refers to a group of individuals who occupy the highest place and status in society. These people are considered the wealthiest, lying above the working and middle class in the social hierarchy.
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