Unit – 2

Fundamentals of Sociology
Basic Sociological Concepts

1. Society

Meaning and Characteristics:

 Definition: Society is a group of individuals who interact with one another and are
connected by shared relationships and behaviors.
 Characteristics:
o People: Society consists of people. Without people, there can be no society.
o Interaction: People in a society interact with each other continuously. This
interaction helps in forming relationships and networks.
o Mutual Awareness: For social relationships to exist, people need to be aware
of each other.
o Likeness and Difference: Society is based on both similarities (like common
interests and values) and differences (like varied roles and professions).
o Cooperation and Division of Labor: People cooperate with each other and
divide tasks to achieve common goals. This leads to specialization in different
roles.
o Interdependence: People in a society depend on each other for various needs.
o Dynamics: Society is always changing. It evolves over time due to various
factors like technology, culture, and interactions.
o Social Control: Society has rules and norms to regulate behavior and
maintain order. These include formal laws and informal customs.
o Culture: Each society has its unique culture, which includes shared values,
beliefs, and practices.

2. Community

Meaning and Characteristics:

 Definition: A community is a group of people who live in a specific area and share
common interests and activities.
 Characteristics:
o Geographical Proximity: Communities often live in the same area or
neighborhood.
o Shared Interests: Members usually have common interests or goals.
o Interaction: There is frequent and direct interaction among members.
o Social Bonds: Communities often have strong social bonds and support
systems.

3. Association

Definition and Characteristics:

 Definition: An association is a group of individuals who come together for a specific
purpose or activity.
 Characteristics:
o Purpose: Associations are formed to achieve specific goals or objectives.
o Organization: They usually have a formal structure and rules.
o Membership: Members join voluntarily and are often united by a common
interest or goal.

4. Institution

Definition and Characteristics:

 Definition: Institutions are established patterns of behavior and relationships within

society that fulfill certain functions.
 Characteristics:
o Purpose: Institutions serve to organize and regulate society's activities.
o Function: They perform specific roles such as education, religion, family, and
government.
o Stability: Institutions provide stability and continuity within society.
o Primary Institutions: These include family and education, which are
fundamental to social life.
o Secondary Institutions: These include organizations like businesses and
sports clubs, which support and enhance primary institutions.

5. Social System

 Definition: A social system is a complex network of relationships and institutions

within a society that work together to maintain stability and order.
 Characteristics: It includes various parts such as institutions, norms, and roles that
interact and depend on each other.

6. Social Action (Weber's Typology)

 Definition: Social action refers to actions taken by individuals that are influenced by
the presence and behavior of others.
 Weber's Typology:
o Instrumentally Rational Action: Actions based on calculation and
efficiency.
o Value-Rational Action: Actions motivated by a belief in the value of the
action itself, regardless of the outcome.
o Affectual Action: Actions driven by emotions and feelings.
o Traditional Action: Actions based on established customs and habits.

These concepts help in understanding how society functions and how individuals interact
within it. They are fundamental to studying sociology and analyzing social behavior.
Understanding Community, Society, and Association

Community

The term "community" is used in various ways and can refer to different kinds of groups.
Here’s a breakdown of what "community" means:

1. Definitions of Community:
o Bogardus: A community is a "social group with some degree of 'we-feeling'
and living in a given area."
o Kingsley Davis: It is the "smallest territorial group that can embrace all
aspects of social life."
o R.M. Maciver: A community is "an area of social living marked by some
degree of social coherence."
o Ogburn and Nimkoff: It is a "group or collection of groups that inhabits a
locality."
o Maatheim: A community is "any circle of people who live together and
belong together in such a way that they do not see this or that particular
interest only, but a whole set of interests."

Essentially, a community is a social circle where people live together, share common
interests, and interact with each other.

2. Elements of Community:
o Locality: A community always occupies a specific geographic area. This
physical space is crucial, as it affects the community's social and economic
life. Even nomadic groups have a locality, although they move from place to
place.
o Community Sentiment: Beyond just living in the same area, members of a
community must feel a sense of belonging and shared identity. This feeling of
“we-feeling” helps bind the community together and distinguishes it from a
mere collection of people.
3. Other Aspects of Community:
o Stability: Communities are generally stable and not temporary like a crowd or
mob. They represent a more permanent social organization.
o Naturalness: Communities are naturally formed rather than deliberately
created. People are usually born into a community rather than choosing it.
o Size: Communities can vary in size and can include smaller communities
within larger ones, like villages within a district.
o Regulation of Relations: Communities have their own set of traditions,
customs, and rules to guide interactions among members.

In modern times, the sense of community can sometimes weaken due to increased
mobility and communication technologies.

Society vs. Community

Society and community are terms that are often used interchangeably but have distinct
meanings:
1. Society:
o Nature: Society is a broad network of social relationships and doesn’t
necessarily require a specific geographic area.
o Abstract: It is more abstract than a community and can consist of various
communities within it.
o Diversity: Society includes both common interests and diverse interests. It
involves both similarities and differences among its members.
2. Community:
o Nature: A community is more concrete and localized. It involves a specific
geographic area and a sense of belonging.
o Community Sentiment: This is essential for a community. Members share
common interests and feel a sense of "we-feeling."
o Size: Communities can be smaller parts of a larger society. For example, a city
or village is a community within a larger district or country.

Association

Association refers to a group formed for a specific purpose. It’s different from a community
in several ways:

1. Definition of Association:
o R.M. Maciver: An association is "an organization deliberately formed for the
collective pursuit of some interest, or a set of interests, which its members
share."
o Morris Ginsberg: An association is "a group of social beings related to one
another by the fact that they possess or have instituted in common an
organization with a view to securing a specific end or specific ends."

Associations are created intentionally by people to achieve particular goals or

interests.

2. Characteristics of Association:
o Human Group: An association is made up of people who organize
themselves for a specific purpose.
o Common Interests: Members of an association share common interests,
whether political, religious, professional, or otherwise.
o Co-operative Spirit: Members work together to achieve their goals.
o Organization: Associations have structured organizations with defined roles
and rules.
o Regulation of Relations: They have their own systems of rules and
regulations to manage interactions among members.
o Durability: Associations can be either temporary or long-lasting.

Examples of associations include political parties, religious groups, student

organizations, and professional bodies.

Difference Between Association and Community

 Membership: Community membership is often by birth and is more compulsory,

while joining an association is voluntary.
 Purpose: Associations are formed for specific interests or goals, while communities
have broader, less specific objectives.
 Geographic Aspect: Communities are linked to a specific locality, whereas
associations do not necessarily require a geographic location.
 Stability: Communities are relatively more stable and permanent, while associations
may be temporary or long-lasting.

In summary, while communities and associations both involve groups of people, they differ
in purpose, formation, and scope. Communities are broader and more natural, often
encompassing various associations within them. Associations are specific, organized groups
formed to pursue particular interests.

Institution

The concept of an institution is fundamental in sociology, but its interpretation varies among
sociologists. Institutions are critical for understanding society, as they structure and guide
human behavior and social interactions. Here’s an overview of the concept:

Definitions of Institution:

1. Ginsberg: Institutions are "recognized and established usages governing the relations
between individuals and groups."
2. Maciver and Page: Institutions are "established forms or conditions of procedure
characteristic of group activity."
3. Kingsley Davis: Institutions are "a set of interwoven folkways, mores, and laws built
around one or more functions."
4. H.E. Barnes: Institutions represent "the social structure and the machinery through
which human society organizes, directs, and executes the multifarious activities
required to satisfy human needs."
5. C.A. Ellwood: Institutions are "the habitual ways of living together which have been
sanctioned, systematized, and established by the authority of communities."

Characteristics of Institutions:

1. Social in Nature: Institutions arise from collective activities and social relationships.
2. Universality: They exist in all societies and at all stages of social development, like
family, religion, and political systems.
3. Standardized Norms: Institutions have prescribed norms and procedures, such as
marriage or educational institutions.
4. Means of Satisfying Needs: They fulfill basic human needs: self-preservation, self-
perpetuation, and self-expression.
5. Controlling Mechanisms: Institutions regulate behavior, preserving social order and
stability.
6. Relatively Permanent: They change slowly over time and can become rigid.
7. Abstract by Nature: Institutions are intangible and cannot be physically located.
8. Oral and Written Traditions: They may exist in both oral and written forms, such as
constitutions or sacred texts.
9. Synthesizing Symbols: Institutions have symbols like flags, emblems, or rituals.
10. Interrelated: Institutions are interconnected; understanding one often requires
understanding others.
Primary and Secondary Institutions:

 Primary Institutions: Basic institutions found in all societies, such as family,

religion, marriage, and property.
 Secondary Institutions: Evolved in more complex societies to meet additional needs,
like education, law, and business.

Crescive vs. Enacted Institutions:

 Crescive Institutions: Develop naturally and spontaneously.

 Enacted Institutions: Consciously established through planned efforts.

Functions of Social Institutions:

1. Satisfying Needs: Institutions help fulfill fundamental human needs.

2. Controlling Behavior: They regulate behavior, making it predictable and systematic.
3. Simplifying Actions: Institutions streamline actions and reduce uncertainties.
4. Assigning Roles and Statuses: They define roles and statuses within society.
5. Contributing to Unity: They promote social cohesion and uniformity.
6. Manifest Functions: Institutions pursue their objectives and maintain internal
cohesion.
7. Negative Functions: Institutions can resist change and hinder individual growth.

Association vs. Institution:

 Association: A group of people organized for a purpose, such as a political party or

family.
 Institution: The organized way of doing things, such as marriage or law. Institutions
are abstract and provide the framework for associations.

Social System:

 Meaning: Refers to the organized arrangement of parts or components in society,

such as human interactions and institutions.
 Characteristics:
1. Orderly Arrangement: Parts are interrelated and function together.
2. Boundaries: Systems have boundaries that define what is included.
3. Subsystems: Systems can be part of larger systems or have subsystems.
4. Abstract Concept: A system is an analytical construct to understand reality.
5. Application: The concept applies to both organic and inorganic realities, such
as human physiology or societal structures.

Origin of the Concept:

The concept of the social system has roots in biological thought, influenced by early
sociologists like Montesquieu and later developed by functionalists such as Talcott Parsons.
Definitions of Social System:

1. David Popenoe: "A social system is a set of persons or groups who interact with one
another; the set is conceived of as a social unit distinct from the particular persons
who compose it."
2. Julius Gould and William L. Kolb: "A social system is the system constituted by the
interaction of a plurality of individual actors whose relations to each other are
mutually oriented."
3. General Definition: "A social system consists of two or more individuals interacting
within a bounded environment."
4. W.F. Ogburn: Simplified definition of Parsons’ concept.
5. Duncan Mitchell: "A social system consists of two or more individuals interacting
directly or indirectly in a bounded situation."

Characteristics of Social System:

1. Established Patterns: Involves two or more individuals with patterned interactions.

2. Interdependence: Individuals consider each other's actions and behaviors.
3. Shared Norms: Behavior is guided by shared cultural norms and values.
4. Common Goals: Individuals work together toward common objectives.

Understanding these concepts helps in analyzing how societies function and how various
elements within them interact and affect one another.