ABSTRACT
An important aspect of societal transformation is the expansion of the area within which individuals and groups are closely interrelated. In premodem societies, individuals are closely integrated within villages and tribes, but may be interdependent with other social units to only a limited degree. As societies modernize, the areas of social integration expand until individuals within a whole society or nation may be as closely interdependent as were members of villages and tribes in earlier times. The growth of cities, of trade, and of social and political structures, represents steps toward society-wide integration. In advanced industrial societies, this trend is continued to the point at which international integration becomes a reality.
