Understanding Social

Problems
Sixth Edition
Chapter Outline
• What Is a Social Problem?
• Elements of Social Structure and Culture
• The Sociological Imagination
• Theoretical Perspectives
• Social Problems Research
• Goals of the Textbook
• Understanding Social Problems
What Is a Social Problem?
• A social problem is a social condition that
a segment of society views as harmful to
members of society and in need of
remedy.
Suicide Bombers: A Social
Problem
• Since the horror of
September 11, 2001,
terrorism in the
United States has
taken on new
meaning.
• Here airport security
guards inspect
vehicles approaching
the terminals.
Objective Elements of Social
Problems
• Awareness of social conditions through life
experiences and through reports in the media.
• We see the homeless, hear gunfire in the
streets, and see battered women in hospital
emergency rooms.
• We read about employees losing their jobs
as businesses downsize and factories close.
Subjective Elements of
Social Problems
• The belief that a particular social condition is
harmful to society or to a segment of society
and that it should and can be changed.
• We know crime, drug addiction, poverty, racism,
violence, and pollution exist.
• These are not considered social problems
unless a segment of society believes these
conditions diminish the quality of human life.
Homosexuality
• Some individuals view
homosexual behavior as
a social problem while
others view homophobia
as a social problem.
• Here, participants carry a
giant rainbow flag during
a gay pride parade in
Toronto, Canada.
Elements of Social Structure
• The structure of a society refers to the
way society is organized.
• Society is organized into
• Institutions

• Social groups

• Statuses

• Roles
Institution
• An institution is an established and
enduring pattern of social relationships.
• The five traditional institutions are:
• Family
• Religion
• Politics
• Economics
• Education
Social Groups
• Defined as two or more people who have
a common identity, interact, and form a
social relationship.
• Primary groups are characterized by
intimate and informal interaction.
• Secondary groups are task oriented and
characterized by impersonal and formal
interaction.
Statuses
• A status is a position that a person
occupies within a social group.
• The statuses in a family may consist of
mother, father, stepmother, stepfather,
wife, husband and child
Ascribed Statuses
• An ascribed status is one that society
assigns to an individual on the basis of
factors over which the individual has no
control.
• Examples: child, teenager, senior
citizen.
Achieved Statuses
• An achieved status is assigned on the
basis of some characteristic or behavior
over which the individual has some
control.
• Examples: college graduate, spouse,
parent, bank president
Roles
• The set of rights, obligations, and
expectations associated with a status.
• Roles guide our behavior and allow us to
predict the behavior of others.
Culture
• Culture is defined as the meanings and
ways of life that characterize a society
including beliefs, values, norms,
sanctions, and symbols.
Elements of Culture
• Beliefs are definitions and explanations
about what is assumed to be true.
• Values are social agreements about what
is considered good and bad, right and
wrong, desirable and undesirable.
Elements of Culture
• Norms
• Socially defined rules of behavior.
• Sanctions
• Consequences for conforming to or violating
norms.
• Symbols
• Language, gestures, and objects whose
meaning is commonly understood by the
members of a society.
Types of Norms
1. Folkways - customs and manners of
society.
2. Laws - formal norms backed by authority.
3. Mores - norms with a moral basis.
Types and Examples of
Sanctions
Positive Negative
Informal Being praised by one’s Being criticized by one’s
neighbors for organizing neighbors for refusing to
a neighborhood participate in the
recycling program. neighborhood recycling
program.
Formal Being granted an award Being fined by the city
for organizing a for failing to dispose of
neighborhood recycling trash properly.
program.
Sociological Imagination
• The ability to see the connections
between our personal lives and the social
world in which we live.
Structural-Functionalist
Perspective
• Society is composed of parts that work
together to maintain a state of balance.
• Two types of functions:
• latent - Consequences that are
unintended and often hidden.
• manifest - Intended and recognized
Structural-Functionalist
Theories of Social Problems
• Social pathology - Social problems
result from sickness in society.
• Social disorganization - Rapid social
change disrupts norms in society.
• When norms become weak or are in
conflict with each other, society is in a
state of anomie, or normlessness.
Conflict Perspective
• Views society as composed of groups
and interests competing for power and
resources.
• Explains various aspects of our social
world by looking at which groups have
power and benefit from a particular social
arrangement.
Karl Marx
• The origins of the conflict perspective can be
traced to the works of Karl Marx.
• Marx suggested that all societies go through
stages of economic development.
• Industrialization leads to two classes: the
bourgeoisie, or the owners of the means of
production; and the proletariat, or the workers
who earn wages.
• The bourgeoisie use their power to control the
institutions of society to their advantage.
Conflict Theories of Social
Problems
• There are two general types of conflict
theories of social problems:
• Marxist theories focus on social conflict
that results from economic inequalities.
• Non-Marxist theories focus on social
conflict that results from competing
values and interests among social
groups.
Marxist Conflict Theories
• According to Marxist theorists, social
problems result from class inequality
inherent in a capitalistic system.
• Marxist conflict theories also focus on the
problem of alienation, or powerlessness
and meaninglessness in people’s lives.
Non-Marxist Conflict
Theories
• Concerned with conflict that arises when groups
have opposing values and interests.
• Antiabortion activists value the life of unborn
embryos; pro-choice activists value the right
of women to control their reproductive
decisions.
• These value positions reflect different
subjective interpretations of what constitutes
a social problem.
Levels of Analysis
• Macro sociology - Looks at the "big
picture" of society and suggests how
social problems are affected at the
institutional level.
• Micro sociology - Concerned with the
social psychological dynamics of
individuals interacting in small groups.
Symbolic Interactionist
Perspective
• A basic premise is that a condition must
be defined or recognized as a social
problem for it to be a social problem.
Development of Social
Problems
• Herbert Blumer suggested social problems
develop in stages:
1. Societal recognition is the process by which
a social problem, is “born.”
2. Social legitimation takes place when the
social problem is recognized by the larger
community.
3. Mobilization for action that leads to the
development and implementation of a plan
for dealing with the problem.
Symbolic Interactionist
Theories
• Labeling theory: A social condition or
group is viewed as problematic if it is
labeled as such.
• Social constructionism: Argues that
reality is socially constructed by
individuals who interpret the social world
around them.