Social Structure and Its Role in Society Social structure consists of the roles that individuals or groups play in today's society, and together they serve as a foundation for which society operates. Our society contains many social structures, which establish the limits on our behavior. Take for instance a school, whose main purpose is to provide an environment in which children can be educated. There are three essential components that make up a school: administrators, teachers, and students. These three groups of people are vital to the identity of a school, without one, a school can not exist