Chapter 6 - Networks, Groups, Bureaucracies, and Societies

Question 1

Bureaucracy (what (3) and who)

Answer 1

• a large, impersonal organization
• many clearly defined positions arranged in a hierarchy - permanent, salaried staff of qualified experts and written goals, rules, and procedures
• staff members always try to find ways of running the bureaucracy more efficiently
• Weber

Question 2

Efficiency

Answer 2

achieving the bureaucracy’s goals at the least cost

Question 3

Social Network

Answer 3

a set of individuals linked by the exchange of material or emotional resources, including everything from money to friendship

Question 4

What determines the boundaries of a social network?

Answer 4

the patterns of exchange determine the boundaries of the network

Question 5

Virtual Communities

Answer 5

bounded patterns of interaction and exchange that exist online, independently of time and space

Question 6

Dyad (definition and examples)

Answer 6

a social relationship between two nodes or social units (e.g., people, firms, organizations, countries)

Question 7

Triad (definition and examples)

Answer 7

a social relationship among three nodes or social units (e.g., people, firms, organizations, countries)

Question 8

Social Groups

Answer 8

made up of one or more networks of people who identify with one another, interact on a regular basis, and adhere to specific norms, roles, and statuses

Question 9

Social Categories

Answer 9

people share a similar status but do not identify with one another (eg. coffee drinkers)

Question 10

Primary Groups (3)

Answer 10

• members agree on norms, roles, and statuses but do not define them in writing
• strong emotional ties, extends over a long period, and involves a wide range of activities
• results in group members knowing one another well

Question 11

Secondary Groups (3)

Answer 11

• larger and more impersonal than primary groups
• weaker emotional ties, extends over a shorter period, and involves a narrow range of activities.
• results in most group members having at most a passing acquaintance with one another

Question 12

Groupthink

Answer 12

group pressure to conform despite individual misgivings. dangers of groupthink are greatest in high-stress situations

Question 13

Bystander Apathy

Answer 13

occurs when people observe someone in an emergency but offer no help

Question 14

In-Group Members

Answer 14

people who belong to a group

Question 15

Out-Group Members

Answer 15

people who are excluded from an in-group

Question 16

Reference Group (2)

Answer 16

• comprises people against whom an individual evaluates his or her situation or conduct
• members of a reference group function as role models

Question 17

Formal Organizations (definition and example)

Answer 17

• secondary groups designed to achieve particular objectives

- the most common and influential formal organizations are bureaucracies

Question 18

Dehumanization (when does it occur and what are its effects?)

Answer 18

• occurs when bureaucracies treat clients as standard cases and personnel as cogs in a giant machine
• this treatment frustrates clients and lowers worker morale

Question 19

Bureaucratic Ritualism

Answer 19

involves bureaucrats becoming so preoccupied with rules and regulations that they make it difficult for the organization to fulfill its goals

Question 20

Oligarchy (translation and definition)

Answer 20

• means “rule of the few.”
• all bureaucracies have a supposed tendency for power to become increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few people at the top of the organizational pyramid

Question 21

Bureaucratic Inertia

Answer 21

refers to the tendency of large, rigid bureaucracies to continue their policies even when their clients’ needs change

Question 22

3 Types of Leadership

Answer 22

1. laissez-faire leadership
2. authoritarian leadership
3. democratic leadership

Question 23

Laissez-Faire Leadership (2)

Answer 23

• subordinates work things out on their own, no direction from above
• least effective type of leadership

Question 24

Authoritarian Leadership (2)

Answer 24

• strict compliance from subordinates

- most effective in a crisis, such as a war or the emergency room of a hospital

Question 25

Democratic Leadership (3)

Answer 25

• more guidance than laissez-faire but less control than authoritarian
• try to include all group members in the decision-making process, taking the best ideas from the group and moulding them into a strategy with which all can identify
• most effective leadership style, except in crisis situations

Question 26

Societies

Answer 26

collectivities of interacting people who share a culture and, usually, a territory

Question 27

Foraging Societies

Answer 27

people live by searching for wild plants and hunting wild animals. inequality, the division of labour, productivity, and settlement size are very low in such societies

Question 28

Horticultural Societies

Answer 28

societies in which people domesticate plants and use simple hand tools to garden

Question 29

Pastoral Societies

Answer 29

societies in which people domesticate cattle, camels, pigs, goats, sheep, horses, and reindeer

Question 30

Agricultural Societies

Answer 30

societies in which plows and animal power are used to substantially increase food supply and dependability as compared with horticultural and pastoral societies

Question 31

Industrial Societies

Answer 31

societies that use machines and fuel to greatly increase the supply and dependability of food and finished goods

Question 32

Post-Industrial Societies

Answer 32

societies in which most workers are employed in the service sector and computers spur substantial increases in the division of labour and productivity

Question 33

Recombinant DNA

Answer 33

involves removing a segment of DNA from a gene or splicing together segments of DNA from different living things, thus effectively creating a new life form

Question 34

Community vs Society according to Ferdinand Tönnies (2)

Answer 34

• community (such as a small town) = intimate and emotionally intense social ties
• society (such as a big city) = many impersonal relationships held together by self interest

Question 35

How many degrees of separation are there between any two people in the world?

Answer 35

6 degrees

Question 36

Two main factors that underlie bureaucratic inefficiency

Answer 36

size and social structure

Question 37

Why is it a “small world”?

Answer 37

most people interact repeatedly with a small circle of family members, friends, and co-workers. however, our personal networks overlap with other social networks, which is why only a few links separate us from complete strangers

Question 38

3 ways in which social groups shape our actions

Answer 38

1. Norms of solidarity demand conformity.
2. Structures of authority tend to render people obedient.
3. Bureaucracies are highly effective structures of authority.

Question 39

4 irrationalities of rationality

Answer 39

1. people are no longer individuals with unique needs
2. increasingly difficult for organization to achieve goals
3. oligarchy, people at top have power
4. perpetuation of the established procedures and modes