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SOCIOLOGY
Richard T. Schaefer

Groups and Organizations

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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6. Groups and Organizations

Understanding Groups Understanding Organizations Case Study: Bureaucracy and the Space Shuttle Columbia The Changing Workplace Social Policy and Organizations
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Groups
Types of Groups
Group: any number of people with similar norms, values, and expectations who interact with one another on a regular basis

Primary and Secondary Groups

Primary Group: small group with intimate, face-to-face association and cooperation Secondary Group: formal, impersonal groups with little social intimacy or mutual understanding
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Groups
Table 6-1. Comparison of Primary and Secondary Groups

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Groups
Types of Groups
In-Groups and Out-Groups
In-groups: any groups or categories to which people feel they belong Out-groups: any groups or categories to which people feel they do not belong Conflict between in-groups and out-groups can turn violent on a personal as well as political level.
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Groups
Types of Groups
Reference Groups
Any group that individuals use as standard for evaluating their own behavior Reference groups set and enforce standards of conduct and belief

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Groups
Studying Small Groups
Small Group: group small enough for all members to interact simultaneously Size of a Group
Smaller groups have greater interaction opportunities Coalitions: temporary or permanent alliances Dyad: a two-member group geared toward Triad: a three-member group common goal
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

McGraw-Hill

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Understanding Groups
Coalitions
Temporary or permanent alliances geared toward common goal Groupthink
Collective pressure to conform to the predominant line of thought

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Formal Organizations and Bureaucracies
Formal Organization: special-purpose group designed and structured for maximum efficiency

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy: component of formal organization that uses rules and hierarchical ranking to achieve efficiency Ideal Type Bureaucracy
Division of labor Hierarchy of authority

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy
Division of labor
Alienation: condition of estrangement or dissociation from the surrounding society Trained Incapacity: workers become so specialized that they develop blind spots and fail to notice obvious problems

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy
Hierarchy of Authority
Written rules and regulations Employment based on technical qualifications Goal Displacement: overzealous conformity to official regulations Peter Principle: every employee within a hierarchy tends to rise to his or her level of incompetence (Peter and Jull
1969)
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Table 6-2. Characteristics of a Bureaucracy

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy
Bureaucratization as Process
Bureaucratization: process by which group, organization, or social movement becomes increasingly bureaucratic

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy
Oligarchy: Rule by a Few
Iron Law of Oligarchy: describes how even a democratic organization will eventually develop into a bureaucracy ruled by a few (called an oligarchy)

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Bureaucracy and Organizational Culture
Classical Theory: also known as Scientific Management Approach); workers motivated almost entirely by economic rewards Human Relations Approach: role of people, communication and participation within a bureaucracy emphasized
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Voluntary Associations
Organizations established on basis of common interest
Members volunteer or even pay to participate Formal organizations and voluntary organizations not mutually exclusive

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Understanding Organizations
Figure 6-1. Membership in Voluntary Associations in the United States

Sources: J. Davis and Smith 2001:347

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Case Study: Bureaucracy and the Space Shuttle Columbia

In February, 2003, space shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it reentered earth s atmosphere
Accident Investigation Board identified two causes
Foam struck spacecraft s wing during liftoff NASA s bureaucratic organizational culture

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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The Changing Workplace

Organizational Restructuring
Formal organizations experimenting with new ways of getting the job done since late 20th century
Collective decision making Minimal hierarchy Work teams

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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The Changing Workplace

Telecommuting
Employees who work full- or part-time at home rather than in an outside office Number of telecommuters increased from 8.5 million in 1995 to 28 million in 2001 (Donald B. Davis and Polonko 2001)
Telecommuting may move society further along the continuum from Gemeinschaft to Gesellschaft
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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The Changing Workplace

Electronic Communication
E-mail efficient, rapidly communicated, and democratic
Gives an organization the benefit of experiences and views of more of its workforce Does not convey body language Leaves permanent record Can be monitored

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

The State of the Unions
The Issue
What diminished importance of organized labor unions? Have unions perhaps outlived their usefulness in a rapidly changing global economy dominated by the service industry?

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

The State of the Unions
The Setting
Labor Unions: organized workers sharing either the same skill or the same employer
The experience of unions varies widely in different countries

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

The State of the Unions
The Setting
Reasons given for decline of labor unions:
1. Changes in type of industry 2. Growth in part-time jobs 3. The legal system 4. Globalization 5. Employer offensive 6. Union rigidity and bureaucratization
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

The State of the Unions
Sociological Insights
Marxists and functionalists view unions as logical response to emergence of impersonal, large-scale, formal, and often alienating organizations Conflict theorists note the longer union leaders are in office the less responsive they are to the needs and demands of the rank and file Many union employees encounter role conflict
McGraw-Hill
2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

The State of the Unions
Policy Initiatives
Major barrier to union growth exists in 21 states with so-called right to work laws Debate over campaign finance reform in Congress in 2001 raised question of whether labor unions should use dues to support a particular candidate or promote a position

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Social Policy and Organizations

Figure 6-2. Union Membership in the United States

McGraw-Hill

2007 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.