Personal Notes Sociology 300 400-23-25

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Social Structure Chain of Relationships with Hanging Meshes
In such a chain or mesh of relationship, any one of the members may activate or
mobilise others. At the time of mobilisation he or she may be considered the centre
of the network. Thus, the centres may shift from one action-set to another action-
set. Such chains of links are called non-ego-centric personal network.
The above problem necessitates a distinction between ego-centric and non-ego-
centric personal networks. The recruitment of members by an ego, and his or her
functioning as the centre of all relationships within the network, make the difference
between ego-centric and non-ego-centric personal networks. The latter may not be
formed on the initiative of any single person, and nobody acts as its centre or
coordinating agency. In this context an action-set would mean, a temporary set of
people recruited through various channels to serve some short-term goal.
For example in the diagram on p. 38, we may visualise a situation in which C is the
son of D. D approaches E (a doctor) to request F (another doctor) to examine his
son C in the hospital of F, and C is examined. This is one action-set in which D has
initiated an action of which he may be deemed as the centre. Similarly on another
occasion E may initiate an action for achieving some other specific goal. In an ego-
centric personal network, all such demands on the network must pass through the
centre, or the ego who is the coordinating agency of his or her personal network.
iii) Nature of Transactions
Interactions between the members of a personal network are viewed as transactions.
Sometimes even a transaction of market place, may involve a series of interactions.
Therefore, transactions signify those sequences of interactions, which are
systematically governed by reciprocity. It may be added that reciprocity assumes,
that both the parties involved in an interaction are satisfied, both consider it beneficial
or profitable. However, two things must be borne in mind.
First, it is difficult, if not impossible, to calculate profitability in all transaction. Secondly,
when one does oblige another person, normally he or she does not specify the
expectation of the return. He or she may make demands later as a result of several
interactions.
iv) Types of Social Relations
In this context, the distinction between expressive and instrumental relationships is
relevant. In expressive relationships, one derives satisfaction from the relationship
38 itself. For example, the relationship between a mother and her child. In contrast, an
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instrumental relationship is that, in which the relationship is a means to certain ends, Social Networks
rather than an end in itself. As personal networks are formed by individuals in the
pursuit of their self-interests, then relationships are basically instrumental. They may
sometimes be couched in an expressive form. For example instrumental. They
may sometimes be couched in an expressive form. For example, an employee of an
organisation may address the wife of his employer as “Mataji” (mother), but in
doing so his basic intention is to secure access to the employer through his wife for
instrumental purposes. For this he is using the mode of an expressive relationship.
While studying a personal network it may be difficult to distinguish between the two
kinds of relations. Nevertheless the distinction is important.
Activity 2
Identify at least five social networks in your social life and distinguish between
their types, i.e. whether they are expressive or instrumental in nature. Write a
report on these five social networks and their nature in about one page. Discuss
your report with other fellow students at your Study Centre and also your
Academic Counsellor.
v) Mobilisability of the Members

One of the crucial problems in identifying a personal network, is the mobilisability of
members of the personal network by an ego. It is not easy to predict whether a
member of one’s network, will act definitely in accordance with the request of ego.
However, there are four major factors which have a bearing on the mobilisability of
a member: (a) relative resources of the ego and the member (let us call him alter in
accordance with sociological usage) (b) degree of dependence of the alter on the
ego, (c) number of intermediaries between the ego and the alter, and (d) The bearing
of the demand action on the interest of the alter. On these four factors one can make
the following generalisations : (a) The less the material resources of the alter in
comparison with those of ego, the greater are the chances of his acting in accordance
with the desire of ego, (b) The more an alter is dependent on ego and his network,
the greater are the chances of his acting in accordance with the desire of ego. (c)
The more the number of intermediaries between ego, and the terminal alter the less
are the chances of this acting in accordance with the desire of ego. (d) The less the
adverse effect of the demand action on the interests of the alter, the greater are the
chances of his acting in accordance with the desire of ego.
vi) Identification of the Boundary
In an empirical research on personal networks, the most difficult problem is the
determination of the boundary of a personal network. For this purpose, two criteria
are suggested. It is held by some people that all those persons with whom ego is in
contact, are members of his personal network. Others object to this criterion on the
ground, that all the persons with whom a person is in contact may not be mobilisable.
They assert that the criterion should be actual mobilisation in an action situation.
The main difficulty in the second criterion is that, if one draws the boundary of a
network on the basis of an actual mobilisation in a situation, then the distinction
between a personal and an action-set is blurred, (if not lost), because an action-set
is delineated in terms of a specific action that brings it into being. A personal network,
on the other hand, denotes a set of linkages which exist beyond the duration of any
particular action or transaction. Therefore, the boundary of an action-set will vary,
while that of the personal network, (if it is conceived as more durable than an action-
set), has to be more or less stable. However, its boundary remains indistinct. 39
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Social Structure Check Your Progress 2

Note: a) Use the space given for your answer.
b) Compare your answer with the one given at the end of this unit.
1) List the morphological and interactional characteristics of personal networks.
Use three lines for your answers.
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
2) Define the ego-centric personal network. Use two lines for your answer.
................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................
27.5 PERSONAL NETWORK AND THE SOCIAL

STRUCTURE
It may be emphasised that a personal network may become an ego-centric network,
when somebody emerges as the coordinator of a network, and an ego-centric personal
network may develop into a group. It all depends on the acquisition of additional
characteristics, through interaction and change in the nature of social relations. The
changes can proceed in the opposite direction as well. The structure of a group may
weaken, and it may turn into a personal network or an ego-centric network. This
depends on the non-emergence or emergence, of an individual as its coordinator.
Thus, personal networks are intimately related to the social structure both in its
integrational and disintegrational aspects. They provide a window to look at the
social structure both in its integrational and disintegrational aspects. They provide a
window to look at the social structure and changes going on in it. As personal
networks play an important role in the functioning of formal organisations, the
relationship between personal networks and social structure can be illustrated, by
showing how personal networks operate in formal organisations. Here, we are
taking formal organisation as a social collectivity, and hence a unit of social structure.
27.5.1 Personal Network and Formal Organisations
We can illustrate the relationship between the social structure and personal network,
through the study of an interface between personal networks and formal organisations.
Before doing so it is in order to explain what we mean by formal organisations.
i) Nature of Formal Organisations
Without going into the technical details, we can say that a formal organisation is a
social collectivity, the goals of which are formally defined. It has authority(ies) vested
with power. The authorities are expected to mobilise the power vested in them for
achieving the goals of the formal organisation. Formal organisations operate through
impersonal, universalistic rules and procedures, which are expected to be mobilised
across the board impersonally.
ii) Illustration of Formal Organisation
A University may be taken as an example of a formal organisation. Its goals of
40 education are formally defined. It has various authorities such as the Chancellor, the

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Social Structure Chain of Relationships with Hanging Meshes

v) Mobilisability of the Members

Social Structure Check Your Progress 2

27.5 PERSONAL NETWORK AND THE SOCIAL

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