A social system is complex network of relationships and patterns of interaction that organize human society.
It isn’t just a collection of people; it is a structured arrangement where individuals, groups, and institutions interact according to shared norms and values.
Sociologists categorize these systems to understand how power, resources, and social order shift across different cultures and eras.
Here is an overview of the primary types of social systems.
Evolutionary Stage
One of the most common ways to classify social systems is through their level of technological and economic development given by Gerhard Lenski.
Hunting and Gathering Societies:
- The earliest and simplest form. These are small, nomadic groups that rely on nature for survival.
- They are characterized by high levels of equality and minimal division of labor.
Horticultural and Pastoral Societies:
- These emerged when humans began to domesticate animals (pastoral) and cultivate plants using hand tools (horticultural).
- This allowed for permanent settlements and the first signs of social inequality.
Agrarian Societies:
- The “dawn of civilization.”
- The invention of plow allowed for large-scale farming, leading to massive food surpluses, the rise of cities, and rigid social hierarchies (like feudalism).
Industrial Societies:
- Driven by the Industrial Revolution, these systems use machines and fuel-based energy.
- This shifted population from rural farms to urban centers and introduced formal education and complex bureaucracy.
Post-Industrial Societies:
- These are based on information, services, and high technology rather than manufacturing.
- In these systems, knowledge is the primary commodity.
Social Solidarity
Durkheim focused on what “glues” a society together.
He identified two distinct types of social systems based on the nature of their cohesion:
Mechanical Solidarity:
- Found in traditional, smaller societies.
- Everyone performs similar tasks (e.g., farming), shares the same beliefs, and has a strong “collective conscience.”
- The “system” is held together by sameness.
Organic Solidarity:
- Found in modern, complex societies.
- Because labor is highly specialized (doctors, engineers, farmers), people depend on each other to function.
- The “system” is held together by mutual interdependence, much like the organs in a body.
Social Interaction
Tönnies categorized social systems based on quality of human relationships within them:
| Type | Description | Key Characteristic |
| Gemeinschaft (Community) | Small, traditional societies where relationships are personal and based on emotion and tradition. | Strong family ties; “we” feeling. |
| Gesellschaft (Society) | Large, modern societies where relationships are impersonal, contractual, and based on self-interest. | Business-like; “me” feeling. |
Open vs. Closed Social Systems
From a structural perspective, social systems can be classified by how they interact with their environment and allow for mobility:
Open Systems:
- These systems allow for exchange of information and energy with outside world.
- They are characterized by social mobility, where individuals can change their status through achievement (e.g., modern democratic meritocracies).
Closed Systems:
- These are isolated and resistant to change.
- Social status is usually ascribed at birth (e.g., the traditional Indian Caste system or historical estate systems), and there is little to no interaction with outside influences.
Functions of Social System
Sociologist Talcott Parsons argued that every social system, regardless of its type, must perform four functional imperatives to survive:
-
Adaptation: How system secures resources from the environment (The Economy).
-
Goal Attainment: How system sets and achieves priorities (The Political System).
-
Integration: How system maintains coordination among its parts (Legal and Social Norms).
-
Latency (Pattern Maintenance): How system sustains values and culture of the society (Family and Religion).
Understanding these systems helps us see “invisible” structures that dictate our behavior.
Whether you are living in a digital-heavy post-industrial society or a tightly-knit traditional community, the type of social system you inhabit determines your opportunities, your relationships, and your worldview.