Social groups are examples of social science. Social groups and communities

A person participates in public life not as an isolated individual, but as a member of social communities - a family, a friendly company, a labor collective, a nation, a class, etc. His activities are largely determined by the activities of those groups in which he is included, as well as the interaction within groups and between groups. Accordingly, in sociology, society acts not only as an abstraction, but also as a set of specific social groups that are in a certain dependence on each other.

The structure of the entire social system, the totality of interrelated and interacting social groups and social communities, as well as social institutions and relations between them, is the social structure of society.

In sociology, the problem of dividing society into groups (including nations, classes), their interaction is one of the cardinal and is characteristic of all levels of theory.

The concept of a social group

Group is one of the main elements of the social structure of society and is a collection of people united by any significant feature - a common activity, common economic, demographic, ethnographic, psychological characteristics. This concept is used in jurisprudence, economics, history, ethnography, demography, psychology. In sociology, the concept of "social group" is usually used.

Not every community of people is called a social group. If people are just in a certain place (on a bus, in a stadium), then such a temporary community can be called "aggregation". A social community that unites people on only one or a few similar grounds is also not called a group; the term "category" is used here. For example, a sociologist might categorize students aged 14 to 18 as youth; elderly people to whom the state pays allowances, provides benefits for paying utility bills - to the category of pensioners, etc.

Social group - it is an objectively existing stable community, a set of individuals interacting in a certain way on the basis of several signs, in particular, the shared expectations of each member of the group regarding others.

The concept of a group as an independent one, along with the concepts of personality (individual) and society, is already found in Aristotle. In modern times, T. Hobbes was the first to define a group as "a certain number of people united by a common interest or common cause."

Under social group it is necessary to understand any objectively existing stable set of people connected by a system of relations regulated by formal or informal social institutions. Society in sociology is considered not as a monolithic entity, but as a set of many social groups that interact and are in a certain dependence on each other. Each person during his life belongs to many such groups, among which are the family, the friendly team, the student group, the nation, and so on. The creation of groups is facilitated by similar interests and goals of people, as well as the realization of the fact that when combining actions, you can achieve a significantly greater result than with individual action. At the same time, the social activity of each person is largely determined by the activities of the groups in which he is included, as well as the interaction within groups and between groups. It can be stated with full confidence that only in a group a person becomes a person and is able to find full self-expression.

The concept, formation and types of social groups

The most important elements of the social structure of society are social groups And . Being forms of social interaction, they are such associations of people whose joint, solidarity actions are aimed at meeting their needs.

There are many definitions of the concept of "social group". Thus, according to some Russian sociologists, a social group is a collection of people who have common social characteristics and perform a socially necessary function in the structure of the social division of labor and activity. The American sociologist R. Merton defines a social group as a set of individuals interacting with each other in a certain way, aware of their belonging to this group and recognized as members of this group from the point of view of others. He distinguishes three main features in a social group: interaction, membership and unity.

Unlike mass communities, social groups are characterized by:

sustainable interaction, contributing to the strength and stability of their existence;
a relatively high degree of unity and cohesion;
clearly expressed homogeneity of the composition, suggesting the presence of signs inherent in all members of the group;
the possibility of entering into broader social communities as structural units.

Since each person in the course of his life is a member of a wide variety of social groups that differ in size, nature of interaction, degree of organization and many other features, it becomes necessary to classify them according to certain criteria.

There are the following types of social groups:

1. Depending on the nature of the interaction - primary and secondary (Appendix, scheme 9).

primary group, by definition, C. Cooley, is a group in which the interaction between members is direct, interpersonal in nature and has a high level of emotionality (family, school class, peer group, etc.). Carrying out the socialization of the individual, the primary group acts as a link between the individual and society.

secondary group- This is a larger group in which interaction is subordinated to the achievement of a specific goal and is formal, impersonal. In these groups, the focus is not on the personal, unique qualities of the members of the group, but on their ability to perform certain functions. Organizations (industrial, political, religious, etc.) can serve as examples of such groups.

2. Depending on the method of organization and regulation of interaction - formal and informal.

formal group- This is a group with a legal status, interaction in which is regulated by a system of formalized norms, rules, laws. These groups have a consciously set target, normatively fixed hierarchical structure and act in accordance with the administratively established procedure (organizations, enterprises, etc.).

informal grouparises spontaneously, on the basis of common views, interests and interpersonal interactions. It is deprived of official regulation and legal status. These groups are usually led by informal leaders. Examples are friendly companies, informal associations among young people, rock music lovers, etc.

3. Depending on the belonging of individuals to them - ingroups and outgroups.

Ingroup- this is a group to which the individual feels a direct belonging and identifies it as "mine", "our" (for example, "my family", "my class", "my company", etc.).

Outgroup - this is a group to which the given individual does not belong and therefore evaluates it as “alien”, not his own (other families, another religious group, another ethnic group, etc.). Each ingroup individual has his own outgroup rating scale: from indifferent to aggressive-hostile. Therefore, sociologists propose to measure the degree of acceptance or closeness in relation to other groups according to the so-called Bogardus' "social distance scale".

Reference group - this is a real or imaginary social group, the system of values, norms and evaluations of which serves as a standard for the individual. The term was first proposed by the American social psychologist Hyman. The reference group in the system of relations "personality - society" performs two important functions: normative, being for the individual a source of norms of behavior, social attitudes and value orientations; comparative acting as a standard for the individual, allows him to determine his place in the social structure of society, evaluate himself and others.

4. Depending on the quantitative composition and form of the implementation of connections - small and large.

- this is a directly contacting small group of people united to carry out joint activities.

A small group can take many forms, but the initial ones are the “dyad” and “triad”, they are called the simplest molecules small group. Dyadconsists of two people and is considered an extremely fragile association, in triad actively interact three persons, it is more stable.

The characteristic features of a small group are:

small and stable composition (as a rule, from 2 to 30 people);
spatial proximity of group members;
sustainability and longevity:
a high degree of coincidence of group values, norms and patterns of behavior;
intensity of interpersonal relationships;
a developed sense of belonging to a group;
informal control and information saturation in the group.

large group- this is a large group in its composition, which is created for a specific purpose and the interaction in which is mainly indirect in nature (labor collectives, enterprises, etc.). This also includes numerous groups of people who have common interests and occupy the same position in the social structure of society. For example, social-class, professional, political and other organizations.

A collective (lat. collectivus) is a social group in which all vital connections between people are mediated through socially important goals.

Characteristic features of the team:

combination of interests of the individual and society;
commonality of goals and principles that act for the members of the team as value orientations and norms of activity. The team performs the following functions:
subject - solution of the task for which it is created;
social and educational - combination of the interests of the individual and society.

5. Depending on the socially significant signs - real and nominal.

Real groups are groups identified according to socially significant criteria:

floor - men and women;
age - children, youth, adults, the elderly;
income - rich, poor, prosperous;
nationality - Russians, French, Americans;
Family status - married, single, divorced;
profession (occupation) - doctors, economists, managers;
location - city dwellers, rural dwellers.

Nominal (conditional) groups, sometimes called social categories, are singled out for the purpose of conducting a sociological study or statistical accounting of the population (for example, to find out the number of passengers-benefits, single mothers, students receiving nominal scholarships, etc.).

Along with social groups in sociology, the concept of "quasi-group" is singled out.

A quasi-group is an informal, spontaneous, unstable social community that does not have a definite structure and system of values, in which the interaction of people is, as a rule, of a third-party and short-term nature.

The main types of quasigroups are:

Audienceis a social community united by interaction with a communicator and receiving information from him. The heterogeneity of this social formation, due to the difference in personal qualities, as well as the cultural values and norms of the people included in it, determines the different degree of perception and evaluation of the information received.

- a temporary, relatively unorganized, unstructured accumulation of people united in a closed physical space by a common interest, but at the same time devoid of a clearly perceived goal and interconnected by the similarity of their emotional state. Allocate the general characteristics of the crowd:

suggestibility - people in the crowd are usually more suggestible than those outside it;
anonymity - the individual, being in the crowd, as if merges with it, becomes unrecognizable, believing that it is difficult to “calculate” him;
spontaneity (contagiousness) - people in the crowd are subject to rapid transmission and change of emotional state;
unconsciousness - the individual feels invulnerable in the crowd, out of social control, therefore his actions are "impregnated" with collective unconscious instincts and become unpredictable.

Depending on the way the crowd is formed and the behavior of people in it, the following varieties are distinguished:

random crowd - an indefinite set of individuals formed spontaneously without any purpose (to watch a celebrity suddenly appear or a traffic accident);
conventional crowd - a relatively structured gathering of people influenced by planned predetermined norms (spectators in a theater, fans in a stadium, etc.);
expressive crowd - a social quasi-group formed for the personal pleasure of its members, which in itself is already a goal and result (discotheques, rock festivals, etc.);
acting (active) crowd - a group that performs some kind of action, which can act as: gatherings - an emotionally excited crowd gravitating towards violent actions, and revolting crowd - group characterized by particular aggressiveness and destructive actions.

In the history of the development of sociological science, various theories have developed that explain the mechanisms of crowd formation (G. Lebon, R. Turner, and others). But for all the dissimilarity of points of view, one thing is clear: to control the command of the crowd, it is important: 1) to identify the sources of the emergence of norms; 2) identify their carriers by structuring the crowd; 3) purposefully influence their creators, offering the crowd meaningful goals and algorithms for further actions.

Among quasi-groups, social circles are closest to social groups.

Social circles are social communities that are created for the purpose of exchanging information between their members.

The Polish sociologist J. Szczepanski identifies the following types of social circles: contact - communities that constantly meet on the basis of certain conditions (interest in sports competitions, sports, etc.); professional - gathering for the exchange of information solely on a professional basis; status - formed about the exchange of information between people with the same social status (aristocratic circles, women's or men's circles, etc.); friendly - based on the joint conduct of any events (companies, groups of friends).

In conclusion, we note that quasi-groups are some transitional formations, which, with the acquisition of such features as organization, stability and structure, turn into a social group.

Lecture:

Social groups

Social groups are one of the elements of the social structure of society. Social groups are associations of people interconnected by common characteristics (sex, age, nationality, profession, income, power, education, and many others), interests, goals, activities. There are more social groups on Earth than individuals, because one and the same individual is included in several groups. Pitirim Sorokin noted that history does not give us a person outside the group. Indeed, from birth, a person is in a group - a family, whose members are connected by consanguinity and common life. The circle of groups expands as they grow older, yard friends, a school class, a sports team, a labor collective, a party, and others appear. A social group is characterized by such features as internal organization, common goal, joint activities, rules and norms, interaction (active communication).

In sociology, along with the term social group, the term social community is used. Both terms characterize the association of people, but the concept of community is broader. A community is an association of various groups of people according to some sign or life circumstances. The main difference between a community and a group is that there is no stable and repetitive relationship between members of the community, which is in the group. Examples of social community: men, children, students, Russians, etc.

A transitional position between a social community and a social group is occupied by a quasi-group - this is an unstable short-term community of people, which is random in nature. Examples of quasi-groups are a concert audience, a crowd.

Types of social groups

Social groups
Kinds		signs	Examples
1.	Primary	Direct personal contacts, emotional involvement, solidarity, sense of "we", individual qualities are valued	Family, school class, friends
1.	Secondary	Indirect subject contacts, lack of emotional relationships, the ability to perform certain functions is valued	Professional, territorial, demographic groups, party electorates
2.	Large	Large numbers	Nations, age groups, professional groups
2.	Small	small numbers	Family, school class, sports team, work team
3.	Formal	Arise at the initiative of the administration, the behavior of group members is determined by job descriptions	Party, labor collective
3.	informal	Created spontaneously, the behavior of group members is not regulated
4.	Reference	Real or imagined significant group with which a person identifies and orients himself	Political party, denomination
4.	non-referential	A real group of little value to the person who studies or works in it	School class, sports section, labor collective
5.	Professional	Joint professional activities	Doctors, lawyers, programmers, agronomists, veterinarians
	ethnic	General history, culture, language, territory	Russians, French, Germans
	Demographic	Gender, age	Men, women, children, old people
	confessional	Common Religion	Muslims, Christians, Buddhists
	Territorial	Common territory of residence, unity of living conditions	Citizens, villagers, provincials

Functions of social groups

American sociologist Neil Smelser identified four socially significant functions of social groups:

1. The function of human socialization is the most important. Only in a group does a person become a person and acquire a socio-cultural essence. In the process of socialization, a person masters knowledge, values, norms. Socialization is closely related to education and upbringing. A person receives education at school, college or university, and upbringing is mainly in the family.

2. The instrumental function is to carry out joint activities. Collective work in a group is essential for the development of a person and society, because a person cannot do much alone. By participating in a group, a person acquires material resources and self-realization.

3. The expressive function of the group is to satisfy the needs of a person for respect, love, care, approval, trust. Communication with group members gives a person joy.

4. The supporting function is manifested in the desire of people to unite in difficult and problematic life situations. The feeling of group support helps a person to ease unpleasant feelings.

social group - an association of people connected by common relations, which are regulated by special social institutions, and have common norms, values and traditions. The social group is one of the main components of the social structure. The bonding factor for the group is a common interest, that is, spiritual, economic or political needs.

Belonging to a group implies that a person has some characteristics that, from the point of view of the group, are valuable and significant. From this point of view, the "core" of the group is distinguished - those of its members who possess these characteristics to the greatest extent. The remaining members of the group form its periphery.

A specific person cannot be reduced to membership in one group, since he certainly belongs to a sufficiently large number of groups at once. And indeed, we can divide people into groups in many ways: according to belonging to a confession; by income level; in terms of their attitude to sports, art, etc.

Groups are:

Formal (formalized) and informal.

In formal groups, relationships and interactions are established and regulated by special legal acts (laws, regulations, instructions, etc.). The formality of groups is manifested not only in the presence of a more or less rigid hierarchy; it usually also manifests itself in a clear specialization of members who perform their own special functions.

Informal groups are formed spontaneously and do not have regulatory legal acts; their fastening is carried out mainly due to authority, as well as the figure of the leader.

At the same time, in any formal group, informal relations arise between members, and such a group breaks up into several informal groups. This factor plays an important role in group bonding.

Small, medium and large.

Small groups (family, group of friends, sports team) are characterized by the fact that their members are in direct contact with each other, have common goals and interests: the connection between members of the group is so strong that a change in one of its parts will inevitably lead to a change in the group in in general. The lower limit for a small group is 2 people. There are different opinions about what figure should be considered the upper limit for a small group: 5-7 or about 20 people; statistical studies show that the size of most small groups does not exceed 7 people. If this limit is exceeded, then the group breaks up into subgroups (“fractions”). Obviously, this is due to the following dependence: the smaller the group, the closer the ties are established between its members, and therefore the less likely it is to break up. There are also two main types of small groups: a dyad (two people) and a triad (three people).

Middle groups are relatively stable groups of people who also have common goals and interests, are connected by one activity, but at the same time are not in close contact with each other. An example of middle groups can serve as a labor collective, a set of residents of a yard, street, district, settlement.

Large groups are aggregates of people who are united, as a rule, by one socially significant sign (for example, belonging to a religion, professional affiliation, nationality, etc.).

Primary and secondary.

Primary groups are, as a rule, small groups characterized by close ties between members and, as a result, have a great influence on the individual. The last feature plays a decisive role in determining the primary group. Primary groups are necessarily small groups.

In secondary groups, there are practically no close relationships between individuals, and the integrity of the group is ensured by the presence of common goals and interests. Close contacts between members of the secondary group are also not observed, although such a group - subject to the assimilation of group values by the individual - can exert a strong influence on him. The secondary ones are usually medium and large groups.

real and social.

Real groups are distinguished according to some feature that really exists in reality and is realized by the bearer of this feature. So, the real sign can be the level of income, age, gender, etc.

Three types are sometimes distinguished into an independent subclass of real groups and are called the main ones:

Stratification - slavery, castes, estates, classes;

Ethnic - races, nations, peoples, nationalities, tribes, classes;

Territorial - people from the same locality (compatriots), townspeople, villagers.

Social groups (social categories) are groups that are distinguished, as a rule, for the purposes of sociological research on the basis of random features that do not have special social significance. For example, a social group will be the totality of people who know how to use a computer; the entire population of public transport passengers, etc.

Interactive and nominal.

Interactive groups are those whose members interact directly and take part in collective decision-making. An example of interactive groups are groups of friends, commission-type formations, etc.

A nominal group is one in which each member acts independently of the others. They are more characterized by indirect interaction.

Particular attention should be paid to the concept of the reference group. A reference group is considered to be a group that, by virtue of its authority for an individual, is capable of exerting a strong influence on him. In other words, this group can be called a reference group. An individual may aspire to become a member of this group, and his activity is usually aimed at being more like a member of this group. This phenomenon is called anticipatory socialization. In the usual case, socialization proceeds in the process of direct interaction within the framework of the primary group. In this case, the individual adopts the characteristics and modes of action characteristic of the group even before he has entered into interaction with its members.

Particularly in social communication are the so-called aggregates (quasi-groups) - a set of people who are united on the basis of a behavioral attribute. An aggregate, for example, is the audience of a TV program (that is, the people who watch this TV program), the audience of a newspaper (that is, the people who buy and read this newspaper), and so on. Usually, the aggregates include the audience, the public, as well as a crowd of onlookers.

Social structure is often viewed as a set of relations between social groups. From this point of view, the elements of society are not social statuses, but small and large social groups. The totality of social relations between all social groups, more precisely, the overall result of all relations determines the general state of society, that is, what kind of atmosphere reigns in it - consent, trust and tolerance or distrust and intolerance.

To answer the question of what a social group is, one must go back to ancient times and remember that mankind has always survived in society. In primitive society, groups were created that united into a society. Therefore, the association of people who have a common goal, which is the connection between a single person and society, is called a social group.

What are the groups

The main aspects of social life are laid in social groups. They have their own rules and regulations, ceremonies and rituals. As a result of the activities of groups, self-discipline, morality, and abstract thinking appear.

Social groups are divided into small and large. If you combine two people with one task and goal, it will already be a small social group. A small group can be from two to ten people. These people have their own activity, communication, purpose. An example of a small social group can be a family, a group of friends, relatives.

Large social groups are formed a little differently. These people may not directly contact each other. But they are united by the realization that they belong to a group, they have a common psychology and customs, a way of life. An example of large social groups can be an ethnic community, a nation.

Group sizes depend on the individuality of its members, and cohesion also depends on the size of the group: the smaller it is, the more cohesive it becomes. If the group expands, it means that respect, tolerance, consciousness should develop in it.

Social groups, their types

Consider the types of social groups. They are primary and secondary. The first type refers to a group of people who are of great importance to the individual, people who occupy a significant place in his life. Secondary groups are groups where the individual has some practical purpose by joining it. An individual can move from a primary group to a secondary group and vice versa.

The next type of social groups are internal and external groups. If we belong to a group, then for us it will be internal, and if we do not belong, then external. Here, an individual can also move from group to group, respectively, and its status will change.

Reference groups - groups in which people have the opportunity to compare themselves with other people, these are the objects to which we pay attention when forming our views. Such a group can become a benchmark for evaluating their views. We ourselves may or may not belong to the reference group.

And the last type of groups - formal and informal. They are based on group structure. In a formal group, its members interact with each other according to prescribed rules and regulations. In informal groups, these rules are not followed.

Characteristics and signs of groups

Signs of a social group are always clearly expressed. If we analyze them, we can distinguish several main ones:

the presence of a single goal, which is important for the members of the entire group;
the presence of norms and rules that operate within the group itself;
there is a system of solidarity between members of the group.

If all these rules apply in groups, then, accordingly, the group is highly integrated. Depending on the characteristics and type, the structure of the social group is formed.

Characteristics of social groups. It includes the structure and size of groups, methods of group management. Based on the size of the group, one can tell about the relationship between its members. The closest and strongest relationship occurs between two members of the group, it can be husband and wife, friends. Emotions play a big role here. If more people are added, then new relationships are restored in the group, not always good ones.

Often one person separates from the group, who will become its leader or leader. If the group is small, then it can do without a leader, and if it is large, then its absence will settle chaos in the group. If a person falls into a group, then he has the ability to make a sacrifice, the control over his body and thoughts weakens. This is an indicator that social groups play a significant role in the life of mankind.

An important variety of social communities are social groups. social group- this is a set of people who have a common social attribute and perform a socially necessary function in the structure of the social division of labor and activity (G.S. Antipova).

social group- this is a set of individuals interacting in a certain way with each other, aware of their belonging to a given group and recognized as members of this group from the point of view of others (American sociologist R. Merton).

social group- this is an education of two or more people who come into contact with a specific goal and consider this contact significant (C.R. Mills).

Social groups, unlike mass communities, are characterized by:

1) stable interaction, which contributes to the strength and stability of their existence in space and time;

2) a relatively high degree of cohesion;

3) a distinctly expressed homogeneity of the composition, that is, the presence of signs inherent in all individuals included in the group;

4) entry into wider communities as structural formations.

Depending on the density, the forms of implementation of connections and their constituent members differ. large And small, primary and secondary social groups.

The main object of sociological research is small social groups (a small social group can consist of 2 to 15 - 20 people). A small social group is small in composition, its members are united by common activities and are in direct, stable, personal communication.

The characteristic features of a small social group are:

Small composition;

Spatial proximity of its members;

duration of existence;

Commonality of group values, norms and patterns of behavior;

Voluntary entry into the group;

Informal control over the behavior of members.

Typology of small groups.

Currently, about fifty different bases for the classification of small groups are known.

According to the level of group consciousness the following types of groups are distinguished (according to L.I. Umansky):

1. G group-conglomerate- a group that has not yet realized the common goal of its activity (similar to this concept diffuse or nominal groups);

2. G group association having a common goal; all other signs (preparedness, organizational and psychological unity) are absent;

3. G group cooperation characterized by the unity of goals and activities, the presence of group experience and preparedness;

4. G group-corporation, which is higher than cooperation by the presence of organizational and psychological unity (sometimes such a group is called autonomous). The corporation is characterized by the manifestation of group egoism (opposing oneself to other groups, individuals, society) and individualism up to asociality (for example, a gang);

5. K collective- a group distinguished by the highest level of social development, goals and principles of humanism;

6. G omphoteric(lit. "downed") team, in which psychophysiological compatibility is added to all other qualities (for example, the crew of a spaceship).

formal group the following features are inherent: a clear and rational goal, certain functions, a structure based on a hierarchy, assuming the presence of positions, rights and obligations determined by the relevant rules, formal relations between people are determined directly by their official position, and not by their personal qualities.

At informal group(neighbors, companies at home or at work, etc.), which most often unites from 2 to 30 people, there are no fixed goals and positions, the structure of relationships and the norms of relationships are determined directly by the personal qualities of people; there are no clearly regulated rules for membership, entry and exit from the group; members of an informal group know each other well, see each other often, meet and are in a relationship of trust, but not blood relationship.

The formal group, for its part, can be either official (enterprise, brigade, trade union, public or state organizations, etc.), or an unrecognized official structure, i.e., unofficial (secret organization, illegal group, etc.). Consequently, not every formal group is official, and therefore one should not use the terms “formal”, “official” (respectively, “informal”, “unofficial”) group as unambiguous.

The division into groups we have considered bears in itself a certain element of relativity; on the one hand, an informal group can turn into a formal one, for example, friends found an organization; on the other hand, a group can be both formal and informal, such as a school class.

Reference group. This term denotes that group (real or imaginary), the system of values and norms of which acts as a kind of standard for the individual. A person always (voluntarily or involuntarily) correlates his intentions and actions with how those whose opinion he values \u200b\u200bcan evaluate them, regardless of whether they are watching him really or only in his imagination.

The reference group can be:

To which the individual belongs at the moment;

of which he was formerly a member;

To which he would like to belong.

The personified images of the people who make up the reference group form an “internal audience”, to which a person is guided in his thoughts and actions.

By time of existence groups stand out temporary, within which the association of participants is limited in time (for example, conference participants, tourists as part of a tourist group) and stable, the relative constancy of the existence of which is determined by their purpose and long-term principles of functioning (family, employees of the department, students of the same group).

Small groups are part of the immediate social environment in which a person's daily life is carried out and which largely determines his social behavior, determines the specific motives of his activity, and influences the formation of his personality.

A variety of small social groups are primary groups(the term was introduced into sociology by C. Cooley). The hallmark of these groups, according to Cooley, is direct, intimate, interpersonal contact its members, which is characterized by a high level of emotionality.

Through these groups, individuals get the first experience of social unity (an example of primary social groups is a family, a student group, a group of friends, a sports team). Through the primary group, individuals are socialized, they master patterns of behavior, social norms, values and ideals.

secondary group It is formed from people between whom only minor emotional relationships have developed. Their interaction is subordinated only to the achievement of certain goals. In these groups, individually unique personality traits do not matter, but the ability to perform certain functions is more valued.

The main type of secondary social group is a large social group formed to achieve certain goals - organization(political, productive, religious, etc.).

So, secondary groups:

Usually quite significant in size;

Arise to achieve a specific goal;

They maintain formal relationships;

Relationships are limited (represented by contacts).

The types of primary and secondary groups are presented in the table.

Table 1 - Types of primary and secondary groups

Large social groups- communities of people that differ from small groups in the presence of weak constant contacts between all their representatives, but united no less and therefore have a significant impact on public life.

Large social group- this is a quantitatively unlimited social community that has stable values, norms of behavior and socio-regulatory mechanisms (parties, ethnic groups, industrial and industrial and public organizations).

TO large social groups can be attributed:

- ethnic communities(races, nations, nationalities, tribes);

- socio-territorial communities(sets of people permanently residing in a certain territory, with a similar lifestyle). They are formed on the basis of socio-territorial differences;

- socio-demographic communities(communities distinguished by gender and age characteristics);

- social classes and social strata(sets of people who have common social characteristics and perform similar functions in the system of social division of labor.