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Sociology vocabulary · Social Structure and Institutions

Social structure

Meaning in sociology, with examples

nounCore term

In sociology, social structure means: The relatively stable pattern of social relationships, institutions and positions in a society, which shapes and limits what individuals can do.

In Turkish: toplumsal yapı, sosyal yapı

How it is used

A central idea in theory lectures and essays. It is often contrasted with agency in the structure and agency debate. Sociologists say that social structures constrain, shape or reproduce behaviour, and that individuals act within them.

Example sentences

  1. Functionalists see social structure as a system of parts that work together.

  2. Her thesis looks at how social structure limits young people's job choices.

Common collocations

  • social structure and agency
  • class structure
  • underlying social structure
  • constrained by social structure
  • agencyThe capacity of individuals to act independently, make their own choices and change their circumstances, despite the limits set by social structure.
  • social institutionAn established and lasting set of rules, roles and practices that organises an important area of social life, such as family, education, religion, the economy or politics.
  • statusA social position that a person occupies, such as student, mother or doctor, which comes with expected behaviour and a certain level of respect.
  • functionalismA theoretical approach that sees society as a system of connected parts, each of which performs a function that helps keep the whole stable.

More terms: Social Structure and Institutions

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