Social Structure
The building blocks…
Social structure
Interrelated
statuses and roles that guide
human interaction
Status
A certain social position
A human label
Standing
A way to define relationships among individuals in
society in terms of their rights and obligations
Types of Status
Ascribed
Assigned by some fixed category with no regard to
individual performance
Based on inherited traits
Sex, race, age, religion, social class, nationality
Achieved
Usuallyearned through competition with others
Acquired by individuals on the basis of skill,
knowledge, abilities
Role
Behavior expected of a person occupying a
certain status
We all have reciprocal roles
Sometimes role expectations and role
performance do not match up
Doctor
Teacher
We all experience role conflict
How do we deal with it?
Set priorities
Compartmentalization of behaviors
Different set of principles under different situations
Role strain also is experienced
(overhead chart)