A social group is an association of individuals who have common characteristics: age, gender, interests, position in society, profession, religion, and so on. Such a collection of people can be of two types: primary and secondary. If in the first group the relations between members are personal, then in the second they are more formal, business or distant.
What is a primary group?
In a word, we can conclude that this is a meeting of loved ones, even relatives. Primary social groups include personalities between whom relationships are established, which are based on the individual characteristics of all members of the association. In addition, the members of such a community are highly interested in the affairs of the group, they are equally involved in the process of their decision and discussion. Such brotherhoods are small: otherwise it would be too difficult to establish close relations between its members.
People have always been interested in the question: are the families referred to primary social groups? The answer was back in 1909 by the American psychologist Charles Horton Cooley: he was the first to introduce the concept of “social group” and apply it to relatives. According to the findings of the scientist, the family is a classic representative of such a community, as it plays a dominant and decisive role in shaping the character, habits and behavior of children. Later, other close associations of citizens began to be called primary groups.
Who are the primary groups?
First of all, communities in which there are emotional connections, closeness and solidarity. The latter, by the way, can have not only a limited group level, but also a public scope. The primary group is easy to distinguish among other associations of citizens. It is inherent in:
- Voluntary nature.
- Relative duration, stability of existence.
- A small number of people.
- Their spatial proximity.
- General forms of behavior, values and moral standards.
- The same informal and moral ways of establishing discipline.
In addition to the family, the primary social groups include a school class, a course at the institute, a meeting of friends, members of one sports team or an applied circle. It is in this close circle that a person receives his initial socialization, realizing the connection with society and its members. In the primary social group, the individual mentality of the individual is formed, his ideology and behavior model, which will be inherent in him in adulthood.
Characteristic
Primary social groups include individuals, which are connected by direct and personal relations, and not by general rules or specialized standards, as, for example, in the collective of any labor organization. Therefore, we can distinguish the main features inherent in such a brotherhood:
- At this level, people perceive each other not as carriers of social statuses and positions, but as individuals.
- Friendly relations are established between individuals: trusting, emotionally colored.
- Assessing each other, they pay attention to the character and inner world of the comrade, and not to the productivity of his labor. For example, if there is a two-member in the class, but at the same time he is a sensitive, kind and sympathetic boy, then he will be loved and respected on an equal basis with others. At the same time, they can hate an excellent student if he is a liar, a coward and a sneaker.
In a word, people who easily find mutual understanding are referred to primary social groups. There is no emotional neutrality inherent in standard rules and staffing.
