Society consists of a large number of different elements that are in constant interaction - from the individual, social institutions to large communities. All this is included in the concept of social structure. In other words, this is what parts of the elements a society consists of and in what relationships and interactions they are. In sociology, for the first time, the concept of the structure of society was applied by G. Spencer, who understood by this term the stable relationships between the social organism and its individual parts. He, in general, likened society to an organism. According to G. Spencer, a social structure is an order, an arrangement of functionally related elements and interdependencies between them, forming the internal system of an object.
There are several definitions of this term. Here, for example, one of them: social structure - a certain way of interconnection and interaction of elements, that is, individuals who occupy public positions (statuses) and perform specific functions (roles). You can see that the main thing in this definition is the elements, their relationships and interactions. Or, for example, such a definition, taking into account the strata or strata of society: the social structure is a combination of social positions interconnected and interacting among themselves, hierarchically ordered from the point of view of their stratification.
The properties of social structure can be considered depending on the following variables:
1. The interdependence.
2. Constancy.
3. The fundamental dimension.
4. The determining effect after an empirically observed phenomenon.
The social structure of society as a system is a way of interconnecting the subsystems that interact in it and ensure its integrity. What subsystems are included in the social system? The social structure includes individuals, groups of people (communities) united by any sign, their connections, relationships and interactions, various organizations and institutions, groups, communities, norms, values, and more. Each of these elements, parts of the structure can be in a certain relationship with others, take a certain position and play a specific role in society.
The most detailed analysis of the social structure was given by K. Marx, who showed that the political, cultural and religious aspects of life depend on the mode of production. He believed that the economic basis also determines the ideological, cultural superstructure in society. The followers and students of K. Marx suggested a slightly different relationship, considering cultural, political and ideological organizations relatively autonomous and dependent on the economic component only in the final analysis.
But the view of K. Marx and his followers on social relations in the structure of society was not unique. Thus, E. Durkheim wrote, in particular, that social institutions play a very significant role in the integration of society, combining various parts of it into a single whole. He singled out two forms of structural relations: mechanistic and organic solidarity. M. Weber studied and conducted an analysis of organizational mechanisms in society: the market, bureaucracy and politics.
T. Parsons believed that society is a special type of social system that has a high level of specialization and self-sufficiency. The functional unity of society as a system is determined by the social subsystems to which it relates the economy (adaptation), politics (goal-attainment), culture (maintaining the model). The integrative function of society is determined by the system of "societal community", which contains mainly normative structures.