PRIMARY AND SECONDARY GROUPS

PRIMARY GROUPS

Primary groups are those in which individuals intimately interact and cooperate over a long

period of time. Examples of primary groups are families, friends, peers, neighbours, classmates,

church members. These groups are marked by primary relationships in which communication is

informal. Members of primary groups have strong emotional ties. They also relate to one another

as whole and unique individuals.

SECONDARY GROUPS

In contrast, secondary groups are those in which individuals do not interact much. Members of

secondary groups are less personal or emotional than those of primary groups. These groups are

marked by secondary relationships in which communication is formal. Members of secondary

groups may not know each other or have much face-to-face interaction. They tend to relate to

others only in particular roles and for practical reasons. An example of a secondary Girls Scout,

Rotary Club.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SOCIAL GROUPS

1. Have a defined structure.
2. Share common goals.
3. Have voluntary or involuntary membership.
4. Have marks of identity.
5. Share common needs, interests and values.
6. Have specific ways of interacting which is determined by rules and regulations.
7. Have established patterns of behaviour.
8. Must cooperate in order to achieve the groups’ goals.
9. Have both positive and negative sanctions.

Social groups may be categorised according to several categories such as:

a. Size
b. Structure
c. Membership
d. Purpose
e. formalization
CATEGORISING GROUPS ACCORDING TO SIZE

Groups can also be categorised according to the number of people present within the group.

PRIMARY GROUP

A group held together by intimate, face-to-face relationships, formed by family and

environmental associations and regarded as basic to social life and culture. In a primary group,

members have an emotional bond to one another such that the individual's place in that group can

never be filled by another person.

Members of a primary group meet the following criteria:

_ Meet frequently on a face-to-face basis.

_ Have a sense of identity or belonging that lasts a long time.

_ Have emotional intimacy.

SECONDARY GROUP

A secondary group is more formal and less personal. It is defined as a group of people with

whom one's contacts are detached and impersonal .Members of a secondary group therefore meet

the following criteria:

_ Do not meet frequently, or they meet only for short periods of time.

_ Share a sense of identity or belonging only until the group ends.

_ Are task-oriented.

_ Feel little emotional intimacy.

Secondary groups, in contrast to primary groups, are large groups involving formal and

institutional relationships. Secondary relationships involve weak emotional ties and little

personal knowledge of one another. Examples of secondary groups: police force, trade unions, a

school and a church.

CATEGORISING GROUPS ACCORDING TO MEMBERSHIP

IN-GROUP

An in-group is a group to which we belong and to which we feel loyalty. This group possesses

some form of identity which tends to exclude others. This may include badges, how we dress or

methods of communication. We may also judge people to be members of an in-group based on

factors such as their religion, race, nationality, job category, and level of education. It is therefore

a social group towards which a member feels respect and an individual identifies in

himself/herself positive direction.

OUT-GROUP

An out-group is a group to which we do not belong and to which we feel no loyalty. It is a social

group towards which a person feels a sense of competition or opposition.

INTEREST GROUPS

An informal group of persons seeking to achieve a common goal related to their membership in

an organisation.

REFERENCE GROUPS

The group to which we compare ourselves for purposes of self-evaluation is called a reference

group. We tend to look for others with whom to compare ourselves. In our society, people

compare themselves to others in similar age groups and with similar educational levels to

determine how successful they are materially.

PEER GROUP

A peer group is a group with members of approximately the same age, social status, and

interests. Generally, people are relatively equal in terms of power when they interact with peers.
A group gives us a sense of:

_ status and importance.

_ belonging and a sense of identity.

_ physical companionship.

_ emotional security.

_ avenues for leadership and decision-

making
Categorizing Groups According to Structures

FORMAL GROUP : A formal group are organized with clear –cut structures which govern the interaction
of members.
INFORMAL GROUP : Informal groups have no written rules regarding behaviour of members.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FORMAL AND INFORMAL GROUPS
_ Membership in formal groups is determined by the management of the organisation and the roles and
responsibilities of the members are also predefined.
_ Membership in informal groups is voluntary and dependent upon the whims and likings of people.
_ Size – formal groups may be quite large in size. The informal groups tend to be small in size so as to
maintain cohesiveness, which is essential for the informal roups to be attractive for the members
concerned.
_ Nature of groups – the formal groups are stable and may continue for a long period. Their membership
is specified through a structured process. The informal groups, on the other hand, are quite unstable in
nature.
Questions and Reviews

1. Describe TWO ways in which the structure of a sports club differs from that of a gang.

2. Give THREE reasons why a sports club may have difficulty in achieving its goals.
3. As a leader of your school drug- free club suggest TWO activities which you think may
encourage members to identify with the clubs goal
4. What is meant by the term ‘interest group’

(b) State TWO characteristics of interest groups

(c) State TWO factors that may create the need for interest groups in society

5. Suggest, giving full details, THREE strategies which the leader of your schools Cultural Club
may use to keep members together as a group.
Explain fully why EACH strategy suggested above, is likely to be successful.