SOC 201 Chapter Notes - Chapter 8: Organizational Chart, Gemeinschaft And Gesellschaft
Document Summary
However, the most important difference between primary and secondary groups has to do with the kinds of relationships that exist within them. Secondary relationships, or relationships in secondary groups, tend to be means- to-an-end relationships. Other members of the secondary group view you first as a member, or a worker, or a student, and only incidentally as a person with individual needs. In a secondary group, you may be little more than a spot on the organizational chart. In other words, in a secondary group, what is important is your status, not your personal characteristics. Table 8. 1 summarizes the key differences between primary and secondary groups. Recalling the distinction that t nnies made (see chapter 1), we can say that secondary groups tend to be gesellschaft while primary groups tend to be. Here is how cooley described the primary group. By primary groups i mean those characterized by intimate faceto-face association and cooperation.
