FYBA Sociology English Semester I-munotes

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1Unit -1
SOCIOLOGY ASADISCIPLINE
Contents :
*Perspectives insociology: -Functionalist, Conflict, Interpretive,
Critical.
*Sociology Imagination: -Developing asociological outlook
*Significance ofsociology
Unit Structure :
1.0Objectives
1.1Introduction
1.2Definition
1.3Subject matter ofsociology
1.4IsSociology ascience ?
1.5Nature ofsociology
1.6Scope ofsociology
1.7Early thinkers
1.8Perspectives insociology
1.8.1 Fuctionalist perspective
1.8.2 Conflict perspective
1.8.3 Interactionist perspective
1.8.4 Critical perspective
1.9Summary
1.10 Questions
1.11 References
1.0OBJECTIVES: -
Togive abasic understanding ofsociology.
Toknow themeaning andsubject matter ofsociology
Tounderstand thenature ofscientifi cstudymunotes.in

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2Toknow thenature andscope ofsociology
To study the contribution ofearly thinkers towards the
development ofsociology
To familiarize the students with various sociological
perspectives
1.1.INTRODUCTION:
Inthefamily ofsocial sciences, Sociology iscomparatively a
new entrant. Butbecause ofitsdealing with social problems, social
relationships and social interactions theimportance ofthestudy of
this subject has considerably increased. Ithas considerably
developed inmethodology, scop eandapproach. Attempts arenow
being made tostudy every social problem scientifically and
objectively, eliminating subjectivity tothe extent possible a
distinctive way ofexamining human interactions. Sociology isthe
systematic study ofsocial behavio rand human groups. Itfocuses
primarily ontheinfluence ofsocial relationships upon people’s
attitudes and behavior and onhow societies areestablished and
change. Asafield ofstudy sociology has avery broad scope. It
deals with families, gangs, business firms, computer networks,
political parties, schools, religions, andlabor unions. Itisconcerned
with love, poverty, conformity, technology, discrimination, illness,
alienation, overpopulation andcommunity.
1.2.DEFINITION:
Sociology isbeing defined differently byoursociologists and
other’s .Eachoneofcourse, hasitsown news about thenature and
scope ofthesubject, asheconceives it.
According toWard “Sociology isscience ofsociety”.
George Simmel opines that itisasubject which studies
human inter -relationship .
Giddins isoftheview that “Sociology isscientific study
ofsociety”.
Max Weber has viewed sociology as“Science which
attempts imperative understanding ofsocial actions”.munotes.in

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3Sorokin isoftheopinion thatsociology isastudy first of
alltherelationship and correlations between various classes ,
second between thesocial and non social aspects oflifeand
third itstudies general characteristics common toallclasses
ofsociety .
Ogburn hassaid that,“Sociology isconce rned with the
study ofsocial lifeand itsrelations tothefactors ofculture,
natural environment, heredity andgroup .”
Durkheim while defining sociology hassaid that,“Itisthe
science ofcollective representation.”
Wemay thus conclude these definitions with thedefinition
ofE.S. Bogardus when hesays that, “Sociology may be
defined asthestudy oftheways inwhich social experiences
function indeveloping, maturing and repressing human
beings through inter -personal stimulations.”
Fromallthese definitions itbecomes clear that sociology is
concerned with social relationships and studies society, human
interactions, inter-personal and intra-personal relations. Ittries to
study scientifically social institutions, organizations and systems.
These definitions also make itamply clear thatsociologists view the
subject differently andthatthere isnounanimity inthisregard.
1.3.SUBJECT MATTER OFSOCIOLOGY:
While discussing itssubject matter ofsociolog y,Sorokin
said that, “Itseems tobeastudy, first oftherelationship and
correlation between various classes ofsocial phenomena”
(correlation between economic and religious, family and moral,
judicial andeconomic, mobility andpolitical phenomena andsoon);
second that between social and non social (geographical,
biological) phenomena; third thestudy ofgeneral characteristics
common toallclasses ofphenomena. Thus according tohisview
point sociology studies social events, relationships between social
andnonsocial phenom enaandgeneralized study offacts common
toallaspects ofsocial life.munotes.in

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4Inhisbook ‘Society, Culture and Personality’ hehas said
thatsociology ismore orless concerned with theworking ofhuman
beings. Inthisstudy hecovers thestudy ofhuman behavior, social
organizations, social phenomena and social values. Heisthus
altogether opposed toformal school ofthought.
Letuscheck:
1. Define Sociology.
2. Discuss itssubject matter
1.4.ISSOCIOLOGY ASCIENCE ?
There isacontinuing controversy about the nature of
sociology. According tosome sociologists itisascience, while
others strongly refute thisclaim.
What isascientific study ?For ascientific study itis
essential that thewhole study should besystematic and without
anysubjectivity. Ascientist issupposed tohave aclear vision anda
pointed approach. Heshould have capacity torecord unbiased
decisions andproperly classify thedata. Heshould also have visionmunotes.in

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5tocollect only such data that isuseful forhisstudy. Heshould
conclude hisfindings after verification ofdata andnotonmorality or
certain pre-supposed philosophies, notions andideas.
The most important element ofascientific study isthat a
scientist should deal with bear facts and notwith ideal situations.
Thus this study should beboth factual and systematic. Then
another element isthatitsresults should have universal application.
Then inascientific study there should because effect relationship
anditshould also becapable ofmaking certain safe predictions.
IsSociology AScience ?Now aquestion arises asto
whether sociology isscience ornot. Those who support thecause
ofsociology asscience plead that apresent daysociologists must
bemethodological. Hemust base hisconclusions onimpartially
collected, analyzed and interpreted data. Heshould also bewilling
togethisdata tested anywhere toestablish itsvalidity. They also
argue that likenatural scientists, Sociologists areconcerned with
hard factsandnotwith ideal situations. They trytoanalyse facts of
social lifeastheyare. They also believe thatthere aremany social
facts andtheories which thesociologists have developed after hard
labor and these are universally applicable, under similar
circumstances. They also point outthat likenatural scientists, the
sociologists arevery much concerned with cause effect relationship
e.g.social stratification andsocial disorganizations aretheoutcome
ofcertain causes, which have their effects aswell. Aswith the
natural scientists, sowith thesociologists, itisequal lythat likethe
former thelatter canmake some safe predictions. They thus argue
that“sociology isascience which attempts theinterpretative under -
standing ofsocial action inorder toarrive atacasual explanation of
itscauses andeffects.”
Sociology -NotaScience: there isother side ofthepicture
aswell. Many believe thatsociety isnotaperfect science. Like the
results ofnatural sciences, theresults obtained bysocial scientists
cannot begeneralized and these also cannot besame under all
circumstances and atallplaces. The conditions always differ from
society tosociety and social changes areunavoidable. These are
also very complex. Then itissaidthateach human being hashismunotes.in

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6own limitations and heprovides information keeping those
limitations intoconsideration. Heisnotprepared todisclose secrets
and thus theinformation provided isnotfactual. Itisalso said that
themany situations arenotwithin thecontrol ofsociologists and
repeat edexperimentation isalmost impossible.
Each sociologist has subjective approach totheproblem
under investigation. There isnostage ofinvestigation inwhich
there isnosubjectivity. Each onehassome secrets which heisnot
prepared todisclose totheinvestigators. Unlike natural scientist, a
sociologist hasnolaboratory facilities andalso hasnocontrol over
material tobeexperimented i.e.human beings. Notonly this, butit
isnotpossible torepeat experiments. Itismore orless notpossible
tomake thesafe predictions because nature ofsocial problems
with which thesociologists arenotthesame allover theworld.
Letuscheck:
1.Issociology ascience? Discuss itthrough thedifference
between natural andsocial sciences
1.5.NATURE OFSOCIOLOGY:
What isreal nature ofsociology about this controversy is
likely tocontinue. According toRobert Stead ,Sociology isasocial
science and notanatural science, because itdeals withhuman
beings and social phenomena. Itispositive and notnormative
science because itstudies social phenomena asitisand notasit
ought tobe.Itispure and notapplied science because itstudies
underlying factors ofasocial phenomenon. Sociolog yisanabstract
andnotaconcrete science because itstudies society ingeneral. It
deals with society, which initself isabstract andassuch thesubjectmunotes.in

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7cannot beconcrete. Itisascience ofgeneralization andnotthatof
particularization because itstudies asocial problem ingeneral and
notinparticular way. Itdoes notstudy asocial phenomenon from a
particular angle. Itisanempirical orrational science because it
tries tofollow logical method ofdata collection.
1.6SCOPE OFTHE SOCIOLOG Y
Sociologist and others differ what should bethescope of
sociology. August Comte makes usbelieve that sociology should
trytostudy social phenomena onscientific lines. Hehasthus laid
stress onscientific approach. Emile Durkheim has tried to
separate sociology from other social science subjects andalso tried
togive anindependent status tothissubject. Inhisown way Pareto
has tried togive itscientific orientation. According tohim in
sociology there should benoplace forinfere nces. Heissure that
there isbasic unity among various social phenomena. Heisofthe
view that sociology ismuch ofscience and social problems should
andcanbescientifically studied. Max Weber hashowever said that
sociology should merely beinterpre tative understanding ofsocial
actions andnothing beyond that.
Former orSpecialist School ofThought: There aretwo
main schools ofthought about the scope ofsociology. Formal
school ofthought believes that scope ofsociology should notbe
generali zed butconfined tothestudy ofsome specific aspects of
society. The exponents ofthisschool wish tokeep thesubject pure
and independent. According tothem itshould deal with social
relationships, social activities andprocesses ofsocialization.
Max Weber, who isthechief exponent ofthis school of
thought, hassaid that sociology should deal with interpretations of
social behaviors only.
Vier Kandt, ,who isanother exponent ofthisschool of
thought, isoftheview thatsociology should confine itself tothe
study offormal and nottheactual behavior ofthepeople inthe
society.munotes.in

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8Simmel has given anabstract concept ofsociology, in
which stress has been laidonsocial relationship and social inter-
actions. For him, every society isthe mix ofthis two. Social
relations are nothing but social interactions between two
individuals. Hehassaid thatsociety isnotcollections ofindividuals
butitisessentially apsychic inter-action between theindividua ls.It
issum total ofsocial relations between theindividuals living init.
According toSimmel sociology should notbemade a
general science devoted tothestudy ofsocial relations ingeneral.
Itshould beconfined tothe study ofspecif icsocial relations
because now these are being studied inthecontext ofsocial
production andsocial heritage.
Vone Wiese isanother exponent ofthisschool ofthought.
Hebelieves that subject matter ofsociology isdifferent from other
social sciences. Hedoes notagree with theidea that sociology is
combination ofsocial sciences butitisasubject which combines
different social science subjects. Forhim sociology asaspecial
science has more importance than general sociology. Itshould
separate itssubject matter from other social sciences.
Synthetic School ofThought: Theschool ofthought
believes that sociology should study society asawhole and not
confine itself tothestudy ofonly limited social problems. Auguste
comte believes that thescope ofsociology should beconsiderably
widened. According tohimthestudy ofone aspect ofsociety can
lead tomisleading results because allaspects ofsociety, likeparts
ofhuman body, areinter-linked. Hobb -House and Sorokin also
contribute tothisview point. They toobelieve thatSociology should
study society asawhole. The supporters ofthisschool ofthought
agree that inour modern times nosocial science subject can
remain isolated altogether ignoring other subjects ofstudy .
Thescope ofsociology, they argue should begeneral and not
narrow. Durkheim hasgone totheextent ofsaying that “Sociology
isscience ofcollective representation.”
Sorokin isthemain exponent ofthis school ofthought.
Heisnotsatisfie dwith thetraditional views about sociology andmunotes.in

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9thus wants togive itanew approach. According tohimsociology is
asystematic science and ithas manifold inter-actions. Itis
concerned with general facts ofsocial life. Heiskeen togive
systematic interpretation ofsociety.
Letuscheck:
1.Examine thenature andscope ofsociology indetail
1.7.EARLY THINKERS: -
August Comte :
InFrance, the19thCentury was anunsettling time forthe
nation’s intellectuals. French monarchy had been deposed inthe
revolution of1789 andNapoleon hadsuffered defeat inhiseffort to
conquer Europe. Philosophers and intellectuals were finding the
ways outtoimprove thesociety. August Comte isconsidered as
themost influential philosopher oftheearly 1800s. Hebelieved that
inorder toimprove society thetheoretical science ofsociety should
bedeveloped andasystematic investigation ofbehavior should be
carried. HeCoined theterm sociology toapply tothescience of
human behaviors. The term Sociology hasbeen derived from Latin
word ‘socious’ means ‘society ’and Greek word ‘logus ’means
‘science ’.
Comte hoped that thesystematic study ofsocial behavior
would eventually lead tomore rational human interactions. In
Comte’s hierarchy oftheSciences, Sociology was atthetop. He
called itthe“queen”, anditspractioners “scientist -priests.”
Emile Durkheim :
Durkheim isconsidered asone ofthefounding fathers of
sociology. Hemade many pioneering contributions toSociologymunotes.in

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10including hismost important theoretical work onSuicide. Durkheim
(1858 -1917) was son ofarabbi hewas educated inboth France
and Germany. Hehas animpressive academic record and was
appointed asoneofthefirstprofessors oftheSociology inFrance.
Durkheim asserted that behavior must beunderstood inthelarger
social context, rather anindividual action.
Through intensive study ofArunta tribe, hefocused onthe
important functions ofreligion inreinforcing group Solidarity.
Accor ding toDurkheim thegrowing division oflabor inindustrial
society and increasing specialization leads towhat hecalled as
Anomie. Inthestate onanomie theconfusion and theinability to
cope with thecircumstances also results incases ofsuicide.
Max Weber:
Max Weber was born inGermany (1864 -1920). Hestudied
legal and economic history, butgradually developed aninterest in
sociology. Later hebecame professor and taught atvarious
German universities. Hetaught the“Verstehen ”,tohisstudents. He
said that inorder tofully comprehend behavior, wemust learn the
subjective meanings people attach totheir actions -how they
themselves view and explain their behavior. Heisalso credited for
hiskeyconceptual tool: theIdeal type. The concept ofideal type
can beused tostudy thefamily, religion, authority, and economic
systems, aswellastheanalyze bureaucracy.
Karl Marx:
Karl Marx (1818 -1883) was acritique ofexisting institutions
that aconventional academic career was impossible. Hewas a
revolutionary and spent most ofhislifeinexile from hisnative
Germany. Hewas very much influenced bytheideas ofFriedich
Engles (1820 -1895) with whom heformed alifelong friendship.
Marx lived inextreme povert yinEngland. Hepawned most
ofhispossessions, and several ofhischildren died ofmalnutrition
anddisease.
InMarx ’sanalysis, society was fundamentally divided
between two classes i.e.Bourgoise and Proletariat who havemunotes.in

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11opposite interests. Inhisexamination ofindustrial society, hesaw
thefactory asthecenter ofconflict between theexploiters (the
owners ofthemeans ofproduction andtheexploited (theworkers).
Marx ’sinfluence on contemporary thinking has been
dramatic. His writings inspired those who led the communist
revolutions inRussia, China, Cuba, Vietnam, andelsewhere.
Letuscheck:
1.Briefly analyze thecontribution ofearly thinkers tothe
development ofsociology.
1.8.PERSPECTIVES INSOCIOLOGY: -
Sociologists view society indifferent ways. Some see the
world basically asastable andongoing entity. They areimpressed
with theendurance ofthefamily, organized religion, and other
social institutions. Some sociologists see society ascomposed of
many groups inconflict, competing forscarce resources. Toother
sociologists, themost fascinating aspects ofthesocial world are
the everyday, routine interactions among individuals that we
sometimes take forgranted. The four perspectives that aremost
widely used bysociologists willprovide anintroductory look atthe
discipline. These arethefunctionalist, conflict, interactionist and
critical perspectives.
1.8.1. Functionalist Perspective: -
Also known asfunctionalism and structural functionalism,
functionalist perspective isbased ontheassumption thatsociety is
stable, orderly system. This stable system ischaracterized by
societal consensus, whereby the majority ofmembers show amunotes.in

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12common setofvalues, belief andbehavioral expect ation. According
tothisperspective asociety iscomposed ofinterrelated parts, each
ofwhich serves afunction andcontributes totheoverall stability of
thesociety. Societies develop social structure orinstitutions that
persist because they play apartinhelping society survive. These
institutions include thefamily, education, government religion, and
the economy. Ifanything adverse happens toone ofthese
institutions orpart areaffected and thesystem nolonger functions
properly.
Talco ttParsons (1902 -1979). aHarvard university sociologist
was akeyfigure inthedevelopment offunctionalist theory. Parson
had been greatly influenced bytheworks ofEmile Durkheim, Max
Weber and other European sociologists. Under thefunctionalist
approach, ifanaspect ofsocial lifedoes notcontribute toasociety
stability orsurvival -ifitdoes notserve some identifiably useful
function orpromote value consensus among member ofasociety -
itwillnotbepassed onfrom onegeneration tothenext.
Asanexample ofthe functionalist perspective, letus
examine prostitution. Why isitthatapractice sowidely condemned
continues todisplay such persistence and vitality? Functionalists
suggest thatprostitution satisfies needs ofpatrons thatmay notbe
readily met through more socially acceptable forms such as
courtship ormarriage. The “buyer” receives sex without any
responsibility forprocreation orsentimental attachment; atthe
same time, the“seller” gains alivelihood through thisexchange.
Through such an examination, we can conclude
thatprostitution does perform certain functions that society that
seems toneed. However, thisisnottosuggest thatprostitution isa
desirable orlegitimate form ofsocial behavior.
Manifest andLatent Functions: -
Manifest function areintended oroverly recognized bythe
participants inasocial unit. Incontrast, latent function isunintended
function that ishidden and remains unacknowledged by
participants. Forexample, amanifest function ofeducation isthe
transmission ofknowledge and skills from one generation tothemunotes.in

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13next, alatent function istheestablishment ofsocial relations and
networks. Robert Merton noted that allfeatures ofasocial system
may notbefunctio nalatalltimes, dysfunctions aretheun-desirable
consequences ofany element ofasociety. Adysfunction of
education inUnited States istheperpetuation ofgender, racial and
clahinequalities. Such dysfunction may threaten thecapacity ofa
society toadopt andsurvive.
1.8.2.Conflict Perspective: -
According toconflict perspectives, group sinsociety are
engaged inacontinuous power struggle forcontrol ofscarce
resources. Conflict may take the form ofpolitics, litigation,
negotiations orfamily discussions about financial matter. Simmel,
Marx and Weber contributed significantly tothis perspective by
focusing onthe inevitability ofclashes between social groups.
Today, advocates oftheconflict perspective view social continuous
power struggle among competing social group.
Karl Marx viewed struggle between social classes as
inevitable, given the exploitation ofworkers under capitalism.
Expanding onMarx’s work, sociologists and other social scientist
have come toseeconflic tnotmerely asaclass phenomenon but
asapart ofeveryday lifeinallsocieties. Thus, instudying any
culture, organization, orsocial group, sociologists want toknow
who benefits, who suffers and who dominates attheexpense of
other. They areconcer ned with theconflict between women and
men, parents and children, cities and suburbs and whites and
African Americans, toname only few. Instudying such questions,
conflict theorists are interested inhow society’s institutions -
including thefamily, government ,religion, education andthemedia -
may help tomaintain theprivileges ofsome groups and keep
others inasubservient position.
Like functionalist, conflict sociologists tend touse the
Marco -level approach. Obviously, though, there isastriking
difference between these two sociological perspectives. Conflict
theorists areprimarily concerned with thekinds ofchanges thatcan
bring about, whereas functionalists look forstability andconsensus.munotes.in

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14The conflict model isviewed asmore“radial ”and “activist”
because ofitsemphasis onsocial change and the need for
redistribution ofresources toeliminate existing social inequality. On
theother hand, thefunctionalist perspective, because ofitsfocus
on stability, isgenerally seenas more “conservation ”
(Dahrendorf,1958)
Currently, conflict theory isaccepted within thediscipline of
sociology asonevalid way togain insight intoasociety.
One important contribution ofconflict theory isthat ithas
encourage dsociologists toview society through theeyes ofthose
segments ofthepopulation thatrarely influence decision making.
Feminist theory builds inimportant way onthe conflict
perspective. Like other conflict theorists, feminist scholars see
gender differences asareflection ofthesubjugation ofone group
(women) byanother group (men). Drawing onthework ofMarx &
Engels, contemporary feminist theorists often view women’s
subordination asinherent incapitalist societies. Some radical
feminist theorists, however, view the oppression ofwomen as
inevitable inallmale -dominated societies, including those labeled
ascapitalist, socialist andcommunist (Tuchman,1992).
1.8.3.Interactionist orInterpretive: -
The functionalist and conflict perspectives both analyze
behavior interms ofsociety wide patterns. However, many
contemporary sociologists are more interested inunderstanding
society asawhole through anexamination ofsocial interactions
such assmall groups conducting meetings, two friends talking
casually with each other, afamily celebrating abirthday and so
forth. The interactionist perspective generalizes about fundamental
oreveryday forms ofsocial interaction. Interactionism isa
sociological framework forviewing human beings asliving ina
world ofmeaningful objects. These “objects” may include material
things, actions, other people, relationships and even symbols.
Focusing oneveryday behavior permits interactions tobetter
understand thelarger society.munotes.in

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15George Herbert Mead (1863 -1931) iswidely regarded as
thefounder oftheinteractionist perspective. Mead was interested in
observing the minutest forms ofcommunication -smiles, frowns,
nods ofthe head and inunderstanding how such individual
beha viorwas influenced bythelarger context ofagroup orsociety.
Interactionists seesymbols asanespecially important part
ofhuman communication. Infact, theinteractionist perspective is
sometime referred toasthesymbolic interactioni stperspective.
Such researchers note that both aclenched fistand asalute have
social meaning which areshared and understood bythemembers
ofasociety. IntheU.S, asalute symbolizes respect, while a
clenched fistsignifies defiance. However inanotherculture different
gestures might beused toconvey afeeling ofrespect ordefiance.
Let usexamine how various societies portray suicide
without theuse ofwords. People intheU.S point afinger atthe
head (shooting); urban Japanese bring afistagainst thestomach
(stabbing); and thesouth fore ofPapua ,New Guinea ,clench a
hand atthethroat (hanging). These types ofsymbolic interaction
areclassified asforms ofnonverbal communication, which can
include many other gestures, facialexpressions, andpostures.
Erving Goffman (1922 -1982) made adistinctive
contribution bypopularizing aparticular type ofinteractionist
method known asthedramaturgical approach. The dramaturgist
compares everyday lifetothesetting ofthetheater andstage. Just
asactors present certain images, allofusseek topresent particular
features ofourpersonalities while wehide other qualities. Thus, in
aclass, wemay feeltheneed toproject aserious image; ataparty,
itmay seem important tolook like arelaxed and entertaining
person.
1.8.4.Critical Perspective: -
This perspective says that weliveinasociety dominated
capitalist society, based onexchange principles ofvalue andprofit.
Capitalist society isnotapeaceful society butbased onunequal
exchanges ofpower andprivileges. Critical theory isasocial theory
whose aim iscritiquing and changing society and culture, unlikemunotes.in

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16traditional theory whose aimisonly understanding orexplaining it.
Foreg.Instead ofseeing thebehavior ofhomeless youth asof
criminal behaviour, thecritical perspective would askwhy didthe
youth become homeless and why arethey connected tocriminal
behaviour?
Critical theorists likeHorkheimer criticized science calling it
harmful anddestructive asitiscontrolled bytheelite andpowerful.
They also critique therole ofmedia insociety, asitdiverts the
attention ofpeople andonly makes them consumers.
Letuscheck:
1.Critically analyse various perspectiv esinsociology.
1.9SUMMARY :
Inthefamily ofsocial sciences, sociology isanew entrant.
Sociologists arenotunanimous about definition ofsociology. Wide
variety ofdefinition ofthesubject shows that there aredifferences
ofopinion about the scope ofthe subject. These definitions
however make clear that sociology isconcerned with human
relations andsocial institutions.
There isacontinuing controversy about the nature of
sociology. Some claim sociology tobeascience where assome
refute thisclaim.
Viewes also differ about thescope ofsociology. The formal
school ofthought believe that scope ofsociology should notbe
generalized wheras synthetic school believes thatsociology should
study society asawhole.munotes.in

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17August Com teisconsidered asthe most influencial
philosopher of1800s. Heiscalled asthefather ofsociology.He
hoped that systemstic study ofsocial behavior willeventually lead
tomore rational interaction.
Durkiem made pioneering contribution tosociology and is
remembered asoneofthefounding fathers ofsociology.
Weber isknown for“Verstehen ”.He said inorder tofully
comprehend behavior wemust iearn thesubjective meaning people
attach totheir action.
Marx ’stheory ofclass struggle isanincredibl econtribution
tosociology inanalyzing theconflict.His influence oncontemporary
thinking hasbeen dramatic.
Sociologists view society indifferent way.The four
perspectives i.efunctionalist,conflict,interactionalist and critical are
most widely used bysociologists togive anntroductory look atthe
discipline.Functionalist perspective isbased ontheassumption that
society isstable ,orderly system .Society iscomposed of
interrelated parts,each ofwhich serves afunction andcontribute to
theoverallstability ofthesociety.
According toconflict perspective, groups insociety are
engage inacontinuous power struggle forcontrol ofscarce
resources.
Many sociologists are more interested inunderstanding
society through social interactions. The interactionist perspective
generalizes about fundamental oreveryday forms ofsocial
interaction.
Critical perspective says that weliveinasociety,based on
exchange principles ofvalue andprofit.munotes.in

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181.10 QUESTIONS:
1. “Sociology isasystematic study ofsocial behavior and
human group”. Discuss the statement with reference to
various definition andsubject matter ofsociology.
2. What ismeant byscientific study? Illustrate with examples to
support theargument whether sociology inascience ornot.
3. Critically anlyse the nature and scope ofsociolog y.
Elaborate onFormer andsynthetic school ofthoughts.
4. Briefly highlight thecontribution ofealy thinkers towards the
development ofsociology.
5. Discuss thevarious perspectives insociology.Which one do
uthinkisimportant andwhy?
1.11 REFERENCE AND READINGS:
Abraham Francis (2010); Contemporary Sociology: An
Introduction toConcepts and Theories. New Delhi: Oxford
University press.
Giddens, Anthony (2001); Sociology; 4th edition; Polity
Press.
Ferrante Joan (2006); Sociology -AGlobal Perspective; 6th
edition; Thomson Wadsworth; USA.
Kendall Diana (2007); Sociology inOur Times; The
Essentials. 6thedition; Thomson Wadsworth; USA.
Schaeffer andLamm (1988); Sociology; 6thedition; McGraw
Hill
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19Unit -2
DEVELOPING SOCIOLOGICAL
IMAGINATION, CAREERS INSOCIOLOGY
Unit structure:
2.0Objectives
2.1Sociological imagination.
2.2Developing asociological outlook.
2.3Importance /significance andpractical utility ofsociology.
2.3.1 Importa nceofstudy ofsociology.
2.3.2 Significance ofsociology.
2.3.3 Careers andspecialization insociology.
2.4Summary
2.5Questions
2.6References
2.0OBJECTIVES:
Todevelop asociological outlook byenhancing thesociological
imagination.
ToKnow theimportance ofthestudy ofsociology.
Tounderstand thesignificance ofsociology.
Tomake students aware ofthepractical utility ofsociology in
day–to-daylife.
Toexplore thevarious specialization andcareer opportunities in
sociology.
2.1.THE SOCIO LOGICAL IMAGINATION:
Sociologist C.Wright (1959 b)described sociological
reasoning asthe“Sociological imagination -theability tosee the
relationship between individual experiences and thelarger society.munotes.in

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20This awareness enables ustounderstand thelink between our
personal experiences and thesocial context inwhich they occur.
The sociological imagination helps usdistinguish between personal
trouble andsocial (orpublic) issues. (Kendall ;2007).
Akeyelement inthesociological imagination istheability
toview one’s own Society asanoutsider would, rather than from
thelimited perspective ofpersonal experiences andcultural biases.
Sociological imagination allow us togo beyond personal
experience and inattempting tounderstand social behavior,
sociologists relyonanunusual type ofcreati vethinking. C.Wright
Mills (1959) described such thinking as the sociological
imagination -anawareness ofthe relationship between an
individual andthewider society. Thisawareness allows people (not
simply sociologists) tocomprehend the links between their
immediate, personal social settings and theremote, impersonal
social world thatsurrounds them andhelps toshape them.
Akey element inthesociological imagination isthe
ability toview one’s own society asanoutsider would, rather than
from thelimited perspective ofpersonal experiences and cultural
biases. Sociological imagination allows ustogobeyond personal
experiences andobservations tounderstand broader public issues.
Unemployment, forexample, isunquestionably apersonal hardship
foraman orwoman without ajob.However, C.Wright Mills pointed
outthatwhen unemployment isasocial problem shared bymillions
ofpeople, itisappropriate toquestion theway that asociety is
structured ororganized. Similarly, Mills advocated use ofthe
sociological imagination toview divorce notsimply asthepersonal
problem ofaparticular man and woman, butrather asastructural
problem, since itistheoutcome ofmany marriages. And hewas
writing thisinthe1950s, when thedivorce ratewas butafraction of
what itistoday (I.Horowitz, 1983:87 -108)
Sociological imagination can bring new understanding to
daily lifearound us.munotes.in

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212.2.DEVELOPING ASOCIOLOGICAL OUTLOOK
The sociological imagination require us,above all,to
‘think ourselves away from thefamiliar routines ofourdaily lifein
order tolook atthem with anew perspective .Consider thesimple
act ofdrinking Coffee. What could we find tosay, from a
sociological point ofview about such anapparently uninteresting
piece ofbehavior .
We could point outfirst ofallthat coffee isnot just
refreshment. Itpossesses Symbolic value aspart ofourday-to-day
Social activities, Often theritual associated with coffee drinking is
much more important than theactofconsuming thedrink itself. For
many westerners themorning cupofcoffee stands atthecentre of
apersonal routine. Itisanessential first step tostarting theday.
Morning coffee isoften followed later intheday bycoffee with
others -thebasis ofasocial ritual. Two people who arrange tomeet
forcoffee are probably more interested ingetting together &
chatting than inwhatthey actually drink. Drinking and eating inall
societies, infact, provide occasions forsocial interaction and the
enactment ofrituals -and these offer arich subject matter for
sociological study.
Second, coffee isadrug, containing caffeine, which hasa
Stimulating effect onthebrain. Many people drink coffee forthe
extra liftitprovides. Long days attheoffice andlatenights studying
aremade more tolerable bycoffee breaks. Coffee isahabit –
forming substance, butcoffee addicts arenotregarded bymost
people inWestern culture asdrug users.
Third theindividual who drinks cupofcoffee iscaught up
inacomplicated setofsocial &economic relationships stretching
across theworld. Coffee isaproduct whichlinks people insome of
the wealthiest &most impoverished parts ofthe planet, itis
consumed ingreat quantities inwealthy Countries, butisgrown
primarily inpoor ones, and itprovides many countries, with their
largest source offoreign exchange. Theproduction &transportation
ofcoffee require continuous transactions between people
thousands ofmiles away from thecoffee drinker. Studying suchmunotes.in

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22global transactions isanimportant task ofsociology since many
aspects ofourlives arenow affected byworldwide social influences
andcommunications.
Fourth, theactofsipping acoffee presumes awhole
process ofpast social &economic development. Along with other
now familiar items ofwestern diets –liketeas, bananas, potatoes &
white sugar –coffee became widely consumed only from thelate
1800s. Although thedrink originated intheMiddle East ,itsmass
consumption dates, from theperiod ofWestern expansion about a
century &ahalfago. Virtually allthecoffee wedrink today comes
from areas (South America &Africa) that were colonized by
Europeans, itisinnosense a‘natural ’partoftheWestern diet. The
colonial legacy hashadanenormous impact ofthedevelopment of
theglobal coffee trade.
Fifth coffee isaprodu ctthat stands atthe heart of
contemporary debates, about globalization, international trade,
human rights &environmental destruction. Ascoffee hasgrown in
popularity, ithasbecome ‘branded’ &politicized; thedecisions that
consumers make about what kind ofcoffee todrink &where to
purchase ithave become lifestyle choices. Individuals may choose
todrink only organic coffee, natural decaffeinated coffee orcoffee
that hasbeen ‘fairly traded’ through schemes, that payfullmarket
prices, tosmall coffee producers indeveloping countries. They may
opttopatronize ‘independent ’coffee houses, rather than corporate
coffee chains such asstarbuch which isabrand inUK.Coffee
drinkers might decide toboycott coffee from certain, with poor
human rights&environmental records. Sociologist areinterested to
understand how globalization heightens people awareness of
issues occurringindistant corners oftheplanet &prompts them to
actonnew knowledge intheir own life.munotes.in

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23Letuscheck:
1.Wha tismeant bysociological imagination .Discuss the
significance ofsociological outlook inunderstanding andanalysis of
individuals existence indaytodaysociety
2.Critically examine theusage ofmobile phone incontemporary
society through your sociological imagination
2.3IMPORTANCE/ SIGNIFICANCE &PRACTICAL
UTILITY OFSOCIOLOGY:
Sociology asasubject ofstudy isanew comer inthefamily
ofsocial sciences buttoday ithasoccupied very important position,
which signifies itsutility. Ithasbecome very important because itis
concerned with human beings who actandreact intheSociety.
Sociology studies human resources and determines their
social strength. Itisabody ofknowledge which studies social
relationship sinasystematic way. Needless tosay that these
relationships arevery important forproper conduct ofhuman life.
2.3.1.Importance ofStudy ofSociology: Sociology isbecoming
quite popular subject ofstudy because ithas some obvious
advantages. These may briefly bediscussed asunder: -munotes.in

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241. Itisasubject which helps usinassessing available human
resources and extent ofhuman resources needed forsolving our
social problems. Inthis way sociology helps inhuman planning
process which contributes significantly ineconomic problem.
2. Itprovides usbasic andfundamental knowledge about human
society, which includes strong andweak points ofsociety, including
human relationships. Inthis way itsaves usfrom duping inthe
dark.
3. Each society isfaced with social problems, which inturn
create economic and political problems. Some ofthesocial evils
aredeep rooted anditisessential thatthese should berooted out.
Sociology helps usboth inidentifying those problems and finding
outtheir solution. Without proper understanding magnitude ofthe
problems, these cannotbeproperly tackled.
4. Itissociology which helps usinconciliation and adjustment.
Each society has diverse elements. These, ifnot properly
reconciled, canresult indis-organization andde-stabilization ofthe
society. Itissociology which helps usinunderstanding theextent of
diversity and theway inwhich thisdiversity canbeconverted into
homogeneity.
5. Itissociology which helps usinmaking social reconstruction
easy.
6. Each society hasitscultural heritage and wants topreserve
that. Itissociology which high-lights and researches past culture
heritages and also helps inthe development and growth of
cosmopolitan culture, sothatthere arenocultural clashes.
7. Ithelps inbringing family stability. Itissociology which helps
us inidentifying the causes offamily instability and family
disorganization. Itisagain sociology which tells ushow emerging
de-stabilizing trendsinthefamily should bechecked, sothatstrong
family system continues.munotes.in

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258. Itissociology which helps usinunderstanding social
problems. Many social problems remain unidentified andmany with
thepassage oftime become maladies. Itisessenti althat these
should betimely checked before their tackling becomes difficult. It
issociology which helps usintimely identifying ofsocial problems.
9. Ithelps usinproper understanding oftheneeds ofsocial
relationship and the way inwhich this relationship should be
maintained.
10.Itissociology which makes ustolerant bytelling usgood points
andhealthy customs, traditions, norms andvalue ofother societies
Itenables ustoappreciate what isthebest inthem which needs to
beadjus tedinourlifestyle. Thus sociology helps usintolerating
others andappreciating their view point.
2.3.2.Importance ofStudy ofSociology inIndia :
Study ofsociology isvery important forIndia .Itis
because weareadeveloping societyandourrulers inthepast not
only tried tosolve oursocial problems butalso allowed these toget
deep rooted.
The sociologists inIndia canhelp usinunderstanding deep
rooted cause ofcasteism and regionalism, which today pose a
greatthreat tooursocial, economic and political system. They can
also tellustowhy really untouchability isnotgetting rooted outand
corruption atalllevels inoursociety isontheincrease
Again sociologists inIndia canplay asignific antrole inour
national and emotional integration byidentifying theareas where
such integration caneasily bepossible. This canbedone with the
help ofscientific study ofcustoms and traditions. The sociologist
canalso help inknowing why efforts madesofartoraise theliving
standard ofweaker sections ofsociety have failed. Infact inour
society thesociologists can play abigrole because itispassing
through very difficult stages ofsocial transition and when itonthe
cross roads, thesocio logists alone canprovide proper direction and
give proper lead. Asalready pointed outtask becomes difficult
because oursociety isfullofdiversities andneither problems ofall
sections ofsociety aresame norsolution canbeuniform.munotes.in

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262.3.2 Signific ance OfSociology: -
Sociology has many practical implications, forourlives, asC.
Mills emphasized.
1. Awareness OfCultural Differences: -
First sociologist allows ustoseethesocial world from many
perspectives. Quite often, ifweunderstand how people live, wecan
have better idea about their problems. Policies, which aremeant for
solving the problems ofpeople’s may fail ifthey have not
understood thelifeofpeople. Example –Policies regarding tribal,
orslum dwellers rehabilitat ion orstreet hawkers shifting bar
dancer’s profession oreven allowing shopkeepers tohave late
night business, allrequire practical knowledge oftheir life.
2. Assessing TheEffect OfPolicies: -
Many policies related toemployment orrehabilita tion of
people failed miserabl ysince they donotmake useoftheaims &
real needs ofpeople. Sociologist brings the basic needs, &
objectives ofpeople concerned into light sothat thegovernment
canunderstand thecauses offailure. Unless people areinvolved in
anyprogramme mean tforthem, theprogramme isnotgoing tobe
successful. Sociological research points, outdeficiencies, inthe
policy and discrepancy between thepeople’s aims &thepolicy
aims.
3. SelfEnlightenment: -
Sociology provides, knowledge tounderstand self.
Sociology helps ustoknow why webehave inaparticular manner.
Many self help groups -Alcoholics, dog lovers, Anonymous,
environmentalist, Senior citizen group have learned tohelp
themselves without being dependent ongovernment.munotes.in

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27Letuscheck:
1.Elaborate onthe significance, importance and practical
utility ofsociology ineveryday life
2.3.3 Careers &Specialization inSociology:
Sociology isnotonly anintellectual discipline, itisalso a
profession. When wespeak ofaprofession, werefer mainly tosuch
themes asthe uses orapplications ofabody ofknowledge.
Sociologist plays arich and varied role intoday’s society. They
serve inavariety ofcapacities such, asconsultant, teacher, policy
maker, researcher, administrator, clinical counselor, social critic,
interviewer, journalist, probation and parole worker, career
counsel lor,social worker, recreation worker, programme evaluator,
urban planner, marketing administration co-coordinator and
personal manager etc.they work inareas asbroad anddiverse as
thediscipline they have chosen.
Knowledge ofsociology can beused inthefollowing
areas ofsocial life:
1.Teaching
2.Social research
3.Social work
4.Professions -medicine, law, engineering, business etc.
5.Industry
6.Rural andUrban planning
7.Public administration -civilservices
8.Policy making
9.Business consulting
10.Politics
11.Architecture
12.Child welfare andHealth welfare
13.Gerontology (study ofoldagepeople)munotes.in

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2814.Computer industry
15.Military intelligence andmilitary
16.Entrepreneurship
17.International relations
18.Criminal justice
19.Citymanagement
20. New emerging careers: (a) action programme, and (b)
devel opment
2.3.4 .Specialization within sociology
Aging/ Social Gerontology
Biosociology
Collective Behavior/ Social Movements
Community/ Rural Society
Comparative Sociology/ Macro sociology
Criminal Justice/ Corrections
Criminology/ Delinquency
Cultural Sociology
Demography
Development/ Modernization/ Social Change
Deviant Behavior/ Social disorganization
Economy andSociety
Education
Environmental Sociology
History ofSociology/ Social thought
Human ecology
Industrial Sociology
International Development/ ThirdWorld
Law andSociety
Leisure/ Sports/ Recreation
Marriage andtheFamily
Mass Communication/ Public Opinion
Mathematical Sociology
Medical Sociology
Methodology: Qualitative andQuantitative Approaches
Micro computing/ Computer applications
Military Sociology
Occupations/ Professions
Political Sociologymunotes.in

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29Race/ Ethnic/ Minority Relations
Religion
SexandGender
Small Groups
Social Control
Social Networks
Social Organization/ Formal/ Complex
Social Psychology
Socialization
Sociological Practice/ Social Policy
Sociology ofArt/Literature
Sociology ifKnowledge/ Science
Sociology ofLanguage/ social Linguistics
Sociology ofMarkets
Sociology ofMental Health
Sociology ofWork
Stratification/ Mobility
Urban Sociology
Visual Sociology
Letuscheck:
1.Discus sindetail the diverse specializations available in
sociology directing onetooptforvarious careers insociology
2.4SUMMARY:
The term sociological imagination was developed by
C.Wright Mills togobeyond personal experience and torelyonan
unusual type ofcreative thinking. The sociological imagination
require usabove all,tothink ourselves away from thefamiliar
routines ofourdaily lifeinorder tolook atthem anew.munotes.in

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30Today sociology hasoccupied very important position dueto
itssignificance and utility. Study ofsociology isvery important for
India .Itisbecause weareadeveloping society and ourrulers in
thepast notonly tried tosolve ourproblem butalso allowed ittoget
deep rooted.
Sociology makes usaware ofcultural differences, help usin
assessing the effect ofpolicies and contribute toonce self
enlightenment. There arelarge number ofspecialization andcareer
opportunities available insociology.
2.5QUESTIONS:
1.Examine indetail how sociological outlook and sociological
imagination helps one todevelop abetter understanding of
society andsocial problem.
2.Highlight the significance ofsociology ingeneral and its
importance inIndian society inparticular.
3.Write adetail note onsignificance and practical utilityof
sociology.
2.6REFERENCE AND READINGS:
Abraham Francis (2010); Contemporary Sociology: An
Introduction toConcepts and Theories. New Delhi: Oxford
University press.
Giddens, Anthony (2001); Sociology; 4thedition; Polity Press.
Ferrante Joan (2006 );Sociology -AGlobal Perspective; 6th
edition; Thomson Wadsworth; USA.
Kendall Diana (2007); Sociology inOur Times; The Essentials.
6thedition; Thomson Wadsworth; USA.
Schaeffer andLamm (1988); Sociology; 6thedition; McGraw Hill
munotes.in

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31Unit -3
SOCIA LINSTITUTIONS: POLITICS AND
GOVERNMENT
Unit Structure
3.0Objectives
3.1Introduction
3.2Features ofSocial Institutions
3.3Classification ofSocial Institutions
3.4.Functions ofSocial Institutions
3.5Power
3.6Authority
3.7Politics inGlobal Pers pective
3.8Global Political System
3.9Political Spectrum
3.10Special Interest Groups
3.11 Political revolution
3.12 Terrorism
3.13 War andPeace
3.14 Summary
3.15 Questions
3.16 References
3.0OBJECTIVES
Tounderstand theconcept ofsocial instituti onanditsfunctions.
Toevaluate theconcept ofpolitics andgovernment.
Tounderstand significance ofpolitical system.
Tocompare andcontrast different political system.munotes.in

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323.1INTRODUCTION:
Every society has certain basic needs and itisvital forthe
society tosatisfy these needs. Tosatisfy these needs ,society
creates social institutions. Social institutions arebuilt from social
relationships insociety sothat basic needs such aslawand order,
stability, defining roles andresponsibilities anddecision making can
bemet. Forsociologist social institutions arecomplex social forms
that reproduce themselves such asfamily, marriage, religion,
government andsoon.
Social Institution canbedefined asacomplex, integrated set
ofsocial norms aimedtopreserve certain basic societal values. Itis
essential forthe survival ofsociety. We may come across
differences intheway asociety establish social institutions, some
aresimple while other sarecomplex butallthesocieties have
certain primar ysocial institutions such asgovernment and politics,
family, religion, economy andeducation.
Sumner (1906) defined “aninstitution consists ofaconcept
and astructure”. By“concept” Sumner meant ideas, notions,
doctrine and interest and “structure ”meant aframework or
arrangement. While Horton and Hunt (1964) termed institutions as
“anorganized system ofasocial relationship which embodies
certain common values and procedures and meet certain basic
needs ofthesociety”. Here “common values” indic ates shared
ideas and goals, “common procedures” denotes standardized
pattern ofbehaviour that agiven group ofpeople follows and “the
system ofrelationship” indicates asetofroles and structures
through which action takes place.
Turner (1997) refers tosocial institutions asacomplex of
positions, roles, rules and values located incertain types ofsocial
structures thathave comparatively stable patterns ofhuman activity
regarding fundamental problems inproducing life-sustaining
resources, inreproducing individuals and insustaining viable
societal structures within agiven environment. This definition brings
outtheessential function ofsocial institution.munotes.in

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33One ofthemost comprehensive meaning ofsocial institution
isgiven byHertzler. Hertzle r(1946) refers tosocial institutions as
purposive, regulatory and consequently primary cultural
configuration that isformed consciously orunconsciously tofulfill
individual’s desire andsocial needs. Itconsists ofcodes, rules and
ideologies. Ithas essential symbolic organizational and material
implementation. Hertzler definition brings out four important
element ofsocial institutions i.epurpose, functions, mechanism and
structure.
3.2FEATURES OFSOCIAL INSTITUTIONS:
Social institutions aremeanstocontrol individual behaviour.
Itdepends upon collective activities ofhumans.
Itpossess well defined procedures that arebased oncustoms
anddoctrines.
Itisstable than others means ofsocial control.
Every social institutions have specific norms which isessential
forthemembers tofollow.
3.3CLASSIFICATION OFSOCIAL INSTITUTIONS:
Bysocial institutions sociologist mean normative system that
function infivebasic realm oflife,which may becalled asprimary
social institutions:
Family -determines kinship andbasic socialization
Religion -regulates relation with supernatural
Economic -leads toproduction and distribution ofgoods and
services
Political and government –regulates access toand use of
legitimate power andauthority
Education -transmission ofknowledge from one generation to
another
Alltheabove social institutions areuniversal innature found
inallhuman societies and play vital role inthedevelopment and
smooth functioning ofhuman societies. Beside these fiveprimarymunotes.in

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34socialinstitutions there aresecondary social institutions also for
example thesecondary social institutions ofeducation would be
school, colleges and universities and forreligion thesecondary
social institutions would be totem, temple, taboo, church,
Synagogue andMosque.
3.4.FUNCTIONS OFSOCIAL INSTITUTIONS:
Topreserve human race: The primary function offamily isto
preserve human race and itsgrowth through socially approved
way ofconjugal relations and bytaking care ofbasic needs of
human being.Similarly political Institutions maintain law and
order andlegitimizes power andauthor.
Totransmit culture: Social institution play significant roleinnot
only keeping culture intact but also transmit itfrom one
generation toanother generation. Forexample family transmit
traditions, customs and values toitsmembers and educational
institution transmit knowledge.
Tosatisfy basic needs: The aim ofsocial institution isto
provide forand satisfy basic needs ofitsmembers. Family and
Educational institutions train individuals invarious skillwhich are
essential tolead adignified life.Political institution forexample
maintain lawandorder andgive stability tosociety.
Tomaintain social solidarity: One ofthefundamental function
ofsocial institutions istomaintain social solidarity and stability.
Religious institutions promotes social solidarity through common
belief, rituals and common worship. Similarly economic
institutions generate employment opportunities totheindividual
sothattheycanearn their livelihood.
Welfare: The vital function ofsocial institution iswelfare ofits
members. Political institution develop schemes and policies for
the welfare ofitsmembers forexample women hostels,
orphanage, oldagehomes, skilldevelopm entcenters etc.munotes.in

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35Check Your Progress:
1. What isSocial Institutions?
2. Explain features ofSocial Institutions.
3. Classify Social Institutions.
4. What arefunctions ofSocial Institutions?munotes.in

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363.5POWER:
Forcenturies scholar sfrom different discipline have explored
and analysed power. Power relationship describe sourworld. For
Macionis ,politics isthesocial institution that distributes power, set
social goals andmake decision. InWeber’s opinion every society is
based onpower and power has theability toachieve desired
results despite resistance from others. Foucault expresses that
power relation ispresent inallfacet ofsocial life.Power notonly
influence our personal relation but also mould ssocial groups,
organiza tions and governments. Power ismainly used bythe
government.
Government isaformal organization that gives direction to
the political lifeofthesociety. Although government demand s
compliance from itspeople ,itdoes notopenly use threat onits
people. Inmost cases people respect and adhere totheir political
system. Incontemporary world government power isnotlimited to
itscitizens butmay extend toother governments ornations for
instance U.Sgovernment.
Government aspolitical institution maintains lawand order
and security ofitspeople. Form ofgovernment and theway it
functions depend ontheaccepted behaviour pattern ofthesociety.
Development and welfare isthe major responsibility ofthe
government today. Tobeeffective and efficient thegovernment
may decentralize forexample local self-government, Panchayat in
India.
Power can becoercive that isnotlegitimate where force is
usedoritcanbelegitimate which isaccepted andsupported bythe
legal system i.eauthority. Accordi ngtoWeber itislegitimacy that
forms core ofauthority.
3.6AUTHORITY:
InWeber ’sview authority isapower thatpeople perceive as
legitimate rather than coercive. There arethree types ofauthority
according toWeber.munotes.in

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37Traditional Authority:
This typeofauthority emanates from customary laws and is
sanctify byancient traditions. Indonesia’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn
forexample occupies aposition that hehas inherited traditionally
bysuccession. InRitter’s words traditional authority isgrounded in
theclaim bytheleaders and abelief onthepart ofthefollowers
that there isvirtue inthesanctity ofage oldrules and powers. In
traditional authority thesubordinates accept thetraditional rights of
thepowerful individuals orgroups forinsta nce religious leaders,
spiritual guru, family and patriarch. Traditional authority ismostly
supported byculture forinstance symbols such ascross, crescent
moon orflag and bystructures and institutions. Itisbelieved that
traditional authority hinder ssocial change and islikely tobe
irrational andinconsistent andmaintains status quo.
Rational legal Authority:
Inthis type ofauthority the power originates from a
formalistic belief inthecontent ofboth legal lawand rational. The
followers donotobey toanyspecific individual butadhere toaset
ofuniforms norms forinstance bureaucracy. The individual who
exercise this type ofauthority have qualifications that are
prescribed and codified. For instance people obey traffic police
because heexercise authority due tohisposition bestowed tohim
bylaw. The rational legal authority ispresent inmodern state,
corporations and other voluntary organizations. InWeber’s opinion
development ofmodern state isundistinguishable with that of
modern officialdom and bureaucratic organizations just asthe
development of modern capitalism is associated with
bureaucratization ofeconomic enterprise. However, noauthority
structure canbepurely bureaucratic there would besome elements
ofcharisma present inbureaucratic structure.
Charismatic Authority:
This type ofauthority isbased onperceived extraordinary
characteristics ofaleader. The followers areextremely devoted to
thecharismatic leaders and adhere totheway oflifepreached by
such leaders .They believe that theleader hassome supernatural
power. Aslong astheleaders continue toprove their magical
power, they enjoy authority and they are worshipped bytheirmunotes.in

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38believers. To continue charismatic authority ithas tobe
transformed into legal ortraditional form ofauthority. Thus
charismatic authority rest onthepersonal charisma oftheleader
who enjoys power due tohispersonality and personal traits for
instance Dr.B.RAmbedkar, Indira Gandhi andAung San SuuKyi.
Check your progress:
1. Writeanote onPower andAuthority.
3.7POLITICS INGLOBAL PERSPECTIVE:
Throughout history ,humans have created various types of
political system from monarchy torepublic tomaintain law and
order, protect themselves from foreign invasion and tohave sound
economic system. There arevarious type ofpolitical system with
varying degree ofsuccess and having itsown advantage and
disadvantage. Differences inpolitical systems isbased ontheway
itprovide services toitspeople, protect their rightsandenforce rule
oflawupon them.
Theprominent political system intheworld areasfollows:
Monarchy:
Amonarchy isaform ofpolitical system inwhich asingle
family rules from generation togeneration through thelines of
inheritance. Itwas common form ofgovernment inmany ofthe
agrarian societies. Inthe modern industrial societies however,
monarchy lostitscharm. Today some countries continue tohave
monarchy example Saudi Arabia andKuwait. Inthisform ofpolitica l
system legitimation, level ofauthority, power, succession, role and
responsibilities was determined byhistorical factors, culture and
desires andpreferences oftheruler.munotes.in

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39Democracy:
The historical trend inmodern society istowards democracy.
Democr acyisatype ofpolitical system inwhich power rest inthe
hand ofpeople asawhole. Itisreferred asgovernment ofthe
people, bythe people and forthe people. Inasystem of
representative democracy authority isinthehands oftheelected
leaders whofrom time totime compete foroffice inelections. An
ideal democratic political system isbased onuniversal suffrage that
allows itscitizens toexercise adult franchise. The success of
democratic political system depends onanenlightened electorate,
politically conscious citizens who actively participate inthe
democratic process. The role oftheelected representative isto
frame thepolicies and programmes, formulate thebudget and
implement theprogrammes through anetwork ofofficials.
Democrac yand rational -legal authority isclosely associated
inmuch thesame way asthemonarchy andthetraditional authority
are associated. However itisnot necessary that most ofthe
democratic nations would bedemocratic inreal sense forthe
following reasons:
a. Bureaucracy:
The problem with Indian bureaucracy isthat itlack
professionalism, there isrampant corruption and misuse ofpowers
and this isadversely affecting the administration and the
governance. People find Indian bureaucracy tobe slow,
tremendously rigid and mechanical and therefore notadaptive to
change.
b. Economic inequality:
Rich people have farmore political influence than thepoor
people. This isdue tothefact,therich,particularly thebusiness
tycoons fund thepolitical parties campaign during elections. The
2019 election inIndia issaid tobeone ofthemost expensive
election ever inAsia. India’s business tycoons have played very
significant role ranging from funding theelection, endorsing the
political parties tobeing the topicofhot debates themselves.
NiranjanSahoo ofORF commented that this will lead tomunotes.in

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40unstoppable corporate influence thatcanhave detrimental effect on
policies.
Authoritarianism:
The concept ofauthoritarianism isopposite todemocracy.
Authoritarianis masapolitical system hasstrong central power and
itdenies people popular participation ingovernment, political
pluralism, anddefence ofcivilliberties andisnotaccountable tothe
people. Itmay resort tounconstitutional means such ascensorship,
fear, and force. Intheauthoritarian form ofgovernment thepower
liesinthehand ofasingle leader orasmall group ofelite who are
notconstitutionally accountable tothepeople. Those inpower
consider themselves above thelaw.
The traditional authoritarian government had monopolistic
control over thepolitical lifeofitspeople byone party system that
was organised around astrong leader oramilitary junta anddirect
rulebytheexecutive, often through martial lawwith noroleorsome
role oftheparliament. Puddington (2017) discern that 21stcentury
ismarked byresurgence ofauthoritarian government inspite of
economic instability and popular resistance. Ithassucceeded due
tosophisticated strategies torepress any opposition byway of
controlling the media, propaganda, creating illusion ofpolitical
pluralism andsuppressing civilsociety example Russia andChina.
Totalitarianism:
Intotalitarian political system state issupreme than the
individual. The state controls and regulates almo stalltheaspects
ofpublic and private lifeofitscitizens. The totalitarian political
system exercise total political, social and cultural control over its
citizens andusually isruled bycharismatic ruler. Itisasingle mass
party rule headed byadictator who attempt tomobilize thepeople
tosupport state ideology anddoes nottolerate anyactivities thatis
against thegoals ofthestate. The totalitarian government makes
use ofvarious means ofsocial control such assecret police,
regulation and restriction offreedom ofspeech, control ofmass
media, useofsurveillance equipment andsoonexample Vietnam
andNorth Korea.munotes.in

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41Although some totalitarian state claim torepresent theview
ofthepeople butmost seek tobend people tothewillofthestate.
Such state asthename indicates have total concentration ofpower
anddonotallow anyorganised opposition. Itdenies itssubject right
toassemble forpolitical purpose andcontrol access toinformation.
These government uses intimidation and terrortocreate fear in
people. Socialization intotalitarian system isintensively political
seeking not just compliance but personal commitment tothe
system.
Check your progress
Explain thefollowing political system:
a. Monarchy:
b. Totalitarianism:
c. Democracy:munotes.in

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42d. Authoritarianism:
3.8GLOBAL POLITICAL SYSTEM:
Weoften come across terms such asglobal economy: Are
weheading towards global political system? The answer is‘NO’.
Although most oftheeconomic activities now involves more than
one nations, buttheworld stillremains divided into nation states.
However due tothedevastating effects oftwoworld wars United
Nations was setup, aninitiative towards global government.
However, thecritics argue that UNisdominated byfiveofitselite
members who also happen tobenuclear power. Itisalso evident
from theWar onIraq that theUNisoften divided and itsmember
nation’s functions largely toserve their own interest.
Atthesame time weobserve that politics has become a
global process duetofollowing reasons:
a.ICT has revolutionised the world ofinformation asnational
politics iseasily accessible topeople around theworld.
b.There arethousands ofNGOs working across theworld for
various causes such asenvironment, war, health, violation of
human rights and women issues. They arewatchdog ofsociety,
therefore intoday’s context ,nogovernment canfunction and take
decision inprivacy. Forexample Amnesty international India, Jagori
etc.munotes.in

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433.9POLITICAL SPECTRUM:
Today awide range ofpolitical outlook exist leftist, rightist,
secular andmoderate. This wide variety ofpolitical view point help
insustaining democracy. The twomajor factors thatdetermines an
individual’s political view isthe change theyexpect intheir
government and society and how much government involvement
they are ready toaccept inthe economy. Inother words an
individual’s viewpoint onvarious social and political issues
determine their political spectrum. Apolitical spectrum ismade up
ofcontinuum orvalue linepeople fallonthat depending ontheir
belief. Soanindividual may bealiberal, radical, conservative or
moderate.
The leftist (radical) political view would callforrapid change
inpolitical, social andeconomi csystem andmay noteven hesitate
toresort toviolence tobring about change. While liberal reject any
violent means ofsocial change, they believe ingradual and
peaceful change inthe political system. They promote social
welfare ofpeople. Incase ofmoderates they believe inboth the
liberal andconservative ideology. Infactthey follow wait andwatch
policy. They aretolerant and against use ofany violent means to
bring about change inpolitical system. The conservative maintain
status quo, they wanttokeep things asthey are.InJefferson’s view
“thebest government governs least”.
Thedebate over abortion:
The liberals would support abortion stating that itisprivate
matter soletwomen decide what shewants similarly themoderates
view itaswomen’s choice. The conservative stand would bethata
pregnant woman ismorally obliged tobear thechild only insome
extreme case shehasright toabort.
How dowechoose Political Spectrum?
Formany scholars itiseconomic pressures that motivate
peop letotake political stance. People who arerich willdefinitely
want tomaintain status quo while theone who arepoor would
support change. However, wemay come across rich liberals and
conservative poor too.Age canbeanother factor usually young aremunotes.in

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44liberal and oldaresupposed tobeconservative. Beside economic
pressure andageanother factor thatinfluence once political stance
isnature andpsychology ofanindividual.
Does people’s Political Stand change?
Over aperiod oftime there ispossibili tythatbyaltering their
position onthecontinuum, people’s attitudes may shift totheright,
leftormay remain stationary. There arenumerous examples of
people inIndian politics who have changed their political spectrum
such asNavjot Singh Siddhu in2004 hejoined BJP andcontested
election from Amritsar and 2017 hejoined Indian National
Congress.
Check your progress:
1. Write anote onPolitical Spectrum.
3.10SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS:
Special Interest groups are political alliance ofpeople
interested insome economic and social issues. Itmay include
association ofelderly people, women, doctors, teachers, artists,
farmers and soon.This groups arenumerous working across the
society forexample Washington City alone has nearly 15000
lobbyists working onbehalf ofspecial interest groups.
Political action committee are organization formed by
Special interest groups, independent ofany political parties
involvement, toraise and spend funds insupport ofpolitical
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453.11 POLITICAL REVOLUTION:
Political revolution isoverthrow ofone political system and
establish another. Itbrings about radical change insocial and
political structure. The 20thcentury ismarked byrevolution inthe
history ofAsia. One ofthereason forsomany revolution inAsia
was imperialism ofthe19thcentury. Many ofthese Asian countries
notonly became independent butalso brought about fundamental
social, economic andpolitical changes intheir society. While onthe
other hand reforms refers tobringing about modification inthe
system.
Characteristics ofRevolution:
Rise inexpectation: Arevolution willnottake place ifthere is
noexpectation.
Irresponsive government: Arevolution willnever take place if
government response topeople’s expectation anddemand.
Leader: Arevolution willtake place only under theleadership of
radical elites who demand forcomplete change. Inabsence of
leadership there cannot berevolution. Elites provide the
justification forrevolution andthereby leaders hiptoo.
Establishing anew system: Byoverthrowing theoldpolitical
system therevolution paves forestablishing anew system
though itisnoteasy. Butstilldifficult istomaintain thesuccess
ofrevolution.
3.12 TERRORISM:
Terrorism means acts ofviolence orthreat touse violence
asapolitical strategy orideological aims that targets civilians. The
people who use such violence are called asterrorist. Terrorist
attacks canhappen anywhere atanytime andtherefore itisdifficult
tocombat such violence example “26/11” attack onMumbai and
recent attack onchurch inSrilanka. Terrorist attacks arenotblind
attac ksitissymbolic. They choose targets based ontheir identity,
locations oractivities example assassination ofPrime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi byLTTE. Thefeatures ofterrorism areasfollows:munotes.in

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46Terrorist attempt tojustify violence asalegitimate political
tactics even though such actiscondemned byInternational
communities.
Terrorism isused notonly byindividual orgroup butalso by
government against foreign citizens oreven against their own
people example violence against theKurds inIraq bySaddam
Hussain.
Democratic societies reject terrorism inprinciple, butthey are
vulnerable toterrorist attacks because they accord extensive
civilliberties andhave extremely less secret political networks.
Terrorism ismatter ofdefinition because government claim the
right tomaintain law and order, even byusing force and
therefore may term groups thatopposes itspolicies byresorting
toviolence asterrorists.
3.13 WAR AND PEACE:
The most critical political issue iswarwhich may bedefined
as‘organised arm conflict’ among people ofvarious nations onthe
behest oftheir government. The 20thcentury history isfullof
nations orgroupofnations involved inarmed conflict. United States
alone haswaged number ofwars against nations such asVietnam
and Iraq resulting indeath tolls of1.3million people and injuring
people many times more.
Factors responsible forWars:
Perceived threat: USwaronIraq isanexample ofperceived
threat that Iraq was inpossession ofmass weapon of
destruction.
Social Issues: Todivert people’s attention from states failure to
tackle certain pressing socio -economic issues government may
resort towar.
Political Objectives: Poor nations may use armed conflict to
uproot foreign rules. While wealthy and militarily powerful
nations may dosotomaintain their dominance inworld politics.
Scarce economic resources: Conflict ofinterest between
nations over scare economic resources may also result inmunotes.in

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47armed conflict example China anditsneighbour over gasandoil
resources inSouth China Sea.
Moral objectives: Some wealthy andmilitarily powerful nations
may feel that itistheir moral responsibility tosave thepeople
from atyrant. For example America’s war over Iraq under
Saddam Hussain regime.
Absence ofalternatives: War may take place between or
amongst nation when dialogues failanditisfeltthatthere isno
other alternatives.
The consequences ofwarcanbefeltbeyond thebattle field.
There ismassive tollinterms ofhuman lifeand break down of
social, political and economic institutions. There isurgent need for
ustorespect human rights ofminorities -ethnic, religious, linguistics
andracial. Atthesame time aneffort should bemade tostrengthen
civilsociety andemphasize ongood governance.
3.14 SUMMARY
Social institutions aremajor part ofsocial lifeorsocietal
subsystems which formed tomeet basic human needs such aslaw
and order. Various social institutions such asfamily religion,
political system and government are essential forthe proper
functioning ofthesociety. Sociologists interest lieinunderstanding
theimpact ofpolitics and government onindividual and larger
societal systems. Weber examined power and authority and
classified authority astraditional, rational legal and charismatic.
Nation states aregoverned byvarious types ofpolitical system
such asmonarchy, authoritarianism and democracy. Due tothe
devastating effectoftwoworld warastep was taken towards global
government byestablishing UN. However thepresent political life
face various challenges such asglobal terrorism andwar.munotes.in

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483.15 QUESTIONS
1.What issocial institutions? Explain itsfeatures, types and
functions.
2.Explain theconcept Power andAuthority.
3.Discuss indetail different types ofpolitical system.
4.Write ashort notes on:
a.Political Spectrum
b.Special pressure group
c.War andPeace
d.Terrorism
3.16 REFERENCES:
1.Arch Puddington, 2017, Breaking Down Democracies: Goals,
strategies, and methods ofModern Authoritarians, Freedom
House.
2.Ashley, David and David Michael Orenstein, Sociological
Theory: Classical Statements, third edition, Boston, Allyn and
Bacon, 1995.
3.Cohen, IraJ.,"Theories ofAction and Praxis," inBryan S.
Turner, editor, The Blackwell Companion toSocial Theory,
Oxford, Blackwell, 1996.
4.Gerth, Hans Heinrich and C.Wright Mills, 1958, From Max
Weber: Essays inSociology, New York, Oxford University
Press.
5.Giddens, Anthony, 1971, Capitalism andModern Social Theory:
AnAnalysis oftheWritings ofMarx, Durkheim andMax Weber,
Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
6.Grabb, Edward G,1990, Theories ofSocial Inequality: Classical
and Contemporary Perspectives, second edition, Toronto, Holt,
Rinehart andWinston.
7.Hadden, Richard W,1997, Sociological Theory: AnIntroduction
totheClassical Tradition, Peterborough, Broadview Press.
8.Human Rights, Terrorism, Counter Terrorism, Fact sheet 32.munotes.in

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499.Macionis, J,2012, Sociology: Aglobal introductio n,5thedition,
Harlow, England; New York: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
10.Ritzer, George, 1999, Classical Sociological Theory, third
edition, New York, McGraw -Hill.
11.SankarSen, 1993, Features ofModern Terrorism, The Police
Journal: Theory, Practice and Principles ,Vol.66(1), Sage
Publication
12.Weber, Max, 1968, Economy and Society: An Outline of
Interpretive Sociology, New York, Bedminster Press

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50Unit -4
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS:
FAMILY AND RELIGION
Unit Structure:
4.0 Objectives
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Sociological Perspective onReligion
4.3 World Religions
4.4 Types ofReligious Organization
4.5 Religiosity
4.6 Secularization
4.7 Religion andFundamentalism
4.8 Family
4.9 Sociological approach tounderstand family
4.10 Stages offamily life
4.11 Transformation andtroubles infamily life
4.12 Violence inFamily
4.13 Alternative types offamily
4.14 New reproductive technology andthefamily
4.15 Future trends
4.16 Summary
4.17 Questions
4.18 Reference
4.0 OBJECTIVES
Tounderstand theconcept offamily andreligion.
Toevaluate thefunctions andsignificance offamily andreligion
asasocial institutions.
Toexplore thechanges taking place inthefamily andreligion as
asocial institutions.
4.1.INTRODUCTION:
The term religion isderived from theLatin word ‘religio’
meaning sacred and‘religare’ meaning obligation. Ithasexisted inmunotes.in

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51allthesocieties throughout theworld. People have used itin
various forms such asnarrations andsymbols tomake sense oflife
and understand theuniverse. Itcan beexplained asasystem of
beliefs andpractices thatdivides theworld intosacred andprofane.
ForDurkheim religion isawhole made upofparts which ismore
complex system ofrites, ceremonies, myth anddogmas. Durkheim
explains sacred objects assomething which set apart from
everyday lifewhile profane stands forthings that are used in
everyday lifeexample among Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs itis
observed that they remove their shoes before entering their place
ofworship thisisdone toavoid defiling sacred place bythesoles
thathave touched theprofane ground.
Durkheim believed thatreligion was source ofsocial stability.
InWeber’s opinion religion brings about social change. Heexplored
theimpact ofreligious beliefoneconomic activities and concluded
that protestant societies were themost highly developed societies
forexample Netherland, Germany. According toWeber Calvinism
played akey role indevelopment ofspirit ofmodern capitalism.
While inKarl Marx viewreligion manifest social stratification in
society andmaintained inequality andstatus quo.
Elements ofreligion:
Thebasic elements ofreligion areasfollows:
a.Beliefs: Religion isbased onnumerous beliefs which may not
beuniversal forexample monot heism –belief inone god and
polytheism –belief inmore than onegod.
b.Rituals: Allthereligion oftheworld have rituals and certain
ceremonies forexample lifecycle rituals such asmarriage,
coming ofageandpilgrimage.
c.Sacred objects: Every religio nhas sacred objects for
example forHindu water ofriver Ganga, forMuslim water from
wellZamZam.
d.Symbols: Itissigns used assacred object and plays
significant role inthelifeofthepeople who arebelievers for
example cross forChristian, Om forHindus. Symbols form
basis forknowledge about supernatural andgives meaning to
theevents beyond comprehension.
e.Sects: There may bemany small groups within aparticular
religion having their own setofbelievers such asShias andmunotes.in

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52Sunnis inIslam, Roman Catholics and Protestants in
Christianity.
f.Religious organization: There aremany types ofreligious
organization with sets ofbeliefs, practices and rituals. These
organizations vary insize, structure and perform various
functions. For example during Kumbhmela which ismass
Hindu pilgrimage considered tobeoneofthelargest religious
gathering forholy bath insacred water depicts organization
structure ofHinduism. Religious organizations consists of
network ofinstitutional arrangement with certain status and
rolesuch astemples andpriests, monks andmonasteries.
g.Expressive culture: Allthereligion comprises ofperforming
andvisual artssuch asmusic, dancing, singing, andchanting.
4.2SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE ONRELIGION:
During the19thcenturyindustrialization and secularization,
theclassical sociologists likeEmile Durkheim, Karl Marx and Max
Weber attempted tounderstand therelationship between society
andreligion.
Structural functionalist view onReligion:
Durkheim refers toreligio nasaunified system ofbeliefs and
practices which aresacred. Bysacred hemeant extraordinary and
related todivine. Hebelieved that religion isabout community, it
brings about social cohesion, promotes social control, and gives
strength topeople duringthetransitory phase oftheir lifeandatthe
time when they face tragedies. Inhisview religion represents
power ofsociety sowhen they celebrate sacred things, they
celebrate power oftheir society.
The three major functions ofreligion accordin gtoDurkheim isas
follows:
1.Social Unity: Religion brings people together through shared
values, norms beliefs andsymbols
2.Social control: Topromote conformity society promotes
religious ideas example marriage andreproduction.
3.Meaning and purpose tolife:Inalmost allthesocieties major
lifeevents ismarked byreligious observation thisisdue tothe
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53Durkheim’s structural functionalist approach iscriticized for
representing collective lifeofsociety and give less importance to
religion’s dysfunction example most oftheterrorist organization
claims thatGod favor’s their actions.
Symbolic Interactionist Approach:
The symbolic interactionist perspective isthe micro
approach tounderstand the relationship between religion and
society. From theperspective ofsymbolic interactionist religion is
constructed socially through various rituals which may beobserved
every day orannually forexample fasting during Ramadan or
offering prayers five times every day. For them belief and
experiences cannot betermed assacred until people inthesociety
regard them assacred. And once people regard itassacred then
thebelief andpractices getspecial significance inpeople’s lifeand
give sense totheirlife.
This approach toreligion attempts tounderstand everyday
lifethrough sacred lens. Itignores therelationship between religion
andinequality.
Social Conflict Approach:
According toConflict theorist religion promotes social
inequality and social conflict. Karl Marx believed that religion
legitimizes status quo and diverts people’s attention from social
inequalities andthus serves theruling elites. Karl Marx said religion
isopium ofthemasses, itmakes them accept their daunting
situation and behappy. People believe that byenduring the
suffering they will berewarded byGod after death. Peoples
religious believe does notallow them tooppose theatrocities
conducted onthem and thus help tocontinue theunjust social
practices.
Religion also support gender discrimination andinequality as
itpromotes stereotypes andreinforces patriarchal values.
However conflict perspective onreligion neglects thepositive
contribution ofreligion forexample Archbishop Tutu andPope John
Paul IIstrongly condemned War inIraq.munotes.in

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54Check your progress:
1. What isreligion?
2. Explain elements ofreligion.
4.3WORLD RELIGIONS:
1. Christianity: With almost two billion followers, consisting
nearly one third oftheworld’s population Christianity isthemost
practiced religion intheworld. Most ofthepeople who identify
themselves asChristians stay inEurope and America. Christianity
emerged asacult, transmuted into asect and now itexist as
ecclesia. Christianity ismonotheistic religion that isbelief inone
god. Yetithasaunique concept ofTrinity -God theCreator; Jesus
Christ, Son ofGod and Redeemer; and theHoly Spirit, Christian’s
personal experience ofgod’s existence. Christianity has taken
many forms from Roman Catholic Church totheProtestant
Reformation ofthemiddle ages.
2. Islam: The followers ofIslam callthemselves asMuslims.
There are about 1.6 billion people around the world who are
follower ofIslam. Amajority oftheMuslims reside inMiddle Eastern
countries. Moreover significant number ofMuslims also liveinwest
Asia. The sacred text ofMuslims istheQuran, itisword ofAllah
(God) astransmitted through Prophet Mohammad. After thedeathmunotes.in

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55ofProphet Mohammad Islam widely spread toother parts ofthe
world. Though therearevarious sects inIslam, major being the
Shias andSunnis butthey believe infivepillars ofIslam.
3. Judaism: There arefourteen million followers ofJudaism in
theworld with highest concentration inUnited States. Judaism has
avery distinctive concept ofcovenant thatisaspecial relation with
God bywhich thefollowers ofJudaism became thechosen people.
Itmeans aduty toobserve gods command particularly the‘Ten
Commandment’ asrevealed byMoses onMount Sinai. There are
three main denominat ions ofJews: theorthodox, thereformist and
theconservative.
4. Hinduism: Hinduism originated inIndus valley civilization
4500 years ago. They constitute fifteen percent ofthe world
population. Unlike other world religion Hinduism cannot belinked to
anyone person nordoithasanysingle sacred writings. Although
Hindus belief andpractices vary butthey allbelieve inamoral force
intheuniverse called asDharma. Another concept inHinduism is
Karma. Hindus believe thattheir actions have moral cons equences
and living lifeproperly contributes towards development ofmorals.
Hinduism also believe inMoksha that isstate ofspiritual freedom .
Onceitisachieved anindividual gets salvation and becomes free
from thebondage oflifeanddeath.
5. Buddhism :Around seven percent oftheworld populations
follow Buddhism. Buddhist sare found nearly inallthe Asian
countries such asBurma, Thailand, Cambodia and Japan. Like
Christianity inBuddhism tootheinspiration stems from oneperson ,
Gautama Buddha. Inspired bythecharismatic personality ofLord
Buddha ,hisfollowers spread Buddhism throughout India and later
in3rdcentury B.CtheBuddhist King sent missionaries toother parts
ofAsia andthus Buddhism became aworld religion.
6. Confucianism: From 200 B.C onwards toearly parts ofthe
20thcentury Confucianism was theofficial religion ofChina. But
after the 1949 revolution the Chinese government repressed
religion. Confucius was deeply moved bytheplight ofpeople sohe
instructed hisfollowers toengage theworld onthebasis ofmoralmunotes.in

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56code ofconduct. Confucianism believe intheprinciple of‘Jen”
meaning ‘humaneness’.
4.4TYPES OFRELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION:
1.Church: Achurch isareligious organization that iswell
integrated intothelarger society.Ithaswell established rules and
regulations and formally trained leaders. Johnstone described
following characteristics ofreligion:
Itisuniversal innature. Allmembers ofsociety areincluded in
thechurch organization within their ranks and haveatendency
toequate citizenship with membership.
Itexercises religious monopoly and attempts toeradicate any
competition.
Itmay closely associate with thestate andsecular powers.
Itishierarchical and bureaucratic innature with complex
division oflabour.
Itappoints officially trained clergy.
There isaddition ofnew members bybirth andsocialization.
Itisdiverse forexample nuns and monks rather than forming
new religions.
2.Sect: Asect isasmall religious organization that isnotwell
integrated with thesociety anditmay beinconflict with some ofthe
norms and values ofthesociety. Asect breaks away from the
larger denomination inorder tomaintain what the members
consider tobeoriginal beliefs and practices ofthedenomination.
Mostly thesect donothave any officially trained clergy and also
lack bureaucracy ofdenomination and ecclesia. The worship
services ofsect isemotional experience foritsmembers. New
members inthesect areadded byproselytization and recruitment.
Once thesect isformed itmay follow three route -dissolution,
institutionalization ormay grow andbecome more bureaucratic and
evolves into denomination example many ofthe protestant
denomination began asasect.
3.Cult: Like sect thecultarenew religious groups. Butdiffer in
three aspects; first they donot break away from their larger
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57Secondly, they are secretive innature and donot believe in
proselytization. And thirdly, they are ledbycharismatic leaders
having extraordinary qualities. Though theterm cult today may
have negative connotation butallthemajor religions oftheworld
such asIslam, Judaism and Christianity, denominations like
Mormons began ascults. Generally cultarelocated inurban areas
and draw huge population foritsmembership. Cults aretransitory
innature therefore may dissolve upon thedeath ordisrepute of
their founder.
4.5RELIGIOSITY:
Religiosity may beexplained asthesignificance ofreligion in
anindividual’s life. How religious people are? There isnoclear
answer tothisquestion because people may claim themselves to
bemore religious than actually they are. People inIndia may claim
tobemore religious than anywhere else. Religiosity may vary on
thebasis ofdenominations example members ofsect aremore
religious than any mainstream religious groups. Age wise older
generation people aremore religious than theyounger, similarly
gender wise wemay observe women tobemore religious than
men.
Religiosity influence peoples lifepositively. Researchers
have found that there islow rate ofdelinquency among young
people with strong religious belief and low divorce rate among
adults who follow religion. Religiosity bind children, parents and
local communities together thatisbeneficial foryoung individuals.
Check your progress:
1. What isreligiosity?munotes.in

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582. Explain characteristics ofreligion.
4.6SECULARIZATION:
Allsocial institutions such asfamily, economy and politics
have changed over aperiod oftime sodoes religious belief and
practices.
Secularization means declining influence ofbelief in
supernatural and thesacred ineveryday lifeofpeople. Religious
organization arefocusing less onother worldly subjects such aslife
after death and are dealing with more worldly issues such as
hunger and poverty, problems ofhomeless. Secularization also
refers tosome offunctions taken over byother organizations such
ascharity oneofthefunction ofChurch isnow taken over byNGOs
andgovernment.
Intoday’s modern scientific and technologically advance d
world people experience transitions intheir lifesuch asbirth and
death inthepresence ofaphysicians than areligious head orguru.
This reveals that significance ofreligion inourdaytodaylifehas
decreased. Does thismeans religion willdisappear someday soon?
Sociologist say‘no’. Because large number ofpeople intheworld
stillbelieve ingod and claim topray and follow rituals. Infact
religious affiliation isnow muchhigher than earlier. Therefore
secularization does notmean end ofreligion. Itmeans that some
aspect ofreligiosity hasdecreased while other hasincreased.
People are indouble mind about the impact of
secularization. The conservative believe that weakening ofreligion
means decline inmoral values, theprogressive believe that itis
liberation from thebeliefs ofthepast and people willbefree to
choose their beliefs. Secularization also help thesociety todoawaymunotes.in

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59with age oldevil practices such assati, child marri age, gender
discrimination etc.
4.7RELIGION AND FUNDAMENTALISM:
Religious fundamentalism isonriseglobally. Itisnotlimited
toany one particular religion. Fundamentalist tendencies can be
found inallworlds’ major and minor religion whether itis
Christianity, Islam, Hinduism orsome ethno -religious movement
such asShamanism ofNepal, Seicho -No-LeofJapan.
Fundamentalism refers toaconservative religious doctrine
that attempt toreplace intellectualism and worldly accommod ation
bytraditional and other worldly religious beliefs and practices.
Religious fundamentalist view that growing influence ofscience is
weakening thetraditional family norms and therefore they defend
thetraditional values. The fivedistinctive religio usfundamentalisms
areasfollows.
1.Literal interpretation ofreligious texts:
Tocounter theexcessive intellectualism amongst theliberal
religious groups the fundamentalists stress on literal
interpretation ofsacred text.
2.Rejects religious pluralism:
The fundamentalist reject tolerance and relativism asthey
believe itwould weakens thepersonal faith. They think thattheir
belief system istrueandothers belief isunreal.
3.Follow personal experience ofGod’s presence:
Fundamentalist believe inreviva lofoldbelief andpractices. For
example forafundamentalist Christian being born again and
have apersonal relationship with Jesus Christ should beevident
inhisdaytodaylife.
4.Opposes secular humanism:
Secular humanism refers toseeking guidance fromscientific
community rather than god inmatters related tohow tolead
one’s life.
5.Endorse conservative political goals:
Tooppose the liberal thoughts some fundamentalist enter
politics example opposing homosexuality, abortion and
feminism.munotes.in

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60Check your progress:
1. Write anote onsecularization.
4.8FAMILY
Introduction:
Family isthebasic unit ofsociety. Itisauniversal social
institution that performs various functions forthebenefits ofits
members and smooth functioning ofthesociety alongwith other
social institutions such asschool. Family relations arealso called
askinship relations thatarebased onblood, marriage oradoption.
Which relations canbetermed askindiffers throughout history and
from culture toculture.
Family orientation means people are born into afamily
consisting ofparents and siblings and the role the family in
socialization. Aspeople grow and attain adulthood they form the
family ofprocreation tohave their own children orthrough adoption.
Families areformed round marriage. Though inmany societies
marriage isconsidered assacred but marriage isalegally
sanctioned relationship involving sexual activity, childbearing and
rearing andeconomic cooperation. However, nowadays association
between family andchildren isdeclining. There isopposition to
traditional definition offamily through some quarters because itis
believed that itendorses aparticular standard ofmoral conduct.
Organization today areincreasingly recognising family ofaffinity i.e.
people with orwithout blood orlegal ties, who have asense of
belongingness andwho desire themselves tobecalled asafamily.
For Scholars such asWinter (2000), Fukuyama (1995) and
Bourdieu (1986) family isatool forcreation, development and
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61Variations inFamily: Inspite ofsimilarity there areconsiderable
variation informs offamily across thesocieties. Inwestern society
nuclear family isvery common while inother society wemay come
across extended family also such asIndia.
Extended family
Extended family isalso called asconsanguine family. Itisa
form offamily thatconsists ofparents, children andother kin.
Nuclear family
Nuclear family iscalled asconjugal family. Itconsist ofone
orboth parents andthechildren,
Patterns offamily:
a. Marriage
There arevarious forms ofmarriage depending upon thecultural
norms.
Endogamy
Itismarriage between people belonging tosame social
class. Itlimits marriage prospects toothers belonging tosame age,
religionorsocial class.
Exogamy
Itmeans marriage between people belonging todifferent
social categories example India, people marry within same caste
butfrom different village.
Monogamy
Innations with high income, thelawprescribe monogamy as
aform ofmarriage. Monogamy isaform ofmarriage thatunites two
people.
Polygamy
Polygamy means marriage that bring together theunion of
three ormore people. The lowincome countries such asAfrica and
southern Asia allow polygamy. Polygamy involves two typesof
marriages. Themost common oneispolygyny. Polygyny composed
ofoneman andtwoormore women such asinIslamic countries of
Middle Eastern and African countries. Despite this the most
common form ofmarriage inthese countries ismonogamy. Another
form ofpolygyny ispolyandry. Itisaform ofmarriage where a
women take twoormore husbands.
However, most ofthesocieties oftheworld culturally prefer
monogamy because managing multiple spouses isexpensive,
financially notpossible and thenumb eroffemales tomales is
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62b. Residents
Themost common form ofresidents ispatrilocality where the
couple after their marriage stay with themen’s parents ornear his
relatives. Insome societies matrilocality was also followed where
thenewly wedded couples would stay with thewomen’s mother or
near herfamily. The modern industrial society gave anew pattern
ofresident’s i.e.neolocality tothenewly wedded couples where
they lived independently apart from both sets ofparents.
c. Descents
Desc entmeans thesystem bywhich themembers ofsociety
trace their kinship over generations. There are three types of
Descent: Patrilineal, matrilineal and bilateral. Inmodern industrial
society people recognise their decent bilaterally thatisthrough their
mothers aswellasfathers sides relatives.
d. Authority
The world ispatriarchal innature, there isnopure form of
matriarchal society. Although wives and mothers doenjoy some
amount ofpower inallthesocieties. Inmodern industrial society
egalitari anfamilies areevolving due towomen’s participation in
labour markets butstillboys arepreferred over girls.
Check your progress:
1. Describe patterns offamily.
4.9SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH TOUNDERSTAND
FAMILY:
For thefunctionalist thefamily performs many significant
functions asasocial unit. Itrears children, gives them emotional,
social, economic support and regulate their conduct particularly
related tosexand sexual reproduction. Itgives itsmembers social
identity. Any transition inthe structure offamily will have
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63However theconflict theorist argue thatfamily leads tosocial
inequality. Itreinforces economic inequality and patriarchal values.
Itleads toconflict including violence andcruelty against itsown
members.
The symbolic interactionist argue that the interaction of
family members and intimate relationship between thecouples
involves shared understanding oftheir situations. The spouses
have different style ofcommunicatio n.The social class towhich the
couple belongs also hadbearing ontheexpectations thatthey have
from each other intheir marriage.
Another micro level approach Social Exchange analysis see
courtship and marriage asatype ofnegotiation. While dating the
couples trytoweigh theadvantage and disadvantage ofgetting
married totheperson. The couple always keep inmind what they
willhave tooffer inreturn. According tothisapproach inPatriarchal
structures men bring power and wealth inthemarriag emarket
while women represent beauty. Butaswomen areentering labour
market theterms and conditions forexchange isconverging for
men andwomen.
4.10 STAGES OFFAMILY LIFE:
Family isadynamic institution that experience changes
throughout itslifecourse. The family lifebegins with courtship of
the young couple and settling down, addition ofbiological or
adopted children, parenting oftheadolescents, empty nest, and
retirement andsoon.ForFramo (1994) each ofthedevelopmental
stage offamily lifecycle isashock tothesystem astheroles are
redistributed, values repositioned, status modified, loss and
mourning ofthenear and dear ones tobedealt with and tomeet
theneeds through new avenues. Most ofthefamily undergoes
through thefollowing stages offamily lifecycle:
Courtship: Intraditional societies parents arrange marriage
fortheir children. Insuch societies romantic love hasnothing todo
with marriage asthese societies arehomogeneous and theyoung
aresocialized well tobegood partner. Thus parents were least
concerned about thecompatibility ofthecouples. They viewed thatmunotes.in

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64the couples would be culturally compatible. However,
Industrialization weakened theextended family relationship and
corroded traditional practices and value system. Inmost ofthelow
income group countries parents donot attach importance to
courtship itisleftuptotheyoung.
The young preferred toselect partners ontheir own and
started delaying marriage tillthey attained financial security. Now a
days there areinfactdating sites where young attempt tosharpen
their courtship skills andhave sexual experimentation.
Romantic Love: Though romantic love appears tobeatthe
centre ofsuccessful marriage butinreality inmany societies ithas
littletodowith marriage. Forsociologist society plays cupid sothat
theyoung leave thenest andstart their own family. Itissociety that
arranges marriage i.e.homogamy, mostly people fallinlove with
those who belong totheir social class, religion ,race andagegroup.
Butromance alone cannot bethebase ofthemarriage.
Settling down:
1. Most ofthe culture paint rosy picture ofmarriage that
disappoints thecouples particularly thewomen forwhom marriage
istheonly source ofhappiness.
2. Sexualit ymay beanother source ofdisappointment, people
may feel that their honeymoon period would continue forever but
that does nothappen. Though happy married lifeand sex go
together butitisnottheonly factor inmarital bliss.
3. Sex outside marriage strongly disapproved inalltheculture.
Infidelity though notrare and both man and woman cheat ontheir
partners. Inthe world ofICT, the online affairs are threat to
marriage.
4. Raising Children: Parenting isalifetime job.Inpreindustrial
society bigfamily was thenorm because itsupplied labour force.
Therefore women duty was tobear and rear children. Inindustrial
society children were nomore anasset infact they became a
liability. Asaresult the size offamily also became small. In
industrial lyadvanced nations there istrend ofsmall family andmunotes.in

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65some ofthecouples either delay birth orprefer nottohave children
atall.While even today inmost oftheagricultural based economy
andpoor countries wemay come across bigfamilies.
5. Conflict: Infamilies where both parents are working it
becomes extremely difficult forthem tobalance between work and
family responsibility. Soalmost inallthenations oftheworld we
have maternity leave forwomen totake care oftheir health and
wellbeing ofthechild and insome countries oftheworld even
father isgiven paternity leave tospend some valuable time with
their new born and bewith their wife forexample inSweden new
parents areentitled tosixteen months leave with eighty percent of
their normal pay. However incase ofIndia tofulfil their family
responsibility women are entitled totwenty sixweeks ofpaid
maternity leave butfathers, particularly working inprivate sector
establishment arenotentitled forpaid paternity leave.
Check yourprogress:
1. Explain stages infamily life.
4.11 TRANSFORMATION AND TROUBLES INFAMILY
LIFE:
Divorce: Once taboo ,divorce isnow common inallcultures and
society. Social change along with repositioning ofsocial values and
riseofparticipation ofwomen inproduction ofgoods and services
leads tostructural and functional changes inthefamily asasocial
institution. Women nomore stay inunhappy, violent marriages.
Relaxing divorce lawhashelped them toobtain divorce easily. Due
toincrease indivorce rate there isincrease inthe rate of
remarriage aswell. Ithas ledtoemergence ofnew type offamilymunotes.in

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66i.e.blended family involving parents and children form present and
past marriages.
Causes ofdivorce:
Individualism: Due toriseinindivi dualism, thefamily oftoday
spend less time together. Family members have become more
individualistic and give priority totheir interest and happiness
and think more about making money than considering the
wellbeing oftheir children orother family memb ers.
Loss ofromance: The cultural bases ofmarriage isromantic
love, therefore troubles start shooting upinmarriages when
sexual passion dwindles.
Independent women: Due toincrease inwomen participation
paid jobs theirdependence onhusband forfinancial security is
weakened asaresult women donothesitate toseek divorce in
case ofunhappy marriages.
Stressful marriage: Both thepartners work outside their homes
and jobs drain away their energy and leave them with less time
tospend with thefamily. Insuch situation managing family
responsibility asparents becomes extremely challenging,
therefore itisobserved that divorce takes place intheinitial
years ofmarriage asthecouples arenotable tobalance work
andfamily lifeandarestressed .
Social acceptance ofdivorce: Divorce nomore isconsidered
asstigma. Infactpeople believe that itisbetter totake divorce
than stay inabusive andunhappy marriage.
Easy togetdivorce: Inthepast getting divorce involved long
legal process butnow most states easily allow divorce ifthe
partners decide thattheir marriage hasfailed.
Divorce andRemarriage:
There ishigher probability that young couples with brief
courtship period, having weak financial status and who also are
emotionally immature resort todivorce. Ifcouples have jumped into
marriage due tounexpected pregnancy orifeither partner orboth
ofthem have issue ofsubstance abuse, andalso people who havemunotes.in

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67divorced parents inallofthese cases ,there arehigher chances of
divorce.
Beside the above factors even the people with sound
economic background having successful professional lifemay take
divorce duetostress ofbalancing marriage andcareer. People who
arenotreligious divorce more willingly than those who arereligious.
Children arebadly affected bydivorce oftheir parents. Due
todivorce oftheir parents they areuprooted from their familial
environment and feel broken due tobitter fight between parents.
They may even held themselves responsible fordivorc eoftheir
parents.
Due tonegative effect ofdivorce there arecouple who are
taking steps towards conscious uncoupling sothatthey canprevent
their family from being badly affected bydivorce. Most ofthetime
the people who take divorce remarry. Theyattempt tocreate
blended family that may continue tofunction inahealthy manner
but outside the traditional form ofmarriage. Blended families
consists ofbiological parents, stepparents, brothers, sisters, half
brothers and sisters, step brothers andsisters who may live
elsewhere. People inblended family face challenge ofdefining
relationships and areconfused over who ispart oftheir nuclear
family.
4.12 VIOLENCE INFAMILY
Family ideally should beaplace where anindividual feel
cared, loved and secured. However inreality notallindividual
experience pleasure and support from their family. Inmany homes
we may come across people suffering emotional, physical,
economic andsexual abuse byoneoftheir family members.
Violence against women andchildren:
Violence against women ispresent allthesocieties cutting
across social, religious, cultural, economic andregional boundaries.
Itoccurs through their lifecycle right from birth tilltheir death. The
home isconsidered asaplace where onefeels cared for,loved and
secured butforwomen itisaplace thatimperils andbreeds various
forms ofcruelty against women bytheir husbands andother family
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68Children are also victims ofdomestic violence. Ithas
devastating effects onchildren. Itaffect sthem emotionally and
physically.
4.13 ALTERNATIVE TYPES OFFAMILY:
Although most families oftheworld stillconsist ofmarried
couples who atsome point oftime may raise children together but
oursociety ischanging today wefindgreatdiversity infamily types.
Single parent: Single parent household isduetodivorce or
death ofoneofthespouse oran.unmarried women ormen tohave
children. Scholars believe thatchildren raised insingle parent home
areatdisadvantage because presence ofboth mother andfather is
essential forsocial development ofchildren
Living inrelationship /cohabiting: Itissharing of
household byunmarried couples. Itisvery common iscountries like
Sweden and other Scandinavian countries, inIndia toowecome
across such couples. Itappeals tothose people who believe in
gender equality and who aremore open and independent minded.
Notalltheliving inrelationship culminate intomarriage. However,
the critic point out that this forms ofrelationshi pdiscourage
marriage andleads tolowcommitment.
Same sexcouples: Denmark was thefirstcountry toliftban
onsame sexmarriage. This gave some social legitimacy tosuch
relationship and allowed them togain some advantage incase of
inheritance, taxation and joint ownership oftheproperty. Most gay
couples adopt children ortake help ofnew reproductive technology.
Singlehood: Inrecent time people deliberately choose to
stay alone. Atrend which isseen inboth men and women. For
economically independent women ,now aday’s ,husband isa
matter ofchoice andnotcompulsion forfinancial security.munotes.in

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69Check your progress:
1. Explain alternative types offamily.
4.14 NEW REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY AND THE
FAMILY:
Advancement inmedical sciences areinfluencing family. Itis
assisting thecouples who cannot have children normally. Italso
help todecrease thenumber ofbirth defects. Butitalso raised
some ethical questions? Incase ofwomen who carries theembryo
made from theegg and sperm ofsome other women than who is
themother? The one who iscarrying theembryo ortheone with
whose egg theembryo was formed? Regarding frozen eggs ifthe
couple take divorce that who willuse that frozen eggs? Such
questions speak volume about theconsequen cesoftheuseofnew
reproductive technology.
4.15 FUTURE TRENDS:
Family lifeacross theworld would continue tochange and
would beacause ofcontroversy and debates. The advocate of
traditional family system willalways strongly oppose theone who
wouldvoice greater personal choice. However thefuture trends of
family mostly would be:
Increase indivorce rate
Diverse family life: Single parent family, cohabiting couples,
same sexfamily and soon.Soinfuture family forms would be
based onmore personal choices
Infuture toomen willhave alimited roleinrearing oftheir child.
Although small percent ofthem would bestay athome dad or
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70Economic changes would continue toinfluence thefamily life.
New form ofreproductive technology would continue tochange
theexperience oftraditional parenthood.
Despite thecontroversy anddebates thatsurrounds family it
willcontinue asasocial institutions and people willfeelhappy and
blessed asparents andpartners.
4.16 SUMMARY:
Relig ionasasocial institution play asignificant role inthe
lifeofpeople. Itiscultural universal found almost inallthesociety.
There arevarious forms ofreligious organization such aschurch,
sect and cult. The major world religions areChristianity ,Islam,
Hinduism andJudaism. Sociological understanding ofreligion gives
valuable insight intothe belief and practices ofpeople and
functions ofreligion.
Family isone ofthesmallest and basic unit ofsociety.
Family asasocial institution isundergoing change across theglobe
interms ofpatterns, size and functions. New types offamilies are
emerging. Marriage rate isfalling, divorce rate isgoing up,and
same sexmarriage islegalised insome countries. Inspite changes
taking place family willcontinue toremain one ofthe most
important social institution.
4.17 QUESTIONS:
1.Evaluate thesignificance ofreligion asasocial institution and
explain itselements.
2.Briefly discuss church, cultandsect.
3.Examine sociological perspective onreligion .
4.What isfamily? Discuss itspatterns.
5.Discuss transformation and troubles infamily lifeinpresent
time.
6.Write short notes on:
a.New reproductive health andfamily
b.Religion andfundamentalism
c.Stages offamily life
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714.18 REFERENCES:
1.Bourdieu P,1986, The Forms ofCapital. InJ.Richardson (Ed.),
Handbook oftheory andresearch forthesociology ofeducation
(pp.241–258). New York: Greenwood.
2.Framo J.1994, The Family life Cycle: Impressions,
Contemporary Family Therapy.
3.Fukuyama F,1995, Trust: Social virtues and thecreation of
prosperity. New York: Free Press.
4.Gundy Volf J,1998, Neither Biblical norJust: Southern Baptists
andtheSubordination ofWomen, Sojourners, 12-13.
5.Hillard K,Kim H,Jane Land A.Magdalena. H,2000, ATheory
ofHuman LifeHistory Evolution: Diet, Intelligence and
Longevity, Evolutionary Anthropology 9(4):156-185.
6.Johnstone, Ronald L,1997, Religion inSociety: ASociology of
Religion, Upper Saddle River, NJ:Prentice Hall.
7.Klassen, P(Ed), 2009, Women and Religion, NewYork,
Routledge.
8.Macionis, J,2012, Sociology: Aglobal introduction, 5thedition,
Harlow, England; New York: Pearson/Prentice Hall.
9.Winter I,2000, Towards atheorised understanding offamily life
andsocial capital. Working Paper No.21.Melbourne: Australian
Institute ofFamily Studies.
munotes.in

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72Unit -5
CULTURE
Unit Structure
5.00bjectives
5.1Introduction
5.2Aspects ofCulture
5.3Definition ofCulture
5.4Culture andSociety
5.5Characteristics ofCulture
5.6Functions ofCulture
5.7Elements ofCulture
5.8Development ofCulture
5.9Conclusion
5.10 Summary
5.11 Questions
5.12 References
5.0OBJECTIVES:
Tounderstand thedefinition andmeaning ofculture.
Tostudy thevarious aspects ofculture and understand its
transmission.
Toexamine how culture helps toguide and organize oursocial
lives.
5.1INTRODUCTION
Culture isunique toman. Itisthemost important trait that
distinguishes humans from animals. Culture does notexist atthe
sub-human level. Culture isavery broadterm that includes all
aspects ofourlives. Culture isthetotality oflearned and sociallymunotes.in

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73transmitted behavior. Itincludes thecustoms, traditions, ideas and
values and artifacts ofgroups ofpeople. Culture isessential for
individuals because itisfundamental forthesurvival ofsocieties.
Culture has been described asthe‘common denominator that
makes theactions ofindividuals intelligible tothegroup’ (Haviland,
1993). Itmay besaid that human behavior isdetermined byour
biological and genetic makeup (nature) rather than our social
environment (nurture).
Humans donot have instincts. Sociologists agree that
culture andsocial learning, notnature, account forvirtually allofour
behavior patterns. Since humans cannot relyoninstincts inorder to
survive, culture isa“toolkit”forsurvival. Swidler (1986) states that
culture isa“tool kitofsymbols, stories, rituals, and world views,
which people may use invarying configurations tosolve different
kinds ofproblems”. The tools weusewilldepend onourpersonality
andtheunique situations weface.
5.2ASPECTS OFCULTURE
There aretwoaspects ofculture; material culture andnon-material
culture .
Material culture refers toobjects, things, resources andspaces
that people use todefine their culture. They aretangible and
have concrete existence. Forexample, tools, clothes, houses,
materials used toproduce anything, etc. The physical aspects
ofculture, i.e.,material culture defines andshapes thebehavior
and perceptions ofitsmembers. Technology isanimportant
part ofour lives. While theurban children would bebusy
playing ontheir phones, thetribal children would belearning to
make weapons andhunt.
Non-material culture refers toideas and perceptions that
peopl ehave about their culture. These include beliefs,
practices, language, norms, values, mores, organizations and
institutions. These areintangible andareabstract notions. For
example, thecultural concept ofreligion consists ofsetofideas
and belie fsabout God, worship, ethics and morals. Amusical
instrument such asaflute could beanexample ofmaterial
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74culture. Similarly, TajMahal isourmaterial cultural heritage, but
itsymbol izes love and devotion, which arenon-material cultural
traits.
5.3DEFINITION OFCULTURE
Horton and Hunt define culture as‘everything which is
socially shared and learned bythemembers ofasociety’.
Tylor defined culture as“that complex whole inclu ding
beliefs, art,religion, values, norms, ideas, law, language, practices,
custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired byman asa
member ofsociety ”.
Robert Bierstedt states that “culture isthecomplex whole
that consists ofallthe ways wethink and doand everything we
have asmembers ofsociety ”.
Check Your Progress
1.Define Culture. Mention itstwoaspects bygiving examples of
each.
5.4CULTURE AND SOCIETY
Society and culture aredistinct yetinterrelated concepts. A
society isthelargest form ofhuman group. Itoccupies thesame
geographic territory and issubject tothesame political authority
anddominant cultural expectations. Itconsists ofpeople who share
acommon heritage andculture. Whereas asociety iscomposed of
people, aculture iscomposed ofideas, behavior and material
possessions. Therefore, itwould beapttostate that society and
culture areinterdependent; neither could exist without theother.
Just asculture isessential forindividuals, itisalso fundamental for
thesurvival ofsocieties. Gillin and Gillin have compared culture to
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755.5CHARACTERISTICS OFCULTURE
Every culture hasthefollowing characteristics:
Culture islearnt :
Culture isnotinherited biologically, butlearnt socially by
man. One isnotborn with culture andthere arenocultural instincts
assuch. Itisforthisreason that culture isreferred toas‘learned
ways ofbehavior byman asamember ofsociety’.
Unlearned behavior, such asblinking ofeyes, drooling or
any reflex actions arepurely biological and notcultural. Greeting
each other, touching feet ofthefamily elders, ontheother hand,
arecultural.
Similarly, wearing particular kinds ofclothes, cooking food,
drinking from aglass, oreating food with forks, hands or
chopsticks, following religious practices, etc., are allways of
behavior learnt byman culturally.
Culture issocial:
Culture isnecessarily aproduct ofsociety. Itoriginates and
develops through social interactions. Itisshared bymembers of
society. Itisnotanindividual phenomenon andtherefore does not
exist inisolation.
Culture canonly bepassed onthrough with association with
other human beings. The process ofbecoming ‘human ’oracquiring
human qualities ispossible only inahuman environment.
Deprivation ofhuman company orassociation with other individuals
orhuman contact isequivalent todeprivation ofhuman qualities.
Culture isshared:
Culture isnotpossessed byanyindividual. Inasociological
sense, itissomething that isshared. Our customs, traditions,
beliefs, practices and value systems areshared bypeople ofa
group orsociety.
The works ofliterature orartifacts aswell asourvalues or
mores areallshared byalarge number ofpeople who constitute
thesociety. Robert Bierstadt states that ‘Culture issomethingmunotes.in

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76adopted, used, believed, practiced, orpossessed bymore than one
person. Itdepends upon group lifeforitsexistence,
Culture istransi tive:
Culture iscomposed ofallthemodes ofthought, behavior
and production that arehanded down from one generation tothe
next. This isdone through themeans ofcommunicative interaction,
such as language, gestures, writing, building and other
commu nication among humans. Language isthemost important
medium through which parents pass onculture traits totheir
children. This means that culture isnotgenetic orheredity and
needs tobeconsciously transmitted tothenext generation. Culture
may betransmitted through the processes ofimitation and
instruction.
Culture iscontinuous andcumulative:
Culture isacontinuous phenomenon. Initshistorical growth
ittends tobecome cumulative. Culture reflects ourpast and the
presents and makes provision forthe future achievement of
mankind. Thus itcanbereferred toasa‘growing whole’, which is
continuous and accumulates over aperiod oftime. “Culture may
thus beconceived ofasakind ofstream flowing down through the
centuries from onegeneration toanother”
Sociologists such asLinton ,equated culture tothe‘social
heritage’ ofman. Bierstadt calls culture as‘the memory ofthe
human race’. The culture that wesee today istheresult of
continuous accumulation oftraits ofseveral decades oreven
centuries.
Culture isintegrated:
Culture hasthetendency tobeconsistent. Several parts of
culture are interrelated, interdependent and interconnected. For
instance, asociety’s value systems and itsreligion, economics,
customs andbeliefsareallclosely related toeach other.
Culture isdynamic andadaptive:
Noculture isstatic. Culture issubject toslow and constant
changes. Change andgrowth areinherent inculture. Thus culture
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77Culture isalso adaptive asitrespondstothechanging
conditions within the society. Italso intervenes inthe natural
environment and helps man inhisprocess ofadjustment. Culture
provides ustools andtechniques ofsurvival andtherefore, helps in
adaptation.
Culture isgratifying:
Culture prescribes means andalso provides opportunities to
satisfy ourneeds. These needs may bebiological orsocial in
nature. Ourbasic needs offood, shelter andclothing aswellasthe
need forsecurity, status and money, areallfulfilled asperthe
norms prescribed byculture.
Culture varies from society tosociety:
Every society hasaunique culture ofitsown. Cultures are
notuniform asthey differ from society tosociety. Noculture is
constant orstatic.
Culture issuperorganic andideational:
Classical sociologist Herbert Spencer stated that culture is
neither organic norinorganic, butis‘superorganic’. Itmeans that
every physical object and physiological act has deep social
meaning. The social meaning may beindependent ofthe
physiological and physical properties and characteristics ofthat
object.
Foreg.The flagofacountry isnotjustacoloured piece of
cloth, butisasymbol ofanation; itshonour, pride and respect.
Similarly achair may have different meanings depen ding onits
location.
Every society considers itsculture asanideal. Itisregarded
asanendinitself. Itisintrinsically valuable. Thus, people within a
culture willconsider itasthebest culture and also use itasa
yardstick tomeasure theworthiness ofother cultures.
5.6FUNCTIONS OFCULTURE
Culture isauniversal human phenomenon. Man isasocial
animal aswell asacultural being. Man’s social lifehas beenmunotes.in

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78possible because ofculture. Itisimportant toknow whether culture
corresp onds toanyuniversal human needs. This brings ustothe
significant functions ofculture. Culture has certain functions for
both individual andsociety.
Culture isatreasury ofknowledge:
Culture isarich repository ofknowledge which isrequired
forthephysical, social and intellectual existence ofman. Unlike
animals who relyoninstincts, man displays intellect, creativity and
learning capacity which enables him toadapt totheenvironment.
Culture has made such anadaptation and modification possible
and easier byproviding man thenecessary skills and knowledge.
Culture preserves this knowledge and helps transmit itfrom
generation togeneration through itsbasic element, viz., language.
Language isnotonly thevehicle oftransmission ofknow ledge but
also preservation, accumulation and diffusion. Such aprocess is
seen lacking among animals, because culture does notexist at
sub-human level.
Culture defines situations:
Culture defines thesituation forus.Itnotonly defines but
also cond itions anddetermines what weeatanddrink, what kind of
clothes wewear, what verbal ornon-verbal language wespeak,
which faith wefollow, etc.Itreveals the‘socially correct’ response
toasituation. Each culture has many subtle cues which define
eachsituation. Aperson who moves from one society toanother
may take alifetime tounderstand thecues.
Culture defines attitudes, values andgoals:
Attitude refers tothetendency ororientation ofthemind to
think and behave inaparticular way. Values are collective
conceptions ofwhat isconsidered good, desirable and proper –or
bad, undesirable andimproper inaculture. While goals refer tothe
attainments which arevalues define asworthy. Ourculture shapes
andconditions ourattitude towar dsvarious societal issues such as,
marriage, contraception, religion, economics, science, etc. Our
values relating toconcept ofliberty, private property, choice of
partner inmarriage areallinfluenced byourculture. Allourgoals;
whether they are familial, economic, religious innature are
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79value cooperation, butmodern societies thrive oncompetition and
conflict.
Culture defines myths, legends andthesupernatural:
Myths and legends areintegral part ofevery culture. These
may bepassed onfrom one generation toanother through oral
tradition. Whether they aretrue ornot, they stillinspire, reinforce
effort, guide and bring comfort inbereavement. Behaviour ofan
individual within agroup isinfluenced bymyths, legends and
supernatural beliefs they hold. Thus they prove tobepowerful
forces inagroup’s behavior.
Culture provides patterns ofbehavior:
Culture provides amap ofbehavior patterns foranindividual
inasociety. Culture assigns goals and provid esmeans of
achieving them. Culture provides aready reckoner ofsetpatterns
which theindividual needs only tolearn andfollow. These rules are
used toguide food habits, beliefs, practices, customs relating to
marriage, etc.
Individuals use culture tofulfill their purpose insociety,
however, thesame culture imposes limits onhumans and their
activities. There isaneed fororder andstability inthesociety, and
culture provides direction tothe behavior ofindividuals. It
prescribes certain acts and provides rewards forfollowing socially
acceptable path; while ontheother hand, itproscribes certain acts
asthese are not desirable forthe society. Thus, ithelps in
controlling chaos anddisorder which isinherent inanysociety.
Culture moulds human personality:
Culture plays avery important role inthedevelopment of
human personality. Ahuman child can develop human qualities
only inthepresence ofcultural environment. Culture provides man
with the‘design ofliving’ and makes him ready forgroup life.
Culture also provides man opportunities forthedevelopment of
personality and also decides limits onitsgrowth. Well known
anthropologist, Ruth Benedict analyses culture inthree primitive
societies inherfamous work ‘Patterns ofCulture”, and points out
that every culture will produce itsspecial type ortypes of
personality. Another American anthropologist, Margaret Mead, in
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80Societies ”,has states that “culture shapes the character and
behavior ofindividuals living init.
Itisafactthat anindividual ismolded bytheculture ofthe
group inwhich heisborn. Culture provides for‘universals ’aswell
asfor‘alternatives ’.There isnotonly conformity incultural learning
butalso variations. Still noindividual iscompletely determined by
culture. Other agencies such as,school, mass media, peer group,
neighborhood, etc., expose theindividual toavariety ofinfluences
outside ofculture. Numerous biological and social factors help
bring outtheuniqueness ofanindividual within thesociety.
5.7ELEMENTS OFCULTURE
Societies allover theworld have different cultures. However
they allhave fivecommon elements such as:symbo ls,language,
values and beliefs, norms and material culture and technology.
These elements look different across cultures, and many change
with time asasociety evolves.
Symbols
Asymbol isanything thatmeaningfully represents something
else. Noculturecanexist without symbols because there would be
noshared meanings among people. Symbols help ustoexpress
abstract concepts with visible objects. People who share aculture
often attach aspecific meaning toanobject, gesture, sound or
image. Inother words, people share thesame meaning fora
particular object. Forexample, across isareligious symbol to
Christians. Itisnotsimply twopieces ofwood attached toeach
other, norisitjust anoldobject oftorture and execution. To
Christians ,itrepresents thebasis oftheir entire religion, and they
have great respect forthesymbol. Similarly, foraHindu, thecow is
notjustananimal (object), butrepresents acelestial being, and is
therefore toberevered.
Speech isanimportant part oflanguage system which
consists ofvocal and other kinds ofgestures, such asbowing
shaking hands, saluting, kissing, blushing, etc.These gestures too
have symbolic meanings which are mostly cultural. Similarly,
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81meanings. Emoticons are combinations ofkeyboard characters
which areused bymany torepresent their feelings online through
texting.
Many material products orthings are primarily symbol
vehicles, forexample, flags, pictur esandstatues, etc. Abuilding, a
tomb, astone orphysical place, etc., signifies asymbolic form, the
meaning ofwhich iscultural.
Language
Language isthefoundation ofevery culture. Language tells
usagreat deal about aculture. Inmany ways thepriorities ofa
culture are reflected initslanguage. Language isanabstract
system ofwords and symbols used tocommunicate with each
other. This includes verbal and non-verbal language which is
unique tocertain groups ofpeople. Language includes speech,
written characters, numerals, symbols and gestures ofnonverbal
communication.
Incontrast tosome other elements ofculture, language
permeates allaspects ofsociety. Certain cultural skills such as
cooking orcarpentry can belearned without theuse oflanguage,
butthrough observation and imitation. However, itisimpossible to
transmit complex religious orlegal knowledge bymerely watching
toseehow they areperformed. Therefore, societies depend upon
language fortheuseandtransmission ofmost partofaculture.
Cultural languages differ beyond vocabulary. Foreg., eyecontact
represents different meanings indifferent cultures. InAmerica, eye
contact suggests thatyouarepaying attention andareinterested in
what theother perso nissaying. InAsian cultures, eyecontact may
beconsidered rude andalso achallenge ofauthority.
Norms andValues
Values arecollective ideas about what isright orwrong,
good orbad, and desirable orundesirable inaparticular culture
(Williams, 1970). Values may bespecific, such ashonouring elders
within thefamily, orthey may bemore general, such ashealth,
love, anddemocracy. Values influence people’s behavior andalso
provide guidelines forevaluating theactions ofothers. Values
typically exist inpairs ofpositive and negative values, such asmunotes.in

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82being good orbad, brave orcoward, hardworking orlazy. Weas
members ofasociety usevalues tojustify ourbehavior. Therefore,
wetend todefend them staunchly. Forexample, ifaculture places
high value ontheinstitution ofmarriage, then itmay have norms
(and strict sanctions) which prohibit theactofadultery oreven
premarital sex.
Values provide ideals orbeliefs about behavior butdonot
clearly state how weshould behave. Norm s,other theother hand,
dohave specific behavioural expectations. Two types ofnormative
systems operate within thesociety. Prescriptive norms state what
behavior isappropriate oracceptable, inother words, ‘what we
should do’.Aperson with adecent source ofincome isrequired to
pay income tax. Norms based oncustoms require ustohelp the
elderly cross thestreet orliftaload. Bycontrast, proscriptive
norms state what behavior isinappropriate orunacceptable tothe
society, inother words, ‘wha tweshould notdo’. Restriction on
physical intimacy before marriage isanorm inmany traditional
societies. Prescriptive and proscriptive norms operate atalllevels
ofsociety. These influence ourday today actions aswell as
provide thefoundation fortheformulation oflaws.
There appears toadirect relationship between thevalues,
norms and sanctions ofaculture. Inasociological sense,
punishments and rewards foradhering toorviolating norms are
known assanctions. Cultural norms vary depending onthedegree
ofsanction associated with them. Rewards canrange from asweet
smile totheNobel Prize; whereas punishments can vary from a
raised eyebrow toamore stringent death penalty.
Check Your Progress
1.Name andexplain fivecommon elements ofculture.munotes.in

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832.Can you differentiate between Prescriptive and Proscriptive
norms?
5.8DEVELOPMENT OFCULTURE
There isnoway toknow theexact time when human culture
began. Any attempt todosowould beanarbitrary one. Oneway
torepresent growth ofculture over time istoselect anarbitrary date
and todivide man’s experience from that point into ‘life-times’.
Alvin Toffler, inhisfamous book ‘Future Shock’ has made an
attempt togive some direction tothis problem. Hedivided last
50,000 years ofexperience into62years ‘life-times’, which means
currently man canbeplaced inhis800thlife-time.
Asperthischronological structure, 650life-times were spent
incaves. Written language intheform ofscripts hasexisted only
forthelast 70life-times and theprinted work has been widely
available only forthelast 6life-times. The electric motor has
existed only for2life-times. Television, airplanes, automobiles, and
nuclear weapons alldeveloped within the800thlifetime and90% of
allthescientists who have ever existed arealive during thislifetime,
ie.,from 17thto20thcentury. Allofmodern technology has
developed inless than 1/25000thofthetotal time ithas taken for
human culture toreach itspresent level ofdevelopment” .(Leslie,
Lorntanand Gorman).
The above explanation shows that only recently hasculture
begun togrow and change rapidly. Culture grows inthree ways
and results insocio -cultural change: Discovery, Invention, and
Cultural Diffusion.
Discovery
Discovery isone ofthesources ofsocio -cultural change.
Horton andHunt define discovery as‘ashared human perception of
anaspect ofreality which already exists’. Inother words, discoverymunotes.in

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84involves making known orsharing theexistence ofanaspect of
reality. The gravitational force oftheearth, circulation ofblood,
principle ofconcentration ofenergy, etc., were already there before
their discovery. Anew discovery becomes anaddition tosociety’s
culture only when itisshared within thesociety. Itbecomes a
contributing factor tosocial change only when itisputtouse. For
eg., thepower ofsteam was studied bytheancient Greeks long
back. Infact, asteam engine was built asatoyinAlexandria
around 100 AD. Buttheprinciple was notputtouse fornearly
1700 years after itsdiscovery. The finding oftheDNA molecule
and theidentification ofanew moon ofSaturn areboth acts of
discovery. Adistinguishing feature intheprocess ofdiscovery is
the sharing ofnewfound knowledge with others. Bycontrast,
invention results when existing cultural items arecombined into a
form thatdidnotexist before. The bow andarrow, theautomobile,
andthetelevision areallexamples ofinventions. Intheearly stages
ofhuman history, cultural change was slow andthathappened only
through discovery. Asthe number ofdiscoveries inaculture
increased, inventions became possible.
Invention:
The process ofintroducing anidea orobject thatisnew toa
culture isknownasinnovation. There aretwoforms ofinnovation:
discovery and invention. According toHorton and Hunt, invention
refers to“anew combination oforanew use ofexisting
knowledge”. While Robertson defines invention as“thecombination
ornew use ofexisting knowledge toproduce something that didnot
exist before”.
Inventions canoccur attwolevels: Material inventions such
asbow and arrow, aircrafts, machines, computers, etc. and non-
material inventions may include constitutional government, music,
drama, literature, religion, etc. Today’s invention isalways based
onpast discoveries and previous knowledge. The nature and rate
ofinventions inasociety willalways depend onthepast repository
ofknowledge available inthat society. Bythat logic, Ralph Linton
observed that, “IfEinstein hadbeen born intoaprimitive tribe which
had limited counting ability, and could count only upto their fingers
andtoes, lifetime contribution tomathematics would nothave been
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85Itcan bestate dthat “the more inventions aculture
possesses, themore rapidly further inventions can becreated”.
Existing cultural knowledge within asociety provides asolid
foundation fornew inventions. Ogburn has listed 150 inventions
that were made almost simu ltaneously bydifferent scientists inthe
same orsimilar cultures. This fact explains astowhy
modernization process spread rapidly inthose societies which
made several inventions thatthose societies which merely adopted
theinventions ofothers.
Diffusion:
Itisnotnecessary forsocieties toalways discover orinvent
itsculture; itmay also adopt ideas, technology, and customs from
other cultures. Sociologists use theterm diffusion torefer tothe
process bywhich acultural item –both materia lartifacts and ideas
-isspread from group togroup orsociety tosociety. There are
number ofways through which diffusion occurs; some ofwhich are,
exploration, military conquest, missionary work, theinfluence ofthe
mass media andtourism.
Diffus ion and social change are interrelated. George
Murdock has estimated that about 90% ofthecontents ofevery
culture have been acquired from other societies. Kroeber, awell-
known anthropologist considers diffusion asthemain source of
social and cultural change. Intheearly stages ofhuman history,
culture changed rather slowly, through discovery. Asanumber of
discoveries inaculture increased, inventions became possible.
The more inventions there were themore rapidly further inventions
could becreated. Atthesame time more and more diverse
cultures came into contact with one another, which iswhy they
could each take advantage oftheother’s innovations. Thus, when
weread anewspaper, welook atcharacters invented bythe
ancient Semites, printed byaprocess invented inGermany, ona
material invented inChina (Linton, 1936).
There isnospace barrier forthe diffusion process, as
diffusion may take place over extremely long distances. Kroeber
observed thattheuseofsmoking tobacco began when Indian tribes
intheCaribbean invented thehabit ofsmoking thetobacco plant,
where itgrew wild. Hundreds ofyears later, tobacco was acquiredmunotes.in

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86and cultivated byone neighbouring tribe after another. Through
diffusion, thispractice travelled throughCentral America andacross
theNorth American continent.
While diffusion iscommon, the process ofdiffusion of
cultural traits does notoccur automatically. Sometimes groups and
societies resist ideas which seem tooforeign aswellasthose ideas
whichareperceived tothreaten their beliefs and practices. Each
culture isselective about what itabsorbs from another culture.
Europe accepted silk, the magnetic compass, chess, and
gunpowder from theChinese. Atthesame time itrejected the
teachings ofConfucius asanideology. Similarly Indians adopted
theEnglish language asaform offormal communication, buthave
rejected thefood habits ofthewesterners.
5.9CONCLUSION
Culture isaway oflifeshared bymembers ofasociety.
Several specie sdisplay limited capacity forculture, butonly human
beings rely onculture forsurvival. Culture consists ofsymbol,
language, values and norms toguide human behavior. Cultural
values and beliefs not only affect how we perceive our
surroundings, they also form thecore ofourpersonalities
5.10 SUMMARY
Culture isunique toman. Itisthemost important trait that
distinguishes humans from animals. Several related concepts help
usunderstand theculture better.
Culture isdefined as‘everything which issocially shared and
learned bythemembers ofasociety’.
Culture has thefollowing characteristic :Culture islearned, is
social, isintegrated, dynamic andadaptive. Culture issuperorganic
andideational.
Functions ofculture are: Culture istreasury ofknowledge, culture
defines situations, attitudes, values and goals. Culture provides
patterns ofbehavior, andmoulds personality.
Culture consists ofmaterial and non-material aspects. Material
aspects consists ofobjects, artifacts andtechnology. Non-material
aspects consists oflanguage, symbols, values andnorms.munotes.in

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87Development ofculture :Culture grows inthree ways andresults
insocio -cultural change: Discovery, Invention, and Cultural
Diffusion.
5.11 QUESTIONS
1.Define Culture. Discuss theimportant characteristics ofculture
2.Evaluate significant elements ofculture.
3.Discuss thevaried functions ofculture.
4.Discuss therelation between culture and society. Show how
culture developed through theages.
5.12 REFERENCES
Kornblum and Smith (2008) Sociology inaChanging World,
Thomson Wadsworth, UK
Schaefer andLamm (1999): Sociology (ed.) Tata McGraw -Hill,
New Delhi
Shankar Rao (2019): Sociology, S.Chand Publications, New
Delhi
Kendal, D(2006) :Sociology inourTimes -The Essentials,
Thomson Wadsworth, UK
Macionis, J(2001) :Sociology (8thed), Prentice Hall, New
Jersey
munotes.in

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88Unit -6
COMPONENTS OFCULTURE
Unit Structure
6.0Objectives
6.1Introduction
6.2Components ofCulture
6.2.1Culture Trait
6.2.2 Culture Complex
6.2.3 Subculture
6.2.4 Counterculture
6.2.5 Culture Universal s
6.2.6 Cultural Diversity (Variables)
6.3Ethnocentrism
6.4Cultural Relativism
6.5IsourCulture Changing?
6.6Conclusion
6.7Exercise
6.8Summary
6.9References
6.0OBJECTIVES
Tounderstand themeaning ofconcepts related toculture
tounderstand people's perspective onculture
Toexamine how culture helps toguide and organize oursocial
lives.
6.1.INTRODUCTION
Inthelast unit, wehave studied about thedefinition of
culture, whereas now, wewillunderstand how certain concepts like
Cultural Diversity, Ethnocentrism, Cultural Relativism play amajor
roleindeveloping theminds ofpeople anditseffect onsociety.munotes.in

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896.2COMPONENTS OFCULTURE
6.2.1Culture Trait
The smallest unit ofculture iscalled atrait. Hoebel states
that“traitisairreducible unit oflearned behavior pattern ormaterial
product thereof. ”Trait ofthematerial culture would typically include
things such asaneedle, thread, nail, pen, etc. The non-material
trait would include aNamaste, salute totheflag, orasmile in
communication. Each culture isacombination ofthousands ofsuch
traits.
6.2.2 Culture Complex
Culture complex isacluster ofrelated traits .Inother words,
when traits come together meaningfully, they form aculture
complex. Forexampl e,thedandiya dance isanexample ofculture
complex. Ithasseveral small traits such as,thespecific dhol music,
colourful flowing costumes, dance steps and songs, allcome
together toform aculture complex.
6.2.3 Subculture
Subcultures arethose groups that have values and norms
that aredistinct from those held bythemajority. Asubculture isa
category ofpeople, who share distinguishing attributes, beliefs,
values, norms that set them apart from the dominant group.
Culture isnotauniform pattern that creates same influences on
those who areexposed toit.Aperson isexposed toculture thatis
notgeneral, buttoparticular culture ofthegroup inwhich helives.
This isbecause inlarge societies which areheterogeneous, there
aremultip legroups with their own cultures. Forexample, weas
Indians, arepart ofregional groups, religious groups, caste groups,
racial groups, occupational groups, linguistic groups and several
other groups. Each ofthese groups has their own culture. Such
culture isknown assubculture. These subcultures areapart ofa
national culture.
Subcultures exercise immense influence onitsmembers.
Notallchildren within thesame society willbeexposed tothesame
culture, asthere arenumerous subcultures. Greater thecomplexity
within asociety, larger willbescope forthegrowth ofsubcultures.
Each subculture will have itsown custom, folkways, norms,munotes.in

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90practices, rites, rules ofbehavior, etc.The subcultures exert adeep
andlong lasting impact onitsmem bers.
6.2.4 Counter Culture
Cultural diversity may also include outright rejection of
traditional ideas andbehavior patterns. There aresome subcultures
thatactively oppose thelarger society. Acounter culture isagroup
that strongly rejects dominan tsocietal values and norms and seeks
alternative lifestyle (Yinger 1960). Young people aremost likely to
jointothecountercultural groups. The reason forthismay bethat
younger persons generally areless invested intheexisting culture.
Examples ofcounterculture aretheflower children ofthe1960s
America, members ofnon main stream religious sects and cults.
Some countercultures also engage inrevolutionary political
activities. Some youth may reject thecultural standards oftheir
parents, especially with respect tosexual mores.
Transgenders ascountercultures
Transgender isanumbrella term that isused forpersons
whose gender identity, gender expression orbehavior does not
match their gender assigned atbirth. Depending onthereligiou s
and cultural orientations transgenders aregiven names inlocal
language such as,Hijras, Tritiya Panthi,Napumsaka, Jogtas, etc.
The transgender community wasconsidered acounterculture and
therefore wasexcluded from mainstream society.
Transgende rsare socially, culturally, economically and
politically excluded. This also means that they donothave social,
cultural, economic and political rights, something wetake for
granted. They cannot beapart oftheeducation system asthey
areoften harassed orarevictims ofbullying and sexual violence.
Employability islow amongst transgenders and therefore many
resorts tobegging, extortion, entertainment orprostitution.
Transgenders liveonthefringes ofsociety and arestillfighting for
their righttoidentity, right tolivelihood andentitlement touniversal
services such ashealth and security. However, thecondition is
changing today and steps arebeing taken toabsorb them inthe
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91Check Your Progress
1.Explain the mean ing ofCounter culture. Apart from
transgenders, what are the other examples counter the well
established culture?
6.2.5 Cultural Universals
Humans allover have thesame basic needs, such asfood,
shelter and clothing. Therefore weengage insimilaractivities that
willhelp inoursurvival. Cultural universals arethose customs and
practices that occur across allsocieties. Anthropologist George
Murdock (1945) has compiled alistofmore than seventy cultural
universals. Hiscategories include dappearance (such asbodily
adornment, ornaments and hairstyles), activities (such as,sports,
dancing, games, joking and visiting), social institutions (such as,
marriage, family, law, religion, politics), and customary practices
(such ascooking, folklo re,giftgiving, andhospitality). Atageneral
level, allthese practices may bepresent inallcultures; however,
their specific forms may vary from one group toanother and may
also change with time. Forexample, what may beconsidered asa
joke inoneculture may beaninsult inanother culture.
Cultural Universals serves aparticular purpose. Interms of
their functions, cultural universals areuseful because they help in
operating society inasmooth and continuous manner. One ofthe
functions ofasociety istoprovide itsmembers the basic
necessities oflifeaswell assecurity. Children and new members
must betaught theways ofthegroup. Asociety must regulate
social behavior, settle disputes among itsmembers and deal with
people’s emotio ns. Allthewhile, theself-interest oftheindividual
must bebalanced with thelarger needs ofsociety asawhole.
Cultural universals help fulfill these important functions ofthe
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92Seen from another view, however, cultural universals may
notbetheresult offeltneeds ofthesociety. These practices may
have been imposed bymembers ofone society onanother. Itis
important tounderstand that similar customs may notnecessarily
mean that cultural universals exist. Itmay also indicate that a
conquering nation used itspower toenforce certain customs upon
thedefeated people. Sociologists might askthequestion such as
“Who determines thedominant cultural patterns?” Forinstance,
religious isacultural universal. However, history shows thatin
many casestraditional religious practices ofindigenous people
(early settlers) have often been repressed using violent means by
conquerors that held immense economic and political power over
them.
6.2.6 CulturalDiversity (Variables)
Each culture hasaunique character. Cultures adapt tomeet
specific sets ofcircumstances, such asclimate, level oftechnology,
population and geography. This adaptation inreflected inthe
differences inallelements ofculture. Despite thepresence of
cultural universals, there isstillgreat variation ordiversity among
several elements ofculture worldwide. Even within asingle nation,
certain segments ofthepopulation willdevelop cultural patterns
which aredifferent from those ofthedominant group ofthesociety.
Cultural diversity refers tothe wide range ofcultural differences
found between societies and within societies. Countries may differ
from each other culturally onthebasis ofnatural circumstances
such asclimate andgeography. They may also differonthebasis
on social circumstances such aslevel oftechnology and
composition ofpopulation. Some nations such asSweden may be
referred toashomogenous societies, meaning they share common
language, culture andreligion. Whereas, theUnited States may be
referred toasheterogeneous societies, meaning that they include
people who aredissimilar interms oftheir social, economic and
ethnic characteristics.
One ofthe contributory factors tocultural diversity is
migration inallitsforms. Aperson who hasmigrated willcarry his
own culture inthenew place. Such aperson may bemade tofeel
likeanoutsider bythemembers ofsociety. Some analysts believe
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93race, ethnicit y,origin, nationality, gender, social class or
occupation, etc. People whose culture isdifferent from the
dominant group may also findreassurance and social support ina
subculture oracounterculture.
6.3ETHNOCENTRISM
Anumber ofstatements weuseonadaily basis reflect our
attitude that our culture isthe best. We may use the term
developed, underdeveloped orprimitive todescribe asociety. We
may consider ourbelief asreligion, and other person’s belief as
superstition and mythology. Itisextremely tempting toevaluate
thepractices ofother cultures interms ofourown perceptions.
Sociologist William Graham Sumner (1906) coined the term
ethnocentrism torefer tothetendency toassume that one’s culture
and way oflifeissuperior toallothers. The ethnocentric person
sees hisorherown group asthecenter ordefining point ofculture
and allother cultures asdeviations from the‘normal’. The other
culture isconstantly judged against standards derived from the
culture with which oneismost familiar. Forexample, theEuropean
explorers often considered their conquests asuncivilized and
barbaric tribes.
Ethnocentrism manifests itself intwo ways: positive
ethnocentrism and negative ethnocentrism. Most school children
aretaught tobeproud oftheir school andtheir nation. The school
song, thepledge and thenational anthem areallforms ofpositive
ethnocentrism. The functionalist perspective states that
ethnocentrism isimportant attwolevels: First itserves tomaintain
asense ofsolidarity among people, and secondly, itpromotes
group pride. Yet, thistype ofsocial stability isestablished atcost of
looking down upon other people’s nations and cultures. Some
Indians willfinditunthinkable toleave their parental home andlive
lifeindependently.
Negative ethnocentrism can also result from constant
emphasis onthesuperiority ofone’s own group ornation. This
attitude isreflected inthederogatory stereotypes and remarks
about other people, especially themigrants oranybody who isnot
like ‘us’. The comments may beonthe customs, religiousmunotes.in

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94practices, behavior, dress style orlanguage oftheimmigrant which
iscompletely different from those ofthedominant -group members.
From theconflict perspective ethnocentric value judgments devalue
groups. This also results indenial ofequal opportunities forthe
new group.
6.4CULTURAL RELATIVISM
Cultural relativism isanalternative toethnocentrism .Cultural
relativism isthe belief that the behaviours and customs ofany
culture must be viewed and analyzed by the culture’s own
standards. Togetalong well with others itisimportant tosuspend
judgment about other cultures andalso view people’s behavior from
the perspective oftheir own culture (and not ours). Cultura l
relativism places apriority onunderstanding other cultures, rather
than dismissing them as‘strange ’or‘exotic ’.Cultural relativism is
anexample ofvalue neutrality inscientific study asprofessed by
Max Weber.
Cultural relativism emphasizes thatdifferent social contexts
give rise todifferent norms and values. Practices such as
polygamy, bullfighting and monarchy need tobeexamined within
theparticular contexts ofthecultures inwhich they arefound.
Anthropologist Marvin Harris (1974) usescultural relativism to
explain that despite widespread hunger and malnutrition inIndia,
cattle arenotkilled andeaten because they areviewed assacred.
From aforeigner’s point ofview, itcan beconcluded that cow
worship isthecause ofhunger andpoverty inIndia. Oncloser
observation itcanbeseen thattheHindu taboo against killing cattle
isrelated totheir economic system. Live cows aremore valuable.
From theecological point ofview cows consume grass which isof
little value tohumans .They also produce twovaluable resources:
oxen (the neutered offspring ofcows) tobeused infarming and
manure (forfueland fertilizer). They also provide milk, cow dung
and leather. Thus Harris concludes that culture must beviewed
from thestandpo intofthose who liveinaparticular society.
Cultural relativism also hasadownside. Sometimes itmay
beused toexcuse customs and behavior (such ascannibalism)
that may violate basic human rights. Cultural relativism isapart ofmunotes.in

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95sociological imagination. Researchers must beaware ofthe
customs andnorms ofthesociety they arestudying and then spell
outtheir background assumptions. Doing sowillhelp others tospot
possible biases intheir studies.
There isanother interesting extension ofcultural relativism,
which isreferred toasxenocentrism. Xenocentrism isthebelief that
theproducts, styles, orideas ofone’s society areinferior tothose
that originate elsewhere. Inone sense, itisthe opposite of
ethnocentrism. Seen from theconflict perspective, xenocentrism
has proven tocreate aneconomic impact especially inthe
developing countries. Consumers inthe developing nations
frequently degrade and look down upon locally produced goods
and instead purchase items imported from Europe, Japan orNorth
America.
Check Your Progress
1.Define Ethnocentrism. Can yougive anexample?
2.Define Cultural Relativism. Iscultural relativism increasing
amongst thepeople inourcountry? Give reasons foryour answer.
6.5ISOURCULTURE CHANGING?
Culture isever-changing because ofhuman imagination.
Humans areproducers aswell asproducts oftheir culture. One
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96Humans areborn intoaculture. The perceptions andideas thatwe
imbibe through oursociety donotleave usatanymoment ofour
lives. Our tastes, moral compass and world view isshaped and
reshaped byour culture. This can also result inperpetuating
stereotypes about other cultures.
Humans canno tlive without culture. But this capacity to
create culture hassome drawbacks. Wemay betheonly creatures
who apply symbolic meanings toobjects. Culture islargely ahabit.
Inmany cases itlimits ourchoices anddrives ustorepeat troubling
patte rns.Outofsheer habit wemay engage inracial prejudice and
gender discrimination. Additionally, inthe age ofinformation
technology, our culture may bemanipulated bythe business -
dominated media togenerate profits inanunethical manner,
thereby makingusprisoners ofourown cultures.
Human beings arecultural creatures and aredifferent from
animals. Biological instincts help tocreate areadymade world. But
culture, ontheother hand forces ustochoose aswemake and
remake aworld foroursel ves. This issoevident inthecultural
diversity ofown society andhuman diversity around theworld.
The issue ofcultural diversity willgain importance inthe
future and inthefield ofeducation. Multicultural education that
focuses onthecontribut ions ofawide variety ofpeople across
cultures willbeanissue ofdebate. Schools and educational
institutions willhave toface thechallenge ofembracing widespread
cultural diversity. While doing sotheinstitutions willhave toconvey
asense ofcommunity andnational identity toitsstudents.
Technological advancements willalso affect culture ina
profound way. With increasing access totechnology and media
there willbeanincrease intheflow ofinformation. This willhelp
expand cultural diffusion throughout theworld. Technology can
promote integration orfragmentation. Integration occurs when there
iswidespread acceptance ofideas. Bycontrast, fragmentation
occurs when people inone culture hate ordislike thebeliefs and
actions ofothercultures. Whether itisintegration orfragmentation,
technology willcontinue torevolutionize communication insociety.munotes.in

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976.6CONCLUSION
The structure ofculture comprises oftraits and complex.
There areanumber ofculturally distinct groups withinasociety. If
adistinct group fails toassimilate fully, itisreferred toasa
subculture. Butifitchallenges theaccepted norms and values of
thelarger society, itmay become acounterculture. Inadiverse
country like ours, there may beethnoce ntrism tendencies but
cultural relativism helps understand andappreciate thedifferences.
6.7SUMMARY
Culture Trait: The smallest unitofculture iscalled atrait.
Culture complex isacluster ofrelated traits.
Asubculture isacategory ofpeople, who share distinguishing
attributes, beliefs, values, norms that setthem apart from the
dominant group.
Acounterculture isagroup thatstrongly rejects dominant societal
values andnorms andseeks alternative lifestyle.
Cultural universals arethose customs and practices that occur
across allsocieties.
Cultural diversity refers tothewide range ofcultural differences
found between societies andwithin societies.
Ethnocentrism torefer tothetendency toassume that one’s
culture andway oflifeissuperior toallothers.
Xenocentrism isthebelief that theproducts, styles, orideas of
one’s society areinferior tothose thatoriginate elsewhere.
Cultural relativism isthebelief thatthebehaviours andcustoms of
any culture must beviewed and analyzed bytheculture’s own
standards.
6.8QUESTIONS
1.Discuss thecomponents ofculture.
2.Evaluate therelationship between ethnocentrism and cultural
relativism.munotes.in

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983.How docultural universals and cultural variable help usin
understanding society?
4.What aretheimplications ofcultural changes forourfuture?
6.9REFERENCES
Kornblum and Smith (2008) Sociology inaChanging World,
Thomson Wadsworth, UK
Schaefer andLamm (1999): Sociology (ed.) Tata McGraw -Hill,
New Delhi
Shankar Rao (2019): Sociology, S.Chand Publications, New
Delhi
Kendal, D(2006) :Sociology inourTimes -The Essentials,
Thomson Wadsworth, UK
Macionis, J(2001) :Sociology (8thed), Prentice Hall, New
Jersey

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99Unit -7
NEW SOCIAL MEDIA -
SOCIAL DIMENSION, SOCIAL
NETWORKING SITES
Unit Structure:
7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Understanding social media
7.3 Sociology andsocial media
7.4 Types ofsocial media
7.4.1 Twitter
7.4.2 Facebook
7.4.3 LinkedIn
7.4.4 YouTube
7.4.5 Blogs
7.4.6 WhatsApp
7.5 Social dimension ofmedia
7.6 Letussum up
7.7 Questions
7.8 References/Suggested Reading
7.0OBJECTIVES
Tounderstand theconcept ofsocial media.
Tounderstand theroleofsociology insocial media.
Toexplore thedifferent types ofsocial media.
Tounderstand thesocial dimension ofsocial media.munotes.in

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1007.1.INTRODUCTION:
Sociology isthestudy ofhuman behavior ingroups, how we
live our everyday lives and how weinteract with other human
beings. Today with theadvent ofnew technology theway we
interact with each other socially, economically and politically has
undergone change. Today wecommunicate online and replicate
offline behavior through online portals like Faceboo kand other
social media sites through which oursocial circle boundaries are
changing. Wemight come across people whom wemay have never
met and may never even meet but weseem toknow them
thoroughly with alltheir personality traits. Wealso market ourselves
professionally totheworld with LinkedIn. This has been made
possible through new social media. We donotonly use social
networking tokeep intouch with friends; wealso useittoexpress
ourlikes anddislikes andexpress opinions onTVshows, products,
events orcelebrities. Itisaninteractive medium that supports and
enables ustoconnect with others inavery personal and
compelling way, through posts and conversations that actually
happen onavery human level.
7.2UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL MEDIA
What issocial media?
TheCambridge dictionary defines Social media as,
“Websites andcomputer programs thatallow people tocommunicat
eandshare information ontheinternet using acomputer ormobile
phone. ”
The Merriam Webster dictionary defin essocial media as,
‘forms ofelectronic communication (such aswebsites forsocial
networking and microblogging) through which users create online
communities toshare information, ideas, personal messages, and
other content (such asvideos)”.
Social mediaisdefined asamedia forthesociety, forthe
people togetmore social and start aconversation. Itmight bea
thought, anopinion, apicture, avideo, aquote that youcaneasily
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101concepts andapproaches today isaresult ofsocial media
influencing oursocial, economic andpolitical lives.
Social Media hasbound people together inacommon voice
with afamiliar goal. Ithasbecome thekeysource ofdissemination
ofinformation. Take forexam plethemassive protests outside the
World Economic Forum inDavos, 2008 Mumbai attacks, theArab
Spring uprising, thepublic outcry against the2012 gang rape in
Delhi, theAnna Hazare movement ofIndia Against Corruption, etc.
Inallthese major internat ional and national events, online social
media networks were used toruncampaigns, tospread theword
andconnect like-minded people. Ithelped inshaping public opinion
interms ofmeeting points andprotests. With social media, Indians
arevoicing their opinions freely and actively. In2012 ,Delhi was
faced with itsworst rape case inwhich awoman (Nirbhaya) was
beaten andgang raped inaprivate businwhich shewas travelling
with amale friend. This incident saw alarge number ofprotests –
onthestreets, inthenewspapers, onTVaswell asonsocial
media. Itputalotofpressure onthegovernment toarrest the
criminals and punish them severely. This incident ledtoanumber
ofpopular apps forwomen such asGuardian (started byMicrosoft),
OnWatch,Nirbhaya -Befearless, FightBack and many others. In
Mumbai, Seeti Bajao, anonline campaign that asked women to
whistle when introuble, was started.
Inallthis, platforms such asFacebook, Twitter, WhatsApp
and Instagram seem tohave emerged and arebeing accepted as
thefifth pillar ofmedia after print, TV, digital and radio. More
importantly, itisgradually being accepted asthefifth estate (if
media was thefourth estate ofastate ordemocracy).
Social platforms arepowerful and intimidating toolforpublic
advoca cy.Nothing ishidden from thesocial media advocates that
broadcast everything ranging from theoption toreport potholes,
traffic problems, women’s safety, mishandling ofpublic utilities to
corruption. Anaverage citizen hascome tohave thepower toturn
thetide through public deliberations and discussions, giving the
users aplatform forexpression. Take forexample -ABangalore
based civilsociety organization, www.ipaidabribe.com hasbecome
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102government. They are also there onFacebook, Twitter and
YouTube that enables them tohighlight corruption and empower
common people bygiving them avoice. InDelhi, localcircles.com is
popular among people. Ithelps people toexchange information
abou twater availability and domestic help, find blood donors and
report corruption. Thus Social Media becomes notjustapolitical
toolbutasolution provider.
Today themessage islouder than themessenger. However
everything broadcasted onsocial network forums isnotguaranteed
asopinions could becreated and manipulated tosuit private
interests. This can bedangerous asitlimits the scope for
consensus, debate andtolerance oflistening toopposite views. We
come across trolls, hate mails that reduce space foropen
interaction.
Check your progress:
Explain theconcept ofsocial media.
7.3.SOCIOLOGY AND SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media has influenced ourlives today economically,
politically andsocially. Media haschanged from being amonologu e
toadialogue –oreven more, anopen debate, with personal
opinions anduncensored debates.
Sociologists are interested innew social media and ask
questions like the role ofsocial media inour choice making
decisions -whether social media restricts ourchoices ormakes us
more open minded and explore new things and ideas? Iscontent
generated through new media controlled bythose inpower? Can
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103who are digitally deprived? Does social mediainthewords of
Noam Chomsky, an American media critic, “manufacture
consent ”?Do social media manufacture consent based onthe
owners ofthetechnology who sway public opinion onthebasis of
what they want ustoperceive. This could betrue. Forexampl e,if
youlikeapolitical leader/ celebrity andoften visit his/herfanpage,
your friends andfamily willbemade aware ofyour liking andthatin
away isamethod toinfluence them. The post onyour timeline
creates anewsfeed that your friends are seeing allowing peer
influence. Ontheother hand, that one ‘like’ allows other pages
linked toleader/ celebrity tothen show uponyour sponsored posts
listtoencourage you tolike those too. How does technology
change ourlives forthebetter? Ordoes it?Does being part of
online signature petitions make usmore participative inpromoting
social change inthesociety? Does theconstant flow ofinformation
mean wearemore aware andengaged than anysociety before us?
Inthismedium, opinion leaders hold plenty ofsway. Whether itis
politics, banking, consumer marketing, and durables, there are
opinion leaders who have afanfollowing. They pre-digest the
subject and make itfriendly enough foralltohave asayinit.To
that extent, social media isnotreally associal asitseems. The
common person onsocial media isalways surrounded with
information and ideas, many ofwhich arehard tobreak down and
digitally digest.
Inthe previous sections westudied about the various
sociological perspectives. How can weunderstand social media
from asociological perspective? From thestructural functionalist
perspective onewould discuss thesocial purposes technology and
media serve. One would look atthemanifest andlatent functions of
media and technology, aswell astheir role insocial dysfunction.
Someone applying the critical perspective would focus onthe
inequality created systematically byunequal access tomedia and
technology. Someone applying the interactionist perspective to
technology andthemediamight beinterested inthecreation ofself
and identity -thedifference between thereal lives welead and the
reality depicted onsocial forums.
Weneed touseoursociological imagination toexplore how
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104process bywhich ideas spread through social media networks.
Ideas, behavior and culture spread through thesimple means of
doing what others do.
Check your progress:
Bring outtherelation between Sociology andsocial media .
7.4TYPES OFSOCIAL MEDIA
What comes toyour mind when youthink about social media?
New media encompasses allinteractive forms ofinformation
exchange. These include social networking sites, blogs, podcasts,
wikis, and virtual worlds, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, twitter.
However these networks represent justone ofthemany types of
social media platforms. Social media networks canbecategorised
into social networking sites (twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) which
help usconnect with family, friends andbrands; social review sites
(Trip advisor, Trivago, Zomato) which help usgetinformation from
community members forexperiences oflocations and travel,
cuisine and stay; image sharing sites (Instagram, snapchat) with
images thatcapture ourimagination; video hosting sites (YouTube)
that has revolutionised the way wewatch and create videos;
community blogs anddiscussion forums.
7.4.1. Twitter: Short, snappy, formal and quick istwitter. Twitter is
what ishappening intheworld and what people aretalking about
right now. For elections campaigns and elected representatives,
Twitter isaway toconnect directly with constituents, voters and
observers, affecting traditional media. For debates itisthe
instrument tosetthestage and sow theidea intheminds ofthe
public. Forpeople it’sagreat platform tovoice opinions and offer
criticisms. Twitter isclearly thebetter media because itenables
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10510,000 tweets dotherounds every second. Twitter also echoes
people’s choices and views and brings them together. Itallows
them togetbehind issues that they areconcerned about. Twitter
feed isagreat on-spot meter ofmoods, ideas, reactions and
behaviours. In2016 Twitter had approxima tely 319 million active
users.
Practically allleaders ofstate areonTwitter, from Presidents
toPrime Ministers, topopular leaders infilm, culture and sports.
The world’s topleaders have used this social media todeclare
various ‘events’. Hashtags play animportant role inTwitter
conversations. They actashyperlinks and help tolaunch search
queries ofthat keyword. This istheultimate goal ofanycampaign
manager –creating asearch tagthat ispumped upbyhisteam,
followers ofhisideas andthenmade intoa‘trend’.
InIndia Twitter has been feared, avoided and criticized but
today has been openly accepted and followed bymost politicians
who want tomake amark forthemselves inthevirtual world of
politics.
Information issent fastanditfocuses ononethought since it
isrestricted to140-characters. Itisaonetoonemedium: Leaders
and people canreach outtoone another bysharing, retweeting or
replying toatweet. Twitter sets new trends. You can know what
people arethinking byjustfollowing it.
Take forexample inthe Anna Hazare Anti-Corruption
Movement, twitter was used togetthepeople together. During the
Delhi rape case itwas used toshare details ofnight vigils, candle
light marches, etc.Twitter isalso used highlight thegood work for
example -police department inBengaluru and Jaipur usetwitter to
highlight their work aswellasdisplay their helpline number.
Twitter chats, conferences and discussions have become a
great way toreach outtoalotofpeople byhostingonTwitter. The
response isinstant, allyouneed isjustthesmartphone andthere is
noneed formuch planning and arrangements. Apolitician can
instantly callforadiscussion ordebate onaburning issue andget
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106toseethedebate. Social media hastaken theprime time slotnow
rather than watching debates anddiscussions ontelevision.
7.4.2. Facebook: Itspower and reach make itone ofthemost
effective spaces togetattention ofconstituents that matter to
people and organizations. Itistheplugins that allow people tojust
about participate and ‘like’ anything onany website ifyou are
logged oninto your account. The view ofthecyber world has
become important today. The number of‘likes’ that aleader,
politician, afriend receives isasign ofhisorherpopularity. By
analyzing thelikes orfollowers and‘how many were talking about it’
–canshow aperson’s popularity.
Facebook checks the pages ofimportant figures by
contacting them and making sure that they arenotfake people
operating it.
Atthetime ofelections, user engagement isgiven themost
importance. So,political parties create aninteractive experience by
involving people indiscussions. Judging theopini ons ofpeople
using Facebook questions orencouraging fans ofyour page to
submit questions orcommon comments creates agenuine dialogue
between politicians andtheir supporters.
Thus through crosslinking and feeding the website with
regular updated mate rial, Facebook becomes more ‘social ’.
Facebook also hashashtags which aremostly seen attheend of
lengthy posts orbetween sentences. This allows many people to
engage indiscussions that were earlier restricted tofriends or
friends offriends. Also Facebook has the trending and follow
features. Now people canfollow others even ifthey can’t befriends.
This works very wellforleaders andpolitical figures fanpages.
Misuse ofFacebook isalso present. Many believe people
could take shortcuts tobeco mepopular. OnFacebook, there are
many websites advertising instant ‘likes’ inexchange formoney.
Several politicians areknown toemploy ITcompanies and have a
dedicated ITteam touse Facebook, twitter and YouTube tohelp
politicians toincrease their popularity aswell ascreate negative
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1077.4.3LinkedIn: Unlike Facebook andTwitter, LinkedIn doesn’t offer
direct, great features, butthatdoes notmean thatitisnotuseful or
powerful. Itismainly used forprofessionals toconnect with each
other orforjobopportunities. Butithelps toconnect with similar or
like-minded groups.
Just liketwitter and Facebook, LinkedIn allows members to
update their status, which could bealocation, aviewpoint oranew
change inlife.This update canthen become anengagement tool.
Sharing public information, speeches and highlights ofrallies can
benefit anyleader andpolitician.
Inpolitics LinkedIn isagreat place toengage with people
who can plan and implement projects and help incampaigning. It
also helps todobackground checks onpeople who areinterested
tojoin apolitical party. Itisaperfect networking tool inamore
closed and controlled user group. Leaders looking toreach outto
contacts and their contacts can joinorsupport from outside, hold
events andhelp inraising funds. Ithelps tobuild abrand image ofa
political party and politician. This willhelp inthelong runtocreate
followers who willspread theword further and you willalso gain
insights intowhatyour followers care about.
7.4.4. YouTube: Itistheworld’s second largest search engine
after Google. There arethousands ofpeople who useYouTube to
gettheir message across. The audio -visual Video content ismedia
friendly and easily available tomany. Images and videos arealso
more easily shared. Videos areeasy andquick communication and
also influences more people toshare them. The entertainment
industry gains alotfrom uploading videos onYouTube. Itisalso a
place where leaders communicat ewith their constituents and
control themessages that they give out. Itisused mostly bythe
young population. They want toshare their experiences onhow
policy, politics andcivic lifeaffect them.
7.4.5 Blogs: Blogging has fast become animportant medium to
spread ideas because itisexpressional andinformational. Itallows
writers toexpress their views creatively. Most interesting blogs
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1087.4.6. WhatsApp :Itisaninstant messaging app forsmartphones.
The appuses theInternet to send textmessages, images, video,
user location and audio media messages. Over 900 million users
are active worldwide using the WhatsApp service. The major
difference between regular SMS textmessages andWhatsAp ptext
messages isthat WhatsApp isfree. You use the internet
connection onyour phone (Wi-Fiorpart ofyou mobile data
package depending onsubscription orpre-paid type). Emoticons
(example -smileys) are used as atype of non-verbal
communication. As social media has become widespread,
emoticons have played asignificant roleincommunication through
technology. They express “tones”, “feelings ”“emotions” through
facial gestures while inthemiddle ofatextbased communication.
They have many times even replaced textbased communication.
Check your progress:
Which ofthefollowing isnotaform ofnew media?
1.Facebook. 2.LinkedIn. 3.Acable Television programme.
4.Instagram. 5.Twitter.
Explain thedifferent types ofsocial media?
7.5SOCIAL DIMENSION OFMEDIA
Social media isarelatively new trend inIndia. Itisthe
concept ofusing anelectronic platform (forexample computers,
mobiles, tablets) tointeract with people across theglobe anywhere,
anytime. Itallows youtovoice your opinions, share your thoughts,
etc.with people.
Social Media describes websites that allow users toshare
content, media, etc. Common examples are thepopular social
networking sites likeFacebook, Myspace, etc. Social media also
includes YouTube, Photobucket, Flickr, and other sites aimed at
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109sources arealso counted associal media. InIndia thetotal number
ofsocial network users in2018 was estimated at326.1 million
(statista.com).
Facebook isthelargest accessed website accessed by96%
ofallsocial media users and itismostly used toconnect with
friends, publishing content and searching contacts. Today most
smart phones come with aFacebook andWhatsApp. Social media
isused byall-teenagers, sit-at-home moms, grandparents, restless
youth, neighbours andleaders ineach andevery field. They areall
engaging. They arealladding tothenetwork andareinfluencing .In
addition toinfluence, social media inthedigital word has beco me
the new form of“empowerment.” Be itpolitics orsimple
consumption ofgoods, theconsumer orvoter feelthattheir opinion
isimportant.
The power toinfluence aconsumer has shifted from brand
managers tobrand users. Brands have realized that consum ers
today have their own views and they willlisten toonly what they
want tolisten and notwhat brands want them tolisten. Hence
brands –both business and political need totrack, influence and
then select thesuitable medium and approach. Social media has
become popular atatime when theconsumption needs andmarket
demands arechanging. Behavior ofindividuals asa‘social being’ is
driven bywhat others aredoing onsocial media. Social media
influences population and their choice decisions. Consump tion
today isdriven bychoices made online which arefurther decided
byalgorithms and data analysis. Here, consumption isloosely
defined asabsorption ofideas, product purchases, opinion triggers,
etc.The advertising thatweseeonGoogle oronFacebo okpage is
ledbyourpast searches onGoogle orourlikes onFacebook.
Social media engagement demonstrates humanity ’sbasic
need tonetwork; people feelhappy and fulfilled when they interact
with others. With each interaction atdifferent level, aperson’s
satisfaction increases. Aspeople interact onamassive scale, there
ismore potential forthem toinfluence each other’s personal and
professional lives.
Social media influences personal choices and behavior and
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110identity andtheself. Onnetworking sites wehave multiple identities
with avatars .Anavatar isanimage orusername that represents
person online, most often within forums and social networks.
People drive thesuccess ofsocial media bytaking anynumber of
actions, from cultivating alarge group offriends onFacebook or
thousands ofTwitter followers. They dosobyconsistently
grooming their profiles tokeep their followers and friends updated
andinterested.
Social media also enables users toform bonds related to
common causes and organize events forsocial and political
causes. Forinstance, Twitter and Facebook played amajor role in
political movements inLibya, Egypt, Tunisia andAlgeria.
Social media has change dtheway humans communicate.
They nolonger have tointeract face-to-face. They can easily
engage others around theworld. This new aspect cancreate new
power dynamics, where some voices become stronger than others
duetotheir greater social media prese nce.
One ofthebiggest reasons forthesuccess ofsocial media is
accessibility topeople atincredible speeds. The interactivity of
social media iswhat relates tohuman nature. The sociological
characteristics ofsocial media can becredited with itsown
progress. Human beings' influence oneach other isapart ofthe
phenomenon thatisinevitable. People make choices inlife(and the
same applies totheir interaction through social media) inlarge part
duetowhat other people doandsay.
Social media ,and theinteractions that people have through
it,allows many different emotions tobe expressed and
relationships toflourish duetotheease ofinteractions.
Internet isused asaplatform forpresenting theself. Some
expected, ormanifest, functions ofsocial networking sites arethat
they facilitate connections with family, friends, and other parties;
allow members toshare photos and videos; support discussions
with like-minded people about hobbies andother interests; andhelp
users toplan face-to-face meetings with friends. They also allow
users toestablish and maintain contacts with afargreater number
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111unexpected, orlatent, function ofsocial networking sites isthat
many offer users atoolthatallows them toconnect with people with
whom they have lostcontact, including lostrelatives. One manifest
dysfunction ofsuch websites isthat there isnoway totellwhether
people arepresenting realorfabricated self-profile.
Many people create aFacebook page forthepurpose of
meeting like-minded friends orstaying intouch, notthinking that
potential employers may view postings forclues about someone's
character apart from theresume and interview. Anunexpected, or
latent, dysfunction ofsocial networking sites isthatonce something
isposted forothers toaccess, there isnoway tocontrol how itwill
beused.
Symbolic interactionists study social interaction andfocus on
self-awareness, symbols, and negotiated order. Symbo lic
interactionists are interested inlearning how social networking
platforms serve asamirror, giving users especially teenagers the
chance tobenoticed byothers and toreceive feedback. Symbolic
interactionists studying Facebook andother social netw orking sites
familiarize themselves with vocabulary and symbols people useto
convey intent andmood with words.
Social media helps tomake informed choices butvery often
these choices areunanimously fedwithout realization. Take for
example the popup son your communication platforms.
Communication has become one-sided shrinking what Habermas
referred toasthepublic sphere. .
Today social media hascreated ageneration who liveinthe
virtual world. Teenagers andyouth consider themselves popular on
thebasis ofhow many friends they have onthevarious portals,
how many likes anddislikes they have ontheir posts togauge their
popularity. Failure toget noticed onsocial media has serious
repercussions leading tostress and anxiety among social media
users totheextent offeeling rejected. The use ofemoticons has
created ageneration that does not understand face toface
interaction and everything iscommunicated through symbols. This
isnegative since they donotknow how topresent selfindirec t,
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112Check your progress:
1.How dosocial media create selfandidentity?
2.What istheimpact ofsocial media onyouth?
7.6LET USSUM UP
The advent ofnew technology has impacted our lives
socially, economically and politically. Today offline communication
isbeing done online through social networking sites making the
world asmaller place. Weliveinvirtual world with interconnections
likenever before. Unlike traditional medium likeradio, print and
television thereach ofsocial media isfarreaching. Social media
can becategorised into social networking sites, microblogging,
discussionforums and video sharing portals. Sociologists are
interested instudying theimpact ofmedia and approach itfrom
functionalist, critical andsymbolic interactionist perspective.
The impact ofsocial media isfarreaching with easy
accessibility due toeasy access tosmartphones. However therise
ofsocial media isnotwithout itschall enges. The idea ofselfand
identity ischallenged with ourvarious avatars, thechallenge of
manufacturing consent through manipulation ofinformation, trolling
aresome challenges facing social media. Failure togetnoticed on
thenew media portals also takes apsychological tollontheyouth.munotes.in

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1137.7QUESTIONS
Q1.What issocial media? Explain thesocial dimensions ofmedia.
Q2.Briefly explain thedifferent types ofsocial media?
Q3.What isthesocial impact ofsocial media? Explain with suitable
example s.
Q4.Explain theimpact ofsocial media onyouth.
Q5.How hasdigital media changed social interactions?
7.8REFERENCES/ SUGGESTED READINGS:
Chopra, Shaili (2014). The BigConnect: Politics intheAge of
Social Media. Random House: UP
Lal,Ankit (2017) India Social: How Social Media isLeading the
Charge andChanging theCountry. Hachette India.
Macionis, John (2005) Sociology (10th edition)Prentice Hall
Manjunatha S.Dos (2013). ASociological Study onthe
Influence ofSocial Networking Sites onthe Interpersonal
Relationships ofCollege Students inBangalore and Mysore
Cities ofIndia inInternational Research Journal ofSocial
Sciences ,Vol.2(6) Available online at:www.isca.in
Murthy, Dhiraj (2012). Towards aSociological Understanding of
Social Media: Theorizing Twitter. Sociology ,Volume: 46issue: 6
1059 –1073;sage pub. co.uk
Schaefer Richard T(2006) Sociology aBrief Introduction sixth
edition Tata McGraw Hill:New Delhi.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/social -media
https:/ /tophat.com/marketplace/social -
science/sociology/textbooks/oer -openstax -sociology -openstax -
content/86/4214
https://www.merriam -webster.com/dictionary/social%20media
munotes.in

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114Unit -8
NEW SOCIAL MEDIA -ECONOMIC AND
POLITICAL DIMENSION
Unit Structure:
8.0 Objectives
8.1 Introduction
8.2. Economic dimension ofsocial media
8.2.1. Social media marketing
8.3. Political dimension ofsocial media
8.3.1 Role ofSocial mediain2019 elections inIndia
8.4. Letussum up
8.5 Questions
8.6 References/ suggested readings
8.0OBJECTIVES
Tounderstand theeconomic dimension ofsocial media.
Tounderstand therelation between social media andpolitics.
8.1.INTRODUCTIO N
Social media has become popular atatime when the
consumption needs andmarket demands arechanging. The power
toinfluence aconsumer hasshifted from brand managers tobrand
users. Brands have realized that consumers today have their own
views and theywilllisten toonly what they want tolisten and not
what brands want them tolisten.Hence brands –both business and
political need totrack, influence and then select the suitable
medium andapproach. Behavior ofindividuals asa‘social being’ is
driven bywhat others are doing onsocial media which also
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1158.2.ECONOMIC DIMENSION OFSOCIAL MEDIA
This section discusses how social media influence our
consumer choices. Companies useadvertising toselltous,butthe
way they reach usischanging. Advertising has changed with
technology. Conventional advertising isonthewane astechnology
and media have allowed consumers tobypass traditional
advertising venues like the print media. New media allows
consumer stobypass traditional advertising venues, causing
companies tobemore innovative asthey trytogain ourattention.
Social media advertising, orsocial media targeting, are
advertisements served tousers onsocial media platforms. Social
media marketing isapowerful way forbusinesses ofallsizes to
reach prospective customers through social media platforms like
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. toachieve marketing and
branding goals. Social media marketing includes activities like
posting text and image updates, videos, and other content that
drives audience engagement. Marketing ofproducts through social
media sites help companies insale andachieving success.
For businesses, social media isanindispensable and
significant tool. Companies use theplatform tofind and engage
with customers, drive sales through advertising and promotion. It
facilitates communication with customers. E-commerce, which can
beconducted over computers, tablets, orsmartphones, may be
thought ofasamodernized versio nofmail-order catalog shopping.
Allproducts and services are available through e-commerce
transactions which include books, airtickets, financial services and
electronicgoods. Ecommerce offers consumers theconvenience to
engage inbusiness 24/7. They offer consumers with awide range
ofproducts atcompetitive and comparative prices unavailable
elsewhere. Retailers like Amazon offer instant gratification with
quick delivery aspremium option. Retailers online also provide their
customers with easy, refundable andexchange offers. When digital
purchases aredissatisfying ifproducts donotmatch consumer
expectations retailers exchange them readily thus increasing their
sales. Social media helps inbuilding customer relationships
through loyalty program slinked tosocial media.munotes.in

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116Social media isamultibillion dollar industry thatisfueling the
next generation ofcorporate giants. Major corporates today have
digital marketing strategy ledbyexperts who taptheavailable
consumer base provided bysocial media. Take the case of
Facebook -afree social network has created asocial media
marketing model using online advertisement and selling yougoods
and services insubtle ways without you realizing it.When
consumers usethese websites, atfirstthey aregiven free services.
They areencouraged tousethese services more frequently.This is
also when companies like Facebook start bombarding their
customers with advertisements. Customers who were atfirsttotally
averse toadvertisements later become increasin glymore tolerant.
Companies like Facebook also getconsumers tosign over the
rights totheir privacy. The terms and conditions offered bythis
website are never read byanyone. However, they authorize
Facebook tocollect information regarding theuser’s activities both
onandoffthewebsite. This data isthen fedintoagiant data mining
algorithm which canthen develop themost targeted advertisement
targets forthese consumers. Social media forums arefueling a
generation thatlays utmost emphasis onconsumerism.
8.2.1. Social media marketing
Social media marketing isaform ofonline marketing that
companies use tocreate and share content onsocial media
networks toachieve marketing and branding goals. Itincludes
activities like posting text, displaying company logos, image
updates, videos and any other content that enhances audience
engagement. Companies use variety ofcommunication channels
that include social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram,
YouTube, and others. Byusing social media tocreate effective
social marketing campaigns your brand ororganization canmake a
bigdifference inpeople’s lives, and thecommunities inwhich they
live. More consumers arenow engaged onsocial media and if
companies donotusesocial media they arewasting anopportunity
tocompete and outsmart their competitors and reach out to
prospective customers. Social media marketing enables companies
todirectly interact with their customers through social platforms like
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117Advertisers don’thave topaypublishers anddistributors any
money toconvey their message andsellproducts. Companies can
create their own creative and interesting content and post them
online that willattract viewers. Take forexample Dell Company.
They have used social media with itspopular website IdeaStorm
where users addideas fornew products vote them upordown and
comment on submissions. Starbucks has also launched
MyStarbucks Idea Site. Bigbrands use innovative viral and social
marketing campaigns tosell their products. Small brands can
achieve great success using social media and outsmart their
competitors. Advertisers use social media asitcosts less and is
easier togetstarted and can have enormous financial impact on
business. Compani es use blogs toconnect with potential
customers. Twitter isused toannounce offers andmarketers tweet
about new content, offers andnews about their products.
Social media engagement isnecessary tokeep businesses
afloat byhelping them engage with potential customers. The
interaction between brands on social media and potential
customers help toestablish rapport andtrust. However businesses
need tointeract democratically and genuinely with their customers
that involve listening, reading and partic ipating, instead ofsimply
throwing outmass marketing messages.
Check your progress:
1.What issocial media marketing?
2.How donew social media affect advertising andmarketing?munotes.in

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1188.3POLI TICAL DIMENSION OFSOCIAL MEDIA
This section willfocus ontheroleofsocial media inpolitical
campaigns. Dosocial media impact voting patterns? Dosocial
media influence ourpolitics? Why interacting ismore important
than informing? Can likes bevotes?
Digital space forcampaigning can bedone through paid
advertisements onFacebook, Google, YouTube and other online
publishers, and disseminating political propaganda over private
groups onFacebook andWhatsApp.
The 2014 general elections inIndia saw theuse ofsocial
media forthefirst time onamass scale toreach outtothe
electorate which continued even intherecently concluded 2019
elections. The elections were not only about being politically
elected butalso socially elected. Political leaders used thesocial
media networks toconvey tothefirsttime voters who belonged to
the demographic who have easy access totechnology. The
increasing use ofsocial media amongst thenew generation has
made politicians take notice ofthesocial media sites tocampaign
forthemselves andtheparty. The BJP employed social media asa
keycampaign toolinthe2014 election. Insheer numbers, theBJP
dominated social media during theelection. Itisconsidered thatthe
2014 Lok Sabha elections was essentially media election and it
was ‘media logic ’,not‘political logic’ that determined theoutcome
oftheelections, and theBJP’s victory was largely due toitshigh
voltage media campaign.
The current elections also has many first time voters who
use digital medium and political parties have dedicated and
committed social media team toreach out tothe electorate.
Campaigning viasocial media andconnecting people online affects
political leaders when combined with strong website. Though social
media may notguarantee votes itisimportant tohave online
presence than none atall.
What India iswitnessing today, theUSA has already used
before. In2008, Barrack Obama used social media very effectively
towinthePresidential elections. Heemployed ateam oftech savvy
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119tosuitable media from Facebook toTwitter topublic forums. Mr.
Barack Obama used theonline medium very effectively and ended
upwinning people’s support aswell astheelections. For that
purpose heused tools like internet video, social networking
outreach, online advertising and theMyBarackObama.com activist
toolkit. In2008, Barack Obama made hisvictory announcement
also onTwitter .Allthese areapartofsocial media.
Wesee that social media has made icons ofnewcomer s,
produced new election experts, announced candidates, declared
pollresults, exposed politicians and even brought many down. On
the negative side social media has been used fortrolling -a
negative campaign forthepolitical rivals tobring them discredi t.
Political campaigns areusing social media now tosow an
idea and then allow ittomultiply through online communities ofits
fans, followers and friends. Itisinstant and campaigns,
conversations and ideas just multiply fast and reach unlimited
numb erofpeople. Rally, discussions and communication with
people ontheground isimmediately conveyed toalarger audience
through thesocial media platforms.
Importance ofTwitter was seen during elections inIndia. Itis
notonly amedium forpeople tocommunicate with world leaders
butalso away forthese leaders tocommunicate with each other.
Ontheone hand, itisabroadcast tool and ontheother hand it
allows access andengagement. The Prime Minister’s office uses its
@PMOIndiahandle effectively tomake announcements orsend out
instant reactions –where itwants –onkeyissues.
Journalists getalotoftheir news from Twitter tooand this
can get politicians into trouble. For example Prime Minister
Narendra Modi became ajoke onTwitter forwrongly spelling
‘Lotus’ (political symbol ofBJP) as‘Louts’ (anembarrassed British
person). Rahul Gandhi does not use Twitter much but made
headlines when hecommented onMayawati not“done much tolift
thedalits insociety”. During thelastelections Congress and BJP
had setup“digital warrooms” tomonitor online voter discussions
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120Knowing that social media brings people face toface with
their leaders, itisimportant that politicians use ifeffectively asa
marketing toolandtake maxi mum benefit from it.
Forpoliticians, social media especially Twitter isperfect for
telling stories and sharing experiences. Twitter thus becomes an
extension ofthem. Itisalso important that politicians personalize
their accounts and stay uptodate with what isbeing tweeted on
their behalf bytheir team. Most politicians today have their own
personal accounts too. Obama used and publicized hisstyle by
ending histweet with -‘BO’. Thus itwas hispersonal touch that
made him popular. Arvind Kejriwal says that hepersonally tweets
onhisown anddoesn’t letanyone else take care ofhishandle.
Facebook ismore ofareflection and sharing medium while
twitter spreads messages and themes likewildfire. Forexample;
AAP managed touse alotoftheir social media posts todrive
people toseetheAAP website where they invited donations. On
Narendra Modi’s Facebook page, you willfind links that open up
thewebsite’s video oraudio forhisfans. Forpoliticians LinkedIn
can beuseful asithelps toincre ase networking with like-minded
people across theworld, tostay connected and toexchange the
best work practices. The former British PM, David Cameron was
very popular onLinkedIn connecting with business contacts of
other countries. Same iswith Narendr aModi, Billgates, Obama
andNilenkani.
Indian politics has used Google toalarge extent. Itstarted
elections portal inIndia giving voters aonetime access point toall
thenews related toelections and politics aswell asinformation
about various political parties. Google believes that theconsumer
andpolitics need each other andGoogle was only helping bygiving
both aplatform. Google has tried touse theinternet toshape
democracy. Itplans toempower thevoters with alltheinformation
they needatasingle destination forallupcoming elections. They
plan toengage the voters with the candidates tomake a
participative democracy. Italso helps people tovote –how to
register, voter IDcard, how toexercise vote, etc. Google isalso
aware that politicians arealready using many ofitsplatforms from
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121Most ofthe popular politicians effectively use videos to
connect with thepeople. They update thevideo footage ofevents
within minutes orhours oftheevent. They use online videos for
their campaign ads, totelecast speeches andevents andtoconvey
messages tothepeople.
India's 2014 election was called aFacebook /Twitter election
andasthelargest democratic election intheworld todate somuch
ofittook place online .The present PM, Mr.NModi made aname
forhimself asthefirst Indian politician toactively engage with
citizens onsocial media since 2012 when hewas CMofGujarat,
according totheTimes ofIndia .Infact #ModiHangout became atop
trending topic inthecountry and thehangout itself became so
popular ittook 45minutes tobegin because thesitekept crashing .
When hewon theelections, rather than use mainstream media,
Modi announced hiswinviaTwitter @narendramodi tohis4.27
million fans andencouraged voters totweet their “fingies” or"ungli"
inHindi with thehashtag #selfiewithmodi .Selfies came inmostly
from theyounger crowds.
With somuch noise being created about social media andits
mediums andmore andmore youngsters joining inday-by-day, the
world ofIndian politics hasfinally woken uptoitsimportance. More
politicians, beityoung oroldareactively using social media. Since
2014 elections one sees that almost every political party and top
political leaders used thesocial medium togettheir message
across the masses. E.g.: -Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party,
Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, etc.
Each ofthese and the remaining ones have their own
websites which was notseen some years back. And some ofthem
also useother social mediums tointeract with people. Letuslook at
theCongress party. Rahul Gandhi who isoneoftheicons ofyouth
inIndia has used almost every social medium apart from actual
communication tointeract with thepeople andespecially theyouth.
This makes usfeelthatthey arewithin ourreach.
Campaigning plays avery important and crucial role during
elections. Itshowcases theparty profile, their goals innear future
and what thepublic can expect from them. Inshort, campaigning
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122Indian politicians are rushing tosetupFacebook page,
twitter handles and commun icating directly with their vote bank
online. Itisclear that those politicians who directly communicate
with them onaone toone basis arebound tobewinners. Brand
experts believe itmakes sense forpoliticians andparties toaddress
citizen’s queries onavariety ofsocial, municipal and national
matters and engage with them. Social media isanimportant
medium ofpropagating your mandate tothegeneral public and
assuring your voter thatyoucare forthem andbeaproblem solver.
Harish Bijoor, abrand expert, feels that being onsocial media for
politicians isnolonger achoice. Ithasbecome essential. Leaders
want tounderstand their importance and use social media and
networking sites toposition themselves. Social media may make
brands forsome,aswell asbreak brands. Leaders have feltthe
need toconnect with theyouth bycreating brands.
Given that themedium isfast, viral and widespread, does it
reward thefirst movers? Narendra Modi’s connect with theyouth
through allsocial media netw orks ismuch more .The victory ofthe
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) inDelhi inFebruary in2015 has shown
that ifyou don’t have money, social media can help in
communicating with those who support you. Ithas also helped to
discover new voters fortheparty. Muchofthe2015 Delhi election -
was fought on Facebook and Twitter. The canvassing
loudspeakers, athigh decibel levels ineach Delhi mohalla ,were
replaced this time byhashtag wars fought byparty followers on
social media platforms. Tospread information AAP released apps
onAndroid likethelistoftheir candidates ofeach constituency;
voters question and answer column, etc.What’s more important is
that itdidn’t increase their campaign budgets likeother traditional
media did.
The role ofnetworking sites onpolitics has been well
established bythefact that theElection commission ofIndia has
rules andregulations tomonitor theuseofposts, tweets, etc.during
election campaigns.
Social media has changed theway political parties and
politicians meet anddiscuss politics. Google hangouts, Skype calls,
and Facebook groups arewhere they meet nowadays. Politicians
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123tweet while atpublic events. They share pictures oftheir visits, give
reactions tonews and engage with voters online. Government
organizations likethePlanning Commission have awebsite andare
also onFacebook. The deputy chairman ofthe Commission
discussed the12thplan onaGoogle hangout, making itthefirstin
thehistoryofagovernment organization.
Social media impacts politics invarious ways. Political
leaders areable todirectly contact their voters without spending
anymoney. Political campaigns produce commercials andpublish
them forfree onYouTube instead ofpaying fortime ontelevision or
the radio. Twitter and Facebook have become instrumental in
organizing campaigns. Donald Trump, President ofUSA used
twitter and Facebook extensively during hispolitical campaign to
reach outtopotential voters. Socialmedia help tocustomize the
messages ofpolitical leaders based onselected demographics. For
example intherecent elections inIndia social media reach was in
both rural andurban areas andpolitical parties focused onspecific
themes inselected regions and used messages based onthe
demographics. Social media helps increating messages and
targeting voters according totheir age. Amessage fortheyouth
may notappeal thesame way totheelderly. Twitter andFacebook
have energized younger voters, whohave easy access tothese
platforms due tosmartphones and thishashad aprofound impact
onelections.
Nitin Pai,Director oftheTakshashila Institute prescribes how
politicians gain through social media. Social media enables
politicians toengage withpeople directly and canstrengthen their
leadership brand. They can mobilise more efficiently themasses
and help connect with aninternational audience aswell. Healso
cautions that where social media users areasmall fraction ofthe
overall populatio nitisimportant tobeaware that the online
population and discourse might notberepresentative ofthereal
thing.
8.3.1 Role ofsocial media in2019 elections inIndia.
The 2019 elections also can becalled astheelections
played onsocial media. BJPstarted using social media much
earlier when Narendra Modi was thechief minister ofGujarat. The
2014 elections was abigsocial media campaign. The other partiesmunotes.in

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124though arelate players have realized thereach ofsocial media.
The Congress party has seenaresurgence ofsocial media
strategy inthelastone year. With 900 million voters in2019 and
with 300 million active users onFacebook, 200 million users on
WhatsApp and about 35million users onTwitter social media will
have animpact onvoting patterns. Itsoutreach has been
widespread andtheimportance ofsocial media canbedetermined
bythefact that theelection commission thistime in2019 issued
guidelines onhow political parties can use it.The election
commission met theheads ofFaceboo k,twitter and Instagram to
ensure that these social media giants don’t give advantage toany
party specifically.
Across thepolitical parties every leader inonsocial media
and they communicate. Social media isavital component of
campaigning. Today thepenetration ofmobile phones iseven at
thegrassroot level thatallows decision making. Every political party
hasadedicated team ofdigital experts who handle theITcellofthe
party. The impact ofsocial media canbegauged from thefactthat
betwe en10March 2019 to16March 2019 thetop5searched
terms onFacebook were BJP, Congress, Modi, Rahul and India.
The first phase ofthe Lok Sabha elections 2019 had Twitter
buzzing with over 45.6 million tweets recorded intheelection month
which transla tes into 15lakh tweets per day. Prime Minister
Narendra Modi emerged asthemost talked about political figure on
Twitter intheelection month. Theconversation onsocial media was
dominated by topics like "national security, religion, jobs,
agriculture, andtaxes andtrade".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who isfollowed byover 46
million people onTwitter, has used social media extensively to
boost hispolitical campaigning.The social media platforms also
become afertile ground for disseminating fake news and
unchecked propaganda. During therecent 2019 elections onepost
that went viral onsocial media had BJP head Amit Shah saying,
"We agree thatforelection, weneed awar." That post, intended to
showcase theBJP asawarmongering party, was seen by2.5
million viewers and shared several thousand times before being
taken down. Itwas later, proven tobeafake. Another post which
went viral onWhatsApp intended toshowcase theCongress assoftmunotes.in

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125onmilitancy, and claimed that aparty leader had promise dmoney
tofree terrorists and stonepelters. That was proven tobefalse as
well. Butbythetime thetruth catches upthefake news hasspread
likewildforest fireonthesocial media platforms.
Social media and messaging platforms doaffect thechoice
India makes politically. Asseen intherecently concluded elections
political parties spent aconsiderable amount ofthe election
campaigning funds onsocial media campaigning. Business today
reported that according toFacebook's AdLibrary Report, there
were 1.21 lakh political adswith atotal spending ofmore than Rs
26.5 crore between February andMay 15in2019 elections inIndia.
Political parties have spent over Rs53crore ondigital platforms
likeGoogle and Facebook between February and May, withthe
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accounting formajor share ofthe
spending followed bytheCongress that spent Rs1.46 crore on
Facebook for3,686 ads and Rs2.71 crore onGoogle's platforms
with 425 ads. Ruling party BJP spent Rs4.23 crore onover 2,500
ads onFacebook. Supporting pages like'MyFirst Vote forModi',
'Bharat KeMann KiBaat' and 'Nation with NaMo' too,infused over
Rs4crore onadsonthesocial networking platform that haswell
over 200million users inIndia. OnGoogle's platforms, ithasspent
more than Rs17crore. Similarly other parties tooused social
media with TMC spending Rs29.28 lakhs, Aam Aadmi Party spent
outRs13.62 lakh for176adsontheFacebook page.
Since many in2019 elections were first time tech savvy
voters thereach ofsocial media was wide andhadprofound impact
onelections. Thus one cannot underestimate therole ofnew
media inpolitics
Check your progress:
1.Dosocial media affect theoutcome ofelections?munotes.in

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1262.Explain therelation between socia lmedia andelections.
8.4LET USSUM UP
Social media influence ourconsumer choices. New media
allows consumers tobypass traditional advertising venues, causing
companies tobemore innovative asthey trytogain ourattention.
Social media marketing and digital marketing have changed
advertisement andconsumer reaction.
Social media transcends thephysical boundaries andbrings
the demographic, consumption behaviour and political choice
making atthefingertips ofanelection campaign. Ithas made
“social sanction ”very important forpoliticians. Media, politics and
elections areinterrelated andsocial media platforms have become
theessential ground forthediscussion ofpolitical narratives and
discourse. However one must becautious asitcan beused to
disseminate fake news and rumors and one must exercise caution
while engaging inapolitical dialogue onsocial media. Today, social
media has affected themainstream media who picks upviews,
sound bites from thesocial media. Social media ishere tostay and
nopolitician canunderestimate thepower ofsocial media today. If
leaders want towinelections they need tobeaware ofthepower of
new social media and they ought tobeintheplace where most
people are–andthat’sonline.
We can observe that social medium helps increase
simultaneous interaction with everyone. No need totake
appointments, wait forthem totalk, wecantalktothem justatthe
click ofabutton. Nodoubt itspopularity isincreasing day-by-day.
8.5 QUESTIONS :
Q1Show theinterrelation between social media andpolitics?
Q2Describe theuseofsocial media inpolitics.munotes.in

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127Q3What ismedia? Explain theroleofmedia inpolitics.
Q4Explain how social media isused formarketing andadvertising.
8.6REFERENCES/ SUGGESTED READINGS:
Bhattacharya, Upali (2018). Will Social Media BeThe Game
Changer In2019? Available at
https://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2018/08/role -of-mass -media -in-
indian -elections/
Business today (2019) Lok Sabha election 2019: BJP,
Congress, other political parties spend over Rs53crore on
Facebook, Google available at
https://www.businesstoday.in/lok -sabha -elections -
2019/news/lok -sabha -election -2019 -bjp-congress -other -political -
parties -spend -over-rs-53-crore -on-facebook -
google/story/348017.html
Chopra, Shaili (2014). The BigConnect: Politics intheAge of
Social Media. Random House: UP
Lal,Ankit (2017) India Social: How Social Media isLeading the
Charge andChanging theCountry. Hachette India.
Meti V,Khandoba PK, Guru MC (2015) Social Media for
Political Mobilization inIndia: AStudy. JMass Communicat
Journalism 5:275. doi:10.4172/2165 -7912.1000275 available at
https://www.omicsonline.org/open -access/social -media -for-
political -mobilization -in-india -a-study -216
Owen, Diana (2018). The New Media ’sRole inPolitics available
athttps://www.bbvaopenmind.com/en/articles/the -new-media -s-
role-in-politics/
Prakash, Amit (2019). The dynamics ofsocial media and the
Indian Elections 2019 available at
https://theasiadialogue.com/2019/04/12/the -dynamics -of-social -
media -and-the-indian -elections -2019
Schaefer, Mark (2018). Social Media explained: Untangling the
World’s Most Misunderstood Business Trend -Second edition.munotes.in

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128Tharoor, Shashi (2019) India ’sNew Social Media Politics
available athttps://www.project -
syndicate.org/commentary/india -election -whatsapp -spreads -
fake-news -by-shashi
Zarrella, Dan (2010). The Social media marketing book. O’Reilly
Media: Canada.
https://www.managementstudyguide.com/social -media -impact -
on-consumer -behavior.htm

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129MODEL QUESTION PAPER
SEMESTER I
Note : 1)Attempt any five questions.
2)All questions carry equal marks (20 marks each)
1.Attempt Any Two sub Questions
a.Discuss the variou s perspectives in sociology. Which one do
you think is important and why? (10 Marks)
b.Examine in detail how sociological outlook and sociological
imagination helps one to develop a better understanding of
society and social problem. (10 Marks)
c.Highlight t he significance of sociology in general and its
importance in Indian society in particular. (10 Marks)
2.Attempt Any Two sub Questions
a.What is social institutions? Explain its features, types and
functions. (10 Marks)
b.Evaluate the significance of rel igion as a social institution
and explain its elements. (10 Marks)
c.Discuss transformation and troubles in family life in present
time. (10 Marks)
3.Attempt Any Two sub Question
a.Define Culture. Discuss the important character istics of
culture. (10 Marks)
b.Discuss the relation between culture and society. (10 Marks)
c.Discuss the components of culture. (10 Marks)
4.Attempt Any Two sub Questions
a.What is social media? Explain the social dimensions of
media. (10 Mar ks)
b.Show the interrelation between social media and politics?
(10 Marks)
c.Explain how social media is used for marketing and
advertising. (10 Marks)
5.Write Short Note on ANY TWO of the following: (20 Marks)
a.Sociological Imagination
b.Ethnocentrism
c.Political Spectrum
d.The Impact of social Media
munotes.in