04.03.2020

Social and personal status of the individual. Social and personal status of the individual Social and personal status of the individual

Page
3

Second among the factors influencing the development of group cohesion is the group's history of success in completing past tasks. The more such successes there were, the higher the cohesion.

Certain characteristics of the group itself also lead to group cohesion. For example, whether group members have some kind of common goal leads to greater cohesion than no cohesion. The final contribution to group cohesion comes from the personal characteristics of group members. We already know that people like more those they know whose views are closer to their own. The more such people in a group, the more united it is.

Once developed, group cohesion can have a significant impact on the future of the group.

One consequence of group cohesion is that group members spend more time interacting with each other, thus increasing both the quantity and quality of group interactions. The second effect is that a cohesive group has big influence on its individual members.

Another consequence is that in a cohesive group, members experience greater job satisfaction, which is very important.

Finally, group cohesion is closely related to performance. Members of a more cohesive group will adhere to group performance attitudes to a greater extent than members of a less cohesive group. It should be remembered that group norms can both increase and decrease productivity.

Individual's status in the group

Status refers to an individual's rank, value, or prestige within a group, organization, or society. Status reflects the hierarchical structure of a group and creates vertical differentiation, just as roles separate different occupations. This is another way to reduce uncertainty and clarify what is expected of us. Like roles and norms, status exists both inside and outside the organizational environment. At the broadest level of analysis we call it social status. When we divide people according to their social status, we get social classes.

In addition to the social level, there is also a working level of division into statuses. Occupational prestige is the relative status of someone's profession. Occupational prestige is not the same as social status because it depends on only one variable, whereas social status includes everything. But here the question arises: why then do not all people strive to get a job associated with high prestige? The answer, based on research findings, is that the individually perceived prestige of a particular profession depends on family background.

Another important status concept relevant to work is called organizational status. Organizational status refers to the informal divisions that take place within an organization. Just like social status, organizational status includes not one variable, but several (for example, position in the organizational hierarchy, professional affiliation and productivity).

Status refers to an individual's group-recognized rank within an organization. Status helps clarify how a person should behave towards others and how they should behave in return.

Status symbols are objects or distinctive signs that define someone's level of status in a group or organization. Status symbols include military insignia, special clothing for judges and doctors, as well as, for example, office furnishings and the presence or absence of a personal secretary for managers. It should be noted that some symbols can increase a person's status in some circumstances and decrease it in others.

As a rule, people with higher status tend to play a dominant role in the organization and take more initiative. There is, however, one problem here. Since many variables make up organizational status, it is unclear which one causes these differences in behavior.

During our lives, status changes many times. And changes in status imply that a person must sometimes radically change his behavior. At the same time, the question of what exactly should be changed and what should be learned remains open. Situations in which there is no clearly defined sequence of events always cause anxiety.

A condition called status inconsistency occurs when a person meets some of his characteristics and, according to others, does not meet the requirements of his status. The same problem arises when making decisions about promotion career ladder. People do not like the fact that someone who is inferior to them in some characteristics occupies a higher position than them. All of this suggests that status incongruence may lead to motivational and behavioral problems. Two obvious solutions to this problem are to select or appoint only those people who fully satisfy the requirements of status, and to change the group's opinion about what is appropriate for high status and what should lead to its achievement. But it should be recognized that both of these methods are too complex to be used in practice.

Code of Conduct

In any group, even one that works for a short period of time, it is easy to notice certain patterns in the behavior of its members. These patterns are called social norms. Norms reflect the shared beliefs of all group members about what is expected of them as acceptable behavior. The difference between norms and roles is that roles separate people and force them to act differently from one another, while norms, on the contrary, unite group members by showing how group members act in the same way.

The definition of norms itself contains two important characteristics. First, norms include fairly clear ideas about what behavior is acceptable. Secondly, there are some agreements between group members regarding these ideas. In addition to these two characteristics, several more properties of norms can be identified. The first is that norms generally involve an element of ought, that is, descriptions of how someone “should” behave. Secondly, norms are more obvious and more easily recognized by people, which is very important for the group. Third, norms are enforced by the group itself. Many work behaviors are established and controlled by the organization itself, while norms are regulated within groups. Fourth, there is wide variation in the group's acceptance of norms and the extent to which deviant behavior is considered acceptable.

The above last property of norms requires additional explanation. It is important to note that there is some variation in the norms, that is, the norms do not set the exact parameters of behavior, but only a range of acceptable values. The second aspect is that different norms (for example, the time of arrival at work and the time of work itself) have unequal importance for group members.

Social status is the position of an individual (or group of people) in society in accordance with his gender, age, origin, property, education, occupation, position, marital status, etc.

People have not one, but many statuses:

1) prescribed (received from birth);

2) achieved;

3) economic;

4) personal;

5) political, social, cultural.

A social role is certain actions that an individual (or group) must perform in accordance with one or another status.

Thus, if the status itself determines a person’s position in society, then the social role is the functions they perform in this position.

QUESTIONS, TASKS, TESTS.

1. Expand the content of the concepts “person”, “personality”, “individual”, “individuality”.

2. What factors influence the formation of personality?

3. What is the social status of an individual? What types social statuses You know? Describe your status set.

4. What is a social role? What social roles do you fulfill?

5.Why does a conflict of social roles arise? How is it overcome?

6. How can you confirm the presence of status-role coercion?

7. Do you agree with E. Durkheim, who believed that “than more primitive society, the greater the similarity between its constituent individuals?

8. Give definitions of the following concepts: “individual”, “individuality”, “personality”, “role conflict”, “social role”, “status distance”, “status symbols”, “social status”, “person”, “expectations” "(role expectations).

Literature:

1. A.I. Kravchenko “Sociology and political science” pp. 115-120.

2. I.D.Korotets, T.G.Talnishnikh “Fundamentals of sociology and political science” pp.85-109.

3. V.V.Latysheva “Fundamentals of Sociology” pp.65-86.

1. Social role is...

1) the individual’s contribution to the cause of his people;

2) a person’s awareness of the significance of his work;

3) behavior expected from a bearer of social status;

4) society’s assessment of the individual’s activities.

2. The process of assimilation by an individual throughout his life social norms and cultural values of the society to which he belongs is called:

1) education; 2) socialization; 3) integration; 4) adaptation.

3. Personal socialization lasts:

1) from the beginning of adolescence;

2) until the end of the formation of a person as an individual;

3) before entering working life.

4. Social status shows:

1) what behavior society expects from an individual;

2) what place the individual occupies in society or group;

3) in what environment the personality is formed.

5. The set of roles corresponding to a certain status is called:

1) role performance; 2) role-playing set; 3) role expectation.

6. What does the concept of “personality” mean?

1) properties that make a person different from others;

2) the same as the concept of “person”;

3) a system of social qualities of an individual.

7. Normative (basic) personality is:

1) a person who shares the same cultural patterns as the majority of members of a given society;

2) a standard, an example of a personality as the ideal of a given society (group);

3) the personality type is the most common in a given territory.

Social statuses and roles - important elements personality structures. The concepts of “social status” and “social role” have steadily entered the dictionary of terms in the social and human sciences. Into scientific circulation in the 1930s. they were introduced by the American social anthropologist and sociologist Ralph Linton (1893-1953).

Social status. The word "status" is borrowed from sociology ( social sciences) from the language of Roman jurisprudence. IN Ancient Rome status meant legal status faces. Thus, social status refers to the position (position) of an individual in society or a group, associated with his rights and responsibilities. Highlighting a status position allows you to:

a) see place, which a person occupies in society, group, including through the prism of generally accepted indicators social achievements chances of success;
b) show his surroundings social status environment;
c) understand volume of social benefits(resources), as well as rights and responsibilities which he possesses.

Social statuses are usually distinguished in a certain way.

Socio-demographic statuses (also called sociobiological or natural) may be related:

1) with a person’s age ( age statuses)- child, teenager, youth, mature, elderly person;
2) kinship (related family statuses) - father, mother, son, daughter, etc.;
3) gender of the person ( sexual statuses) - man Woman;
4) race ( racial status). This social category arose in the 19th century, when biologists and anthropologists tried to classify the diversity of human physical types into three groups - Caucasians, Negroid, Mongoloids;
5) health ( health status)- for example, a disabled person, a person with limited physical capabilities.

Actually social statuses- their formation and existence is possible only in society; they are a product of the system social connections, established in society. These include statuses:

? economic(owner, tenant, rentier, landowner, employee etc.);
?political(reflect one or another attitude of people’s social positions to power);
? legal(belonging to a status is often associated with the corresponding legal scope of rights and obligations of individuals);
?professional(these include all professions and specialties within them);
? sociocultural(consist of four basic areas: science, education, art, religion);
?territorial(for example, city dweller, villager; Siberian, resident Far East etc.).

Social statuses are also divided into formal And informal.

Formal status -

This is a social position that is fixed and spelled out in one or another official document. For example, CEO joint stock company, tone manager of a trading company, rector of higher educational institution, director of the lyceum.

Unofficial (informal) status is not reflected in official documents. Typically, unofficial status positions develop in the process interpersonal relationships in small groups, between friends, acquaintances, colleagues, relatives. For example, we say about a person that he is “responsible” or “irresponsible”, “hardworking” or “a slacker”, “an upstart” or “deservedly occupies a high management position”, “the soul of the company” or “on his own mind”, etc. d.

Highlight prescribed (scriptive), achieved And mixed social statuses.

> Prescribed name the statuses that an individual received and possesses them without making any personal efforts to acquire them. For example, the status of social origin, inherited aristocratic titles, socio-demographic status.

> Achievable are called status positions that an individual acquired through his own efforts. Thus, educational and professional status are examples of achieved status positions. Modern open societies are focused on ensuring that the achieved statuses have the main, determining significance in society ( self-made-man- a self-made man), and not prescribed, as in traditional and closed societies.

> Mixed name the statuses that simultaneously possess signs of a prescribed and achieved status. For example, children decided to follow in the footsteps of the older generation and chose the same profession as their parents, under the influence of their example, public or tacit influence, explicit or implicit consent, assistance. This is not uncommon in families of lawyers, doctors, actors, musicians, financiers, and successful businessmen. Mixed status can also include positions desired by a person, but received through patronage, thanks to various social connections.

In the totality of statuses, it is customary to single out the main status, i.e. the status most characteristic of a given individual; that social position by which others distinguish him and by which he primarily identifies himself. In modern society, the main status often coincides with the professional and official status of a person (financial analyst, chief researcher, lawyer, unemployed, housewife).

Distinguish private And social statuses.

Social status- this is the position (position) of a person in society, largely determined by the representative of which social group he is.

Personal status- this is the position (position) of a person V primary group, depending on how he (his qualities) are assessed by other members of the group.

Social status is of predominant importance in the system of impersonal formal relations, in large organizations, among strangers. Personal status prevails among people familiar to a person. Personal statuses are informal; their influence and effectiveness are determined by the fact that it is important for most people to maintain and increase their personal status in the group. People are very sensitive to the expectations and demands of those whom they personally know and respect, and in order to maintain their trust, they sometimes risk the resentment of officials.

The distinction between personal status and social status corresponds to the distinction that the Chinese make between the two ways of “saving face.” Social status refers to a person's position in society: the respect he enjoys is based on what social category he belongs to and how this category is valued in the system of social evaluation, prestige. A person maintains his social status if he lives in accordance with the norms of this social category. When the Chinese talk about conservation " Mian", they mean preserving the reputation that a person has acquired due to his position in society. Thus, a successful businessman is expected to provide his daughter with an excellent dowry, even if he has to go into debt to do so.

The Chinese also talk about preserving "l yang." A person cannot live without “Lian”, how he will be assessed as a human being depends on this, the loss of “Lian” will lead to the fact that he will be isolated. A person will hardly be forgiven if he is exposed in dishonesty, meanness, betrayal, if he is found to have an unforgivable poverty of mind and an inability to keep his word. The preservation of “lian” is not related to social status; its approval depends personally on the person himself.

In the middle of the 20th century, Robert Merton introduced the term into scientific vocabulary "status set"(as a synonym this concept term used "status portrait" person). Under status set is understood as the totality of all statuses belonging to one individual.

For example, Mr. N is a middle-aged man, teacher, doctor of science, scientific secretary of the dissertation council, head of the department, trade union member, member of one of the parties, Christian, voter, husband, father, uncle, etc. This is the status set, or portrait, of a person N.

From point of view rank value highlight social statuses high, average, low rank. According to rank value, for example, status positions differ top manager, middle or lower level manager.

When analyzing social statuses, you need to remember about status incompatibility. There are two forms of status incompatibility:

1) when a person occupies a high position in one group and a low position in another;
2) when the rights and obligations of one status contradict, exclude or interfere with the implementation of the rights and obligations of another status.

An example of the first form of status incompatibility is the situation when the CEO large company in his family he is not the head of the family; this role is performed by his wife. Examples of the second form of status incompatibility include the fact that an official does not have the right to engage in commercial activities, a police officer cannot be a member of a mafia group. Criminals who are servants of the law are considered “werewolves in uniform.”

Status incompatibility

is a position in which the same person in different group hierarchies occupies different ranks- high, medium, low.

In contrast to this status compatibility is a position in which the same person in different group hierarchies occupies approximately the same ranks - all high, all middle or all low.

Social role. If the key to understanding social status is the word “position,” then when we talk about social role, then the initial word here is “behavior”. Social statuses describe position, position of people in social world, and social roles reveal people's behavior in the world of social statuses. We occupy status, but let's play(play) a role, therefore the role acts dynamic aspect social status.

A social role is a kind of model, pattern, format of behavior of an individual occupying a particular status. In origin, the word “role” is related to the Latin word persona(person, individual), which in ancient times meant actor's mask, depicting the character of a character (or role): villain, jester, hero, titan, etc. In a certain sense, a role is a mask that a person puts on when going out into people and society.

American Sociologist II. Berger writes: “...man plays dramatic roles in the grandiose play of society, and, sociologically speaking, he is the masks that he must wear while performing his roles.”

A role is the expected behavior of an individual occupying a certain status (R. Linton). All aspects of determining a social role are interconnected. So, a role is an individual’s behavior, but not all, but expected, i.e. such behavior that corresponds to the prevailing ideas in groups and society regarding the normality, adequacy, correctness, and dignity of a person’s actions in connection with his status position. Thus, role-playing is human behavior, considered in the coordinate system of expectations and status positions. In other words, only behavior that meets the expectations of those who are functionally associated with a given status is called a role; other behavior is not a role.

Talcott Parsons noted that each role can be described using five main characteristics - from the point of view of: 1) its emotionality; 2) method of receipt; 3) scale; 4) formalization; 5) motivation.

Taking into account these characteristics, let's compare two roles: the role of a policeman and the role of a mother.

1. The role of a police officer is much less emotional than the role of a mother. In general, a police officer is expected to display emotional restraint, while the role of a mother can be very demanding. a clear manifestation feelings.
2. According to the method of obtaining, the role of a police officer is related to the achieved status. The role of the mother includes a prescribed (since women are mothers) and achieved (not all women become mothers) aspects.
3. The role of the policeman is formal; he can only do what is prescribed by law, instructions, or determined by orders. The role of the mother is largely informal, although, of course, it is formal in terms of the provisions recorded in legal acts and documents.
4. The role of the mother is larger than the role of the policeman, since the role of the policeman is limited only to the sphere of his professional performance. job responsibilities, while between mother and child there is much more wide range relationships.
5. From the point of view of motivation, the role of a police officer is primarily focused on the implementation of public interests in lawfulness and security. But this role also includes personal motivation. It is associated with public recognition of the police service, worthy remuneration for the work of police officers, and their career interests. However, the determining factor in the role of a police officer is service to the legitimate interests of citizens, the law, i.e. First of all, the role of the police officer is socially motivated. The mother's role includes motivation for personal and public interest. The primary one here is a woman’s personal motivation to have children, which may coincide with society’s interest in the reproduction of the population.

In addition to the concept of “status set,” Robert Merton introduced the term "role set" Under role-playing set refers to a set of roles (role complex) associated with one status. Typically, each status includes several roles. For example, the status of a university professor is associated with the roles of teacher, researcher, graduate student supervisor, youth mentor, scientific consultant, expert, author scientific works etc. Thus, together with the concept of “status set”, the concept of “role set” is used, which describes the whole variety of behavior patterns - roles assigned to one status (Fig. 10.1).

Is the role part of the person’s “I”, his personality structure or is it just an external shell, a mask, a label for the inner “I”? To what extent "I" identifies(identify) himself with the role?

A role can be both part of the “I” and only an external mask. If one of the parents plays the role of Santa Claus at the New Year tree in kindergarten, then this role is nothing more than a mask that is with “I” this person may be completely unrelated. For a professional actor, playing the role of Santa Claus is something else. This one is for him

Rice. 10.1.

the role, of course, is a mask, but a mask associated with his profession; here the performance of the role is already, to a certain extent, included in the “I” of the person.

An even greater identification of the person’s inner “I” with the role is possible. The actor plays different roles: today the role of Prince Hamlet, tomorrow King Lear, then the inhabitant of the social bottom of Satin. But in reality, the actor is neither Hamlet, nor Lear, nor Satine, nor any of these and other dramatic characters. But for a doctor, a lawyer, a musician, they professional activity- not a theatrical performance; what they serve are the roles of their entire lives. So, the doctor calls himself, considers and identifies himself with a doctor, and not with a masquerade role-playing character in a white coat. At the doctor role of the doctor deeply rooted in his “I”.

Roles may suddenly find themselves in a rock bottom when they seem to begin to live their own lives separate from people. There are two main dangers here. The first is that it is impossible to live in society and avoid playing roles. Roles, among other things, are a form of social selection, the establishment of social filters, and control. If a person does not want or is unable to master role behavior, then he is threatened with non-recognition, rejection, and social isolation. The second danger: people tend to think that the roles they play are under their complete control; they believe that they can always enter or exit any role they need at will. However, you can play too much and one day discover that roles command people, and not people command roles; that roles brought people under their control and reduced their inner selves to ashes.

See: Shibutani T. Social Psychology. Rostov n/d, 1998.P. 351-356.
See: Belsky V. Yu., Kravchenko A. I., Kurganov S. I. Sociology for lawyers. M., 2009. P. 154.
Berger P. L. Invitation to sociology: a humanistic perspective. pp. 99-100.

These include those that exist for a very short time (pedestrian, passenger, etc.).

SOCIAL TIME

All statuses exist in time, if by time we mean human life. With his death his social time ends. In human society, time lasts much longer.

Timeless statuses. Some statuses of an individual (they are called ascribed) do not disappear as long as he is alive. In our sense, they exist forever. For example: gender, nationality, race and some others.

Permanent(main) statuses are statuses that persist over a long period of time.

Temporary statuses. Most statuses are temporary. And the brightest of them are episodic. They are named so due to their short duration. You can be a guest for a few hours or days, but hardly for several years. The same can be said about a passenger, a buyer or a clinic patient. A striking example episodic status – in queue. The queue with its generally accepted norms and rules, distribution of roles and informal statuses arises spontaneously and for a short time. After some time, you left the store and went outside. Now you have the episodic status of a passerby. And after 10 minutes you went down to the subway and turned into a passenger. On the wall of the carriage hang the rights and obligations assigned to this status.

Economic, political, religious statuses can be temporary or permanent. Examples of political statuses. Permanent ones are those that are included in the state system (government, police). Voter status is temporary. The President's confidant in the election campaign is a temporary status. A presidential candidate is also a temporary status, but the local representative of the president is permanent.

SOCIAL PORTRAIT OF A PERSON

With the help of statuses, a sociologist can characterize the object of research as accurately as an artist, drawing a portrait of a person with a set of individual traits. Can we say that the totality of statuses characterizes this particular person? specific person?

The status portrait of a person has another name in sociology - the status set of an individual, which was introduced in the middle of the 20th century American sociologist R. Merton.

A status set is the totality of all statuses belonging to one individual.

The status set of each person is individual, that is, unique in all details. If we change one of them, say, gender or profession, and leave all the others unchanged, we will get a similar, but different person. Even if all the main statuses of two people coincide, which does not happen so often, the non-primary ones will certainly differ. Of two people who are completely similar in status, one this moment may find himself in the subway (episodic status “passenger”), and another may be driving his own “Audio” (“driver is the owner of his own car”).

Main and personal statuses

In a set of statuses there is always a key, or main one. The main status is the most characteristic status for a given individual, by which others distinguish him or with which they identify him.

For women, the main thing was traditionally the status associated with the position of the husband. In modern society the situation is changing. For men - status associated with the main place of work or occupation: director of a commercial bank, researcher, police officer, worker at an industrial enterprise.

The main thing is the status that determines the lifestyle, circle of acquaintances, behavior, etc. For the scientific intelligentsia, the main thing is often not the place of work or occupation, but the academic degree; for managers, it is the position or hierarchical rank.

For a man, this is the status of someone employed in social production (the status of a worker); for a woman, this is a housewife. Society assigns these very statuses to them. In the process of life, a person learns what society imposes on him. How stronger man identifies himself with the main status, the harder it is for him to lose it. Unemployment is scary for a man because it deprives him of his main status - the breadwinner of the family.

Send your good work in the knowledge base is simple. Use the form below

Students, graduate students, young scientists who use the knowledge base in their studies and work will be very grateful to you.

Social and personal status of the individual. Social and personal status of the individual Social and personal status of the individual

Individual's status in the group

Code of Conduct

Send your good work in the knowledge base is simple. Use the form below

Similar documents

Editor's Choice