What is social group?

(1) According to Ogburn and Nimkoff, “Whenever two or more individuals come together and
influence one another, they may be said to constitute a social group”.

(2) According to A.W. Green, “A group is an aggregate of individuals which persists in time,
which has one or more interests and activities in common which is organized”.

A social group is a collection of people who interact with each other and share similar
characteristics and a sense of unity. A social category is a collection of people who do not
interact but who share similar characteristics. For example, women, men, the elderly, and high
school students all constitute social categories. A social category can become a social group
when the members in the category interact with each other and identify themselves as members
of the group. In contrast, a social aggregate is a collection of people who are in the same place,
but who do not interact or share characteristics.

Characteristics of Social Group

The 12 Characteristics of Social Group are as under:
(1) Given number of Individual
A social group consists of a given number of individuals. Without a number of individuals no
social group can be formed. Two or more than that individual are necessary to form a group.
This number may vary. These individuals belong to the group as members of the group and are
considered as unit of the group.

(2) Reciprocal Relations

There exist reciprocal relations among the members of a social group. These reciprocal relations
among the members are the basis or foundation of social group without which social group
cannot be formed. The members must interact or inter-related with each other.

(3) Common Goals

It is another important characteristic of a social group. The aims, objectives and ideals of the
members are common. For the fulfillment of these common goals social groups are formed. Here
individual interests are sacrificed for group interests.

(4) Sense of unity and solidarity

Members of a social group are always tied by a sense of unity and bond of solidarity, common
goals and mutual relations strengthens this bond of unity and solidarity. This creates loyalty and
sympathy among the members of social group.

(5) A strong sense of awe-feeling

Members of a social group is characterized by a strong sense of awe-feeling. This we- feeling
fosters co-operation among members. Because of this we- feeling the members identify
themselves with the group and consider others as outsiders.

(6) Group Norms:

Every social group has its own, regulations and norms which the members are supposed to
follow. With the help of these rules and norms the group exercises control over it’s members.
These norms may be written or unwritten. Any violation of group norms is followed by
punishment. The group norms maintain unity and integrity in the group.

(7) Similar Behavior:

Members of a social group show similar behavior. As the interests, ideals and values of a group
are common hence its members behave in a similar manner. This similar behavior helps in the
achievement of common goals.

(8) Awareness:
Members of a social group are aware about the membership which distinguishes them from
others. This is perhaps due to ‘the consciousness of kind’ as opined by Giddings.

(9) Group Control:

Social group exercises some sort of control over its members and over their activities. This
control may be direct or indirect. Of course group exercises control only over non-conformists or
deviants.
(10) Social groups may be permanent or temporary in nature. There are permanent groups likes
family and temporary groups like crowd, mob etc.
(11) Social groups are dynamic in nature. It is not static. It responds to different changes. The
nature of change may be slow or rapid but it is bound to occur.
(12) Social groups have established patterns
Formal Organization
A formal organization is a social system structured by clearly laid out rules, goals, and practices
that functions based on a division of labor and a clearly defined hierarchy of power. Examples in
society are wide ranging and include business and corporations, religious institutions, the judicial
system, schools, and government, among others.
Types of Rationality
According to Max Weber types of rationality the article is published in American journal of
sociology are as under:
Practical Rationality Weber designates every way of life that views and judges worldly activity
in relation to the individual's purely pragmatic and egoistic interests as practical rational. Instead
of implying patterns s of action that, for example, actively manipulate the given routines of daily
life in behalf of an absolute value system, a practical rational way of life accepts given realities
and calculates the most expedient means of dealing with the difficulties they present. Pragmatic
action in terms of everyday interests is ascendant, and given practical ends are attained by careful
weighing and increasingly precise calculation of the most adequate mean. Thus, this type of
rationality exists as a manifestation of man's capacity for means-end rational action.
Theoretical Rationality
This type of rationality involves a conscious mastery of reality through the construction of
increasingly precise abstract concepts rather than through action. Since a cognitive confrontation
with one's experience prevails here, such thought processes as logical deduction and induction,
the attribution of causality, and the formation of symbolic "meanings" are typical. More
generally, all abstract cognitive processes, in all their expansive active forms, denote theoretical
rationality.
Substantive Rationality
Like practical rationality though unlike theoretical rationality, substantive rationality directly
orders action into patterns. It does so, however, not on the basis of a purely means-end
calculation of solutions to routine problems but in relation to a past, present, or potential "value
postulate”. Not simply a single value, such as positive evaluation of wealth or of the fulfillment
of duty, a value postulate implies entire clusters of values that vary in comprehensiveness,
internal consistency, and content. Thus, this type of rationality exists as a manifestation of man's
inherent capacity for value-rational action.
Formal Rationality
Unlike the inter-civilizational and epoch-transcending character of the practical, theoretical, and
substantive types of rationality, formal rationality generally14 relates to spheres of life and a
structure of domination that acquired specific and delineated boundaries only with
industrialization: most significantly, the economic, legal, and scientific spheres, and the
bureaucratic form of domination. Whereas practical rationality always indicates a diffuse
tendency to calculate and to solve routine problems by means-end rational patterns of action in
reference to pragmatic self-interests, formal rationality ultimately legitimates a similar means-
end rational calculation by reference back to universally applied rules, laws, or regulations.

Overview of Formal Organizations

Formal organizations are designed to achieve certain goals through the collective work of the
individuals who are its members. They rely on a division of labor and hierarchy of power and
authority to ensure that the work is done in a unified and efficient manner. Within a formal
organization, each job or position has a clearly defined set of responsibilities, roles, duties, and
authorities to whom it reports.

Three Types of Formal Organizations

While all formal organizations share these key characteristics, not all formal organizations are
the same. Organizational sociologists identify three different types of formal organizations:
coercive, utilitarian, and normative.

(1) Coercive organizations: are those in which membership is forced, and control within the
organization is achieved through force. A prison is the most apt example of a coercive
organization, but other organizations fit this definition too, including military units, psychiatric
facilities, and some boarding schools and facilities for youths. Membership in a coercive
organization is compelled by a higher authority, and members must have permission from that
authority to leave.
(2) Utilitarian: organizations are those that people join these because they have something to
gain by doing so, like companies and schools, for example. Within this control is maintained
through this mutually beneficial exchange. In the case of employment, a person earns a wage for
giving their time and labor to the company. In the case of a school, a student develops
knowledge and skills and earns a degree in exchange for respecting the rules and authority,
and/or paying tuition. Utilitarian organizations are characterized by a focus on productivity and a
shared purpose.
(3)  Normative organizations: are those in which control and order are maintained through a
shared set of morals and commitment to them. These are defined by voluntary membership,
though for some membership comes from a sense of duty. Normative organizations include
churches, political parties or groups, and social groups like fraternities and sororities, among
others. Within these, members are unified around a cause that is important to them. They are
socially rewarded for their participation by the experience of a positive collective identity, and a
sense of belonging and of purpose.