ORGANIZATION AS A

SOCIAL SYSTEM

CHAPTER 2

BY:

ROSLIZA MD ZANI

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1.WHAT IS SOCIAL SYSTEM

2.CONCEPTS OF SOCIAL SYSTEM

3.ROLE AND ROLE CONFLICTS

4.STATUS AND STATUS SYMBOLS

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 SOCIAL SYSTEM
 Is a complex set of human
relationships interacting in many
ways.
 When people join a work group, they
become part of that organization’s
social system.

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 CONCEPTS OF SOCIAL
SYSTEMS
1. SOCIAL EQUILIBRIUM
System is said to be in social equilibrium when
there is a dynamic working balance among its
interdependent parts (subsystems).

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 2. PSYCHOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC
CONTRACTS
 These contracts are agreements made
between an employer and an employee
on what to give and what to receive from
each other.
 It is a set of expectation on what to give and what
to receive in the course of working relationship
between an employer and an employee.

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 The differences between psychological contract
and economic contract
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT ECONOMIC CONTRACT

An unwritten agreement which A written agreement which exist

exist between employee and between employee and employer.
employer. – employment contract

Automatically formed. Non-automatically formed.

  -employee needs to agree and sign

E.g: effort, time, knowledge, E.g: salary, wages and other

skills, experience to be benefits to be received.
contributed.
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 ROLES

Is a prescribed or expected behavior

associated with a particular position or
status in a group or organization.

Each role calls for different types of

behavior.
 Example: A manager – role as an administrator, listener, friend, etc.

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 ROLE CONFLICTS
A situation in which an individual is confronted
with divergent role expectations which occurs
due to different perceptions and expectations
of a person’s role.
 People will have different expectations on
certain roles.

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 TYPES OF ROLE CONFLICTS
Intra-sender role conflict
Inter-sender role conflict
Inter-role conflict
Person-role conflicts
Role overload
Role ambiguity

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 STATUS

 Itis the social rank or position of a person in a

group in relation to others.
 With it come certain degree of recognition, honor
and acceptance given by society to a person.

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 SOURCES OF STATUS

 Job level
 Level of education
 Abilities
 Skills
 Seniority
 Salary
 ………….. ???

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 STATUS SYMBOLS

 Visible, external things attached

to a person and serve as evidence
of social rank.

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 STATUS SYMBOLS

Examples of status symbols:

a) A company car
b) Job title (President, Professor, etc.)
c) An assigned secretary
d) Special facilities (fax, phone, etc.)
e) ………. ???

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 ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURES

Definition of culture:
 A system of shared meaning held by organizational
members that distinguishes the organization from other
organizations.
 A set of assumptions, beliefs, values and norms shared
by everyone in an organization.
 Culture is acquired from the society.

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 HOW DO CULTURES CHANGE?

Cultures change in 2 ways:

1. Cultural revolution – a dramatic change
(impact: cultural shock & high stress among
employees)
2. Cultural evolution – occurs gradually and
slowly

Note: Most organizations go for cultural evolution

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 BLENDED LEARNING
YOUR TASK:
• Read the textbook
• Search from the internet
• Explain the followings (definition & example) using your
own words.

1. Types of role conflict:

a) Person role conflict
b) Role overload
c) Role ambiguity
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 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1) Differentiate between psychological

contract and economic contract.
2) Briefly explain two (2) ways of cultural
change with examples.
3) Explain five (5) types of role conflicts with
examples.
4) List five (5) sources of status.
5) List five (5) examples of status symbols.

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