Social Structure - Definitions and Concepts

Definitions and Concepts

As noted above, social structure has been identified as

• the relationship of definite entities or groups to each other,
• enduring patterns of behaviour by participants in a social system in relation to each other, and
• institutionalised norms or cognitive frameworks that structure the actions of actors in the social system.

Lopez and Scott (2000) distinguish between institutional structure and relational structure, where in the former:

whereas in the latter:

Social structure can also be divided into microstructure and macrostructure. Microstructure is the pattern of relations between most basic elements of social life, that cannot be further divided and have no social structure of their own (for example, pattern of relations between individuals in a group composed of individuals - where individuals have no social structure, or a structure of organizations as a pattern of relations between social positions or social roles, where those positions and roles have no structure by themselves). Macrostructure is thus a kind of 'second level' structure, a pattern of relations between objects that have their own structure (for example, a political social structure between political parties, as political parties have their own social structure). Some types of social structures that modern sociologist differentiate are relation structures (in family or larger family-like clan structures), communication structures (how information is passed in organizations) and sociometric structures (structures of sympathy, antipathy and indifference in organisations - this was studied by Jacob L. Moreno).

Social rule system theory reduces the structures of (3) to particular rule system arrangements, that is, the types of basic structures of (1 and 2). It shares with role theory, organizational and institutional sociology, and network analysis the concern with structural properties and developments and at the same time provides detailed conceptual tools needed to generate interesting, fruitful propositions and models and analyses.

Sociologists also distinguish between:

• normative structure — pattern of relations in given structure (organisation) between norms and modes of operations of people of varying social positions
• ideal structure — pattern of relations between beliefs and views of people of varying social positions
• interest structure — pattern of relations between goals and desires of people of varying social positions
• interaction structure — forms of communications of people of varying social positions