CC-ED-03 English Version

PREFACE
In a bid to standardize higher education in the country, the University Grants

Commission (UGC) has introduced Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) based on
five types of courses viz. core, discipline specific / generic elective, ability and skill
enhancement for graduate students of all programmes at Honours level. This brings
in the semester pattern, which finds efficacy in sync with credit system, credit
transfer, comprehensive and continuous assessments and a graded pattern of
evaluation. The objective is to offer learners ample flexibility to choose from a
wide gamut of courses, as also to provide them lateral mobility between various
educational institutions in the country where they can carry their acquired credits.
I am happy to note that the University has been recently accredited by National
Assessment and Accreditation Council of India (NAAC) with grade "A".
UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes and Online Programmes)

Regulations, 2020 have mandated compliance with CBCS for U.G. programmes of
all the HEIs in this mode. Welcoming this paradigm shift in higher education, Netaji
Subhas Open University (NSOU) has resolved to adopt CBCS from the academic
session 2021-22 at the Under Graduate Degree Programme level. The present
syllabus, framed in the spirit of syllabi recommended by UGC, lays due stress on
all aspects envisaged in the curricular framework of the apex body on higher
education. It will be imparted to learners over the six semesters of the Programme.
Self Learning Materials (SLMs) are the mainstay of Student Support Services (SSS)
of an Open University. From a logistic point of view, NSOU has embarked upon CBCS
presently with SLMs in English / Bengali. Eventually, the English version SLMs will
be translated into Bengali too, for the benefit of learners. As always, all of our
teaching faculties contributed in this process. In addition to this, we have also
requisitioned the services of best academics in each domain in preparation of the
new SLMs. I am sure they will be of commendable academic support. We look
forward to proactive feedback from all stakeholders who will participate in the
teaching-learning based on these study materials. It has been a very challenging
task well executed, and I congratulate all concerned in the preparation of these
SLMs.
I wish the venture a grand success.
Prof. (Dr.) Subha Sankar Sarkar

Vice-Chancellor
Netaji Subhas Open University
Under Graduate Degree Programme
Choice Based Credit System (CBCS)
Subject : Honours in Education (HED)
Course : Sociological Foundation of Education
Course Code : CC-ED-03
First Print : November, 2021
Printed in accordance with the regulations of the Distance Education Bureau

of the University Grants Commission.
Netaji Subhas Open University
Under Graduate Degree Programme
Choice Based Credit System (CBCS)
Subject : Honours in Education (HED)
Course Code : CC-ED-03
: Board of Studies :
Members
Dr. Atindranath Dey Dr. Dibyendu Bhattacharyya

Director, SoE, NSOU, Chairman (BoS) Professor Dept. of Education,
University of Kalyani
Mr. Swapan Kr. Sarkar
Associate Professor SoE, NSOU Dr. Sanat K. Ghosh
Professor SoE, NSOU
Dr. Debasri Banerjee Dr. Sumanta Chattaraj
Professor Dept. of Education, Professor SoE, NSOU
University of Calcutta
Dr. Papiya Upadhyay
Dr. Kutubuddin Halder Assistant Professor SoE, NSOU
Professor Dept. of Education, Dr. Parimal Sarkar
University of Calcutta Assistant Professor SoE, NSOU
: Course Writer : Course Editor

Dr. Parimal Sarkar Dr. Sumanta Chattaraj
Assistant Professor SoE, NSOU Professor SoE, NSOU
Format Editing
Dr. Papiya Upadhyay
Assistant Professor SoE, NSOU
Notification
All rights reserved. No part of this Self-Learning Material (SLM) may be reproduced
in any form without permission in writing from Netaji Subhas Open University.
Kishore Sengupta
Registrar
Netaji Subhas UG : Education
(HED)
Open University

Course Code: CC-ED-03
Module - I
Educational Sociology
Unit 1  Education and Sociology 7-21
Unit 2  Sociology as the Foundation of Education 22-35
Unit 3  Education for Socialization 36-58
Module - II
Social Thoughts and Indian Social Ethos
Unit 4  Social Thoughts 59-95
Unit 5  Social Change 96-119
Unit 6  Indian Social Ethos 120-136

Unit 1  Education and Sociology
Structure
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Introduction
1.3 Sociology: Concept, Nature and Scope
1.3.1 Concept of Sociology
1.3.2 Nature of Sociology
1.3.3 Scope of Sociology
1.4 Education and Society
1.5 Sociology of Education
1.6 Summary
1.7 Self-Assessment Questions
1.8 References
1.1 Objectives
After going through this unit, you will be able to -
 define the concept, nature and scope of sociology ;
 discuss the Education and Society ;
 elucidate the idea of sociology of education.
1.2 Introduction
In this unit, we shall discuss the concept, nature and scope of sociology. The relationship
between education and society has been discussed in detail like linkages between society
and education, the role of different social institutions like family, religion economy, polity
and education. Another important aspect of this unit is a discussion of major functions of
the society. Last part of the unit examines the affiliation of sociology and education. Thus,
this unit provides an in-depth understanding of concept of sociology and its relationship
with society and education.
NSOU  CC-ED-03  8
Man is a social animal. He is born and brought up in society. He spends his whole life
in society. Hence, we cannot think of a human life without a society. In the time of birth,
a child only has biological impulses and need. Gradually he regulates his impulsiveness
under the guidance of his mother as well as family. From this phase the socialization of a
child begins in an informal manner. In the same way without education there is no society.
Along with that, formally a school extends its hand to make child a social being. Therefore,
Society and education both are very closely related. Education is a social process, socially
manifested, socially oriented and socially controlled for maintenance of social order and
achieving social goals in shaping the structure of society. Society needs education, and
education performs its role to fulfill social needs. Education modifies people's behavior
according to the needs and aspirations of the society. In order to realize the role and
function of every child and make them a responsible citizen of the society, the importance
of school in a societal context has to be realized first.
In this aspect, before discussing the term "educational sociology", it is necessary to
understand the meaning of the word 'sociology'. August Comte, the well-known French
philosopher, used the word 'sociology' for the first time in his lecture in 1837. He coined
the word 'sociology' by combining the Greek word 'Societus' meaning society and the
Latin word Logos meaning 'science' or 'study'. He recognized sociology as a fundamental
science which deals with the application of scientific method to study the relationship
between society and the individual.
Hence, sociology is the scientific study of society or it may be called the science of
society. However, educational sociology is a branch of sociology which has come into
existence as a synthesis between Education and Sociology. In this aspect, E.George Payne
is regarded as the father of educational sociology. According to him, "Educational sociology
is the applied science in the field of sociology". It emphasizes that the aims of sociology
should be achieved through educational processes. Thus, educational sociology is that
science which studies social activities, human groups, social institutions and agencies which
fulfill the needs of education (society) through educating its future citizen. It deals with the
development of individuals and society. Education is the gateway towards making a perfect
society, the superstructure of a strong and sustainable society. It is necessary in order to
understand the customs, folkway, mores, traditions, various social institutions, social rules,
codes and norms of behavior which affects human progress and development through
various educational activities and experiences to make a synthesis in the process of life.
Whereas Sociology of Education is a branch of Sociology, like any other branch of
study as anthropology, psychology, economics, clinical sociology or sociology of politics.

Education is a very important element for a person to be a social being in the society.
(Education is the goldsmith and society is the receiver of it and human child is transformed
into gold in this process called socialization). Therefore, sociology as a subject of the study
of society has always been a big concern for the education of the people of society.
Sociology of education deals with the learning and behavior modification of the individual
will be discussed in details in this unit.
1.3 Sociology
1.3.1 Concept of Sociology
Sociology is a new social science. French sociologist Auguste Comte coined the term
sociology in 1839. The term 'sociology' is derived from the Latin word 'societus' meaning
'society' and the Greek word 'logos' meaning study or 'science'. Etymologically sociology
means the 'science of society' sociology concerns itself with an analysis and explanation of
social phenomena. It studies social life, actions, behaviors and incidents. Sociology is the
study of social relationships, groups and societies. Ross has said. "Individuality is of no
value and personality a meaningless term apart from social environment in which they are
developed and made manifest."
Sociologists differ in their opinions about the definition of sociology. Sociology has
been defined as the science of society. Some others have defined sociology as the scientific
study of social relationships or activities. In this context, it is necessary to discuss some of
the definitions of sociology.
Definition of Sociology:
Auguste Comte, "sociology is the science of social phenomena subject to natural and
invariable laws, the discovery of which is the object of investigation".
Emile Durkheim "Sociology is the science of social institutions".
Max-Weber, "sociology is the science which attempts an interpretative understanding
of social action".
Morris Ginsberg, "sociology is the study of human interactions and inter-relations their
conditions and consequences".
J.F. Culler, "sociology may be defined as the body of scientific knowledge about
human relationships.
Gillin and Gillin, "sociology in its broadest sense may be said to be the study of
interactions arising from the association of living beings".
An analysis of the above definitions shows that sociologists differ in their opinion about
the definition and the subject matter of sociology. But the common idea underlying all these
is that sociology is concerned with human beings and their relationships. It gives stress on
the social aspect of these relationships. MacIver opines that whatever subject may be
included in the subject matter, its real subject matter are social relationships. This social
relationship is the basis of social interaction of social processes. That is why man becomes
a social animal only when he enters into these social relationships. Hence, studying sociology
means studying social relationships.
1.3.2 Nature of Sociology
Human life is unthinkable in outside the society. No individual can exist in an Island,
alone in complete and permanent isolation from other individuals. Each of us may have
different dimension and status in life, but we are above all human beings. This mutual
dependence makes the periphery of society and hence forms social interdependence. We
are born in a social environment (i.e. a community or other group to which we belong) and
culture (social heritage, i.e. the arts, devices, techniques, myths, values, traditions, mores
and institutions); we become genuinely human by adapting the norms, cultures and customs
of society and adjusting with others by accepting their also.
In order to survive, to procure the means of living, humans must live together. But, as
it is said, "Man does not live by bread alone" animals also live together. Animal life revolves
around the fulfillment of immediate necessities. He wants to link himself with other through
knowledge, work and thinking and by expressing himself. This desire is no less important
than the desire to satisfy his immediate needs. The desire to express himself in and through
the company of others leads him to realize the virtue of cooperation; he understands that
he is one among many. Man has thus formed families, built societies. There exists a
bewildering variety of moral principles, religion, ideals, institutions, group and organization,
norms and customs. The desire to link oneself with others of similar kind has given birth
to a variety of governmental system, legal system, administrative system and educational
system. Clashes of interest, tensions and conflicts among men abound and sometimes erupt,
threatening the very existence of humanity. But man continues to survive because of the
propensity to live together, the desire to unite with others. Man survives in an ensemble of
relations based on cooperation; it is here where he gets opportunity to express himself, he
becomes genuinely human. There are several cases of extreme isolation like the "wolf
children" of India which illustrate the fact that if the child is abstracted from contact with
its fellow at birth, it will grow up into a "feral man"-without knowledge of human speech,
without any idea of "right" and "wrong", without being aware of or able to use cultural
techniques.
Indeed, we are the product of social living. Society provides opportunities to develop
our innate abilities and become truly human. What we think, what we feel and how we feel,
what we say and what we do are all shaped by our interaction with other people in
collective living. Life goes on within the web of relationships created as a result of interaction
of people with one another. This human interaction and the structural arrangements that
evolve out of it constitute the essential components of sociology. It focuses in particular on
the social life in the modern world a world created by the sweeping changes which have
occurred over the past two centuries. Interest in understanding the nature of human beings
and their social arrangements has a long past. Why people behave as they do? Why they
form groups? Why they marry? Why they go to war or worship? How and why societies
differ in the ordering of social arrangements? How social arrangements are maintained and
how they change? Why some people break social rules? Thinking minds of all ages have
addressed to these questions and others. They have tried to explain what is happening
around us and how behavior, experiences and ideas about the social world are shaped by
social influences.
1.3.3 Scope of Sociology
Since the days of Comte and Marx, Spencer and Giddins, Durkheim and Weber,
sociologists have attempted to define, limit and scope of the field of sociological enterprise.
Even so there is still little agreement among sociologists about the proper field of sociology.
There are as many definitions of sociology as there are number of sociologists.
"Sociology is a very broad and diverse subject", as the British sociologist Anthony
Giddens writes, "And any simple generalizations about it as a whole are questionable".
Giddines however points out that the definition of sociology as the science of society is very
broadly accepted. Though this short hand definition is essentially accurate, it may seem
rather vague or not sufficiently precise as to distinguish sociology from other disciplines.
Sociology is one of a family of disciplines including economics, history, psychology, political
science and social anthropology which are known as "social sciences". The most important
and distinctive feature of sociology is not so much what is studied but how it is studied,
i.e. what is the particular perspective of sociology, its distinct way of looking at the
individual and society.
Hence, let us discuss in details scope and the field of sociology. There is no one
opinion about the scope of Sociology. V. F. Calberton writes, "Since Sociology is as elastic
as a science, it is difficult to determine just where its boundaries begin and end, where
sociology becomes social psychology and where social psychology becomes sociology, or
where economic theory becomes sociological doctrine or biological theory becomes
sociological theory, something, which is impossible to decide." It is maintained by some that
Sociology studies everything and anything under the sun. This is rather too vague a view
about the scope of sociology. As a matter of fact, sociology has a limited field of enquiry
and deals with those problems which are not dealt with by other social sciences.
In the broadest sense, Sociology is the study of human interactions and inter-relations,
their conditions and consequences. Thus ideally Sociology has for its field the whole life of
man in society, all the activities whereby men maintained 'themselves in the struggle for
existence, the rules and regulations which define their relations to each other, the systems
of knowledge and belief, art and morals and any other capacities and habits acquired and
developed in the course of their activities as members of society.
But this is too wide a scope for any science to deal with properly. An attempt has,
therefore, been made to limit and demarcate the field of Sociology. There are two main
schools of thought among sociologists on this issue.
One group of writers headed by German sociologist, Simmel, demarcates Sociology
clearly from other branches of social study and confines it to the enquiry into certain defined
aspects of human relationship. They regard sociology as pure and independent. The other
group maintains that the field of social investigation is too wide for any one science and that
if any progress is to be made there must be specialization and division and insists that in
addition to special social sciences such as Economics, Anthropology, History etc. there is
need also of a general social science, i.e. Sociology whose function it would be to inter-
relate the results of the special social sciences and to deal with the general conditions of
social life. In the opinion of this group Sociology is a general science.
1.4 Education and Society

The relationship of antecedence between the concepts "education" and "society" is one
that can be a challenge for social scientists. Anthropologists, sociologists, or other social
scientists may be on conflicting sides of the argument. Some may argue there is no society
without education. Therefore, education comes first, and is more important than society.
Others may argue that a society must exist before there can be education. Furthermore,
education is a reflection of a society, or is influenced by society. Therefore, the society
comes first and is more important. Regardless of the side of the argument supported by
one group of scholars or another, there is an evident consensus that education and society
are interconnected. As a social process, education helps the individuals to lead a purposeful
life by moulding and shaping the society with the help of education, society delivers its
knowledge, skills, customs, values and behaviour patterns to its generations after generations.
Therefore, education helps the society to preserve and continue its culture and creed and
helps to sustain purposefully. Again with the changing scenario of the society, education
reshapes itself and turns into complex in nature.
Society is a 'web of relationship' and these relations are fundamental for understanding
human behavior and different institutions of society. You must be aware about different
forms of relations in your family, community and society. Within the family, there are
relations like mother, father, son, daughter, husband, wife, brother, sister which we put
under primary relations whereas uncle, aunt, nephew, niece are called secondary relatives.
There are also tertiary relatives like friends, neighbourhood relations and many other similar
relations. These social relations can be understood with role and status in society. Role is
a set of actions of an individual. A teacher in school performs various actions pertaining to
teaching, evaluation, group activity in the classroom situation and actions concerning school
administration. Similarly, he/she also performs actions within family and other situations.
Thus, one individual performs multiple roles in everyday life. For instance- A person is
playing roles of father for his children, son for his parents, husband for his wife, brother
for his siblings, teacher for his students and other roles. This shows that role is changing
with changing social context and each role attached with certain position in society called
social status. Both role and status are regulated by certain norms and values of the society.
In other word, we can say that norms and values are collective conscience and unwritten
constitution of any society, largely known among members of society as well as attached
with sanctions (reward and punishment). Therefore, the understanding of social relations,
role and status, norms and values are core concern of understanding of society. The term
"society" is rooted in Latin word societies, means friend and ally. The terms used to
describe a relation or interaction among group. The concept of society defined by a large
number of thinkers-sociologists, social anthropologist and other social scientists. Among
these definitions mostly follow two ways as basic unit in society- first is 'social action' and
another is 'interaction'. American sociologist MacIver and Page consider, "society as a

system of usage and procedures, of authority and mutual aid, of many groupings and
divisions, of controls of human behavior and of liberties". Hence, we can see society as a
large group of people who interact with each other, share the same culture, territory and
way of life. Its usage is very wide and ranges from one small community. But, the concept
of community and society are not same. Society is an abstract, broad and general concept
whereas community is constituent of society and characterized with definite territory, close
relationship called 'we feeling' and cultural similarity. Talcott Parsons, American sociologist,
used term social system for society and considered 'interaction' is the basic unit to explain
the human behaviour. For him, every action is not social unless multiplicity of people
involved in interaction. Every individual is a member one society or other society. As a
member of society, you must be aware of different institutions of society playing significant
contribution towards continuity. To understand society, social relationship and its dynamics,
it is pertinent to know its basic constituent units i.e. social institutions and social processes.
Social institution refers to 'a set of norms' applied to various aspects of human behaviour
regulated by well established, easily recognized and relatively stable norms for smooth
functioning of society and social relations. There are some important institutions like family,
education, religion, economy, polity which play different roles following the norms and
values of one particular society. Now we will study these institutions in detail.
1. Family: It is the first school where children start their initial learning. It is called
primary socialization agency and parents are called primary socialization agent. The role
of teacher is played by mother and other members of family. Even in the formal school
system, different roles like teacher, pupil and parents are members of society and always
carry their cultural baggage and values of same society. This common cultural baggage also
led to common reference of learning and similar constructions. Throughout the ages the
family has been a fundamental social institution at the core of the society. Family is a basic
unit of any community and society which acts as joining institution between individual and
society. It has almost universal existence across the world. It discharges many functions to
society and individual from regulating marital bond, legitimate reproduction, care for young,
controls human behavior and functioning as an economic unit at least for consumption. It
discharges this role with other associated institutions, like marriage and kinship. Family exist
almost all human society, however, varies in terms of structure and function from society
to society and time to time.
2. Religion: Religion is also one universal institution that exists from primitive to post-
modern society. French sociologist Emile Durkhiem defined religion as unified system of
beliefs and practices related to sacred things. Except Karl Marx, there is consensus that'
religion has functional role in society. One of the most important functions of religion is
social control.
3. Economy: Economic institution refers to the rules, procedures and norms of
production, distribution, consumption as well as working system and patterns. Economic
activities and needs are very of any society irrespective of its stages of development. Karl
Marx considered economy is the basic structure of any society on which other institutions
are dependent.
4. Education: The process of education takes place in every society. However, its
forms may vary from one society to another society. There are two common functions of
education in every society. First universal function of education is to socialize the members
of society and transmit the culture to the next generation. Second is to fulfill society's needs
pertaining to human resource. Major socializing agencies are community, family, peer group
and formal educational institutions. Besides this, there are many other functions of education
are social mobility and intergenerational change. Present democratic system based on the
principle of equal opportunity, competition and achievement, therefore, any educated and
competent can enhance his/ her status. Child acquires the values of productive society like
achievement, orientation, discipline, liberalism and rationality through this institution.
5. Polity: Each society has some or other system of rules. Political institutions are
defined as a system of control through its organizations and legal or legitimate use of force.
According to T. B. Bottomore, polity is mainly concerned with division of power and
authority in society. These are basic institutions whose prevalence is almost universal with
little variation. The structure and functions of these institutions vary with time and can be
understood through social processes. Social process describes dynamics of social interactions
and social interactions takes place within structure consists of various institutions. Two
important social processes are socialization and social control that we will study later on.
Secondly, the interaction between School and community has become increasingly formal
and bureaucratic. Following this process, schools are becoming mega structure keeping a
distance from community and society. John Dewey writes that 'we are apt to look at the
school from an individualistic standpoint, as something between teacher and pupil, or
between teacher and parent'. The result of this changing situation led to deviation of it role
and responsibility. If we consider society as a social system then we may divide it into five
sub-systems known as family, education, religion, economy, and politics. Each sub-system
plays its own functions to sustain and maintain the society as a whole. In this way, we can
say that all educational institutions are very much part of society.
Society and Education Linkages
Education is generally seen as the foundation of society which brings economic wealth,
social prosperity and political stability. It is a major aspect of development of any modern
society and most significant indicator of overall development of any region. Emile Durkheim
emphasizes the role of education system in the preservation of society and culture, particularly,
it is very important in complex societies where families and other primary groups are not
fully equipped to prepare the young for adulthood that is expected by larger society. John
Dewey wrote extensively on this theme and his two contributions are very appropriate
here, the School and Society (1899), Democracy and Education (1916). He argues that
school is a miniature and reflection of society rather individual. The ultimate objective of
school and schooling process is to foster the growth of social progress and expansion of
democracy. Many other thinkers or practices has been contributed and discussed the
relationship between education and society such as Leo Tolstoy, Antonio Gramsci, Paulo
Freire, Brasil Bernstein, Ivan Illich, Pierre Bourdieu, Rabindranth Tagore, Sarvepalli
Radhakrishnan, M. K. Gandhi etc. Education is concerned with all people and considered
as basic social need of all societies. John Dewey viewed that being a social need it
performs major functions to the society as following.
(a) Transmission of culture: Human beings are world building creature. The sum
total of such creations, its preservation and transmission to the next generation are the core
concern of any culture. The culture makes a distinction with other creatures. Each society
has its own cultural heritage which they preserve and transmit to next generation. The most
important role of education is to transmit the tradition, culture, skill and knowledge to the
new members of the society. Thus culture is the most common link between society and
education. Now you must be interested to know what is culture and its relation with society
and education. Culture is a broad term which includes everything of human society. E.B.
Tylor, British social anthropologist, defined culture as 'a complex whole which includes
knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired
by man as a member of society'. Since inception of society itself, we can see that each
society has some or other mechanism to educate and train their members through various
agencies of society, like family, community, and other formal institutions.
(b) Reduce inequality and disparity: Education gives us knowledge and knowledge
is power. Education plays a significant role to society by solving the problems which raise
question about its sustainability and stability of society. Rabindrinath Tagore writes "In
finding the solution to our problem, we shall have helped to solve the world problem as
well....If India can offer to the world her solution, it will be a contribution to humanity."
Through education one can acquire knowledge and participate in the process of
empowerment. Indian traditional education system was neither open to all nor it had any
uniformity. It was elitist in character and supported with religious purpose rather based
on rationality which has created socioeconomic inequality. It was introduced to make so
called elite group of people who carried the wheel of British Government on their
shoulders. After independence, constitutional provisions (Article 21-A and 45) changed
this elitist approach to egalitarian approach and the process of empowerment observed
in various empirical studies. UN Millennium Development Goals (2000) targeted eight
goals in which two are significant here- first is to achieve universal primary education and
secondly, gender equity. These have been accepted by 189 countries of the world
including India. Following this goal Sarva Sikhsa Abhiyan (SSA) as a national flagship
programme was launched. For female literacy many initiatives were taken such as Mahila
Sankhya, Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) etc. So far as concern of regional
disparity, development of any region is directly correlated with education status of that
region. Thus, regional development is very much dependent on education, health and
economic status of any region.
(c) Social mobility and social change: Education in the present day context is the
most important and dynamic force in the life of individual, influencing his/her social
development. It functions more as an agent of social change and mobility in social structure.
Social stratification is a universal social fact. Social mobility refers the movement of individual
and group position or status in the social hierarchy of any society. There are two important
factors of social mobility-education and income status. Now, free and compulsory education
to all provides opportunity to enhance one's educational and income status to improve the
standard of life. Social mobility gives birth another type of socialization called 'anticipatory
socialization'. Individual's devotion to particular society gets weaken due to belong to
another strata because of social mobility and try to follow the values, cultures and creeds
of other strata in which he now belongs to it.
(d) Development of new knowledge: Education is the way to acquire knowledge
to achieve success in its life. Through education we develop new knowledge or addition
to the existing knowledge to fulfill our new necessity. As we know that necessity is the
mother of inventions, from simple savage society till present postmodern society, we can
observe the drastic changes due to many inventions and discoveries to satisfy our needs
and for sustainable growth. The initial knowledge of metals, fire and wheel played critical
role in ancient development throughout world civilization. It acted as the turning point
from food gathering to settled agriculture society. Similarly, there are many other examples
of new knowledge in the history of mankind. Contemporary technological revolution
through internet, multimedia and communication transform the whole world into global
village.
Education is very important for an individual's success in life. Education provides pupils
teaching skills that prepare them physically, mentally and socially for the world of work in
later life. Higher education helps in maintaining a healthy society which prepares health care
professionals, educated health care consumers and maintaining healthy population. If there
is a deficit of educated people then society will stop its further progress.
Therefore, we can see the role played by the education process towards society as
a whole. Here, Education system included all forms, formal, informal and non-formal
education. The combination of these forms may vary with time and space. Informal education
process is the oldest form and its existence is as long as society itself. Formal and non-
formal are forms of later development. Informal education is characterized with changed
relationship between learner and teacher in informal learning context, while the goals of
informal education are always rooted firmly in value system. It has no direct concern with
degrees or diplomas and supplements both formal and non-formal education.
1.5 Sociology of Education

Every society has its own changing socio - cultural needs and requires an education
to meet these needs. Today's needs are conservation of resources, environmental protection,
global citizenship etc. Therefore education caters towards meeting of these different needs.
Since the needs of the society change, education also changes to coincide with it and
satisfies the needs of the society. Hence there is need for studying sociology of education.
It helps in understanding in a nutshell:
 Work of School and Teachers and its relation to society, social progress and
development
 Effect of Social Elements on the working of school and society
 Effect of Social Elements on the life of individuals
 Construction of Curriculum in relation to the cultural and economic needs of the

society
 Democratic ideologies present in different countries
 Need for understanding and promoting international culture
 Development of Society through the formulation of various rules and regulations
and understanding of culture and traditions
 Need for Promotion of Social Adjustment
 The effect of social groups, their interrelation and dynamics on individuals
Scope of Sociology of Education:
The scope of sociology of education is vast.
 It is concerned with such general concepts such as society itself, culture, community,
class, environment, socialization, internalization, accommodation, assimilation, cultural
lag, subculture, status, role and so forth—
 It is further involved in cases of education and social class, state, social force,
cultural change, various problems of role structure, role analysis in relation to the
total social system and the micro society of the school such as authority, selection,
and the organization of learning, streaming, curriculum and so forth.
 It deals with analysis of educational situations in various geographical and ethnological
contexts. For e.g. educational situations in rural, urban and tribal areas, in different
parts of the country/world, with the background of different races, cultures etc.
 It helps us to understand the effectiveness of different educational methods in
teaching students with different kinds of intelligences.
 It studies the effect of economy upon the type of education provided to the
students, for e.g. education provided in IB, ICSE, SSC, Municipal schools.
 It helps us to understand the effect of various social agencies like family, school
on the students.
 It studies the relationship between social class, culture, language, parental education,
occupation and the achievement of the students.
 It studies the role and structure of school, peer group on the personality of the
students.
 It provides an understanding of the problems such as racism, communalism, gender

discrimination etc.
1.6 Summary
Sociology is the study of human interactions and inter-relations, their conditions and
consequences. In this unit we have learnt about the various definitions of sociology and
about its nature and scopes. We have discussed about the relationship between education
and society and major functions of the society. We have also elaborated the idea of
sociology of education along with the scope of educational sociology.

1. What is sociology?
2. Do you think each definition is enough to throw light on what is sociology or rather
every definition is necessary to grab the concept clearly? Discuss in three lines what
is meant by sociology.
3. Who is E. George Payne?
4. Who is the founder father of sociology?
5. What is the nature of sociology?
6. What is sociological imagination?
7. Name any two aspects which sociology has strengthened among individuals?
8. What are the three major scopes of sociology?
9. Why sociology is regarded as pure and independent?
10. Who opined sociology is a science of society?
11. How culture is transmitted from generation to generation?
12. What is social mobility?
13. Name any two linkages of society?
14. What do you mean by educational sociology?
15. Write two scopes of educational sociology?
1.8 References
Aggarwal, J.C. (2002). Theory and principles of education (13th ed.). New Delhi:
Vikash Publishing House.
Bhatia, K. & Bhatia, B.D. (1992). Theory and principles of education (20th ed.).
Delhi: Doaba House.
Bhattacharyya, D.C. (1996). Sociology (6th ed.). Calcutta: Vijoya Publishing House.
Pandey, R.S. (2009). Principles of education (13th ed.). Agra-2: Agrawal Publications.
Ravi, S.S. (2015). A Comprehensive study of education (2nd ed.). Delhi: PHI Learning.
Sharma, Y.K. (2016). Foundation in sociology of education. Delhi: Kanishka Publishers.
Saxena, N.R.S. (2009). Principles of education. Meerut: Vinay Rakheja
Unit 2  Sociology as the Foundation of Education
Structure
2.1 Objectives
2.2 Introduction
2.3 Sociology as the foundation of Educational Studies
2.4 Approach of Sociology
2.4.1 Structuralism Functionalism
2.5 Sociological Assumptions
2.5.1 Cohesion
2.5.2 Social Inequality
2.5.3 Interdependence
2.5.3 Equilibrium and Role of Education
2.6 Summary
2.8 References
2.1 Objectives
After going through this unit, you will be able to …
 discuss sociology as the foundation of educational studies;
 understand the approaches of sociology;
 define the equilibrium and the role of education;
 understand the concept of sociological assumptions.
2.2 Introduction
In this unit, we shall discuss various aspects of sociology. It includes the notion how
sociology builds the superstructure of education. The relation of education and sociology
is again emphasized and discussed here. It assembles different approaches, concepts of

sociology. Another important aspect of this unit is a discussion of different sociological
assumptions. Thus, this unit provides an in depth understanding in the field of sociology.
2.3 Sociology as the Foundation of Educational Studies

Sociology and Education as two branches of knowledge, concerned essentially with
man and his life. Relationship between sociology and education has always been a subject
of debate. Education and sociology are mutually interrelated and interdependent disciplines.
They are so closely intertwined and interconnected that their subject matter and method of
study are often overlapped to a great extent. All societies have their own ways and means
of meeting this need .Education is an effective process of meeting this need. Education does
not only transmit the past cultural heritage but also helps to develop the basic criteria which
help us to adopt and adjust with our modes of living. It may help in developing new social
patterns in the areas of health, leisure, vocation and family life. Reconstruction and adaptation
are necessary but with the advent of scientific developments, industrialization and technological
advancements, the wise use sometimes use as a weapon of misuse which are disturbing the
urban as well as rural pattern of living. The relationship of education and sociology can be
cleared through following points.
 Sociology is the science of society and education in an implicit aspect of any social
system.
 Sociology studies the structure and functions of social system, while education is
one of the important functions of any social system.
 The prime concern of sociology is socialized individuals. Education is the means
for achieving the goals of sociology.
 Education is the laboratory and workshop of sociology.
 Sociology attempts to ascertain the functions performed by the educational system
while education adopts the principles of sociology to improve its functioning.
 In the modern society, sociology generates the data base which is consumed by
educational system to realize the goal of social life.
 Sociology develops the law and principles which are adopted by the educational
system for its improvement.
 Education preserves the social and cultural heritage which is owned by sociology.
Society is the prime factor in determining the educational patterns so that its socio
cultural needs may be satisfied and continues to grow.
Emile Durkhiem who first clearly indicated the need of a sociological approach to the
study of education. He considered that education to be something essentially social in
character, in its origin and its function and that as a result of theory of education relates
more clearly to sociology than any other science.
Sociology and Curriculum:
Sociology helps us to conceptualize curriculum. According to educational sociology,
Curriculum is organized so that it may help in achievement of social aims. The social
progress of the society and the nation depends upon the curriculum in the schools and
colleges, due to this reason the sociologist consider it is essential to organize the curriculum
carefully and properly.
In the word of eminent educationist, “Education is not to be confined to the study of
a few subjects alone is to be present any epitomized study of the diversified social life.”
Following sociological principles should be kept in view while construction curriculum.
 The curriculum should be such that it helps in achievement of the social aim of
education. The curriculum should be chosen on the basis of the problems and the
needs of society.
 But it should also pay the attention to the real problems and interest of the pupils.
Curriculum should be so organized and its relationship with instructional methods
should be such that the curriculum becomes effective medium to keep a control
over society.
 Through curriculum the cultural values should be brought to light and through it the
high ideals of the society should be transmitted to the new generation.
 The curriculum should be such that it develops an attitude of respect to all vocations.
It should develop a sense of dignity of labor among students.
 The stress should be on a futuristic social change rather than bringing immediate
change in individual's behavior.
 The curriculum should be dynamic flexible and changing in nature.
 The curriculum should be able to develop a problem solving attitude among the
students, they should understand and solve the problem independently.
 There should be provision of social programs for participation in social life.

 The curriculum should be flexible and changeable.
 It should change continuously according to changing social objectives.
 Curriculum planning should be based on the problems and need of society on the
immediate concerns, problems and interest of pupils.
 The curriculum should reflect the basic cultural values of the society and should be
an agent in the transmission of the highest values.
 Curriculum should include subjects like music, art, vocational subjects, physical
education, language, physical sciences as well as biological sciences.
Sociology and Method of Teaching:
Educational sociologist advocates the use of project method, socialized techniques,
Group discussion and techniques of group dynamics. They also encourage co-operative
learning, problem solving and democratic method of teaching. Those educational methods
are good which gives knowledge to the individual who will enable the students to adapt
and adjust to different social situations. Sociology gives importance to group methods of
teaching. Methods which are able to develop democratic attitude among children should
be the good method of teaching.
According to sociological point of view, the method of instruction is effective only
when the skill and knowledge acquired in the classroom are actually use by the individual
in the adjustment to social situation.
An individual should be able to achieve social correlation by use of knowledge and
skill received in the school.
The method of teaching should be stress on the social behavior outside the class while
teaching.
The method of teaching should make use of all possible social resources and social
operative force in the social life in order to develop the capacity in every individual for
social adjustment.
The social powers currents in the society should be used in teaching system for
increasing the social co-relationship.
Sociologist suggests that teaching should be done through cultural and social programs.
In teaching teacher will develop problem solving and constructive thinking.

For this socialized techniques, project and group methods fulfill most of the conditions.
Student reacts better to co-operative learning in which there is sharing in the teaching
learning process. Co-operative group patterns of learning lay emphasis on group interaction.
Sociology and Teacher:
Following are the important sociological aspect and consideration for a teacher to be
followed before teaching such as.
 Teacher should be committed to society.
 He/she should know the main institution and powers that mainly influence a student.
 He/she should know the instruments of social development, available in extramural
environment.
 He/she should have capacity to use this knowledge in school Education.
 A teacher should know about the process of socialization among students and the
method of interaction and programs for social development.
Education as a Process of Social System and Socialization:
Social system can be explained as an interconnected and organized activities which
consist of parts that are inter-dependent, to produce common results , Social systems are
created by human beings and are strengthened by man's attitudes, perceptions, beliefs,
habits and expectations. In social system two or more people are constantly interacting and
practice similar approaches attitudes and social values. Society transmits its knowledge,
skills, values and behaviour pattern to its younger generation ensuring preservation and
continuity.
Education as a social process:
 Education takes place in the society and therefore it is influenced by society.
 School as a social institution educates its younger members.
 Education helps to mould the society by moulding its younger members.
Education as a process of Socialization:
 Education takes place through social interaction.
 Informal education takes its place outside the school.

 It is more than mere giving instruction.
 Formal education has definite direction and definite purpose.
Education as a Social System:
The education system is composed of many distinct sub-system or parts, each with
their own goals. Together these parts makeup a functioning whole .Each part is dependent
on the other for smooth functioning.
Willard Waller gives five reasons for education to be regarded as social system:
 In education different personnel are working, who contributes towards educational
goals.
 Education has a social structure as the result of social interaction within the school.
 It has bound by strong social relationship.
 It is bound by a feeling of belonging.
 It possesses its own culture, tradition, and way of doing things.
 Education helps in transmitting folkways, more institutional patterns in social
organization.
It has a close relationship with the environment and they complement each other,
Education in school prepare students with living skills, knowledge and expertise necessary
for the society .The education is provided with resources, building and personnel (parents,
teachers, students) in order to functioning. As a social system education has a formal and
informal structure, the formal structure refers to the role and function of the administration.
The informal system refers to its social relationship that helps the organization to function.
When you enter in school we see office, member of the school staff, classrooms takes up
the most of the physical structure of school. Within a classroom, the teacher and students
are the main personnel. We see specific order in the classroom, seating arrangement work
groups, location, style of leadership, class size, types of students. All the factors in education
system affect the relationship between position holders and the other .Each classroom has
a distinct climate and social structure. The education system exists in a larger societal
context, including the local community, state and central governments rules and regulations
and funding.
Therefore, an education system is where peoples, pupils, building, textbooks, and

equipment interact with each other in a social environment. According to Getzels, social
system model is best suited for education system, because it emphasize on process of
synthesizing the society with its culture, values, socioeconomics, political system with the
need of the individuals. Every school member, student, teacher, head, and other staff play
their important roles towards achieving the educational goals. In school teacher manages
his classroom, interact with students and the environment, he carries all responsibility
required for his positions. In school different activities are organized, all the activities are
influenced by society's culture, policies, values and are undertaken by the individual as part
of social process. So the success of the individual and the organization are based on factors
like expectations, need, satisfaction, role and goal. Within the education system the school
has certain roles and expectations that are designed to fulfill the goals of the system. Each
school consists of individuals with certain personalities and need whose interaction make
up what is commonly known as social behavior. Education system is also under pressure
from the community members to take over greater roles in child care program. Each
society has certain goals for its educational system that are put in to practice in school and
classroom. In the school the stated goals must be translated in to action. Members of the
educational organization holding different roles, teachers and administrators desire high
quality education but they also have personal motivation. Schools bring peer together in
classroom and for other school related activities. Thus group sub-culture flourishes in
schools. School plays an important part in helping diverse individuals to see themselves as
citizens and therefore to internalize skills. From above we can say that in education system,
school performs many roles and play different activities, as a school system has its roles
and function of administration while the system has a network of social interaction and
relationship for it to function. It emphasizes on the process of interaction of individuals and
the role of each individual play in the school system. In the school there are teachers
principals, students, etc. each has a defined social position. These social positions are
distributed from top to bottom, in hierarchical order. All individuals interact with one
another. This human interaction within an education system may be described as social
system hence we say that education is a social system.
From the above discussion it may be stated that without sociological understanding, the
educational studies is incomplete. From the very beginning of the civilization the importance
of learning was realized by the society. As a result, learning, training as well as teaching
have been the inseparable part of the social aspirants. So, sociology as a subject which
deals with the society as well performs as a foundation of educational studies.
2.4 Approaches of Sociology

Sociology is the scientific study of the individual and group behavior within society. A
standard textbook approach emphasizes several theoretical approaches to understanding
human behavior; however, there are four main approaches: Structural-Functionalism, Social-
Conflict, Symbolic-Internationalism and Feminism. The structuralism-functionalism has been
discussed below:
2.4.1 Structuralism-Functionalism
Structural-Functionalism is often referred to as Functionalism and is considered an
objective means to understanding macro aspects of human behavior in the context of
society. This theory adopts the notion that society is made up of parts that contributes to
stability in society. Society is thus considered to be a whole unit, which includes many parts
interrelated and works together to function. Structural-functionalist believes that society is
like a human body, in which each part plays a role and all are dependent on each other
for survival. Institutions such as education are like important organs that keep the society/
body healthy and well. Social health means the same as social order, and is guaranteed
when nearly everyone accepts the general moral values of their society.
Structural functionalists believe the aim of key institutions, such as education, is to
socialize children and teenagers. Socialization is the process by which the new generation
learns the knowledge, attitudes and values that they will need as productive citizens. .
Although this aim is stated in the formal curriculum, it is mainly achieved through "the
hidden curriculum", a subtler, but nonetheless powerful, indoctrination of the norms and
values of the wider society. Students learn these values because their behavior at school
is regulated until they gradually internalize and accept them. Education must, however
perform another function. As various jobs become vacant, they must be filled with the
appropriate people. Therefore the other purpose of education is to sort and rank individuals
for placement in the labor market. Those with high achievement will be trained for the most
important jobs and in reward, be given the highest incomes. Those who achieve the least,
will be given the least demanding (intellectually at any rate, if not physically) jobs, and hence
the least income.
Emile Durkheim (1858-1917), is considered to be the first person to recommend that
a sociological approach be used in the study of education. He said that society can survive
only if there exists among its members a sufficient degree of homogeneity. Education
perpetuates and reinforces this homogeneity by fixing in the child, from the beginning, the
essential similarities that collective life demands.
Durkheim attempted to understand why education took the forms it did, rather than
judge those forms.
He points out that, Education is the influence exercised by adult generations on those
that are not yet ready for social life. Its object is to arouse and to develop in the child a
certain number of physical, intellectual and moral states which are demanded of him by
both the political society as a whole and the special milieu for which he is specifically
destined. Durkheim observed that education takes different forms at different times and
places showing that we cannot separate the educational system from the society for they
reflect each other.
He stressed that in every time and place education is closely related to other institutions
and to current values and beliefs.
Durkheim outlined his beliefs about the functions of schools and their relationship to
society.
Durkheim argued that education has many functions:
1. To reinforce social solidarity: Learning about individuals who have done good
things for the many makes an individual feel insignificant. Makes individuals feel
part of a group and therefore less likely to break rules.
2. To maintain social role: School is a society in miniature. It has a similar hierarchy,
rules, and expectations to the "outside world." It trains young people to fulfill roles.
3. To maintain division of labor: School sorts students into skill groups, encouraging
students to take up employment in field's best suited to their abilities.
According to him, moral values are the foundations of the social order and society is
perpetuated through its educational institutions. Any change in society reflects a change in
education and vice versa. In fact education plays an active role in the process of change.
Durkheim was interested in the way that education could be used to provide French
citizens the sort of shared, secular background that would be necessary to prevent anomie
in modern societies. He equated classrooms to small societies 'or agents of socialization.
The school acts as an intermediary between the affective morality of the family and the
rigorous morality of the life in society.
Durkheim spoke about issues which are real even today, the needs of different segments
of society with respect to education, discipline in schools, the role of schools in preparing
young people for society, the relationship of education to social change, cross- cultural
research and the social system of school and classroom.
Drawback of Durkheim's Functionalism
Durkheim did not deal with some aspects of education such as the function of selection
and allocation of adult roles, the gap between societal expectations of schools and actual
school performance. It does not adequately explain how social change occurs. Furthermore,
dysfunctions may continue, even though they don't perform or act according to their
expected levels.
Drawback of Structural Functionalism
According to Sennet and Cobb, to believe that ability alone decides who is rewarded
is to be deceived.
Meighan agrees, stating that large numbers of capable students from working class
backgrounds fail to achieve satisfactory standards in school and therefore fail to obtain the
status they deserve.
Jacob believes this is because the middle class cultural experiences that are provided
at school may be contrary to the experiences working-class children receive at home.
In other words, working class children are not adequately prepared to cope at school.
They are therefore culled out from school with the least qualifications, hence they get the
least desirable jobs, and so remain working class.
Sergeant confirms this cycle, arguing that schooling supports continuity, which in turn
supports social order.
Criticism of Functionalism
Functionalism fails to recognize the number of divergent interests, ideologies and
conflicting interest groups in society. In heterogeneous societies each sub-group may have
its own agenda to further its own interests.
It is difficult to analyze individual interactions such as classroom dynamics of teacher-
student or student-student interactions from this perspective.
It does not deal with the content of the educational process- what is taught and how
it is taught.
Individuals do not merely carry out roles within the structure, they create and modify
them.
2.5 Sociological Assumptions

Structural Functionalism is a sociological theory that explains why society functions the
way it does by emphasizing on the relationships between the various social institutions that
make up society (e.g., government, law, education, religion, etc).
The structural-functional approach is a perspective in sociology that sees society as a
complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. It asserts
that our lives are guided by social structures, which are relatively stable patterns of social
behavior. Social structures give shape to our lives - for example, in families, the community,
and through religious organizations. And certain rituals, such as a handshake or complex
religious ceremonies, give structure to our everyday lives. Each social structure has social
functions, or consequences for the operation of society as a whole. Education, for example,
has several important functions in a society, such as socialization, learning. Functionalism
also states that society is like an organism, made up of different parts that work together.
Thus one of the key ideas in Structural Functionalism is that society is made-up of groups
or institutions, which are cohesive, share common norms, and have a definitive culture.
Assumptions
There are a number of key assumptions in Structural Functionalist theory. Structural
Functionalists look at institutions individually as though they are divorced from other
institutions. This is a mistake, as institutions are interlinked in society and those employing
a structural functionalist approach should be taken into consideration the network of
relationships that exist between these institutions.
The key Assumptions of the structural functionalist theory are discussed below-
2.5.1 Social cohesion
Social cohesion describes the bonds that bring people together in a society, it refers
to the extent of connectedness and solidity among groups. It identifies two main dimensions
 The sense of belonging to a community
 The relationships among the members of community
In order for groups to be cohesive in a social context, positive membership attitudes
and behaviors have to be produced and maintained. Social cohesion can be looked at both
an individual and group level. Individual-levels include an individual's desire or intention to
remain a part of a group, her attitudes and beliefs about the group, the individuals' intention
to sever, weaken, maintain, or strengthen her membership or participation in a group, and
her susceptibility to group influence. Social cohesion at a group level is directly affected by
the individual members.
2.5.2 Social inequality
Social inequality refers to any scenario in which individuals in a society do not have
equal social status. It is characterized by the existence of unequal opportunities and rewards
for different social positions or status within a group or society. Areas of potential inequality
include voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, the extent of property rights and
access to education, health care, quality housing and other social goods. Social inequality
is an important characteristic of Structural Functionalism as the theory assumes, since
inequality exists, there needs to be a certain level of inequality in order for a society to
operate. One possible function of inequality is to motivate people, as people are motivated
to carry out work through a rewards system. Rewards may include income, status, prestige,
or power.
Gender inequality offers a good illustration. According to Structural Functionalist
perspective, women being subordinate to men, allows the wage-earners to function smoothly
as everyone in the society knows his or her respective position in the hierarchy. The
implication is that, because society is functioning smoothly with gender stratification, such
stratification is acceptable and efforts should not be made to change the arrangement. This
example illustrates that Structural Functionalism is generally seen as being supportive of the
status quo.
2.5.3 Interdependence
Interdependence is a central theme in structural functionalism; it refers to the parts of
society sharing a common set of principles. Institutions, organizations, and individuals are
all interdependent with one another.
2.5.4 Equilibrium and Role of Education
Another key characteristic of Structural Functionalism is that it views society as
constantly striving to be at a state of equilibrium, which suggests there is an inherent drive
within human societies to cohere or stick together. This is known as the cohesion issue.
Societies strive toward equilibrium, not through dictatorial mandate by the leaders of
society but rather because the social structure of societies encourages equilibrium.
Structural Functionalism does much to explain why certain aspects of society continue
as they always have, despite some phenomena being clearly less beneficial for society as
a whole (e.g., Jim Crow laws). However, Structural Functionalism falls short in explaining
opposition to social institutions and social structure by those being oppressed.
Fig. : General Diagram of Structural-Functionalism.png -

Source : Wikimedia Commons
2.6 Summary
In this unit, we have discussed about sociology as the foundation of educational studies
and curriculum and Teaching methodologies depend on sociology. We have learnt about
education as a process of socialization and also about the structuralism and functionalism
approaches of sociology. This unit has tried to explain the sociological assumptions, social
cohesion, social inequality, interdependence in Structural Factionalism.

1. Define education as a process of social change?
2. State the relation between education and sociology?
3. Do you think if we don't get educated, social change can happen?
4. Write the difference between structuralism and functionalism?
5. Name any two agents of socialization.
6. State any one function of education according to Durkheim.
7. What is social cohesion?
8. What is social inequality?
9. Define social interdependence.
10. Which one, according to you is the best approach to understand the individual and
group behavior within society?
11. Do you think that there is any linkage between society and education?
2.8 References
Aggarwal, J.C. (2002). Theory and principles of education(13th ed.). New Delhi:
Delhi: Doaba House.
Unit 3  Education for Socialization
Structure
3.1 Objectives
3.2 Introduction
3.3 Social Group
3.3.1 Concept of Social Group
3.3.2 Characteristics of Social Group
3.3.3 Social Group and Role of Education
3.4 Types of Social Group
3.4.1 Primary Group
3.4.2 Secondary Group
3.4.3 Tertiary Group
3.5 Socialization Process
3.5.1 Socialization and Role of Family
3.5.2 Socialization and Role of School
3.6 Summary
3.7 Self-Assessment Question
3.8 References
3.1 Objectives
 acquaint with the concept and characteristics of social Group;
 discuss the types of Social Group;
 explain the concept and process of of socialization.
3.2 Introduction
In unit one and two, we provided you a detailed understanding of the concept, nature,
scope and approaches of sociology. In this unit we shall study the concept and characteristics
of Social groups, the types of Social group. This unit also throws light on the socialization
process and the role of family and school.
When a baby takes birth, he/she becomes the member of a family and takes identity
from the family. But the baby is not confined to the family throughout its life. He/she goes
out of the family and shares the experiences of the people in the world outside. Man is a
social animal; he is not only a member of the family. The Greek philosopher Aristotle said
that Man is a social animal. He who does not live in society is either as a beast or as an
angel. Man live in the society by maintaining and following some social relationships.
Society starts with and for the people. The members of the society interact and establish
relationship with the other member of the society to keep the society alive. These
relationships and interactions in the society between and among the members take place
through some forms. These forms are named as social group. Every individual belongs to
one or the other group. His behavior pattern is influenced by the functioning of the group
to a great extent. The study of group has, hence, achieved great significance these days.
The process of socialization is another aspect in this unit. A child becomes the member
of the society by the process of socialization. Socialization is the process by which the new
generation learns the knowledge, attitudes and values that they will need as productive
citizens. Socialization is the process by which an individual becomes a recognized, cooperative
and able member through his interaction with social environment. Socialization is a process
through which an individual learn kind of behavior, values and other's expectations.
In details about social group along with the concept of socialization will be discussed
in this unit
3.3 Social Group

3.3.1 Concept of Social Group
Groups are the salient feature of the complex social set up. We know that society is
composed of people. When the members of the society make "contact" and "communicate"
directly or indirectly with the other members of the society, it takes the form of Social
Group. These groups of the society are considered as the social group when the members
stimulate and respond to one another in a meaningful way. Men everywhere live in group.
The life of man is to an enormous extent a group life. Social groups are the essential part
of our social arrangement. Social group is the collection of people who interact with one
another directly or indirectly. We should remember that mere congregation of people in
physical area does not form social group unless the member contact and communicate with
others. Social relationship in the form of social contact and communication are the essential
feature of social groups. Social groups are established to realize some common interest of
the group.
Let us know about few definitions of group.
Definition of Social Group:
To be clear about the concept of Social Group, we can go through the various
definitions given by some eminent sociologists-
Ogburn and Nimkoff, "Whenever two or more individuals come together and influence
one another, they may be said to constitute a social group."
Sheriff and sheriff, "A group is social unit which consists of number of individuals who
stand in (more or less) definite status and role relationship to one another which possess
a set of values or norms of its own regulating the behavior of individual members at least
in matters of consequence to the group."
Harry M Johnson, "A social group is a system of social interaction."
William: "A social group is a given aggregate of people playing inter-related roles and
recognized by themselves or others as a unit of inter-action."
R. M .MacIver and Page, "Social group is any collection of human beings who are
brought into human relationships with one another."
The above definitions help us to get a clear concept of social group.
3.3.2 Characteristics of Social Group
The following features are reflected in the Social Groups. Without these, the groups
lack the social significance.
Collection of individual:
Social groups are the collection of individuals; without individual, there can be no
group. Thus, collection of people is the most significant feature of social group.
Inter-relation of members:
Without interaction and interrelation, mere collection of members cannot be considered
as social group. To be a social group, members must interact among themselves.
Feeling of unity:
Another essential characteristic of social group is the feeling of unity. This feeling
develops a sense of sympathy and co-operation among the members.
Mutual awareness:
In social group, members are aware of the other members' interest, need and
expectation.
Common purpose:
The most significant feature of social group is common purpose. Each social group is
established with a common objective in view and the members work for its realization.
Common behaviour:
The members of the group behave in a more or less similar way. Collective behaviour
is the feature of social group.
Organization:
A social group is always organized. It cannot remain unorganized.
Group norms/standards:
As the social groups are organized groups, they are determined by some norms which
the members have to observe.
Control over members:
The groups have control over the members so that the norms of the group are not
unobserved and destroyed.
Size of the group:
Variation in size is another feature of social group. Every group involves an idea of size.
A group may be small, consisting of two people or large, consisting of lakhs of members.
Duration:
The stability or duration of the social groups varies from each other. Some groups are
temporary unstable but some groups are stable like family.
Changeability:
The social groups are dynamic in nature, adaptable to changes. Old members die, new
members are born. They are subject to change.
3.3.3 Social Group and Role of Education
Social group provides requirement to the needy people belonging to this community.
The satisfaction of this need plays a pivotal role and works as a force among individuals
and unites them in the social groups. Society has divided people into different groups
according to their needs and interests. There groups have reciprocal role in the society.
They help one another and satisfy the need of the society and its people. The function of
the institution depends upon the groups of people working in them.
Education plays a vital role in regulating individual behaviour through transmitting a way
of life and communicating ideas and values to the new generation. One way that education
contributes to the regulation of society conducts as well as on the other side, it transmit its
social heritage and helps to survive the social order by preparing the younger ones for their
adult roles to maintain the society. Through the process of education society regulates the
behaviour of social groups and enforces conformity to its norms.
3.4 Types of Social group

Man's life is a group life to a large extent. If a person lives in society, he typically is
also a member of a number of groups which may themselves be considered as existing in
a society. A group is a number of people involved in a pattern of association with one
another. Typical groups are a clique of friends, a political party, and a sports club. Two or
more persons in interaction constitute a social group. It has common aim. In its strict sense,
group is a collection of people interacting together in an orderly way on the basis of shared
expectations about each other's behavior. As a result of this interaction, the members of a
group feel a common sense of belonging.
The key to the nature of human grouping is the notion of association. Groups are
created and maintained because they enable individual members to attain certain goals or
interests which they hold in common. Our social behavior and personalities are shaped by
the groups to which we belong. Throughout his life, individual is a member of various
groups, some are chosen by him, others are assigned to him at birth.
Groups constitute the complex pattern of the 'social structure'. Groups are a part of
society.
Two or more persons in interaction constitute a social group. It has common aim. In
its strict sense, group is a collection of people interacting together in an orderly way on the
basis of shared expectations about each other's behaviour. As a result of this interaction,
the members of a group, feel a common sense of belonging.
A group is a collection of individuals but all collectivizes do not constitute a social
group. A group is distinct from an aggregate (people waiting at railway station or bus stand)
member of which do not interact with one another. The essence of the social group is not
physical closeness or contact between the individuals but a consciousness of joint interaction.
This consciousness of interaction may be present even there is no personal contact
between individuals. For example, we are members of a national group and think ourselves
as nationals even though we are acquainted with only few people. "A social group, remarks
Williams, "is a given aggregate of people playing interrelated roles and recognized by
themselves or others as a unit of interaction.
The Sociological conception of group has come to mean as indicated by Mckee, " a
plurality of people as actors involved in a pattern of social interaction, conscious of sharing
common understanding and of accepting some rights and obligations that accrue only to
members.
According to Green, "A group is an aggregate of individuals which persist in time,
which has one or more interests and activities in common and which is organized."
According to MacIver and Page "Any collection of human beings who are brought into
social relationship with one another". Social relationships involve some degree of reciprocity
and mutual awareness among the members of the group.
Thus, a social group consists of such members as have reciprocal relations. The
members are bound by a sense of unity. Their interest is common, behavior is similar. They
are bound by the common consciousness of interaction. Viewed in this way, a family, a
village, a nation, a political party or a trade union is a social group.
In short, a group means a group of associated members, reciprocally interacting with
one another. Viewed in this way, all old men between fifty and sixty or men belonging to
a particular income level are regarded as ' aggregates' or 'quasi-groups'. They may become
groups when they are in interaction with one another and have a common purpose. People
belonging to a particular income level may constitute a social group when they consider
themselves to be a distinct unit with special interest.
There are large numbers of groups such as primary and secondary, voluntary and
involuntary groups and so on. Sociologists have classified social groups on the basis of size,
local distribution, permanence, degree of intimacy, type of organization and quality of social
interaction etc.
3.4.1 Primary Group
No two groups are created equal. Each typically has its own purpose, culture, norms,
etc. Sociologists differentiate between several different types of social groups. Primary
groups are those that are close-knit. They are typically small scale, include intimate
relationships, and are usually long lasting. The members of primary groups feel a strong
personal identity with the group.
In that case, the nuclear family is considered the ideal primary group by some
sociologists, it is not the only example. Many people are also a member of a group of close
friends. This group is usually small, and the relationships are still close-knit and enduring,
so it is also a primary group. The term 'primary' is used with these groups because they
are the primary source of relationships and socialization. The relationships in our primary
groups give us love, security, and companionship. We also learn values and norms from our
family and friends that stay with us for most, if not all, of our lives.
The concept of primary group was introduced by Charles Horton Cooley, in his book
"Social Organization" published in 1909. Though Cooley has never used the term 'secondary
group', but while .discussing the groups other than those of primary, some sociologists like
K. Davis, Ogburn and McIver have popularized other groups such as secondary groups.
Hence, the classification of primary and secondary groups is made on the basis of the
nature of social contact, the degree of intimacy, size and the degree of organization etc.
The Primary group is the most simple and universal form of association. It is nucleus
of all social organizations. It is a small group in which a small number of persons come into
direct contact with one another. They meet "face to face" for mutual help, companionships
and discussion of common questions. They live in the presence and thought of one another.
The primary group is a small group in which the members live together.
In the words of C.H. Cooley "By primary groups I mean those characterized by
intimate face to face association and cooperation. They are primary, in several senses, but
chiefly in that they are fundamental in framing the social nature and ideal, of the individual".
Such groups in Cooley's phrase are "the nursery of human nature" where the essential
Sentiments of group loyalty and concern for others could be learned. C.H. Cooley regards
certain face-to-face associations or groups like the family, tribe, clan, play groups, the
gossip groups, kinship groups, the community groups, etc, as primary groups. These
groups are primary because they are always "first" from the point of view of time and
importance. "It is the first and generally remains the chief focus of our social satisfactions".
Characteristics of a Primary Group
Primary Group possesses certain essential traits. The following are the characteristics
of Primary group.
1. Closeness or Physical Proximity:
Physical proximity or presence provides an opportunity for the development of intimate
and close relations. In order that relations of the people may be close, it is necessary that
their contacts also should be close.
Seeing and talking with each other makes exchange of ideas and thoughts easy. It is
because the members of primary group meet and talk frequently that a good feeling and
a sense of identify develop among them quickly. Prof. K. Davis remarked that physical
proximity or face-to-face relation is not indispensable for establishing close contact or
intimacy.
For example, we may have face-to-face relations with our barbers or laundrymen;
there may not be intimacy or primary group relationship with them. On the other hand, we
may establish contact with our close friends through the correspondence of letter even
though we may not have seen for many years. Relationships among primary group members
are based on intimacy not on contractual obligations.
2. Smallness:
Primary groups are smaller in size. The smaller the size of the group, the greater will
be the intimacy among its members. Relationship can be intimate and personal only in a
small group. It is a fact that intimacy declines as the size of the group increases. The limited
size of the group facilitates the participation of all its members in its common activity. Better
understanding and fellow feeling among the members can be possible only when the group
is small in size.
3. Durability:
Primary group is relatively, a permanent group. Intimacy between the members becomes
deeper because they meet frequently and are closely associated with one another. The
longer is the duration of the acquaintance, the greater the intimacy. All the members of the
primary group try to fulfill the condition of continuity or durability of relationship.

4. Identity of Ends:
Members of a primary group have similar attitudes, desires and objectives. They all
work together for the fulfillment of their common end. Every member tries to promote the
common welfare of his group. The experiences, pain and pleasure, success and failure,
prosperity and adversity of an individual member is shared by all the members of the
group.
The interests of one are the same as the interests of other. Kingsley Davis has rightly
remarked "the child's needs become the mother's ends". Such a complete and mutual
identity of ends is seldom found.
5. Relationship is an end in itself:
The Primary relationship is regarded not as a means to an end but rather as an end
itself. If the people make friends for specific purpose or means, we cannot regard their
friendship as genuine. A genuine friendship or true love is not formed for a purpose. It is
above the consideration of any selfish interest or interests. Friendship is a source of
pleasure, it is intrinsically enjoyable. The primary relations are voluntary and spontaneous
because they possess intrinsic value.
6. Relationship is Personal:
The primary relationship is a matter of persons. It exists because of them and it is
sustained by them. It should be noted that this relationship comes to an end as soon as one
of the partners disappears from the primary group. The personal relationship is non
transferable and irreplaceable.
One individual cannot be substituted by another individual in the same relationship, for
example, no one can take the place of our dead friend. The vacuum created by his death
cannot be filled in, nor can anybody establish and continue the same kind of relationship
with us after his death. If the particular person in whom our interest is cantered disappears,
the relationships also disappear. Such are the relationships between friends, husband and
wife.
7. Relationship is Inclusive:
In the primary group, we face our fellows as total human beings. A person comes to
know his fellow in all the details of his life, as a whole being. A person in the primary group
is not merely a legal entity, an economic cipher or a technological Cog. He is all of these,
rolled into one. He is the complete concrete person.
It is thus become clear that primary relationships are non-contractual, non-economic,
non-political and non-specialized; they are personal, spontaneous, sentimental and inclusive.
Importance of Primary Group:
The primary group is considered to be equally important both for the individual and
society.
Individual point of view:
The primary group plays a commanding role in the development of human personality.
It is fundamental in forming the social nature and ideal of the individual. It is regarded as
a nursery of human nature. The development of "self' - the core of personality depends on
close, intimate and personal contacts.
It is in the primary group - the family - that the individual in his formative stages
identifies him with others and takes over their attitudes. In the family the child acquires all
his fundamental habits-those of his bodily care, of speech, of obedience or disobedience,
of right or wrong, of sympathy, of love and affection.
Similarly, in the primary group - the play group, the child learns to give and take with
other children. The play group affords him early training in meeting his equals, learning to
cooperate, to compete and to struggle. The primary groups, such as family or the play
group, are pre-eminently the agencies of socialization. That is why the family is often said
to be the foundation of society and the play group, the best school for the future citizen.
The primary groups not only satisfy the human needs but also provide a stimulus to
each of its members in the pursuit of interest. The face-to-face association-ship or the close
physical presence of others acts as a stimulus to each. One feels that he is not alone
pursuing the interest but there are many others who along with him are devoted to the same
pursuit. "Through participation of all, the interest gains a new objectivity". This feeling
stimulates one to keener efforts, by enlarging and enriching the character of the interest.
Societal point of view:
Primary groups are important not only from the individual's point of view, they are
equally important from societal point of view. Primary group acts as an agency of social
control. It not only provides security to the members but also controls their behaviour and
regulates their relations.
The primary groups, such as the family or the play group, are pre-eminently the
agencies of socialization. They transmit culture and in this respect they are irreplaceable.
They help the individuals to acquire basic attitudes towards people, social institutions and
the world around him.
The attitude of kindness, sympathy, love, tolerance, mutual help and sacrifice which
provide the cementing force to social structure are developed in the primary groups. From
such experiences and attitudes spring the desire for democracy and freedom.
The members are taught by the primary groups to work in the society according to
their roles with efficiency. In this way, primary groups run the society smoothly and maintain
its solidarity. "It is the first and generally remains the chief focus of our social satisfactions."
3.4.2 Secondary Group
The Secondary groups are of special significance in modern industrial society. They
have become almost inevitable today. Their appearance is mainly due to the growing
cultural complexity. Secondary groups may be defined as those associations which are
characterized by impersonal or secondary relations and specialization of functions. K.
Davis says that "The secondary groups can be roughly defined as the opposite of everything
already said about primary groups."
They are also called "special interest groups" or "self-interest groups". The examples
of secondary groups include a city, a nation, a political party, corporation, labor union, an
army, a large crowd etc. These groups have no direct bearing on the members. Here
members are too many and too scattered. Here human contacts are superficial, undefined
and mechanical.
Different sociologists have defined secondary group in different ways. Some of the
important definitions are given below.
According to C.H. Cooley, "Secondary groups are wholly lacking in intimacy of
association and usually in most of the other primary and quasi-primary characteristics".
As Ogburn and Nimkoff say, "The groups which provide experience lacking in intimacy
are called secondary groups".
According to Kingsley Davis, "Secondary groups can be roughly defined as the opposite
of everything said about primary groups".
Robert Bierstedt says, "Secondary groups are all those that they are not primary".
Characteristics of a Secondary Group:

The characteristics of secondary group are as follows:
1. Large in Size:
Secondary groups are relatively large in size. These groups comprise a very large
number of persons. For example, a political party, a trade union, international associations,
such as Rotary Club, Lions Club, the Red cross Society which consists of thousands of
members scattered all over the world.
2. Formality:
The relations of members in a secondary group are of a formal type. It does not
exercise primary influence over its members. Secondary groups exert influence on the
members indirectly. They are controlled by formal rules and regulations. Informal means of
social control are less effective in regulating the relation of members.
Formal social controls such as law, legislation, police, court etc. are very much important
for the members. Moral control is only secondary. A formal authority is set up with
designated powers in secondary groups. Here man is a legal and not a human entity.
3. Impersonality:
Secondary relations are impersonal in nature. In the large scale organization, there are
contacts and they may be face-to-face, but they are, as says K. Davis, of "the touch and
go variety." Here contacts are chiefly indirect. The two persons may never see each other.
Relations among them are impersonal, because members are not very much interested in
other members as 'persons'.
They are more concerned with their self-centered goals than with other persons. There
is no sentiment attaching to the contacts. It is not required that the parties know each other.
For example, in the large scale factory organization, the members are known to each other
as the boss, the foreman, skilled workers, ordinary workers etc. The secondary relations
are viewed as a means to an end and not an end in itself.
4. Indirect Cooperation:
Indirect cooperation is another characteristic of secondary groups. In it, members do
different things interdependently. All contributes to the same result, but not in the same
process. They do unlike things together. In the large scale organization where division of
labour is complex, the members have not only different functions but different powers,
different degrees of participation, different rights and obligations.
5. Voluntary Membership:
The membership of most of the secondary groups is not compulsory but voluntary.
Individuals are at liberty to join or to go away from the groups. It is not essential to become
the member of Rotary International or Red Cross Society. However, there are some
secondary groups like nation or the State whose membership is almost involuntary.
6. Status Depends upon Role:
In secondary groups the status or position of every member depends on his role. The
determination of his status is not influenced by ascription or by his birth or personal qualities
but by the achievement or the role he plays. For example, the status of the President in
a trade union depends upon the role he plays in the union and not upon his birth.
Importance of Secondary Group:
The secondary groups occupy a dominant place in modern civilized and industrial
societies. Where life is relatively simple or where the number of people is small, the face
to face group may be sufficient for most purposes. But as the society expands demanding
more and more division of labour and specialization of functions, the large-scale secondary
groups become necessary. The small communities have now given way to large communities.
In place of cottage industry we have now grant corporations employing thousands of
people. Population has moved from the village to the city. The changing trends of modern
society have swept away primary groups. Man now depends more on secondary groups
for his needs. The child was formerly born in the warm atmosphere of the family, now he
is born in the cold atmosphere of the hospital.
The followings are the advantages of secondary groups:
1. Efficiency:
The secondary group helps its member to improve their efficiency in their specific field
of activity and in consequences, they become experts. The emphasis is on getting the job
done. Sentiment, emotion is subordinated to achievement. A formal authority is set up with
the responsibility of managing the organization efficiently. The secondary relationships are
instrumental in accomplishing certain specific tasks. In this sense, they may be regarded as
functional in character.
2. Wider Outlook:
The secondary group broadens the outlook of its members. It accommodates a large
number of individuals and localities which widens the outlook of its members. It is more
universal in its judgment than the primary group.
3. Wider Opportunities:
The secondary groups have opened channel of opportunities. A large number of
professions and occupations are opening the way for specialized careers. Secondary groups
provide a greater chance to develop individual talents. The talented individual cannot rise
from an unknown background to the highest position in business, industry, civil and technical
services.
The functions of secondary groups are essential for our society if we wish to enjoy our
current life styles. The people are becoming more and more dependent on these groups.
The tremendous advances in material comfort and in life expectancy in modern world
would be impossible without the rise or goal-directed secondary groups.
Difference between Primary Group and Secondary Groups:
It is important to mention here that dichotomy between primary and secondary' groups
were perceived by Cooley but it was not elaborated by him. However, the following are
the chief points of difference between the primary group and secondary group.
1. Size:
A primary group is small in size as well as area. The membership is limited to a small
area. It is not spread over the whole world. At the other end in a secondary group the
membership is widespread. It may contain thousands of members scattered in different
parts of the world as is the case with a corporation.
2. Physical Proximity:
Primary groups are based on close contacts. People in these groups do not merely
know one another and interact frequently. But they know one another well and have strong
emotional ties. Secondary groups do not give its members feeling of close proximity that
primary groups give. In primary group, one is concerned with the other person as a person,
but as a functionary who is fitting a role.
3. Duration:
Primary groups exist for a longer period. Relationships in primary group are permanent
in nature. Secondary groups, on the other hand are based on temporary relationship. For
example, members of a club frequently come and stay only for a few hours at a time.
4. Kinds of Cooperation:
In a secondary group, the cooperation with the fellow members is direct. The members
cooperate only to achieve the objective of the group. In a primary group, on the other
hand, the members directly cooperate with each other participating in the same process.
They sit together, discuss together and play together.
5. Types of Structures:
Every secondary group is regulated by a set of formal rules. A formal authority is set
up with designated powers and a clear cut division of labour in which the function of each
is specified in relation to the function of all the rest fellows. The primary group is based
on an informal structure. The members participate in the same process. No formal and
detail rules are drafted. The structure is simple.
6. End in itself versus Means to an End:
Primary groups are an end in themselves. Individuals enter into primary relations
because such relations contribute to personal development, security and well-being.
Secondary group on the other hand is goal oriented.
Membership is for some limited and well-defined objective. For example, if marriage
is done purely with an economic gain, it lacks warmth and quality which we think should
go into marriage. On the other hand, members of the secondary group value extrinsic
political, economic or other benefits of the relationship rather than relationship itself.
7. Position:
In primary groups, the position or status of a person is fixed according to his birth, age
and sex. But in secondary groups, the position of a person is determined by his roles. For
example, in family, the position of father is based upon birth, whereas in a trade union the
position of the president depends upon the roles he plays in the union.
8. Difference in Development of Personality:
Primary group is concerned with the total aspects personality of a person and it
develops his whole personality. Secondary group, on the other hand, is concerned with a
particular aspect of personality and it develops only that aspect. In this way, the qualities
live, love, sympathy, obligation, mutual help, and tolerance etc. flourish in primary groups,
while secondary groups promote self-interest and individuality.
9. Relationship:
The relationship of members with each other in primary group is direct, intimate and
personal. They meet face to face and develop direct contacts. A secondary group is based
on impersonal relationships. It does not exercise a primary influence over its members
because they do not live in presence and thought of one another.
They perform their jobs, carry out the orders, pay their dues and contribute to the
group interest, still may never see each other. Paul Landis Says, "Secondary groups are
those that are relatively casual and impersonal in their relationships - Relationships in them
are usually competitive rather than mutually helpful.
People in primary group share their feelings, thoughts, fears and doubts without worrying
that others will think less of them. On the other hand, in secondary group individual interact
with part of their personality. There is a feeling of external constraints between members.
The relations between a customer in a restaurant and a waiter are may be the example.
Each member of a Secondary group is involved with only a segment of the other's lives
and sometimes that segment is very small. The relations are unsentimental and limited in
scope.
10. Social Control:
The mode of recruitment to the primary group is formal. Therefore, formal means of
social control are more effective. As members have closeness and greater intimacy, there
is great control over a member.
Neighborhood and family control is very complete control and the individual sometimes
wishes to escape it by getting into more impersonal life of a larger setting such as a big city.
Secondary group on the other hand, uses formal means of checking deviation of violation
of norms. Formal agencies of social control are more effective as formal relations exist
between the members.
3.4.3. Tertiary group
Any group accepted as model or guide for shaping one's attitude, behavior and
evaluations is called a tertiary group or reference group. For members of a particular group
another group is a tertiary group if any of the following circumstances prevail—
 When members of the first group aspire membership in the second group, the
second group becomes the tertiary group,
 When members of the first group strive to be like members of the second group,
 When the members of the first group derive some satisfaction from being unlike
the members of the second group in some respect and even strive to maintain the
difference between themselves and the members of the second group.
3.5 Socialization Process

Concept:
After taking birth the child engages himself in the fulfillment of animal needs. As he
grows up, he undergoes changes according to the desires, recognitions, and ideals of his
society. Adults are inspired with the ideals of the society. The child has to learn all these
social processes, and then only he would achieve proper development of his personality.
It is a lifelong process through which people learn the values and norms of a given society.
According to Drever, "Socialization is a process by which the individual is adapted to his
social environment (by attaining social conformity), and becomes a recognized, co-operating
and efficient member of it."
Definition:
According to the anthropologists like Margaret Mead and Linton, socialization is the
process of adopting the culture of any group. Under culture we include the traditions,
attitudes, habits, knowledge, art and conventions of a group.
According to Ross, socialization involves the development of a feeling and ability of
companionship and intention of working together.
According to Cook, as consequences of the process of socialization the child himself
takes social responsibility and contributes in the development of the society.
Process of Socialization:
Among the various factors which play vital role in this process, the following are the
prominent one -
1. Child Rearing:
The upbringing of a child plays a significant role in the socialization of a child. As the
way in which the parents bring up the child and as the atmosphere which is available to
the child in his early childhood, accordingly the feelings and experiences develop in the
child. Parents build cultures, norms, customs among their children through this process of
socialization which in education termed as informal education.
2. Sympathy:
Like upbringing, sympathy also plays an important role in the socialization of a child.
It may be noted that during infancy, a child is fully dependent on his family for the fulfillment
of all his needs requirements. Not only the fulfillment of the needs enough, others should
also show full and real sympathy with the child. It is sympathy which develops we- feeling
in the child and he learns to discriminate between his real well-wishers and other members
of society. He begins to love those persons more and more who behave with him
sympathetically.
3. Co-operation:
Society makes the child social. In other words, the co-operation of society plays an
important part to socialize the child. As the child receives co-operation of others towards
him, he also begins to extend his hearty co-operation towards other members of society.
4. Suggestion:
Social suggestions powerfully influence the socialization of a child. It is natural fact that
a child acts according to the suggestion received from his well-wishers. Thus, suggestion
determines the direction of social behavior.
5. Identification:
Sympathy, love and suggestion of parents, relations and well-wishers develop in the
child a feeling of identification with others. Those who behave with the child sympathetically,
the child considering them as his well-wishers, begins to act according to act according to
their ideals, language and standard of living.
6. Imitation:
The basic factor in socialization is the process of imitation. This is the most potent way
of learning by a child. He imitates the behavior, impulses and feelings of his family members.
In this way, learning by imitation is the most powerful means of socializing a child.
7. Social Teaching:
Besides imitation, social teaching also influences the socialization of a child. It may be
noted that social teaching takes place in the family, among friends and relations who guide
the child in one way or the other.
8. Reward and Punishment:

Reward and punishment have a great influence on the socialization of a child. When
a child behaves according to the ideals and belief of society, people appreciate and
approve his behavior. On the contrary, when he does some anti-social act, he is criticized
and condemned by society. This type of punishment weans the child away from unsocial
activities leading towards proper socialization.
3.5.1 Role of Family in Socialization:
Family is a fundamental social institution in society, the family, is considered the primary
and most important agent of socialization. Family typically consists of a man and woman
and their children or two or more people who usually reside in the same home and share
same goals and values. Traditionally, in all societies, the family has always been seen as a
social institution; that has the biggest impact on society.
Everyone is born into some form of family, with the family taking the responsibility
of nurturing, teaching the norms or accepted behaviors within the family structure and
within society. Basically it may be say that the process of socialization begins for every
one of us in the family. Here, the parental and particularly the maternal influence on the
child are very great. The intimate relationship between the mother and the child has a
great impact on the shaping of child's abilities and capacities. The parents are the first
persons to introduce to the child the culture of his group. The child receives additional
communications from his older siblings, i.e. brothers and sisters, who have gone through
the same process - with certain differences due to birth order and to the number and sex
of the siblings.
3.5.2. Role of School in Socialization:
School is the essential part of the society. It works like the social organization because
school. Provides an exposure to every individual and it prepares the students to learn social
roles according to their capacities in the school. Every student passes most of the time of
his day in school and this time is utilized to learn different social things. Every individual
learns about social life, social norms and social believes in school. Hence, in the process
of socialization school plays a very significant role.
Most important function of school is preservation of culture and civilization: Every
society has own customs, convention, traditions, norms, art, religion, which has inherited
from ancient period, in this process of socialization school help us to hand over the cultural
values and behavior patterns of the society to his young generation. In this process of
socialization student acquire the knowledge of cultural values and different norms of the
society. Through education students get knowledge of 3R's i.e. Reading, writing and arithmetic
which help students to work skillfully in day to day life and live happily in the society. It
is a only school education which convert these 3R's in to 7R's i.e. Reading, writing and
arithmetic relationship, responsibilities, recreation and reorganization. Only through school
education students make familiar about social responsibilities as social being. School provide
democratic climate which helps student to acquire democratic norms. Students learn how
to live with democratic norms and how to behave with each other which help in the process
of socialization. School education is a process of living through continuous reconstruction
of the individual which enable students to control his environment and fulfill possibilities.
School encourages students to participate in various kinds of co-curricular activities; these
activities help students to develop leadership among them. The school provides social
environment before children by organizing community work, social service camp and social
functions and annual functions, so that all the social norms and values namely sympathy, co-
operation, tolerance, social awareness in them, thus school develops social dealing in all
children.
In the light of above discussion we can say that school has special significance in the
socialization process. Whereas education is a continuous and dynamic process, which
develops thinking and reasoning ,problem solving, skills, cultural values, democratic values,
adjustment among the students to behave properly in the society, this shows that education
as a process of socialization. In the light of this, Emile Durkheim, a French educational
sociologist has explained the role of education in socialization of child as "Education is the
influence exercised by adult generation on those that are not yet ready for social life. Its
object is to arouse and to develop in the child a certain number of physical, intellectual and
moral traits that are demanded of him by the society". More briefly education is a socialization
of the young generation.
Schools socialize children in several ways. First, students learn a formal curriculum,
informally called the "three Rs": reading, writing, and arithmetic. This phase of their
socialization is necessary for them to become productive members of their society.
Second, because students interact every day at school with their peers, they ideally
strengthen their social interaction skills. Third, they interact with authority figures, their
teachers, who are not their parents. For children who have not had any pre-schooling,
their teachers are often the first authority figures they have had other than their parents.
The learning they gain in relating to these authority figures is yet another important
component of their socialization.
Functional theorists cite all these aspects of school socialization, but conflict theorists
instead emphasize that schools in the United States also impart a hidden curriculum by
socializing children to accept the cultural values of the society in which the schools are
found. To be more specific, children learn primarily positive things about the country's past
and present; they learn the importance of being neat, patient, and obedient; and they learn
to compete for good grades and other rewards. In this manner, they learn to love their own
country and not to recognize its faults, and they learn traits that prepare them for jobs and
careers in future to be a productive citizen of the country.
By transmitting the culture of the society - both material and non-material -- the
education system ensures continuity of norms and values and the handing-on of skills.
Social influences begin long before the start of formal education and goes on long after it.
However, the education system remains central, for it is the means by which society
consciously sets out to transmit values and norms to a new generation.
3.6 Summary
A group becomes social when interaction interplays among its participants. Social
interactions are the basic condition of social group. People walking in markets, in fairs,
travelling in train are not social groups. The main reason is that there is no social
interaction taking place among them. Two persons, one in Ahmedabad and the other in
New York, having interactions on telephone forms it although they are far away from
each other. Therefore social interaction is the basic condition of social groups. Social
group is the foundation of society and culture. Man is also a product of group life. Most
of the Anthropologists believe that humankind is a successful animal in this planet because
of their living together on this earth. Man has always been dependent upon his fellow
beings for defense, food and shelter. They mutually satisfied their various needs by
cooperation among various people in society. This mutual help brought them into social
contact with one another and the social group was formed. It was the real foundation
of human society. On the basis of the frequencies of the contact, social groups may be
categorized in various ways namely primary, secondary, formal and informal, in and out,
reference, ethnic and tertiary etc. in this discourse the primary, secondary and tertiary
groups will be discussed. This unit has been concerned with the concepts and changes.
It has focused how social group operates and how socialization process influencing
process in several ways at various levels. Our discussion was also focused the entire
process of socialization.

1. What is social group?
2. Write any two characteristics of social group?
3. What is the role of education towards social group?
4. What is primary group?
5. Write one characteristics of primary group.
6. State one example of primary group.
7. What is secondary group?
8. Write one characteristics of secondary group.
9. State one example of secondary group.
10. State one advantage of secondary group.
11. Write one difference between primary and secondary group.
12. What is tertiary group?
13. State anyone example of secondary group.
14. What is socialization?
15. Name any two agents of socialization?
16. What is the role of family in the process of socialization?
17. State role of school in socialization.
3.8 References
Aggarwal, J.C. (2002). Theory and principles of education (13th ed.). New Delhi:
Delhi: Doaba House.
Francois E.J. (2019). Education and Society. In: Building Global Education with a
Local Perspective. Palgrave Macmillan, New York Retrieved from https://link.springer.com/
chapter/10.1057/9781137386779_1.
Kuppuswamy, B. (2000). Social change in India (5th ed.). Delhi: Konark Publishers.
Society and Education - NIOS (2019) Retrieved from https://nios.ac.in/media/
documents/dled/Block1_507.pdf.
Unit 4  Social Thoughts
Structure
4.1 Objectives
4.2 Introduction
4.3 Indian Social Thinkers
4.3.1 G. S. Guhurye as an Indian Social Thinker
4.3.2 Radhakamal Mukherjee as an Indian Social Thinker
4.4 Western Social Thinker
4.4.1 Durkheim as Western Social Thinker
4.4.2 Cooley as Western Social Thinker
4.5 Theoretical Paradigms of Sociology
4.5.1 Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
4.5.2 Functionalist Perspective
4.5.3 Conflict Perspective
4.6 Summary
4.8 References
4.1 Objectives
After going through this unit, you will be able to ….
 state about G.S.Guhurye's and Radhakamal Mukherjee's contributions and
approaches as Indian Social Thinkers ;
 describe about Durkheim and Cooley as the Western Social Thinkers ;
 elucidate theoretical paradigms of sociology.
4.2 Introduction
There is an old story of describing elephants by seven blind men who had not seen
it and had any idea regarding that. Touching the trunk, someone said that it was like a
serpent, touching the body, one narrated it as a wall, touching the tail someone perceived
it as a long rope. Thus like the huge body of elephant, sociology is interpreted differently
in different ideologies.
In describing Ghurye, two approaches may be approximated. First, one may divide the
entire range of Ghurye's writing into a number of broad themes and analyze each of these
items showing how Ghurye discussed the institutions and processes. As the following unit
will reveal a thematic analysis of Ghurye's writing as an imperative necessity to assess him
properly. His major writings have been arranged thematically. Thus caste, tribes, family and
kinship, culture and civilization, religious institution, social tensions etc have been separately
analyzed in the body of this unit. An attempt has also been made to explain not only the
thoughts of writing of Ghurye but also to make a critical assessment of them vis-àvis
contemporary sociological thinking and researches obviously, the present author tried to be
as much as analytic as possible in accepting or confuting Ghurye's contributions.
Secondly, the question whether Ghurye's writings can be divided into different phases
is also relevant here. The question is important because Ghurye was a prolific writer and
had written for more than sixty years. We know that there are writers who have changed
their opinion and even approaches in different phases of their life. Hardel Laski, for
example, possessed an acute, an analytical and receptive mind and one is to take into
consideration the different phases of life in order to analyze his thoughts.
4.3 Indian Social Thinkers

4.3.1 G. S. Guhurye
Biographical Sketch
Ghurye stands as the commander in the Indian Sociological frontiers. He has often
been acclaimed as the 'father of Indian Sociology'. Ghurye was the first scholar, who had
built up the entire first generation of Indian Sociologists in Post- independent period, almost
single handedly. Ghurye backs the credits of being the founders of Indian Sociological
Society and the Sociological Bulletin. Ghurye is often accredited as "Theoretical Pluralist"
because he tried to study Indian Society and culture through multiple methods. He relied
on both the empirical and textual methods for studying Indian Society. Ghurye was initially
influenced by the diffusionist approach of Anthropology and later on he switched to the
study of Indian Social reality from Ontological and Anthropological perspective. Ghurye's
Indological Approach hovers around the study of Indian Culture and Social Structure
drawing its sustenance from sanskritic literature base. He was more influenced by the
writings of Indologists of Bhandarkan Institute of Bombay rather than the British writings
established by Sir William Jones or Max Muller. So he is often said to be relying on
indigenous Indology. Ghurye tried to make a judicious blending between the Indological
and Sociological discipline.
Ghurye's "Caste and Race in India" tried to make a reconstruction of a very orthodox
traditional and age old social institution of India i.e. Caste. In this land mark work he made
a long journey from the traditional textual interpretation of caste from sanskritic literature
base to its modern social reality with changing function. According to Ghurye Sociology of
India is not static, it emanates from the ancient India, travels through mediaval India and
reaches Modern India. Ghurye realized that if an institution cannot be studied in those three
distinct phases then we cannot make a claim that we have made a study in totality. Phrasal
study of an institution makes a study fragmented and haphazard. Ghurye viewed that an
institution should be studied on the basis of three things that are transition, transplantation
and transformation.
Works & Writings:
The few broad areas that have been identified in Ghurye's writings are;
1. Caste.
2. Tribe.
3. Kinship.
4. Culture and Civilization.
5. Religion.
6. Sociology of Conflict and Integration.
7. Family and Marriage.
Ghurye made original contribution to the study of Indian religious beliefs and practices.
He wrote six books to bring out the role of religion in society. These are: Indian Sadhus
(1953), Gods and Men (1962), Religious Consciousness (1965), Indian Accumulation
(1977), Vedic India (1979), and The Legacy of Ramayana (1979).
Caste in India Ghurye's understanding of caste is comparative, historical and

Indological as well. Unlike his contemporaries he doesn't glorify or condemn caste,
rather he considers caste as a product of Indian culture, changing with the passage of
time. Hence, it is a subject of sociological interest. Ghurye studies caste mostly as a
diffusionist and a historian than as an Indologist. In his book "Caste and Race in India",
he agrees with Sir Herbert Risley that caste is a product of race that comes to India
along with Aryans. Ghurye considers it as unfortunate that caste system is mostly understood
in terms of Brahminic domination. Caste has gone through the process of fusion and
fission in different ways in Indian history. During Vedic period caste was a product of
race. Aryans distinguished themselves from non-Aryans just in terms of color but
subsequently different ethnic groups developed alliance/relationship with each other and
Hindu culture and values moved from Aryan community to non-Aryan communities.
Aryans never introduced themselves as Brahmins or as a superior race as against non-
Brahmins. Aryan society itself practiced different kinds of occupations which were allocated
to different individuals and families. On the basis of their occupation caste names were
allocated to different groups. Therefore Aryans society had architects, peasants, warriors,
artisans and their society was highly disciplined, organized and progressive. Ghurye tells
that it may be a matter of fact that caste evolved in India with the advent of Aryans, as
their racial character was different from Indians. But at the same time there were different
racial categories present in India prior to coming of the Aryans. India was not the home
land of one racial group. Aryans advent added one more race to the already existing
ones. Caste was not a hierarchical exploitative system. Aryans carried with them caste
system which promoted discipline in their life giving them specialization over particular
occupation. No caste was superior or inferior. Occupation change was possible. Hence
Aryans became highly specialized and indigenous. People looked forward to Aryans for
progress. Therefore they started imbibing these elements into their life. Rulers were
taught the virtues of Aryans by the Brahmins who glorified the Aryan culture. These
mobile saints spread the embodiment of caste to non Aryans. Ghurye points out that
caste was considered as central to organized form of division of labor in Aryan society.
When Aryans and indigenous communities developed interpersonal relationship through
communication and warfare, the disciplined nature of Aryan society was appreciated by
indigenous rulers who injected the elements of caste into their social life. In addition to
that, priests, monasteries and travelers glorified the virtues of Aryan caste system. Hence
the element of caste radiated from northern India to other parts of the country.
Features of Caste:
Ghurye explained caste in India on the basis of six distinctive characteristics:
 Segmental division of society
 Hierarchy
 Civil and religious disabilities and privileges
 Lack of unrestricted choice of occupation
 Restriction on food, drinks and social intercourse
 Endogamy.
Segmental division of the society:
Segment is the compartmentalization of the population into groups. It is basically
horizontal in character. It generates social grouping but not labelling. The membership is
ascribed in character, i.e. it is based on birth and flows from generation to generation.
Based on the membership every member has fixed status, roles and tasks. According to
the roles assigned they have to perform it. There are moral ethics, obligations and justification
value behind these roles.
Hierarchy:
It is the second major characteristic of caste through which Hindu social organization
and Indian Society penetrates. After the segmental divisions of the society, they are put in
a pyramidical structure then it is called as hierarchy.
Certain cultural principles like purity and pollution, prioritization of certain group,
preferences of the society, determine the positioning of the social segments in the hierarchy
in layer. The layering of the segments is basically vertical in nature. This caste hierarchy is
responsible for spelling out the access and prevention of caste and it becomes the primary
consideration for role allocation, responsibility sharing and the imposition of restrictive rules.
Hierarchy determines caste norms.
According to Ghurye hierarchy becomes the major consideration for deciding all these
aforesaid variables. It basically implies the Division of Labour. The entire gamut of activities
in the society is divided into four types like religious, governance, maintenance and menial.
Among all these activities the religious activities are given the highest position in society.
Therefore Brahmin are given this responsibility. The second major activity is governance,
which implies for managing the state craft and defending the populee from external aggression.
So it is accorded to Khatriyas. The managerial activities are fixed on Vaishyas, who have
to generate sustenance for the society. And the menial activities though an integral part of
the society, are given the least priority and accorded to the shudras.
Thus it is the hierarchy that determines the roles. The higher the position in the hierarchy
the greater is the role and higher is the responsibility. Hierarchy also determines the individual's
access to life chances (education, health, nutrition) and life resources (wealth, power,
property). The higher the position in caste hierarchy the easier becomes the access and
vice-versa. The concept of distributing justice was never prevalent but was ever violated
in caste system. It was not the productive contribution but the preferencial caste position
that determines the caste rights. Rights were never demanded in caste society but were
preferencially imposed on certain caste. Prevalence was for higher caste and prevention
was for the lower caste. Restrictive rules were hierarchically driven in character. Every
caste had got its typical culture. It formulates its own rules to govern the activities, behavior,
attitude, perception of its own members. Restrictive rules in general had its own inter-caste
and intra-caste implications. Restrictive rules were more for the Shudras in terms of taboos
set for them. Restrictive rules did not have rigor or figure in the middle of hierarchy like
Khatriyas, Vaishyas but restrictive rules were again strengthened for the higher caste like
Brahmin.
Civil and religious disabilities:
Civil and religious disabilities expressed the rigidity of the caste system. To Ghurye the
general reflection of Hindu social life was observed and felt through such disabilities. The
disabilities were common to caste in different parts of the country but the caste groups
included in it were not common, rather there are variations. Civil and religious disabilities
basically came from the concept of purity and pollution. Disabilities were for impure and
polluted caste and privileges were for pure/higher castes.
Lack of unrestricted choice of occupation:
The occupations have been fixed by heredity. Generally they have not been allowed
to change their traditional occupations. Members of a caste maintain their supremacy and
secrecy in their jobs and do not allow the other caste group to join in. The upper caste
people like Brahmins are free to opt for study of religious books, while this cannot be done
by other classes. The lower ranking activities like sweeping bathrooms, washing clothes,
scavenging etc have been kept in untouchable category.
Restriction on food, drinks and social intercourse:

Some rules have been imposed upon all caste people. Restriction on feeding and social
intercourse is still prevalent in Indian society. There are two types of food i.e. Kachha
(Raw) food and Pakka (cooked) food upon which certain restrictions are imposed with
regard to sharing, for example:
 Caste groups from whom twice born caste people can accept Kachha food;
 Caste group from whom twice born caste people can accept Pakka food;
 Caste groups from whom twice born caste people can accept water but no food;
 Caste groups from whom twice born caste people do not accept water or food
and maintain distance.
Endogamy:
Indian caste system is also polarized due to endogamy being determined primarily by
Caste. People can marry within caste only. To disobey the caste rule is not only treated
as a crime but is also condemned as a sin. The caste panchayat not only denounces inter-
caste marriages but also imposes severe punishment upon those who break these rules.
Tribes in India:
Ghurye's works on the tribes were general as well as specific. He wrote a general
book on Scheduled Tribes in which he dealt with the historical, administrative and social
dimensions of Indian tribes. He also wrote on specific tribes such as the Kolis in Maharashtra.
Ghurye presented his thesis on tribes at a time when a majority of the established
anthropologists and administrators were of the opinion that the separate identity of the
tribes is to be maintained at any cost.
Ghurye, on the other hand, believed that most of the tribes have been Hinduized after
a long period of contact with Hindus. He holds that it is futile to search for the separate
identity of the tribes. They are nothing but the 'backward caste Hindus'. Their backwardness
was due to their imperfect integration into Hindu society. The Santhals, Bhils, Gonds, etc.,
who live in South-Central India are its examples (Ghurye, 1963).
There has been fierce debate between G.S. Ghurye and Verrier Elwin. Elwin in his
book ‘Loss of Nerve’ said that tribals should be allowed to live in isolation, whereas
Ghurye argued that tribals should be assimilated into Hindu castes.
Thus, Ghurye holds the view that a grand historical process of merger between two
communities has almost been completed. Consequently, tribes, now, may be regarded as
'backward Hindus'. The incorporation of Hindu values and norms into tribal life was a
positive step in the process of development.
The tribes in India had slowly absorbed certain Hindu values and style of life through
contact with the Hindu social groups. Today, it is being considered as a part of Hindu
society. Under Hindu influence, the tribes gave up liquor drinking, received education and
improved their agriculture.
In this context, Hindu voluntary organizations, such as Ramakrishna Mission and Arya
Samaj, played a constructive role for the development of the tribes. In his later works of
north-eastern tribes, Ghurye documented secessionist trends. He felt that unless these were
held in check, the political unity of the country would be damaged.
Ghurye presented a huge data on the thoughts, practices and habits of the tribes
inhabiting the Central Indian region. He quoted extensively from various writings and
reports to show that Katauris, Bhuiyas, Oraons, Khonds, Gonds, Korkus etc. have
substantially adopted Hinduism as their religion. Ghurye suggestsed that the economic
motivation behind the adoption of Hinduism is very strong among the tribes. They can come
out of their tribal crafts and adopt a specialized type of occupation, which is in demand
in society.
Rural-Urbanization:
Ghurye remained occupied all through his life with the idea of rural urbanization securing
the advantages of urban life simultaneously with nature's greenery. Therefore, he discussd
the process of rural-urbanization in India. He viewed that the urbanization in India was not
a simple function of industrial growth.
In India, the process of urbanization, at least till recent years, started from within the
rural area itself. He traced Sanskrit texts and documents to illustrate the growth of urban
centers from the need for market felt in a rural hinterland. Development of agriculture
needed more and more markets to exchange the surplus in food grains.
Consequently, in many rural regions, one part of a big village started functioning into
a market. This led to a township, which in turn developed administrative, judicial and other
institutions. In the past, urban centers were based on feudal patronage, which had demands
for silk cloths, jewellery, metal artifacts, weapons etc. This led to the growth of urban
centres such as Banaras, Kanchipurum, Jaipur, and Moradabad etc.
In brief, it may be said that Ghurye's approach to 'rural-urbanization' reflected the

indigenous source of urbanism. During colonial times, the growth of metropolitan centres
altered the Indian life. The towns and cities were no longer the outlets for agricultural
produce and handicrafts but they became the major manufacturing centres.
These centres used rural areas for producing raw materials and turned into a market
for selling industrial products. Thus, the metropolitan economy emerged to dominate the
village economy. Therefore, the urbanization started making inroads into the rural hinterland
in contrast to previous pattern. A large city or metropolis also functioned as the centre of
culture of the territory encompassing it.
For Ghurye, the large city with its big complexes of higher education, research, judiciary,
health services, print and entertainment media is a cradle innovation that ultimately serves
cultural growth. The functions of the city are to perform a culturally integrative role, to act
as a point of focus and the centre of radiation of the major tenets of the age. Not any city,
but large city or metropolis having an organic link with the life of the people of its region
can do this work well.
According to Ghurye, an urban planner must tackle the problems of:
(1) sufficient supply of drinking water,
(2) human congestion,
(3) traffic congestion,
(4) regulation of public vehicles,
(5) insufficiency of railway transport in cities like Mumbai,
(6) erosion of trees,
(7) sound pollution,
(8) indiscriminate tree felling, and
(9) plight of the pedestrians.
Culture and Civilization:
There are two conflicting views about the growth and accumulation pattern of culture.
One theory maintains that in any community culture grows quite independently of similar
events happening elsewhere or predominantly with reference to local needs and local
situation. The other group believes that culture grows by diffusion. A single invention or
discovery is made at one place and ultimately this cultural trait diffuses throughout the
world. Sir G.E. Smith was the most ardent advocate of the diffusion theory.
In one of his papers, "The Disposal of Human Placenta", published in 1937, Ghurye
examines the practices of human beings with regard to the disposal of discard of human
body like first out hair, nail pairing, first fallen teeth and the after birth. The purpose of this
paper is, as he says, to compare the methods of disposal of the human placenta in the
different regions of the world to see if they shed any light on the problem of diffusion of
culture.
Culture diffusion is essentially an anthropological theory, which is concerned with the
nature of culture contact operating principally among the preliminary people. According to
Ghurye, culture constitutes the central or core element for understanding society and its
evolution. In fact, culture is a totality involving the entire heritage of mankind. Ghurye's
abiding interest was to analyse the course of cultural evolution and the nature of heritage
which mankind has denied from the past.
Culture relates to the realm of values. It is a matter of individual attainment of excellence
and creativity. Ghurye had a strong faith in the power of man to preserve the best of his
old culture, while creating from his own spirit of new culture. He was more concerned with
the process of evolution of Hindu civilization, which was termed as a 'complex civilization'.
And, Ghurye thought that for analyzing the dynamics of culture in such a long historical
civilization the process of acculturation is more relevant than the process of diffusion. He
thought that the challenging task of a sociologist is to analyze this complex acculturation
process in India.
According to him, India has been the home of many ethnic stocks and cultures from
pre-historic times. In his analysis of caste, Ghurye refered to how caste system was
developed by the Brahmins and how it spread to other sections of the population. The
operation of the process of Hinduization also provided the general backdrop of his analysis
of the trial phenomenon.
Ghurye was promoted by the belief that there is a "common heritage of modern
civilization" and that civilization is a "collective endeavour of humanity". He held that behind
the rise and fall of civilization, there has occurred a steady growth of culture. Cutting across
the vicissitudes of civilization growth, there are certain values, which have been established
as final. These values have been termed by Ghurye as the 'foundations of culture'.
He delineates five such values or foundations of culture. These are:

1. Religious consciousness
2. Conscience
3. Justice
4. Free pursuit of knowledge and free expression
5. Toleration
According to Ghurye, "civilization is the sum total of social heritage projected on the
social plane". It is also an attribute of the society. Different societies can be differentiated
with reference to their civilization attainment.
Ghurye made four general conclusions with regard to the nature of civilization:
i. Firstly, as yet, there has been no society, which has been either completely civilized
or very highly civilized.
ii. Secondly, Ghurye believed in the law of continuous progress.
iii. Thirdly, gradation of civilization is also correlated with the distribution of values.
In a high civilization, the humanitarian and cultural values will be accepted by a
wide cross-section of population.
iv. Fourthly, every civilization, high or low, possesses some distinctive qualities.
Sociology of Religion:
Religion is fundamental to man. Man becomes conscious of some power beyond his
comprehension almost at the dawn of civilization. This field has drawn the attention of
sociologists like Weber (The Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism, 1930) and Durkheim
(The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, 1915).
Ghurye thought that religion is at the centre of the total cultural heritage of man. He
gave the five foundations of culture as mentioned earlier in the description of culture and
civilization, out of which 'religious consciousness' is most important. It moulds and directs
the behaviour of man in society.
All these works reflect Ghurye's interest related to the sociology of religion. For
example, in Gods and Men, Ghurye discussed the nature of the Hindu ideas of Godhead
and the relations, if any, between the climate of an age and the type of Godhead favoured.
In Religious Consciousness, Ghurye analysed the three oldest human civilizations, viz.,
the Mesopotamian, the Egyptian and the Hindu, in their various aspects of mythological
beliefs, speculation, cosmology, life after death, view of Godhead, temple architecture, etc.
And, in the Indian Sadhus, Ghurye considered the genesis, development and organization
of asceticism in Hindu religion and the role ascetics have played in the maintenance of
Hindu society.
Indian Sadhus:
Indian Sadhus (1953 and 1964) is an excellent sociography of the various sects and
religious centres established by the great Vedantic philosopher Sankaracharya and other
notable religious figures. In this work, Ghurye highlighted the paradoxical nature of
renunciation in India. A sadhu or sannyasin is supposed to be detached from all castes,
norms and social conventions, etc.
Strikingly enough, since the time of Sankaracharya, the Hindu society has more or less
been guided by the sadhus. These sadhus were not the lonely hermits. Most of them
belonged to monastic orders, which have distinctive traditions.
The monastic organization in India was a product of Hinduism and Buddhism. The rise
of Buddhism and Jainism marked the decline of individual ascetics like Viswamitra. Indian
sadhus have acted as the arbiters of religious disputes, patronized learning of scriptures and
the sacred lore and even defended religion against external attacks.
National Unity and Integration:
Ghurye had interest in contemporary Indian situations. As a sociologist, he had been
extremely concerned with the concept of integration, the process of national unity in India,
and the contemporary challenges to the situation. This concern became apparent even at
the time he wrote Caste and Race in India in 1932 and The Aborigines-so-called-and their
Future in 1943.
However, this concern with the present 'disturbing trends' in Indian society has come
back in a big way in the later writings of Ghurye (Pramanick, 1994). There are three books
of Ghurye, known as his 'triology' in this field, which are relevant in this connection.
These are ‘Social Tensions in India’ (1968), ‘Whither India’ (1974) and ‘India Recreates
Democracy’ (1978). In these books he has developed a theoretical framework to explain
unity at the social or cultural level. Ghurye held that though groups play an integration role
in society, this is true only up to a certain extent.
In modern society, there are five sources of danger for national unity coming as they
do form a sense of excessive attachment with groups:
(1) The Scheduled Castes
(2) The Scheduled Tribes
(3) The Backward Classes
(4) The Muslims as religious minority groups
(5) The linguistic minorities
As we know, the main focus of Ghurye's writings was on culture. He thought that it
is largely as a result of Brahminical endeavour that cultural unity in India has been built up.
All the major institutions of Hindu society originated among the Brahmins and gradually they
were accepted by other sections of the community.
Though Ghurye called it process of acculturation, it was basically a one-way flow, in
which the Brahminical ideas and institutions infiltrated among the non-Brahmins. It is the
background of such an approach that Ghurye analyzed the problems and prospects of
Indian unity in contemporary India.
Ghurye's concept of cultural unity is new one and is not secular in orientation. He is
concerned with India of 'Hindu culture' and used the terms 'Indian culture' and 'Hindu
culture' synonymously. He was concerned with India, and provided an excellent normative
base for maintaining social and political unity in the country. Hinduism had brought within
its fold widely different groups in India.
The various sects of Hinduism constitute vast mosaic holding together millions of
people in different parts of India. First, he analyzed the normative structure of Hinduism,
and the teaching of sacred religious texts such as the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the
Brahmins etc., to show how they provided the common cultural foundation. Second, the
role of such great Hindu thinkers as Panini, Patanjali, Tulsidas etc. has also been discussed
by Ghurye.
He blames the political leaders for this, because they followed a course of action,
which was more or less exactly the one which should have been avoided but the foundation
for this national cultural unity had been built and maintained by the Hindus for one hundred
years. According to Ghurye, society is not just an aggregation of isolated individuals but
that group life, which provides the bridge between the individual and society.
An individual acquires social attributes and is socializes through groups. This is the
integrative function of groups in society. When groups perform the function efficiently,
integration is achieved. Tensions in the process of this integration in India arise today
because the various groups of people have failed to transient their narrow group loyalties.
Religious and linguistic minorities are the most potential source of danger to the unity in
modern India. Religion and linguistic groups are the prime areas which came disintegration
to India's cohesion.
Ghurye gave great importance to the role of language in the process of nation-building
in India. Even, in case of tribes, tribal life and culture can be improved only when they
pickup developed language of a neighbouring community. Ghurye held the view that the
regional language has a symbolic integrational value of the region. The regional languages
ensure the unity of territory at the local level and all efforts should be made to improve.
4.3.2 Radhakamal Mukerjee (1889-1968)
Radhakamal Mukerjee was pioneer in the areas such as social ecology, interdisciplinary
research and the social structure of values. We will first describe the biographical sketch
and then discuss his central ideas.
Biographical Sketch
Radhakamal Mukerjee was born in 1889 in a large Bengali Brahmin family, in a small
country town of West Bengal called Berhampur. He spent the first sixteen years of his life
in this town. His father was the leader of the bar that is a lawyer and was an accomplished
scholar with a great interest in history. Mukerjee, while describing his early years, says that
his home was full of books on history, Literature, law and Sanskrit (Singh 1956: 3).
The general atmosphere in which he grew up was scholarly. His elder brothers were
always reading books from which he, being a child, was kept at a distance. His father used
to have long meetings with clients throughout the day and long intellectual and religious
discussions during the evening. The interior of the house where the ladies of the house
presided, there were rituals, ceremonies and devotional songs.
Mukerjee's early memories, which left an imprint on his mind, consisted of the picture
of sorrow and misery of a large population devastated by famine in Madras and Orissa
during the early years of the twentieth century. He was deeply moved by the pictures of
human skeletons on the verge of starvation and death published in the newspapers. This
was further deepened by the Bengal famine of 1942-43 which he had witnessed in Calcutta.
He also vividly recalled the childhood experiences of Muharram processions, Durgapuja

festivals, and so on. It was during the same period of his life that Bengal saw its socio-
cultural and intellectual renaissance. In 1905 every city in Bengal was in a state of intellectual
and political fervent. The partition of Bengal into East and West Bengal, introduced by
Lord Curzon, led to a mass uprising against this event. Political meetings, street processions
and singing parties, boycott of British goods and propagating swadeshi products introduced
him to the mass movement of time. Mukerjee had his early education in Berhampur. He
went to the Krishnath College in Berhampur. He got an academic scholarship in the leading
educational institution in India, the Presidency College in Calcutta. He took his honours
course in English and History in this college. Here he came in contact with such scholars
as H.M. Percival, M.Ghosh , brother of Sri Aurobindo Ghosh and the linguist Harinath De.
He admired these scholars very much. It was here that he read books by Comte, Herbert
Spencer, Lester Ward, Hobhouse and Giddings, besides many others, from cover to cover.
As you must be aware by now many of these scholars are the leading men of sociology
in Europe and America. During this period of his life, Mukerjee launched himself into the
area of adult education which remained his interest till the end. The country was going
through a political and cultural upheaval during this period which, according to Mukerjee,
completely changed the scale of values. This change was seen far more outside the
Governmental institutions, taking the form of a literary and artistic renaissance. This
renaissance slowly took the form of a mass movement. It was in order to help the process
that Mukerjee started an Adult Evening School in 1906 in the slums of Mechaubazar of
Calcutta. He wrote simple texts for adult education which sold in thousands. This school
became a Community Centre and even the local physicians started taking interest in this
movement of social education. They treated without charging any fee the adults and children
of the slums (Singh 1956:). Mukerjee valued his early training in the discipline of History
very much but "the face-to-face contact with misery, squalor and degradation in the slums
of Calcutta" turned the focus of his interests towards the disciplines of Sociology and
Economics. He wrote that there was a definite call in the country for the tasks and
responsibilities of education of the masses, and that call could be answered by an Indian
student best through the knowledge of the social sciences (Singh 1956: 5). Social sciences
during Mukerjee's time in Calcutta University included the disciplines of Economics, Politics
and Sociology at M.A. level. It was during this period that Mukerjee came in close
association with Benoy Kumar Sarkar. Mukerjee and Sarkar shared the same flat and
B.K. Sarkar was at that time Professor at Bengal National College, an institution which had
given support to such leading thinkers of Bengal as Tagore and Aurobindo Ghosh. Mukerjee,
like many other Indians of his time, was impressed by the fiery political speeches of Bipin
Chandra Pal, one of the Congress extremists. But the main interest of Mukerjee was at that
time educational rather than political. He and his friends called themselves "Ministers of the
Poor" and dressed poorly, giving up western dresses like shirts, coats and shoes (Singh
1956:).
In 1910 Mukerjee went back to his old college in Berhampur as a teacher in
Economics. He says that this was the busiest period of his life and it was during this period
that he wrote his early works in Economics, such as the Foundations of Indian Economics.
His interest in social ecology and the study of regions also originated during this period. The
Principal of his College, Rev. E.M. Wheeler, was deeply interested in the sciences, especially
Botany. Therefore, the teachers, including Mukerjee, spent a lot of time collecting specimens
of plants and insects of all kinds and studying them. This experience developed Mukerjee's
interest in ecology and he became aware of its link with human community. At this time
Mukerjee also became the editor of the renowned Bengali monthly, Upasana. He wrote
for this monthly regularly and kept in touch with the literary development in Bengali literature.
He was a voracious reader and his interest in literature was very deep. During 1915 when
there were persecutions by the British Government, Mukerjee was once arrested for a day
and all his adult schools were liquidated. The charges against him were that he was a
"terrorist" or had sympathy with terrorism under the disguise of adult education. Thanks to
his lawyer brother he was released very soon. He was offered a position in Lahore College
in Punjab and he went there thus, nipping in bud any interest in politics. He went back to
the University of Calcutta where Asutosh Mookerji had established in 1917 the Post-
Graduate Council of Arts and Science. He stayed here for five years and taught Economics,
Sociology and Political Philosophy. In 1921 he went to the University of Lucknow as
Professor and Head of the Department of Economics and Scoiology on the very day when
the university started functioning (Singh 1956:). He introduced an integrated approach in
Economics, Sociology and Anthropology in both research and teaching in Lucknow university.
According to Mukerjee, using comparative methods in the study of social sciences in India,
we must aim at the scientific study of the race and culture origins. In his intellectual career
he was deeply influenced by three social thinkers. First was Professor Brajendra Nath
Seal; second was Professor Patrick Geddes; and the third one was an old, intimate
colleague who died early, Narendra Nath Sen Gupta. The first two, Prof. Seal and Prof.
Geddes contributed to the establishment and development of sociology as a discipline in
the Indian Universities. Mukerjee always consulted Seal in all his works. His stress on
comparative method in cultural sciences was due to Seal's influence on his work. Patrick
Geddes too, influenced Mukerjee's work on study of regions, ecology and population while
Narendra Nath Sen Gupta helped generate Mukerjee's interest in Social Psychology.
Besides these Indian thinkers there were many Western social thinkers with whom Mukerjee
worked and who influenced his writings. Some of these were sociologists like, Edward
Allsworth Ross, Robert Ezra Park of Chicago, Mckenzie and P. Sorokin. Most of these
Americans sociologists were interested in the study of region, urban disorganisation, human
ecology, social change and so on. The friendship and intellectual interaction with these
sociologists stimulated Mukerjee's own efforts in social sciences to which he gave due
credit (Singh 1956:). Mukerjee taught economics and sociology in Lucknow University for
nearly thirty years. He also became the Vice-Chancellor and Director of the J.K. Institute
of Sociology and Human Relation of the University.
Mukherje wrote erudite volumes on several issues. The basic nature of his writings
is the integration of the social sciences and he has been a path-finder in many fields. Many
of his students and associates reflect this approach in their writings (Singh 1956: 3-20). He
died in the year 1968 but his contributions have left a deep imprint on the students of
sociology. Central Ideas In the Indian universities, the compartmentalization of disciplines
has dominated the scene. Disciplines such as sociology, psychology and statistics have
existed side by side in the same college or university but there has been very little interaction
between them. In his teachings and writings, Mukerjee emphasized the need for mutual
interaction between social sciences on the one hand and between social sciences and
physical sciences on the other. For example, Indian economics, modeled on British
economics, mostly neglected the traditional caste networks in indigenous business, handicrafts
and banking. Economic development was mainly viewed as an extension of monetary
economics or market phenomenon. The Western model in economics focused on the
urban-industrial centres.
Relationship between Economic and Social Behavior:
In a country like India where many economic transactions take place within the
framework of caste or tribe, the "market model" has a limited relevance. Mukerjee tried
to show the relationship between traditional networks and economic exchange. The guilds
and castes of India were operating in a non-competitive system. The rules of economic
exchange were derived from the normative Hinduism, in other words, according to the
norms of Hindu religion wherein interdependence between groups was emphasized. Hence,
to understand rural India, the economic values should be analyzed with reference to social
norms. Religious and/ or ethical constraints have always lent a direction to economic
exchange. Values enter into the daily life of people and compel them to act in collectively
sanctioned ways. For example, a hungry upper caste Hindu would not eat beef; likewise,
an orthodox Muslim or Jew would not eat pork, however urgent may be the need for food.
Therefore, it is wrong to always treat economic behavior as separate from social life or
collectivity.
Social Ecology:
Social Ecology was another theme which preoccupied Mukerjee. He wrote a number
of books on the theme. For him social ecology was a complex formulation in which a
number of social sciences interacted. The geological, geographical and biological factors
worked together to produce an ecological zone. In its turn, ecology is conditioned by
social, economic or political factors. For example, in the past many Indian ecological
regions were opened up for human settlement and agrarian development through political
conquests. As there is a definite link between ecology and society the development of
ecological zones must be seen in terms of a dynamic process: that is, challenge of the
environment and response of the people who establish a settlement. Ecological balance is
not a mechanical carving out of a territory and settling people thereon. Such an attempt
weakens or destroys social fabric. For example, in building irrigation dams in India, very
often people of the concerned locations are moved to new settlements. The lack of a
proper perspective on involuntary resettlement and rehabilitation has often caused damage
to social life of these people. In many parts of India, there is a traditional system of
interdependence known as jajmani in the north or by its equivalents in other regions. If
people are moved into other locations such arrangements abruptly come to an end. Only
by planning suitable alternatives in advance, can this disruption be overcome. For example,
the cooperatives can help people, in the absence of old social patterns of interdependence.
Hence, social perspective is necessary for orderly and systematic transformation of India
into an urban-industrial economy. According to Mukerjee, social ecology was the better
alternative to the havoc caused by rapid industrialization. India, with its long history, was
a storehouse of values. Therefore, in building a new India the planning must not be confined
to immediate and concrete problems but must be directed towards value-based developments.
As part of his interest in social ecology, Mukerjee developed the regional sociology. He
argued for a better understanding of regional dimensions of national development. If the
regions in modern India were developed so as to make them self-sufficient, then the nation
as a whole would stand to benefit. Otherwise, some regions would dominate the rest
resulting in a lopsided development. As India was a country of diverse regions, each with
a distinctive ethno-history i.e. the history of its various ethnic groups, it was imperative to
coordinate the developments schemes for maintaining ecological balance. In sum, he stood
for a balance between economic growth and ecological fitness. In achieving this end, many
skills, such as weaving, engraving etc., were inherited by caste groups in India. These crafts
could be well incorporated into the modern cooperatives.
In other words, the modernization of Indian society should not neglect its traditional
economic networks. Incidentally, in the post-Independent India, the traditional crafts have
been organized into handloom cooperatives, etc. in Tamil Nadu and other states. Likewise,
the Khadi Gramodyog has also used the traditional skills for modern production.
Plea for conservation of forests Mukerjee wrote extensively on the danger of
deforestation. The cutting of trees subjects the soil to the fury of floods and reduces the
fertility of soil. The topsoil which is washed away by floods or excess rainfall cannot be
replenished. Therefore, the forest and woods of India was an ecological asset. His plea for
conservation has been taken up at present by a number of activists, voluntary organizations
such as Chipko and Apko, which focus on halting the destruction of trees. Mukerjee also
referred to the danger of mono-cultivation that is, raising a single cash crop (such as cotton
or sugarcane) to the detriment of rotation of crops. Such practices as deforestation and
mono-cultivation disturbed the fragile ecosystem and gave rise to severe environmental
problems. Every year some parts of India especially in the north suffer either from floods
or from droughts. Of course, cyclones of the coastal regions are beyond human control,
but the manmade disasters, such as the depletion of natural resources through deforestation
can be slowed down or prevented.
Mukerjee advocated the integration of village, town and nation into a single, broad-
based developmental process. Urban development at the expense of the village should be
kept in check. Agriculture should be diversified and industries decentralized. A more equitable
distribution of wealth and resources, not only between sections of people but also between
regions, would bring about a more balanced development.
An Ameliorative Approach to Urban Social Problems Mukerjee was also interested
in the ameliorative approach to the problems of working class. The industrialization in India,
which has been taking place during the last several decades, succeeded in bringing together
people from diverse regions and languages. But the living conditions of workers in the
urban centers such as Mumbai, Kanpur, Kolkata and Chennai were adversely affected by
slum life. In the early days of industrialization, urban slums gave rise to vices such as
prostitution, gambling and crime. It was, therefore, necessary to bring about drastic changes
in the lives of workers to improve their economic and moral conditions. Therefore, Mukerjee's
analysis of the working class is relevant even for the present industrial organisation in India.
Theory of Values as noted previously, Radhakamal Mukerjee had a sustained interest
in the impact of values on human society. In the middle of the twentieth century, the notion
of a value- free social science became dominant in academic circles both in the West and
in India. Mukerjee held that a separation between "fact" and "value" was arbitrary. The
facts and values could not be separated from each other in human interactions. Even a
simple transaction like taking food, wearing dress or greeting others was a value based or
normatively conditioned behavior. Each society has a distinctive culture and its values and
norms guide the behavior. Therefore, the positivistic tradition of the West which (on the
analogy of sciences) wanted to separate facts from values was not tenable to R.K. Mukerjee,
especially in the study of a society like India.
R.K.Mukerjee underlined two basic points in relation to values. Firstly, values are not
limited only to religion or ethics. Economics, politics and law also give rise to values. In
other words, human needs are transformed into social values and are internalized in the
minds of members of society. Older civilizations such as India and China were stable.
Hence, values were formed and organized into a hierarchy of higher and lower levels.
Secondly, values are not a product of subjective or individualistic aspirations. They are
objectively grounded in humankind's social aspirations and desires. In other words, values
are both general and objective i.e., measurable by empirical methods. In general, the great
civilizations of the world have subordinated instrumental or materialistic goals to intrinsic or
spiritual goals. To sum up, there are three salient points in Mukherjee's theory of values.
Firstly, values satisfy the basic impulses of men and women in an orderly fashion. This
means that the selfish desires and interests are modified by collective living, wherein people
give and take from each other.
Secondly, values are generic in scope and include both individual and social responses
and attitudes. This means that the values are shared by all through their symbolization. The
national flag, for example, is a common symbol for all individuals and groups who constitute
a nation.
Thirdly, in spite of diversities of human society, some universal values are discernible.
The major religions of humankind are repositories of these universal values and norms. A
dynamic approach to society will aim at an adaptation of inherited values to the needs of
contemporary times.
Indian Culture and Civilization:

Mukerjee also wrote extensively on Indian art and architecture, history and culture.
Mukerjee (1964) believed that Asiatic art aimed at collective developments and wrote,
"Art in Asia became the torch-bearer of social and spiritual upheavals for millions …..Oriental
art is most intensely charged with community feeling and is thus chiefly responsible for the
historical continuity of Oriental Cultures". In contrast, such artistic endeavour in the West
had been dominated either by individualism or the feeling that art was an end in itself. This
was just not conducive to either social solidarity or spiritual development. Indian art was
embedded in social or ethical sphere. R.K. Mukerjee wrote "The myriad temples, stupas
and viharas of India bear witness to the link between art and ethics, religious and social
values. Art in India is an enduring component of people's interaction with each other which
shows in concrete forms the active relationship between people's aspirations and their
artistic creativity". Indian art was constantly associated with religion. In his historical study
of India Mukerjee was impressed by the non-aggressive nature of Indian religions such as
Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism. The remarkable quality of Indian religions was their
insistence on ultimate truth rather than on a particular set of beliefs or rituals. The Indian
influences spread to many countries not through war or conquest but through friendship and
goodwill. Right from the time of Ashoka, the peaceful "colonisation" of Sri Lanka, Cambodia.
Tibet, and other countries of Outer India took place. Indian art and religion enriched the
local cultures and by doing so gave rise to a new culture. For example, even today,
different styles of Ramayana, the Hindu religious epic, are performed in these countries and
several others like Indonesia, Sumatra, Trinidad. Thus, there was the harmony between
foreign and indigenous elements. In India itself, the Hindu legal texts such as Dharmasastra
are flexible codes to accommodate the ethnic diversities of India. Correctly interpreted,
these texts provide a framework of values and norms for the orderly living of diverse
groups. Thus, art and religion in India have been tolerant of diverse forms and styles.
Mukerjee's Concept of Universal Civilization:
Mukerjee's general theory of society sought to explain the values of a universal
civilization. He used the term "civilization" in an inclusive sense; culture was part of it. He
proposed that human civilization should be studied on three inter-related levels.
These are:
i) Biological Evolution:
The biological evolution of human beings has facilitated the rise and development of
civilization. They have the capacity to change the environment as an active agent. The
animals can only adapt to an environment; but human beings can mould it in different ways.
The human beings, as a biological species, are capable of overcoming competition and
conflict and attain cooperation (symbiosis).
ii) Psycho-social Dimension:
There is a psycho-social dimension. In social psychology the people are often depicted
within the framework of race, ethnicity or nationhood. Human beings are seen as prisoners
of little selves or egos, whose attitude is parochial or ethnocentric. On the contrary, human
beings have the potentiality to overcome the narrow feelings and attain universalisation that
is, to identify oneself with the larger collectivity such as one's nation or even as a member
of the universe itself. In the process, common values help to subordinate the particularistic
values to universal values. According to Mukerjee, ethical relativism which means that
values vary from society to society) is not helpful in the present times; there is need for
ethical universalism which affirms the unity of the humankind. In the new perspective, men
and women become free moral agents who are capable of recognizing the common strands
binding the humanity. They are no longer dictated by divisiveness or relativity.
iii) Spiritual Dimension:
In Mukerjee's views, the civilization has a spiritual dimension. Human beings are
gradually scaling transcendental heights. That is, they are moving up to the ladder of
spirituality by overcoming the constraints of biogenic and existential levels i.e. the physical
and material limitations. In this endeavour, art, myth and religion provide the "impulsion" or
the force to move upward. As the social sciences have hitherto ignored these cultural
elements, they are incapable of providing a spiritual perspective. Incidentally, a similar
observation was made by Karl Mannheim, a German sociologist, who wrote on sociology
of culture. Mannheim noted that the Western social sciences had neglected cultural dimensions
(arts, myths, symbols, etc.) under the rigid code of positivism or structural functionalism.
This resulted in a lopsided view of social reality. According to Mukerjee, humankind's
search for unity, wholeness and transcendence highlight the spirituality of civilization. In this
respect, he commended the Indian and Chinese civilizations which had endured as stable
entitles since sixth century B.C. Their strength is derived from their universal myths and
values which foster spiritual quest. Mukerjee noted with satisfaction that the search for
university was embodied in the Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations
Organization (U.N.O.) in the twentieth century. These rights upheld liberty and dignity of
people, in whichever country they might be living. Mukerjee's emphasis on spirituality was
not an escapist dream. He stated that human progress (in the ultimate sense) was possible
only if glaring disparities of wealth and power between countries were reduced. So long
as poverty persisted or political oppression continued, further integral evolution of mankind
was not a practical proposition. The persisting human awareness of misery in the world had
stimulated the search for universal values and norms.
Some Important Works of Radhakamal Mukerjee
Important works in sociology are:
i) The Regional Balance of Man (1938)
ii) Indian Working Class (1940)
iii) The Social Structure of Values (1955)
iv) Philosophy of Social Sciences (1960) v) Flowering of Indian Art (1964)
4.4 Western Social Thinkers

4.4.1 Emile Durkheim
Sociology as a Discipline and Social Facts Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) is considered
one of the "fathers" of sociology because of his effort to establish sociology as a discipline
distinct from philosophy and psychology. This effort is evident in the two main themes that
permeate Durkheim's work: the priority of the social over the individual and the idea that
society can be studied scientifically. Durkheim's concept of social facts, in particular,
differentiates sociology from philosophy and psychology. Social facts are the social structures
and cultural norms and values that are external to, and coercive over, individuals. Social
facts are not attached to any particular individual; nor are they reducible to individual
consciousness. Thus, social facts can be studied empirically. According to Durkheim, two
different types of social facts exist: material and immaterial. Durkheim was most interested
in studying the latter, particularly morality, collective conscience, collective representation,
and social currents.
The Division of Labor:
In this work Durkheim discussed how modern society is held together by a division
of labour that makes individuals dependent upon one another because they specialized in
different types of work. Durkheim is particularly concerned about how the division of
labour changes the way that individuals feel they are part of society as a whole. Societies
with little division of labour (i.e., where people are self-sufficient) are unified by mechanical
solidarity; all people engage in similar tasks and thus have similar responsibilities, which
builds a strong collective conscience. Modern society, however, is held together by organic
solidarity (the differences between people), which weakens collective conscience. Durkheim
studied these different types of solidarity through laws. A society with mechanical solidarity
is characterized by repressive law, while a society with organic solidarity is characterized
by restitutive law.
Suicide
Durkheim's goal to differentiate sociology from psychology is perhaps best seen in this
work on how social facts can be used to explain suicide rates. This work is also important
because of the historical comparative method that Durkheim uses to show that that suicide
rates vary across societies and over time. According to Durkheim, suicide cannot simply
be explained by individual psychological problems-otherwise suicide rates would be static.
Durkheim argues that two social facts, in particular, influence suicide rates: integration, or
the strength of attachment people feel to society, and regulation, or the degree of external
constraint on people. Durkheim distinguished between four types of suicide that correlate
to these two social facts. Egoistic suicide is a result of a lack of integration; altruistic suicide
is a result of too much integration; anomic suicide is a result of too little regulation; and
fatalistic suicide is a result of too much regulation.
Elementary Forms of Religious Life:
This is perhaps Durkheim's most complex work, as he attempted to provide both a
sociology of religion and a theory of knowledge. In this work, Durkheim studied primitive
society to demonstrate that an enduring quality of all religions, even the most modern, is
the differentiation between the sacred and the profane. The sacred is created through
rituals, and what is deemed sacred is what morally binds individuals to society. This moral
bond then becomes, according to Durkheim, a cognitive bond that shapes the categories
we use to understand the social world. The development of religion is not simply based on
the differentiation between the sacred and the profane, but also on religious beliefs, rituals,
and the church. The latter two conditions are particularly important to Durkheim because
they connect the individual to the social; individuals learn about the sacred and religious
beliefs through participating in rituals and the church.
The most primitive form of religion is totemism, which is connected to the least
complex form of social organization, the clan. The totem is the actual representation of the
clan-it is the material representation of the nonmaterial, collective morality of the clan.
Totemism is important to Durkheim's theory of knowledge in that it is one of his categories
of understanding: classification. Other categories of understanding include time, space,
force, causality, and totality. These six categories may be abstract concepts, but they are
all derived from social experiences, particularly rituals. Durkheim acknowledged that it is
possible for moral and cognitive categories to change or be created new through what he
called collective effervescence, or periods of great collective exaltation.
Cult of the Individual:
Although Durkheim focused much of his attention on the social, he did not dismiss the
idea of individualism. Indeed, he believed that in modern society the individual has become
sacred, and he called the modern form of collective conscience the cult of the individual.
According to Durkheim, humans are constituted by two beings or selves: one is based on
the isolated individuality of the body, and the other is based on the social. These two beings
may be in a continual state of tension, and they are connected in that individuality develops
as society develops. For example, it is only in modern society, characterized by the division
of labour, that people even come to understand themselves as distinct individuals. Durkheim
argued that individuality has both positive and negative consequences. Egoism, or the selfish
pursuit of individual interests, is at odds with moral individualism, the ability to sacrifice self
interest for the rights of all other individual human beings.
Moral Education and Social Reform:
Durkheim believed that society is the source of morality; therefore, he also believed
that society could be reformed, especially through moral education. According to Durkheim,
morality is composed of three elements: discipline, attachment, and autonomy. Discipline
constrains egoistic impulses; attachment is the voluntary willingness to be committed to
groups; and autonomy is individual responsibility. Education provides children with these
three moral tools needed to function in society. Adults can also acquire these moral tools
by NPTEL (A project funded by MHRD) Humanities and Social Sciences - Introduction
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occupational associations. According to Durkheim, these associations would include members
of a particular occupation regardless of class position and could provide a level of integration
and regulation, both of which tend to be weakened by the division of labour.
Criticisms:
Durkheim is often criticized for being a functionalist and a positivist. However, his
historical comparative methodology puts him at odds with functionalists and positivists who
believe that invariant social laws exist that can explain social phenomenon across all societies.
Durkheim does tend to emphasize the objective nature of social facts; thus, he neglects the
subjective interpretations that social actors may have of a particular social phenomenon and
the agency of individuals in general to control social forces. Furthermore, Durkheim's basic
assumption about human nature - that people are driven by their passion for gratification
that can never be satisfied is not empirically substantiated in any of his work. Finally,
Durkheim's understanding of the relationship between morality and sociology has been
critiqued as being conservative.
4.4.2 Cooley as Western Social Thinker
Charles Horton Cooley (August 17, 1864 - May 7, 1929)
Charles Horton Cooley was an American sociologist and the son of Michigan Supreme
Court Judge Thomas M. Cooley. He studied and went on to teach economics and sociology
at the University of Michigan, was a founding member of the American Sociological
Association in 1905 and became its eighth president in 1918. He is perhaps best known
for his concept of the looking-glass self, which is the concept that a person's self grows
out of society's interpersonal interactions and the perceptions of others. Cooley's health
began to deteriorate in 1928. He was diagnosed with an unidentified form of cancer in
March 1929 and died two months later.
Charles Horton Cooley was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on August 17, 1864, to
Mary Elizabeth Horton and Thomas M. Cooley. Thomas Cooley was the Supreme Court
Judge for the state of Michigan, and he was one of the first three faculty members to found
the University of Michigan Law School in 1859. He served as dean of the law school from
1859-1884. Cooley's mother, Mary, took an active interest in public affairs and traveled
with her husband to several cities around the United States in relation to the Interstate
Commerce Commission. His father was a very successful political figure that stressed the
importance of education to his six children. Nevertheless, Cooley had a difficult childhood,
which exacerbated his feelings of detachment towards his father. The intimidation and
alienation he felt towards his own father caused him to suffer from a variety of illnesses for
fifteen years during his adolescence, some appearing to be psychosomatic. He developed
a speech impediment, among other insecurities, due to his lack of interaction with other
children. Cooley was a daydreamer and much of his "dreaming-life" had a substantial
influence to his sociological works. As a child, he dealt with feelings of isolation and
loneliness, which led him to develop an interest in reading and writing.

At the age of sixteen, Cooley began attending the University of Michigan. Chronic
constipation negatively affected his life in college since it constantly distracted him from his
studies. Due to his medical condition, Cooley graduated from the University of Michigan
seven years later in 1887, and continued with a year's training in mechanical engineering.
Cooley returned to pursue a master's degree in political science and sociology in 1890.
Following completion, he began teaching economics and sociology at UMich in the fall of
1892. Cooley went on to receive a Ph.D. in philosophy in 1894. At this time he was
interested in the subject matter of sociology, but due to the University of Michigan not
having a sociology department, he had to continue the examination of his Ph.D. through
Columbia University. There, Cooley worked closely alongside American sociologist and
economist, Franklin Henry Giddings and developed his doctoral thesis, The Theory of
Transportation in economics.
Since his father was honored nationwide, Cooley feared the idea of failure. He lacked
direction in life and contemplated science, mathematics, social science, psychology or
sociology as his field of study. He wished to write and think, and after reading philosopher
Herbert Spencer's works, Cooley realized he had an interest in social problems. He shared
his reflections of the works of Spencer in 1920, citing that while he brought many valuable
viewpoints with the subject of Darwinian principles, he lacks sympathy and the appropriate
usage of the sociological perspective.
Cooley decided that he wanted to study sociology because it gave him the ability to
analyze social discrepancies. He taught the University of Michigan's very first sociology
class in 1899. He also played a prominent role in the development of symbolic interactionism,
in which he worked heavily with another fellow staff member from the University of
Michigan, psychologist John Dewey.
Family life
Cooley married Elsie Jones in 1890, who was the daughter of a professor of medicine
at the University of Michigan. Mrs. Cooley differed from her husband in that she was
outgoing, energetic, and capable of ordering their common lives in such a manner that
mundane cares were not to weigh heavily on her husband. The couple had three children,
a boy, and two girls, and lived quietly and fairly withdrawn in a house close to the campus.
The children served Cooley as his own domestic laboratory subjects for his study of
genesis and growth of the self. He would observe imitation behavior in his three children
and analyzed their reactions based on age. Even when he was not engaged in the observation
of his own self and wished to observe others, he did not need to leave the domestic circle.
Cooley also found pleasure in amateur botany and bird-watching in spare time away from
his research.
Theory
Cooley's methodology
Cooley is noted for his displeasure at the divisions within the sociological community
over methodology. He preferred an empirical, observational approach. While he appreciated
the use of statistics after working as a statistician in the Interstate Commerce Commission
and Census Bureau, he preferred case studies: often using his own children as the subjects
on his observation. He also encouraged sociologists to use the method of sympathetic
introspection when attempting to understand the consciousness of an individual. Cooley
thought that the only practical method is to study the actual situation "closely" and "kindly"
with other people involved, then gradually work out the evil from the mixture and replace
it with good. Basically, the only way to understand a grotesque human being is to identify
how and why his human nature has come to work that way. He felt it was necessary in
order to truly understand the activities taken from the actor, effectively separating Cooley
from a majority of sociologists who preferred more traditional, scientific techniques.
Theory on transportation and the shift to sociology
Cooley's first major work, The Theory of Transportation (1894), was his doctoral
dissertation on economic theory. In his thesis, he discussed industrial growth and expansion
during the nineteenth century. This piece was notable for its conclusion that towns and cities
tend to be located at the confluence of transportation routes-the so-called "break" in
transportation. Cooley soon shifted to a broader analysis of the interplay of individual and
social processes. In Human Nature and the Social Order (1902) he foreshadowed George
Herbert Mead's discussion of the symbolic ground of the self by detailing the way in which
an individual's active participation in society affects the emergence of normal social
participation. Cooley greatly extended this conception of the "looking-glass self" (I am, who
I think you think, that I am) in his next book, Social Organization (1909), in which he
sketched a comprehensive approach to society and its major processes.
Social organization
The first sixty pages of the Social Organization (1909) were a sociological antidote to
Sigmund Freud. In that much-quoted segment, Cooley formulated the crucial role of primary
groups (family, playgroups and community of elders) as the source of one's morals, sentiments,
and ideals. Primary groups are the first groups of individuals one is introduced to and are
also influenced in their ideas and beliefs. They are the result of intimate association and
corporation, along with coinciding ideals and values. He argued that individuals have two
different channels of life- one from heredity and the other from society. Heredity is biological
and predisposed; it is the human nature that people are born with. Society is the human
nature that is expressed in primary groups that we can find in all civilizations. But the impact
of a primary group is so great that individuals cling to shared beliefs in more complex
associations, and even create new primary groupings within formal organizations.
In the Social Organization, Cooley asked what made up a society? He focused on the
relationship between the individual and the larger unity of the society. He viewed society
and the individual as one since they cannot exist without one another: where society has
a strong impact on individual behavior and vice versa. He also concluded that the more
industrialized a society becomes, the more individualistic its inhabitants are. Cooley viewed
society as a constant experiment in enlarging social experience and in coordinating variety.
He, therefore, analyzed the operation of such complex social forms as formal institutions
and social class systems and the subtle controls of public opinion. Class differences reflect
different contributions to society, as well as the phenomena of aggrandizement (the increase
of power or reputation of individuals and values) and exploitation.
Cooley and social subjectivity
Cooley's theories regarding social subjectivity were described in a threefold necessity
that had developed within the realm of society. The first of which was the necessity to
create an understanding of social phenomena that highlighted the subjective mental processes
of individuals. Yet, Cooley realized that these subjective processes were both the causes
and effects of society's processes. The second necessity examined the development of a
social dynamic conception that portrayed states of chaos as natural occurrences which
could provide opportunities for "adaptive innovation." Finally, a need to manifest publics
that were capable of exerting some form of "informed moral control" over current problems
and future directions.
In regards to these aforementioned dilemmas, Cooley responded by stating "society
and individual denote not separable phenomena but different aspects of the same thing, for
a separate individual is an abstraction unknown to experience, and so likewise is society
when regarded as something apart from individuals." From this, he resolved to create a
"Mental-Social" Complex of which he would term the "looking-glass self."
The looking-glass self is created through the imagination of how one's self might be
viewed through the eyes of another individual. This would later be termed "empathic
introspection." This theory not only applied to the individual, but to the macro-level economic
issues of society and macro-sociological conditions that develop over time.
To the economy, Cooley presented a divergent view from the norm, stating that
"...even economic institutions could not be understood solely as a result of impersonal
market forces." With regard to the sociological perspective and its relevancy toward traditions
he states that the dissolution of traditions may be positive, thus creating "the sort of virtues,
as well as of vices, that we find on the frontier: plain dealing, love of character and force,
kindness, hope, hospitality and courage." He believed that sociology continues to contribute
to the "growing efficiency of the intellectual processes that would enlighten the larger public
will."
The "looking-glass self"
The "looking-glass self" is undoubtedly Cooley's most famous concept, and is widely
known and accepted by psychologists and sociologists today. It expanded William James's
idea of self to include the capacity of reflection on its own behavior. Other people's views
build, change and maintain our self-image; thus, there is an interaction between how we see
ourselves and how others see us. Through these interactions, human beings develop an idea
of who they are. He argued that when we feel shame or pride, it is due to what we think
others view us as. He also mentioned that we do not always perceive someone's impressions
correctly. For example, if a student incorrectly answers a question in class, they might later
question their own intelligence or capacity to prepare sufficiently. The notion of the looking-
glass self applies throughout an individual's life: interactions with new people time and again
encourage self-evaluation based on a presumed impression given off. In other words, one's
self-identity can be socially constructed.
In his 1902 work, ‘Human Nature and the Social Order’, Cooley defined this concept
as:
"... a somewhat definite imagination of how one's self-that is, any idea he
appropriates-appears in a particular mind, and the kind of self-feeling one has
is determined by the attitude toward this attributed to that other mind... So in
imagination, we perceive in another's mind some thought of our appearance,
manners, aims, deeds, character, friends, and so on, and are variously affected
by it."
Thus, the three stages observed in the looking-glass self are outlines as:
 You imagine how you appear to the other person.
 You imagine the judgment of the other person.
 You feel some sense of pride, happiness, guilt, or shame.
A self-idea of this sort seems to have three principal elements: the imagination of our
appearance to the other person; the imagination of his judgment of that appearance, and
some sort of self-feeling, such as pride or mortification.
Social process
Cooley's Social Process (1918) emphasized the non-rational, tentative nature of social
organization and the significance of social competition. Social Process was an essay-based
work that expressed Cooley's social theories. It was more philosophical than sociological.
He interpreted modern difficulties as the clash of primary group values (love, ambition,
loyalty) and institutional values (impersonal ideologies such as progress or Protestantism)
(See also The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism). As societies try to cope with
their difficulties, they adjust these two kinds of values to one another as best they can.
Cooley also mentioned the idea of heroes and hero worship. He believed that heroes were
an aide or a servant to the internalization of social norms because they represent and serve
as an example to reinforce social values. The Social Process was Cooley's last major
work, heavily influenced by Darwinian principles of natural selection and adaptation to
collective (social) existence.
4.5 Theoretical Paradigms of Sociology

4.5.1 Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Symbolic Interactionism:
Symbolic Interactionism is a social theory that focuses on the analysis of the patterns
of communication, interpretation and adjustment between individuals. The theory outlines
the understandings on how individuals interact with one another and inside the society by
attaching meanings to various symbols. Both the verbal and nonverbal responses that a
listener listens then delivers are likewise built up in anticipation of how the original narrator
will respond.
Here we have tried—

 To provide the meaning and explanation of the theory of symbolic interactionism;
 To let the reader know about the various exponents of the theory;
 To provide the basic premises and approach of the theory;
 To provide the key ideas of the theory among the various schools of thought in
the discipline of Sociology.
Symbolic Interactionism elucidates social behavior in terms of interactions between the
people through symbols and it also views that the viable way to understand social structures
are through such individual interactions. During the 20th century, thinkers like George
Herbert Mead and Herbert Blumer developed this school of thought. They believed that
such social interactions help in the development of one's self and the manner in which
people communicate and interact with each other relies on their interpretation of the factors
such as actions, language and statuses etc. It could be best defined as a synthesis of
intellectual thought and rational method with realistic actions. The ongoing process of
Symbolic Interaction is like the game of charades; only it is a full-fledged conversation.
Even though there are quite many editions of interactionism thought, some deriving from
phenomenological writings by philosophers, the following description offers a basic merger
of these thoughts, engaged in points of union.
The term "symbolic interaction" refers, of course, to the peculiar and distinctive character
of interaction as it takes place between human beings. The peculiarity consists in the fact
that human beings interpret or "define" each other's actions instead of merely reacting to
each other's actions. Their "response" is not made directly to the actions of one another
but instead is based on the meaning which they attach to such actions. Thus, human
interaction is mediated by the use of symbols, by interpretation, or by ascertaining the
meaning of one another's actions. This mediation is equivalent to inserting a process of
interpretation between stimulus and response in the case of human behavior. Historical
Background Conceivably the most significant sociological standpoint from North America
has been that of Symbolic Interactionism which traces its roots in the pragmatist philosophers
such as Peirce, Dewey, Cooley, and Mead. This sociological perspective has a stretched
academic account, commencing with the German sociologist and economist, Max Weber
(1864-1920) and the American philosopher, George H. Mead (1863-1931), both of
whom highlighted the subjective meaning of human behavior, the social process and
pragmatism.
The early proponents of the theory of Symbolic Interactionism were George Herbert
Mead and Charles Horton Cooley. G. H. Mead opined that the accurate analysis of any
theory lies in the fact that it should be helpful in cracking the other intricate social problems.
The impact of Mead's analysis of the Symbolic Interactionism was said to be so commanding
that other sociologists considered him as the one "true founder" of Symbolic Interactionism
school of thought. The term Symbolic Interactionism was coined by Blumer in 1937. He
kept this sociological viewpoint animate through the early 1950s at Chicago, and then in
California where he was a professor at the University of Californa in Berkeley. Though
Holton and Cohen argue that Blumer took only certain ideas from Mead, but it was Blumer
who developed specific aspects that formed the basis for later symbolic interaction
approaches. Two other theorists who have influenced Symbolic Interactionism theory are
Yrjö Engeström and David Middleton. Engeström and Middleton explained the usefulness
of symbolic interactionism in the communication field in a "variety of work setting including,
courts of law, health care, computer software design, scientific laboratory, telephone sales,
control, repair, and maintenance of advance manufacturing system. Other scholars credited
for their contribution to the theory are Thomas, Park, James, Horton, Cooley, Znaniecki,
Baldwin, Redfield, and Wirth. In addition, these focuses on interaction and on the connotation
of events to the participants in those events (the definition of the situation) drift the
concentration of interactionists away from steady norms and values toward more unstable
and repeatedly readjusting social processes. While for the functionalists socialization generates
solidity in the social system, for interactionists, on the other hand, negotiation among
members of society creates momentary, socially constructed relations which linger in invariable
fluctuation, despite relative stability in the fundamental framework governing those relations.
These stresses on negotiated reality, symbols and the social construction of society lead to
an interest in the roles people play. To sum up, the characteristics of the symbolic interaction
point of view are prominence on interactions among people, application of symbols in
communication and interaction, interpretation as a fraction of action, self as constructed by
others through communication and interaction, and flexible and adaptable social processes.
It is primarily concerned with the interaction patterns of day to day life and experiences,
rather than the structures associated with large scale and relatively fixed social forces and
laws. There are five central ideas to Symbolic Interactionism according to Joel M. Charon,
author of Symbolic Interactionism.
1. The human being must be understood as a social person. It is the constant search
for social interaction that leads us to do what we do. Instead of focusing on the
individual and his or her personality, or on how the society or social situation
causes human behavior, symbolic interactionism focuses on the activities that take
place between actors. Interaction is the basic unit of study. Individuals are created
through interaction; society too is created through social interaction. What we do
depends on interaction with others earlier in our lifetimes, and it depends on our
interaction right now. Social interaction is central to what we do. If we want to
understand cause, focus on social interaction.
2. The human being must be understood as a thinking being. Human action is not only
interaction among individuals but also interaction within the individual. It is not our
ideas or attitudes or values that are as important as the constant active ongoing
process of thinking. We are not simply conditioned, we are not simply beings who
are influenced by those around us, we are not simply products of society. We are,
to our very core, thinking animals, always conversing with ourselves as we interact
with others. If we want to understand cause, focus on human thinking.
3. Humans do not sense their environment directly, instead, humans define the situation
they are in. An environment may actually exist, but it is our definition of it that is
important. Definition does not simply randomly happen; instead, it results from
ongoing social interaction and thinking.
4. The cause of human action is the result of what is occurring in our present situation.
Cause unfolds in the present social interaction, present thinking, and present definition.
It is not society's encounters with us in our past, that causes action nor is it our
own past experience that does. It is, instead, social interaction, thinking, definition
of the situation that takes place in the present. Our past enters into our actions
primarily because we think about it and apply it to the definition of the present
situation.
5. Human beings are described as active beings in relation to their environment.
Words such as conditioning, responding, controlled, imprisoned, and formed are
not used to describe the human being in symbolic interaction. In contrast to other
social-scientific perspectives humans are not thought of as being passive in relation
to their surroundings, but actively involved in what they do.
4.5.2 Functionalist Perspective
The functional perspective has considered society as a complex system whose
components works together to promote sustainable growth and stability. It is a micro level
orientation which focuses on social structure as well as social functions. Functionalism

addresses society in terms of function of its constituent components such as : norms,
cultures, traditions, castes, creeds and institutions. Herbert spencer presents these parts of
sociology as 'organs' which are work together for the proper functioning of the body as
a whole. For example, crime is dysfunctional in that it is associated with physical violence,
loss of property and fear. According to Durkheim, crime is also a necessary part in society
because it focuses on the awareness of sharing moral bonds and social cohesion.
Again, the Government provides free education to the children and when the children
become adult, they pay taxes and help the country to progress. Functionalists believe that
society is held together by collectivism, in which members of the society agree upon and
work together for the progress of the society.
Functionalism draws its inspiration from the very concept of Durkheim. He was
concerned with the question of how society maintains its stability and survives over time.
He explains the stability of society using two coinages, such as: mechanical solidarity and
organic solidarity. More primitive and traditional society were held together by mechanical
solidarity. Members of primitive society lived in relatively small and undifferentiated groups,
where they shared strong family ties and performed similar daily tasks by sharing common
values and symbols. Where modern society relies on organic solidarity; because of the
extensive division of labours, members of society are forced to interact and exchange with
one another to provide the things they need.
In the 1950, Robert Merton elaborated the functionalist perspective by proposing a
distinction between manifest and latent functionalisms. Manifest functions are the intended
functions of social institutions whereas latent functions are unintended functions which may
have relations with dysfunctional activities. Crime in the Functionalist perspectives is viewed
as the latent function of providing examples that demonstrate the boundaries of acceptable
behaviour and the function of these boundaries to maintain social norms.
4.5.3 Conflict Perspective
Third important sociological framework is the conflict theory which interprets society
as a struggle for power between groups engaging in conflict for limited resources. Karl
Marx, the founder of complex theory has categorized the people in two groups: the
capitalist class and the social class. According to conflict theory, social problems are
created when dominant groups exploit or oppress subordinate groups. Therefore, basic
premise of conflict theory is that individuals and groups within the society will work to
maximize their own wealth and power. Weber beliefs about conflict extend beyond Marx's
because they suggest that some forms of social interaction, including, generate belief and
solidarity between individual's reactions to inequality might be different depending on the
groups with which they are associated. Conflict theorists of the later 20th and 21st centuries
have continued to extend conflict theory beyond the strict economic classes posited by
Marx, although economic relations remain a core feature of inequalities across groups in
the various branches of conflict theory. Conflict theory is highly influential in modern and
post modern theories of inequality, peace, conflict studies and the many varieties of identity
studies that have arisen across Western academia in past several decades.
4.6 Summary
In this unit we have learnt about two Indian sociologists Ghurye and Mukherjee and
two western sociologists Durkheim and Cooley through their life sketches and works. We
have tried to understand the different aspects of their sociological concepts. Ghurye explains
the caste system in India, Indian tribes and Rural-urbanization. He also elaborates the idea
of culture and civilization and about the Indian Sadhus in the context of sociology of
religion. Radhakamal Mukherjee tells us about the social ecology and universal civilization.
On the other hand Emile Durkheim explains about the suicide rate, the division of labour
and the elementary forms of religious life. We have then learnt about Charles Horton
Cooley and his theory of transportation. At last we have focused on the different theoretical
paradigms of sociology like Symbolic Interactionism, Functionalist Perspective and Conflict
Perspective.

1. What are the distinctive characteristics of Indian Caste system according to Ghurye?
2. What are the five source of danger as identified by Ghurye as the threat for Indian
national unity?
3. Why Ghurye is called the father of Indian Sociology?
4. What is process of acculturation?
5. Write two interrelated components of civilization according to Radhakamal Mukerjee?
6. What is the concept of ecology?
7. What is spiritual dimension?
8. Write about the suicide theory of Durkheim?

9. What is Totemisim?
10. What is mechanical solidarity?
11. What is organic solidarity?
12. What is morality according to Durkheim?
13. Write about the cooley's theory of looking glass?
14. What is Social subjectivity?
15. What is 'transportation' according to Cooley?
16. What is symbolic interaction in communication?
17. Give one example of functionalist perspective?
4.8 References
Emile, D. (1997). Division of Labor in Society. N.P: Free Press.
Friedkin, Noah E. (2004). Social Cohesion. Annual Review of Sociology. 30:409-25.
Perrin, Robert G. (1973). The Functionalist Theory of Change Revisited." The Pacific
Sociologist Review 16,1.
Ritzer, G. (2011). Modern Sociological Theory (5th ed.). New York: McGRAW-
HILL.
Society and Education - NIOS (2019) Retrieved from https://nios.ac.in/media/
documents/dled/Block1_507.pdf.
Unit 5  Social Change
Structure
5.1 Objectives
5.2 Introduction
5.3 Social Change
5.3.1 Concept of Social Change
5.3.2 Scope of Social Change
5.3.3 Role of Education in Social Change
5.4 Social Change in India
5.4.1 Sanskritization
5.4.2 Westernization
5.4.3 Globalization
5.5 Social Communication
5.5.1 Formal Social Communication
5.5.2 Informal Social Communication
5.6 Summary
5.8 References
5.1 Objectives
After going through this unit, you will be able to—
 understand the Concept, Scope of Social change and the Role of Education in
social change;
 explain the concept of Modernization, Urbanization and Westernization with
reference to Indian society;
 state the concept of Social Communication namely Formal and Informal.
5.2 Introduction
Change is the permanent quality of nature, hardly anything in our nature is static, time and
world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And who look only to the past or the
Present are certain to miss the future. Society is dynamic, man always looks forward to the
future in order to adjust himself with the environment, and interaction occurs and whenever
there is an interaction there is a change. Sometimes changes are so slow people do not realize
them, and some time they are so rapid and drastic. Each society developed gradually some
customs, traditions, values, and style of leaving we call this as culture of society, different type
of culture flourished in the world in the course of time. Culture of some societies prospered
and some lagged behind. There are changes from time to time in features of a society that
makes society mobile. Each society is subject to change. The change that occurs in customs,
activities of people, structure of society, style of living in any society are called social changes.
Education is considered the most power full instrument of social change. The social changes
to a great extent are brought about through the process of education. In the words of
secondary education commission report "Education is expected to change the attitudes and
values among people and create in them desirable progress".
Some thinkers identify social change with cultural change which in the narrow sense
refers to Changes in custom, speech and literary forms, language, dress or hair styles. Cultural
change is an important aspect of social change and occurs in a seizes influences by others
forms of culture. Social change is a continuous process. Social change implies change in the
social structure and functions of various aspects which form society. Social structure includes
family, the marriage system, caste system, educational institutions, customs etc.
5.3 Social change: Concept, Scope and Role of Education

Change in the composition of society is the basic meaning of social change- View of
Dr. Henry.
Social change means variation or modifications in any aspect of social process, pattern
or form—View of Fairchild.
Society is a complex network of patterned relationship in which all the members
participating in varying degree. These relationship change and the behavior changes at the
same time. These changes we refer to as social changes—View of Merrill.
"Social change refers to pattern of social relationship in a given setting"—Miller.
"Social change refers to the modifications in the organization and behavior of the group
as expressed in its laws, customs, modes and beliefs"—B.B.Mathur.
"Social change is a process responsive to many types of changes - changes in the
manmade conditions of living, changes in the attitude of man and changes that go beyond
human control to the biological and physical nature"—Maclver & Page
Thus, we can say that when change involves an alteration in the structure and functioning
of social process, modifying or replacing the old in the life of people, and changes in
relationship, behaviour pattern, then we can speak it as social change.
5.3.1 Concept of Social Change:
The International Encyclopedia of the Social Science (IESS 1972) looks at change as
the important alterations that occur in the social structure, or in the pattern of action and
interaction in societies. Alterations may occur in norms, values, cultural products and
symbols in a society. Other definitions of change also point out that change implies, above
all other things, alteration in the structure and function of a social system. Institutions,
patterns of interaction, work, leisure activities, roles, norms and other aspects of society
can be altered over time as a result of the process of social change.
Social change is essentially a process of alteration with no reference to the quality of
change. A change in societies is related/linked to changes in culture, so that it would be
sometimes useful to talk about 'socio-cultural change. Some sociologists, however,
differentiate between social change and cultural change. Social change is defined as alterations
in the social structure, (including the changes in the size of society) or in particular social
institutions, or in the relationship between institutions. They feel that social change refers
mainly to actual human behaviour. Cultural change, on the other hand, refers to variation
in cultural phenomena such as knowledge and ideas, art, religion moral doctrines, values,
beliefs, symbol systems and so on. This distinction is abstract, because in many situations
it is difficult, or nearly impossible to decide which type of change is occurring. For instance,
growth of modern technology as part of the culture has been closely associated with
alterations in the economic structures, on important part of the society.
Social change can vary in its scope and in speed. We can talk of small scale or large
scale changes. Changes can take a cyclical pattern, e.g. when there is the recurrence of
centralization and decentralization in administrative organizations. It can also be revolutionary.
Revolutionary change can be seen when there is an overthrow of government in a particular
nation. Change can also include short term changes (e.g. in migration rates) as well as long
term changes in economic structures. We can include in social change, both growth and
decline in membership and size of social institutions. Change may include continuous processes
like specialization, and also include discontinuous processes such as a particular technical
or social invention which appears at some point of time.
5.3.2 Scope of Social Change
The process of social change is continuous and slow process. There is need of social
change in society. Society cannot stop a social change. Change is the essential part of
society. Social change can be associated with either the whole structure of a society or part
of the structure. The speed of social change varies society to society or in different period
of time in society. Change in one society encourages other society. Change is a deviation
from traditions as some retained while the undesirable ones is dropped. Social change
involves not only economic, political, scientific changes but it also involves changes in mode
of socialization of individual and a basic change in personality structure of the individual.
Social change can be brought about by intelligence and with certain determination. Every
individual has certain goal and he want to achieve them. In attempt to achieve goal, he bring
about certain social changes. This indicates that there is definite purpose behind the process
of social change. When individuals are concern with the modification in status and role, the
stress and strain are produced in them and thereby social change takes place. Social
change can be brought by any factor like technology, industrialization, religion and ideology,
Change begins with the process of innovation. Innovations involve variation, invention in
social customs, conventions, traditions character and conduct of the individual. But we
cannot say that any one is prominent than the other. It is difficult to tell about the possible
changes in future. Change is the law of nature social change is inevitable, social change
means discarding some old thing or elements or addition of new things. Social change may
be for the good of society or otherwise. It is possible to know that there will be some
changes in our tradition though it is difficult to pin point social change.
5.3.3 Role of Education in Social Change
Education has brought about phenomenal changes in every aspects of human life.
Education can be used to empower the individual. Societal change comes from the collective
transformation of the individuals inside a society. Education being the chief instrument for
the development of science and technology is the most vital forces which can change a
society positively or negatively depending on the inner structure of that society.
Francis J. Brown remarks that Education is a process which brings about changes in
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the behaviour of society. It is a process which enables every individual to effectively

participate in the activities of society and to make positive contribution to the progress of
society.
Education has been accepted as one major agency of socialization, and teachers and
educational institutions as socializing agents. In describing education as an instrument of
social change, three things are important: the agents of change, the content of change, and
the social background of those who are sought to be changed, i.e. students. Educational
institutions under the control of different cultural groups reflect the values of those groups
which support and control education. According to this situation the teachers Impart specific
values, aspirations and to the children. The educated Social reformers emphasized values
like removal of caste restrictions, equality of women, doing away with social evil social
customs and practices, voice in the governance of the country, establishing democratic
institutions and so on. They, thus, wanted to teach liberal philosophy through education for
changing society. In other words they regarded education as a flame or light of knowledge
which dispelled the darkness of ignorance. In a static society, the main function of the
educational system is to transmit the cultural heritage to the new generations. But in a
changing society, these keep on changing from generation to generation and the educational
system in such a society must not only transmit the cultural heritage, but also aid in
preparing the young for adjustment to any changes in them that may have occurred or are
likely to occur in future. In contemporary societies, "The proportion of change that is either
planned or issues from the secondary consequences of deliberate innovations is much
higher than in former times." This is more so in societies that has newly become independent
and are in a developing stage. Thus, the relationship between educational system and
society is mutual; sometimes the society influences changes in educational system and at
other times the educational system influences changes in the society.
5.4 Social Change in India: Sanskritization, Westernization,

and Globalazitaion
Today's world is like an interconnected world. Any incidents somewhere in the world
impact the other parts of the world. The traditional ideas everywhere are being replaced
by more modern ideas. However, some people are trying it hard to reserve their traditional
way of living. But the powerful countries having their impact felt on the relatively less
powerful nations making the world a cultural colony. In this respect we will now discuss
about Sanskritization, Westernization and Globalization.
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5.4.1 Sanskritization
As a social process Sanskritization is unique to Indian subcontinent. Sanskritization is
a theory of social change advanced by the sociologist M.N. Srinivas in 1952 to describe
how upward mobility occurs in India's caste society, previously thought to be static. It is
the process by which lower caste groups attempt to raise their status and position within
the caste hierarchy by emulating upper caste social norms, such as the adoption of
vegetarianism and the worship of Brahminical Gods. The theory of Sanskritization recognizes
the great regional variation of caste groups across linguistic, ethnic, and geographical
boundaries, and the local power struggles that may shift a sub caste group's position in the
hierarchy, even if it does not lead to any structural change in the overarching caste schema.
The theory also reinforces the idea of a Brahmin-centric society that relegates the lower
castes to the role of imitators, thereby making it out of step with contemporary caste
politics.
Sanskritization is the process by which lower caste groups attempt to raise their status
and position within the overarching caste hierarchy by emulating upper caste social norms.
The classical delineation of caste comes from the Sanskritic Vedic period (1200-500 bce)
and is embodied in the concept of varna, which literally means "color." There are four
varnas in descending order of supposed ritual purity: (1) Brahmins (priests and scholars),
(2) Kshatriyas (rulers and warriors), and (3) Vaishyas (merchants and traders), who represent
the "twice-born" upper castes and whose male members have donned the sacred thread
after going through a ritual "second" birth; followed by (4) Shudras (laborers and servants)
and Dalits (formerly "untouchables" or "harijans"), the latter of whom are technically
considered to be outside the varna schema.
But if one considers the Dalit movement in India today, it is clear that Sanskritization
is not the sole motor of social change. Rather, Dalit and other lower caste groups are
working toward social mobility and uplift in legal and other systems that would allow for
better and more equitable access to education, including the study of English, health care,
clean water, and jobs, to name a few areas.
Models of Sanskritization:
1. Cultural Model
Castes have been assigned high or low status according to the cultural characteristics
of Hindus. The wearing of sacred thread, shunning the use of meat and liquor, observing
endogamy, prohibition of widow-marriage, observing the restrictions imposed by caste
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system, worship according to the modes and methods described in the religious text books
daily, an inclination and respect for religious texts and mythological stories, giving alms and
gifts, use of increase, lamp, flowers, grains and oblation at the time of worship, going to
temples and on pilgrimages etc. have been given sanctity in traditional culture. They are
considered to be the measuring standards of sacredness and purity. Therefore adopting in
one's life style the way of higher castes and accepting the mandates of Varnas, Ashramas,
Karma and Rebirth etc. and showing faith in the thoughts given in Sanskrit literature
regarding religion, vice and virtue, salvation, maya and Brahma are a form of Sanskritization.
In short accepting the behaviour and code of highness and purity as described in religious
texts is a form of Sanskritization.
2. Varna Model:
In the Varna system the highest status is that of a Brahman followed by Kshatriya,
Vaishya and Shudra. Antyaj (or the lowest) is the fifth varna which is the lowest and
untouchable. At different places Brahmans, Kshatriyas or Vaishyas acquire high respect in
the society. The lower castes copy the ideals and life styles of the superior class, where
Kshatriyas enjoy of 'superiority' their ideals are copied. Similarly where Vaishyas enjoy
superiority the lower castes copy their life-style and ideals. Only the lowest castes (Antyaj)
copy the Shudras. There is to say emulating the life-style or ideals of a varna on the basis
of honour and superiority enjoyed by that class is called the varna model of Sanskritization.
3. Local Model:
In every community, some castes are considered to be more respectful than others on
account of their numerical or economic power. Not caring for the caste hierarchy, people
rest of the community as superior or higher. This caste may be called the "master-class"
or in the language of Srinivas "the dominant caste". In a village community, agriculturists
castes get the dominance. The lower castes copy the life style of this Dominant-caste and
try to rise in status. The local dominant castes serve as the reference group model for the
aspirant caste. If the locally dominant caste is a Rajput or a Baniya it will transmit the
Kshatriya or Vaishya model. Thus, models of Sanskritization vary according to the dominant
caste. Dominant castes play an important role either advancing or retarding the process of
Sanskritization. For a caste to be dominant, it should own a sizeable amount of arable land
locally available, have strength of number and occupy a high place in the local hierarchy.
New factors of dominance include western education, jobs in administration and urban
source of income. These dominant castes stimulate in the lower castes a desire to imitate
their prestigious style of life and thereby improve upon their social status. In some places
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the dominant castes were reported to have harassed the lower castes and dissuaded them
from following their life styles by means of force and threat.
Motivation for Sanskritization: One of the motivating factors behind the process of
Sanskritization is the raising of one's social status in the local caste hierarchy and enjoyment
of the same political and economic power which the higher castes used to enjoy. This
motivation to raise one's own standard comes from a sense of relative deprivation, because
the Hindu society has been rigidly stratified by caste system. Life-chances, social opportunities,
economic positions and political privileges everything was determined by caste system.
Rigid caste norms created a wide distance between castes. The higher castes used to enjoy
all kinds of social privilege whereas the lower castes were deprived of getting the same;
it therefore, was considered the best way of increasing one's social position by taking to
the customs and ways of life of a higher caste. Another motive behind Sanskritization is the
manifestation of suppressed inter-class hostility. The victims wish to have control over caste
system and thereby expiate their frustration on the same battlefield where they acquired
them.
Factors facilitating Sanskritization:
Some factors have been singled out as contributory to the process of Sanskritization
in modern India. Some of them are discussed below:
1. British Rule: With the establishment of the British rule in India, the lower castes
got more opportunities to Sanskritize themselves and subsequently raise their status as the
Britishers were unmindful to this phenomenon and were least involved in the dynamic of
caste system.
2. Development of Communication: Development of road and transportation in the
areas previously inaccessible accelerated the process of Sanskritization. The railways and
other improved means of communication enabled people to visit religious centres like
Mathura, Dwaraka, Gaya, Kashi, Puri etc.
3. Development of the Mass Media of Communication: The radio, the cinema,
the microphone, newspaper, religious journals have been contributing to the popularization
of Sanskritic values and ideologies.
4. Political Factors: The political institution of parliamentary democracy in free India
has contributed to increased Sanskritization. Prohibition, a Sanskritic value, has been endorsed
in our constitution. The ideal of equality of all men before the law and the abolition of
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untouchability have spring up a culture which was the monopoly of the higher castes
beforehand.
5. Educational Factor: As a result of western education, socio-religious movements
like the Arya Samaj, the Brahma Samaj and the Prathana Samaj came into being and
which, in turn, contributed much to the process of Sanskritization. Besides, spread of
literacy among the low caste groups made Sanskritization feasible.
6. Cultural Institution: Every temple and pilgrim centre also acts as a source of
Sanskritization. During the periodic festivals and other occasions when pilgrims gather at
the centre they get opportunity for the spread of Sanskritic ideas and beliefs. Several other
cultural institutions such as the sanyasis and other religious mendicants also help spread
ideas and beliefs of sanskritic Hinduism.
7. Economic Factor: Better economic conditions also facilitate enhancement of the
status of a caste in the local caste hierarchy. But acquisition of wealth is not always a
necessary pre-condition to Sanskritization. Srinivas has rightly cited the case of untouchable
caste of Mysore who got itself sanskritized even though its economic position remained
almost fixed. However, the fact is that Sanskritization becomes easy if economic power is
acquired.
8. Sectarian Movements: Sectarian movements also acted as agents of Sanskritization
and when they attracted members from the low castes, they helped raise their status. For
example the Bhakti movement geared by the saints embraced all people into its fold
ignoring diversities of cults and castes and thereby proved a great sanskritizing force.
Effects of Sanskritization on Social Change:
If Indian culture is chiefly confined to the cultural ideals of twice-born Varnas (Brahmans,
Kshatriya and Vaishyas), then we may say that the process of Sanskritization is going on
for a thousand years, because foreign invaders instead of spreading their own culture
adopted the twice-born culture of India. That is the reason that there is no sign of Salukas
who was the successor of Sikander the Great coming from Greece. The Shuk and Huns
foreigners who were considered to be low caste or class either by religion or by culture,
adopted Indian culture and become Sanskritized. Muslims and Britishers got political hold
hence they had no need to Sanskritize.
Sanskritization in Religious field:
Lower castes have erected their own temples like twice born castes they have put the
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status of their own Great men along with the idols of God and Goddess. Many of them
put on sacred thread. They go to their temples regularly and perform Arti and Bhajan. They
have engaged priests of their own caste. In temples belonging to the middle castes, even
Brahman priests are engaged. They perform ceremonies like twice-born castes. Sacrifices
and Hawan are performed on the naming ceremony of children. The custom of observing
fast has increased. They celebrate all festivals like twice-born varnas. They are advancing
towards cleanliness. They have left prohibited food. They also do not like dirty occupations.
They take care of the cleanliness of their clothes and utensils. The Hinduization of Tribal
castes is an example of religious Sanskritization. The members of middle castes have
become office holders of different religious institutions. They have specialized in performing
ceremonies like Brahmins.
Sanskritization in Social field:
The social aspect of Sanskritization is more important from the viewpoint of change.
Sanskritization appears to be more closely related to religious system but the chief aim of
Sanskritization is social. The low caste individuals are inclined towards Sanskritization
because that way they can elevate their social status and get higher up and caste-hierarchy.
They want a place equal to that of Brahmans and Kshatriyas. Not only that some castes
claim to be twice-born but some of them have practically acquired that status.
Sanskritization in Economic field:
Sanskritization can be observed in the change of occupations also. Clean trades are
a symbol of social height. In the cities of west Uttar Pradesh, Bhangis are working as
vegetable and chat hawkers. Members of backward classes are entering into higher posts.
Scheduled castes and scheduled tribes get reservation in services. Twice-born or Brahmin
clerks and peons work under officers belonging to scheduled castes.
Sanskritization in Living:
The conditions of living have also been sanskritized. Lower castes get Pucca houses
built for them. They have got a drawing room like twice born castes. They are attracted
towards chair. Now they sit along with higher castes on the cots without is a sense of fear
or hesitation. They also keep their houses clean. They put the pictures of leaders and Hindu
gods and goddesses on the walls. They take regular bath and put on clean clothes.
Formerly they remained semi-naked due to poverty or were compelled to remain so. Now
they put on dresses like higher caste and talk in the same language.
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Other Effects of Sanskritization:

Sanskritization has brought hardship for the lower caste women. Prior to Sanskritization,
they were following the caste codes which were not so much rigid. But as they got
sanskritized they imitated the sex and marriage codes of the Brahmins which were harassing.
For example, pre puberty marriage, ban on widow remarriage, shaving the hair of widow
etc. were copied from the Brahmins by the ambitious lower castes. Second, Sanskritization
has significant effects on conjugal relation. At times a wife is enjoined to practice the ideal
of Pativrata and show extreme fidelity to the husband. Third, Sanskritization has prompted
the untouchable castes to give up the consumption of liquor, beef, domestic pork or toddy.
On this basis Srinivas predicts that "in the next twenty or thirty years the culture of
untouchables all over the country will have undergone profound changes."
Criticisms:
Sanskritization as a concept of cultural change has been criticized by many on several
grounds.
First, it has been alleged that Sanskritization is an extremely complex and heterogenous
concept. Srinivas himself admits that Sanskritization is not a single concept but a bundle of
concepts.
Second, Sanskritization is a theoretically loose term.
Third, Sanskritization, in legal sense, is a truth-asserting concept which oscillates
between the logics of ideal-typical and nominal definitions of phenomena.
Fourth, Sanskritization fails to account for many aspects of the cultural changes in the
past and contemporary India as it neglects many non-sanskritic traditions.
Fifth, D.N.Majumdar in his study of Mohana village has shown that there is no
tendency among the low castes to adopt the customs and manners of the higher castes nor
do these help in elevating the status of any caste.
Sixth, Lynch comments that Sanskritization is culture-bound and is not that much
useful to explaining all movements for social mobility in the post-independent India.
Seventh, Chauhan prefers the use of another concept enhanced ritualization to
Sanskritization. Because the former concept can take care of the non-sanskritic elements
which can not be accommo\dated by the concept of Sanskritization.
Eighth, Prasand criticizes the concept of Sanskritization on linguistic ground and suggests
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Kulinization in place of Sanskritization. Kulinization is the process by which the lower status
Brahmins acquired higher status by marrying Kulin Brahmins.
Ninth, Patel and Singh, while describing the changing portrait of the Lewa Patidar
caste of North Gujarat, mention that Sanskritization as well as cotra-Sanskritization is
operative in the case of Lewa Patidars and certain western factors are responsible for this
contra-Sanskritization process.
Tenth, K.L.Sharma, prefers the concept of reference group to Sanskritization to
explain mobility; because in his views, Sanskritization is of ad-hoc nature, it lacks refinement
at the conceptual level. Mobility at the individual level can be better understood with the
help of reference group behaviour.
5.4.2. Westernization
Quite like sanskritisation the concept of westernization is also employed for evaluating
social change in rural India and elsewhere in the country. The concept was also constructed
by M.N. Srinivas to describe the process of social and cultural mobility in the traditional
social structure of India. It has also emerged, in Srinivas' study of the Coorgs of south
India. The author has defined westernization as:…the change brought about in Indian
society and culture as a result of over 150 years of British rule, the term subsuming changes
occurring at different levels of technology. The emphasis was given by Srinivas on
westernization basically included humanitarianism and rationalism.
Commenting on the broader dimensions of westernization, Yogendra Singh (1994)
writes:
Emphasis on humanitarianism and rationalism is a part of westernization which led to
a series of institutional and social reforms in India. Establishment of scientific, technological
and educational institutions, rise of nationalism, new political culture and leadership in the
country, are all by-products of westernization.
Srinivas argues that the acceleration in westernization does not slow down the process
of sanskritisation. As a matter of fact, both the processes go hand in hand. It is found that
sometimes increase in westernization also boosts the process of sanskritisation. A cursory
view of the impact of westernization including communication and transport facilities has
modernized the sanskritic institutions, such as pilgrimages and caste associations.
It is a common observation that in the last three or four decade's new religious
celebrations have emerged. The deities which were oblivious have now become target of
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popular celebrations. The caste associations have received better organization. At empirical
plane it is found that with the increase in westernization sanskritic ties have also got
solidarity.
Origin:
Srinivas has given details about the development of westernization in India. He traces
it from the period of British Raj. Surely, the colonial rule brought with it exploitation and
suppression of the masses of people both at the rural and urban levels. At the same time,
it also brought certain radical changes in Indian society and culture. The British rule initiated
a period of new technology, institutions, knowledge, beliefs and values.
The colonial rule, thus, integrated the different segments of Indian society. The modern
state actually got its beginning from this period. The land was surveyed, revenue was
settled, a new bureaucracy emerged, and army, police and law courts were established.
The British rule also developed communications, railways, post and telegraph and also
started schools and colleges.
"One obvious result was that books and journals, along with schools, made
possible the transmission of modern, as well as traditional knowledge to large
numbers of Indians-knowledge which could no longer be the privilege of a few
hereditary groups-while the newspapers made people in different parts of the
far-flung country realise that they had common bonds, and the events happening
in the world outside, influenced their lives for good or ill."
Yet another force released by the British rule was the working of Christian missionary.
The Christian missionaries worked in the different parts of the country, particularly in those
which were backward and inhabited by tribals and untouchables. This brought the weaker
sections closer to westernization.
In contemporary India, when we talk about westernization, a tremendous change has
come in rural India. The impact of five year plans has brought the village people in the
wider network of communication and modernization. The democratic institutions such as
Panchayati Raj and massive spread of education have brought the villagers to come closer
to westernization.
What is interesting in the concepts of sanskritisation and westernization is that in the
former, is observed within the caste structure while in the latter, is observed beyond the
caste system.
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Characteristics:
Srinivas has commented on westernization from time to time. These comments have
come as a result of the academic responses given by other Indian and foreign some of the
important characteristics of westernization included by Srinivas are discussed below:
1. Humanitarianism:
Westernization is loaded with certain value preferences. "A most important value,
which in turn subsumes several other values, is what may be broadly characterised as
humanitarianism, by which is meant an active concern for the welfare of all human beings,
irrespective of caste, economic position, religion, age and sex." Srinivas has argued that the
term 'humanitarianism' is quite comprehensive. It is inclusive of a large number of other
values, the important being the welfare of all.
2. Equalitarianism:
Westernization has another value of equalitarianism. It is a democratic value and stands
for minimizing inequality, removal of poverty and liberty to all. The humanitarianism, as a
characteristic of westernization, stands for a society which could be called as a socialist
society in the long run.
3. Secularization:
Both the British rule and at a later stage the Constitution of India introduced a new
value of secularization. Secular India is conceived as a nation charged by the idiom of a
rational and bureaucratic society. Accordingly, the state is required to have respect for all
the religions of the society. It also includes the value of scientific ethics.
4. Initiation of social reforms:
The idea of westernization which was propagated by the British rule struck hard on
social evils which eroded the Indian society. The introduction of British law put an end to
certain inequalities that were part of Hindu and Islamic jurisprudence. The evil institutions
of sati, untouchability and purdah got condemnation from the spread of the notions of
equalitarianism and secularisation.
5. Predominance of science and technology:
The British rule also introduced science and technology in Indian society. This brought
railways, steam engines and technology. As a result of this, the Indian society moved
towards industrialization. Though, science and technology came as a setback to village
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industries and local arts and artifacts, the industrial growth increased. This also gave
encouragement to urban development. Migration from village to town and city also increased.
There was a take-off from tradition to modernity during this period. Industrialization
and urbanisation also introduced new values in society. Many of the traditional institutions
like untouchability and caste received new interpretation.
Clearly, the concept of westernization introduced by M.N. Srinivas is meant to measure
the social change which came in India during the British period. In post-independent India
westernisation got accelerated. The Indian society came in contact with other countries
also.
The United States had a profound impact on our society. At a later stage Srinivas was
suggested to review the concept looking to the new impact of modernization. For instance,
Daniel Lerner, after considering the suitability of 'westernization' as well as 'modernization',
has opted for the later.
Modernization also includes urbanization. If also enhances media exposure and wider
economic participation. "Modernization also implies social mobility. A mobile society has to
encourage rationality for the calculus of choice which shapes individual behaviour and
conditions it rewards. People come to see the social future as manipulable rather than
ordained and their prospects in terms of achievement rather than heritage."
If we examine M.N. Srinivas' concepts of sanskritisation and westernization, we will
be able to find out that in the assessment of rural change westernization is not much
significant. Both the concepts are loaded with sanskritic and western values. The concepts
also carry certain ideologies. Yogendra Singh argues that the use of the term 'westernization'
is pejorative for Indian elites. In place of westernization, modernization appears to be a
better term. He observes:
…modernization in India cannot be adequately accounted for by a term like
westernization. Moreover, for many new elite in India as also in the new states of Asia, the
term westernization has a pejorative connotation because of its association with former
colonial domination of these countries by the West. It is, therefore, more value-loaded than
the term modernization, which to us appears as a better substitute.
5.4.3 Globalization
The term "Globalization" has got extensive treatment in the hands of many sociologists.
The sociologists perceive that though economic in origin, the term has enormous social
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implications. To cite some examples, to George Ritzer globalization refers to the rapidly
increasing worldwide integration and interdependence of societies and cultures. Scholte
defines globalization as deterritorialization or the growth of 'supraterritorial' relations between
people. Globalization refers to a far reaching change in the nature of "social space". To
quote Albrow globalization includes "all those processes by which the peoples of the world
are incorporated into a single society, global society". In the languages of Ronald Robertson
"Globalization as a concept refers both to the compression of the world and the intensification
of consciousness of the world as a whole."To Anthony Giddens, "Globalization can thus be
defined as the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in
such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice
versa" . Water defines globalization as "a social process in which the constraints of geography
on economic, political, social and cultural arrangements recede, in which people become
increasingly aware that they are receding and in which people act accordingly". To quote
Held et al, "Globalization can be thought of a process (or set of processes) which embodies
a transformation in the spatial organization of social relations and transactions - assessed
in terms of their extensity, intensity, velocity and impact - generating transcontinental or
interregional flows and networks of activity, interaction, and the exercise of power". U.
Beck has underlined the differences among 'globality,' 'globalism' and 'globalization.' According
to him, "'globality' refers to the fact that individuals are increasingly living in a 'world society'
in the sense that 'the notion of closed spaces has become illusory. Meanwhile, 'globalism'
is the view that the 'world market' is now powerful enough to supplant (local and national)
political action;" and "'globalization' is the blanket term to describe 'the processes through
which sovereign national states are criss-crossed and undermined by transnational actors
and varying prospects of power, orientation, identities and networks'.
Distinctive Characteristics of Globalization
1. Borderless world: The most outstanding economic characteristic of globalization
is the introduction and practice of a borderless world. Notions of a "borderless world"
simply mean political "deterritorialization". "Deterritorialization" concept implies territorial
component in world affairs is of much reduced significance. The territorial structures and
compartments which have, for the past few hundred years, formed a basic component of
the state system experience structural change under the process of globalisation.It evokes
images of a world in which goods, services, capital, and information flow across national
borders. In this world, the choices over where to produce, where to establish shop, invest,
and save are no longer confined within national borders .They have taken on a decidedly
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global orientation. Some analysts speculate that globalization has blurred the economic
distinctions between countries, creating a "borderless world" in which economic decisions
are made without reference to national boundaries. Thus, globalisation collapses geopolitical
boundaries and compresses distance between nations. This is the most significant characteristic
of globalisation.
2. Liberalisation: Globalization and liberalization are concepts closely related to one
another. Globalisation can occur only under the situation of liberalisation. Liberalization
refers to the relaxing social and economic policies which results in better integration of an
economy with the global economy. Globalization and liberalization both occur as a result
of modernization. Liberalisation is a process of liberalising the economic, industrial,
investment, financial and business policies to enhance the business, export, per capita of a
particular region. In general, it refers to the removal of restrictions; usually government rules
and regulations imposed on social, economic, or political matters. Liberalization may be
trade, economic, or capital market related. Trade liberalization may be with regard to
reducing restrictions on imports or exports and facilitating free trade. Economic liberalization
generally refers to allowing more private entities participate in economic activity, and capital
market liberalization refers to reducing restrictions imposed on debt and equity markets.
Thus, liberalisation provides ample freedom to the industrialist/businessman to establish
industry, trade or commerce either in his country or abroad; free exchange of capital,
goods, service and technologies between countries. Globalisation cannot take place without
liberalisation.
3. Free Trade: Free trade symbolises a liberal economic order that prevents
protectionism and isolation. Simply speaking, globalization is the process of changing to the
world into an integrated world from an isolated one. Globalization is a long-term process
of change towards greater international cooperation in economics, politics, idea, cultural
values, and the exchange of knowledge. The core features of globalization are increased
free trade between nations, easier movement of capital between borders, and a massive
increase in foreign investment. This results in growth for both small businesses and multinational
companies, which can access new markets across the world. It also results in increased
transport and communication between countries and continents.
4. Globalization of Economic Activities: Globalization as a process widens, intensifies
speeds up, and increases world-wide interconnectedness. It is characterized by four types
of change.
First, it involves a stretching of social, political and economic activities across frontiers,
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regions and continents.

Second, it is marked by the intensification, or the growing magnitude, of
interconnectedness and flows of trade, investment, finance, migration, culture, etc.
Third, it can be linked to a speeding up of global interactions and processes, as the
development of world-wide systems of transport and communication increases the velocity
of the diffusion of ideas, goods, information, capital and people.
And, fourth, it results in the growing extensity, intensity and velocity of global interactions.
In this sense, the boundaries between domestic matters and global affairs become increasingly
fluid. Globalization refers to the increasing interdependence of world economies as a result
of the growing scale of cross-border trade of commodities and services, flow of international
capital and wide and rapid spread of technologies. It reflects the continuing expansion and
mutual integration of market frontiers, and is an irreversible trend for the economic
development in the whole world at the turn of the millennium.
The general characteristics of globalization go beyond their economic characteristics
and include the following.
1. Globalisation is a universal process, but not uniform in its result. Globalisation is a
historical process,
2. Globalization is both developmental and detrimental for the society,
3. Globalization is a long term process,
4. Globalization is an irreversible process,
5. Globalization leads to hybridisation, homogenisation and harmonisation,
6. Globalisation leads to dispersion and diffusi,
7. Globalization is a multidimensional process,
8. Globalization is a top down process,
9. Globalization results in deterritorialisation.
Dimensions of Globalization:
1. Economic Dimension of globalization.
2. Social Dimension of globalization.
3. Political Dimensions of globalization.
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4. Cultural Dimension of globalization.

5. Technological Dimension of globalization.
6. Environment al Dimension of globalization.
Arguments in favour of globalization Include:
 The economies of countries that are more engaged with the global economy have
consistently grown much faster than those that have maintained closed economies
- on average by about 2.5 percent. Faster economic growth resulting from
globalization, usually leads to increases in peoples' living standards. Improved
wealth leads to better health care and cleaner water, increasing peoples' life
expectancy under globalization.
 Increased foreign direct investment in countries due to the reduction in investment
barriers has also fuelled growth, development and progress.
 Globalization has resulted in improved environmental awareness as the internet has
increased access to information and helped for diffusion of safe environment related
knowledge.
 Increased trade integration has brought integrity, interdependence among nations.
It has reduced hegemonic attitude of the supposed rich nations and has reduced
the threat of war and promoted peace.
 Improved technology has reduced costs and changed the way the world
communicates. It has connected the people and parts of the planet.
 Adult illiteracy rates are falling in developing countries.
 Democracy is making headway. Modern communications and the global spread of
information have led to the toppling of undemocratic regimes.
 Multinational companies have adopted improved standards for workplaces and
wages - usually paying more than local companies in developing countries.
 International migration has led to greater recognition of diversity and respect for
cultural identities, which is improving democracy and access to human rights.
Arguments against globalization include:
The social and economic costs of globalisation are very high. This causes people to
suffer hardship. Countries unable to take advantage of globalisation fall further behind.
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 Global rich poor divide grows.

 Increased trade and travel have increased the spread of human, animal and plant
diseases, like AIDS.
 Increased interdependence of countries has greater vulnerability to economic
problems - like the recent global recession.
 It also reduces the self sufficiency of the nations.
 The environmental costs of globalisation are very high. Multinational companies
defeat the environmental codes in developing countries. The hitherto safe planet
becomes an unsafe habitation for humanity.
 Major economic powers control the international economic bodies which become
hegemonic over the developing world. This leads to economic colonization. They
treat the developing countries not as their partners, but parasites.
 Trade liberalisation and technological improvements change economies and can
lead to unemployment. Modern communications have spread an awareness of the
differences between countries and increased demand for migration to richer countries.
Barriers to migration have been increased in richer countries leading to more
people smuggling.
 Globalisation has caused a brain drain to richer countries making the poor countries
drained off their talents.
 Indigenous and national culture and languages are eroded by the modern globalised
culture.
 Globalization has heightened cross border terrorism, trafficking which are putting
the lives of millions in misery.
5.5 Social communication : Formal and Informal

Social communication refers to the emergence of verbal and non-verbal skills, social
interaction and social cognition. Social communication is important in order to be able to
build social relationships with other people. Social communication is a social exchange
between two or more individuals. These communications build the basis for social structure
and culture. By communication, society designs rules, institutions and systems within which
we seek to live. Thus communication is the basic ingredients of social relationships. Society
is rooted in communication. Social communication produces some definite influence upon
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social relations that exist among human beings. It establishes mental relations among persons.
It is the reciprocal influence mutually exerted by human beings through their stimulation and
mutual response. Communication could be verbal, or non verbal i.e using sign language,
body movements, facial expressions, gestures, eye contact or even with the tone of voice.
There are two types of communication - formal communication and informal
communication.
5.5.1 Formal Social Communication
Formal communication refers to the flow of official information through proper, predefined
channels and routes. The flow of information is controlled and needs deliberate effort to
be properly communicated. Formal communication follows a hierarchical structure and
chain of command. The structure is typically top down, from leaders in various departments
and senior staff in the organization, which funnel down to lower level employees. Employees
are bound to follow formal communication channels while performing their duties.
Formal communication is considered effective as it is a timely and systematic flow of
communication.
5.5.2 Informal Social Communication
In comparison, informal social communication refers to communication which is multi-
dimensional. Informal communication moves freely within the organization and is not bound
by pre-defined channels and communication routes. Informal communication is particularly
quick. Informal communication is far more relational than formal communication and is by
nature, a very natural form of communication as people interact with each other freely and
can talk about a diverse range of topics, often extending outside of their work duties. Due
to the inherent nature of informal communication, it moves a lot faster and does not have
a paper trail.
Informal communication in the workplace is often called the 'grapevine' and generally
begins with employees through social relations. In many cases informal communications can
turn to formal communication if they are added in to the formal communication information
flow of a company.
Informal communication is considered effective as employees can discuss work-related
issues which save the organization time and money. It also helps to build more productive
and healthy relationships in the workforce.
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Key differences between Formal and Informal communication

Here's a brief list of some of the key differences between formal and informal
communication:
 Formal communication is the more reliable form, as there is a paper trail. Compared
to informal communication which has comparatively less reliability, and is very
unlikely to have a paper trail.
 Formal communication is slower, sometimes feeling unbearably slow due to
bureaucracy. On the other hand, informal communication is very quick, often being
instantaneous.
 Formal communication requires a number of different processes before the whole
communication flow is complete, whereas informal communication requires very
little process time.
 Information through formal communication is only through predefined channels,
whereas information through informal communication moves freely.
 Secrecy is maintained with formal communication, whereas informal communication
makes it hard to maintain full secrecy due to its reliance on individuals.
Types of Formal Communication
 Memos
 Intranet
 Meetings
 Conferences
 Formal One-on-Ones
 Bulletin Boards
 Handouts
 Letters
 Presentations
 Speeches
 Notice Boards
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 Organizational blogs
 Emails from managers and leaders
Types of Informal Communication
 Gossip
 Single Strand - a form of informal communication wherein each person communicates
with the next in a single sequence.
 Cluster - a very common form of informal communication, in cluster networks a
person will receive information and choose to pass it on to their cluster network
or keep the information to them. Each individual will pass on the information to
the next cluster network
 Probability Chain - each individual randomly tells another individual the same piece
of information.
5.6 Summary
In the above unit we have discussed about the concept, nature and the scope of social
change as well as the role of education in the process of social change. This unit has also
tried to discuss the issues of Sanskritization, Westernization and Globalization and their role
in the process of social change. At the end of the unit, the concept, importance and the
types of social communication have been discussed.

1. What is social change?
2. What are the causes of social change?
3. What is the role of education in the process of social change?
4. The concept Sanskritization was developed by whom?
5. What is Sanskritization?
6. What is the impact of sanskritization on social change?
7. Write any two effect of Sanskritization.
8. What is Globalization?
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9. What are causes of globalization?

10. What is the effect of globalization on social change?
11. Write two dimensions of globalization.
12. What is Social Communication?
13. What do you mean by formal communication?
14. What is meant by informal communication?
15. Mention any two differences of formal and informal communication.
5.8 References
Garvey, J (2019). Blog Employees (Web Blog post). Retrieved from https://
www.peoplegoal.com/blog/what-is-formal-and-informal-communication.
Mondal, P. (Year?) Westernization: Origin and Characteristic of Westernization Retrieved
from http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/sociology/rural sociology/westernisation-origin-and-
characteristic-of-westernisation/31941.
Rao Shakar, C.N. (2012). Sociology (7th ed.). Mangalore, Karnataka: S Chand &
Cpmpany Pvt. Ltd.
Sharma,
Y.K. (2016). Foundation in sociology of education. Delhi: Kanishka Publishers.
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Unit 6  Indian Social Ethos
Structure
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Introduction
6.3 India as a Pluralistic Society
6.4 Social Diversity and Inclusion
6.5 Education and Contemporary Social Issues
6.5.1 Population Explosion
6.5.2 Unemployment
6.5.3 Poverty
6.5.4 Illiteracy
6.6 Summary
6.7 Self-Assessment Question
6.8 References
6.1 Objectives
 understand what a pluralistic society is;
 explain the concept of diversity and inclusion;
 recognize and apprehend the contemporary social issues and understand the impact
of education on these issues.
6.2 Introduction
From the ancient past India has been a real plural society. It is rightly characterized
by its unity in diversity and an open minded acceptance for vivid opinions. A grand
synthesis of cultures, religions and languages of the people belonging to different castes and
communities has upheld its unity and cohesiveness. Inspite of several foreign invasions,
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Mughal rule and the British rule, national unity and integrity have been maintained. It is this
synthesis which has made India a unique mosaic of cultures. India fought against the British
Raj as one unified entity. Foreign invasions, immigration from other parts of the world, and
the existence of diverse languages, cultures and religions have made India's culture tolerant,
on the one hand, and a unique continuing and living culture, with its specificity and historicity,
on the other. Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Islam, Sikhism and Christianity are the major
religions. There is diversity not only in regard to racial compositions, religious and linguistic
distinction but also in patterns of living, life styles, land tenure systems, occupational pursuits,
inheritance and succession law, and practices and rites related to birth, marriage death etc.
Post-Independent India is a nation united against several odds and obstacles. The idea of
unity of India is inherent in all its historical and socio-cultural facts as well as in its cultural
heritage. India is a secular state. It has one Constitution providing guarantees for people
belonging to diverse regions, religions, cultures and languages. It covers people belonging
to all socioeconomic strata. The Five Year Plans and several other developmental schemes
are geared to the upliftment of the poor and weaker sections of society. Hence, in this unit
we will discuss about this unique characteristic of India in details.
6.3 India as a Pluralistic Society

Plural society is simple words mean the integration of different communities who
practice different culture, languages, and beliefs. For example, in any school, it is not
mandatory to collect students from the same language or culture. Different students belonging
to different class study altogether and it can be seen as the very basis of teaching everybody
values regarding respect and humbleness. Many sociologists suggested plural society was
a balance between economy and ecology but R.T. Smith in 1958 criticized this system
because according to him it highlighted the differences and does not contribute to unity in
diversity. In 1967 Dahl presented his ideation of plural society where he mentioned that it
could better be understood as the division of power fairly. The major advantage of plural
society was that everybody's opinion was heard and there was not an inequality unlike
another system of stratification.
From the earlier times, the debate was on about the class division being same only.
But differences were there as one hand class division saw economic differences and on the
other hand plural society consisted of groups which were together irrespective of economic,
class or any barrier.
Plural society effect can be seen in India; in fact, the country is called by unity in
diversity. There are more than 2400 castes, many religions but people meet each other as
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an individual. For example in any shop, there can be many people of different religion
working under the same roof. Another example is Lebanon where there are two major
Muslim segments Shia and Sunni with Christian community as a minority.
This builds up a peaceful environment in the society. It emphasized on multiculturalism.
Although it is impossible to build up an egalitarian society, still Plural society comes to an
aid for erasing the differences.
6.4 Social Diversity and Inclusion

Social diversity is a feature of a society which is determined by caste, class, religion,
occupational pattern in a given territory. In the social sphere, the general customs and
manners of the people greatly differ. People of different regions use different types of
dresses, their eating habits and customs differ. Certain people are quite civilized while
others are very backward in their customs.
India has been considered as perhaps the largest and most plural society in the world.
In India, people speak an array of languages and use a wide range of scripts. As a country,
India has major religions - Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, and
Zoroasmanism-living side by side. India is the world's most complex and comprehensively
pluralistic society, home to a vast variety of castes, tribes, communities, religions, languages,
customs and living styles. It was estimated by the Anthropological Survey of India that there
are nearly 4,599 separate communities in India with as many as 325 languages and dialects
in 12 distinct language families and some 24 scripts. The mosaic of identities that constitute
the meaning of Indianness has been on display on Republic Day every year. Moreover the
National Anthem emphasizes diversity in a similar manner with the first verse being a series
of names of different geographic regions, ethnicities and cultures.
Meaning and Nature of Social Diversity
By 'social diversity', we mean co-existence of different social groups within a given
geo-political setting or in simpler terms, differentiation of society into groups. Other terms
such as, 'plurality', 'multiculturalism', 'social differentiation' etc. are also interchangeably
used to explain this feature. The diversity may be both functional and dysfunctional for a
society depending on its composition. The question that may arise at this stage is 'how
much pluralist a society can become without losing its organic unity?' Despite divisions of
groups, an underlying unity runs through the whole Indian social system. In order to
understand the nature of social diversity in India, it is important to understand the nature
of group identities that form the diversity.
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Types of Social Diversity

The main sources of social diversity are ethnic origins, religions and languages. According
to Sorokin, the social differentiation can be classified into two types: a) intra-group (i.e.
differentiation within a group and b) inter-group differentiation (i.e. differentiation among the
groups). Further groups may also be classified as: a) unibound (i.e. groups whose members
are bound into a solidarity system by one main value or interest such as, race, sex and age;
b) multibound (i.e. pups formed by the coalescence one of two or more unibound values
such as castes, tribes, classes etc. Intra-group differentiation means a division of the group
into subgroups that perform different functions and are not graded superior or inferior to
each other. However, when subgroups are ranked 'superior and inferior' or 'higher and
lower', intergroup differentiation becomes intergroup stratification such as castes in the
Indian Caste System.
Language
Language is one of the main markers of group solidarity in any society. The social
categorization in terms of languages is much stronger than any other social markers such as
religion, class, caste, tribe etc. Group identities are expressed in stronger terms when language
identities' are combined with other types. India is highly diversified in terms of languages.
Despite language based reorganisation of states, India has not been able to solve many
language related problems. Under the state reorganisation, only a few major languages have
been given official recognition and resource support. The following issues need to be looked
into: Language nationalism operates at the regional level rather than at the national level;
Three-language formula devised for imparting education at different levels is still not fully
implemented; The states have not devised their policy for protecting the educational, cultural
and economic interests of the language minority groups who inadvertently have fallen in
particular state territory. Educational implication of the language diversification has not been
worked out and incorporated into the education system. Unity at the national level should
have national language component in the policy framework. The Indian constitution lists 15
languages as major languages. All major languages have regional and dialectical variations.
Besides these, 227 languages/dialects have also been recognized as mother tongues making
the task of language planning and promotion more difficult. Furthermore, diversification of
tribal groups in terms of languages make the situation that much more complicated.
Religion
Religion is an important binding force of social integration among individuals and
groups. By religion, we generally mean belief in supernatural being or entities. Religion has
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been playing an important role in Indian society from the very evolution of human society.
It has never been static. India is a multi-religious society. Changes have taken place in
religions from time to time. Religious reform movements have been integral parts of India's
sociocultural life. The 1961 Census of India listed 7 religious categories, Hindus, Muslims,
Christians, Jains, Buddhists, Shikhs and other religions and persuasions. However, there
are other religious groups such as, Jews, Zorarastrians and tribals which find mention in the
1931 Census. Religion is a complex phenomenon in India. Conservative and progressive
elements are found among different groups highlighting intra-religious differentiation. Religious
conversion has been a controversial issue throughout the Indian history. It still draws
attention even in the contemporary situation. In recent years, religious conversion of tribals
has generated a considerable antipathy and conflict. Religion also brings out internal cohesion
by cementing internal class, language and other divisions. Even the introduced religions such
as, Islam, Christianity, Zorarastian etc. have developed Indian character. Hinduism, the
main religion has allowed other religions to grow alongside. It not only affected other
religions, but has also been affected by other religions. The Bhakti movement and the Sufi
tradition are a testimony to this give-and-take situation. The Constitution of India considering
the country as secular has treated all religious groups on equal terms. It has made provision
for freedom to all religious groups to hold and practise their beliefs and rituals. Secularism
has been ingrained in the national policies and planning of education and development.
Caste
Caste is a system of social relations. It is an important feature of Indian society based
on endogamy, hierarchy, occupational association, purity and pollution, and inscriptive
status. Although caste seeks ideological mots in the vama scheme of Hinduism, it is an all
pervasive and a very complex phenomenon which holds its sway till today. It has provided
internal structure and social base to Indian Society sometimes cutting across religious
barriers. The social system that emerged out of social division of labour has received
perpetual religious sanction. The caste system has been responding to empirical realities
and has been changing. The four fold varnas have given ways to several castes often
addressed as jatis. The inscriptive status (i.e. caste ranking based on birth) has made the
caste system a bit inflexible. However despite the inscriptive nature of caste ranking, the
caste has never been static. The prevalence of thousands of subcastes, clans and subclans
within a caste is a testimony of diversification, differentiation and change in the caste
system. The Indian caste system has also been analyzed from the class point of view by
several social scientists. The caste and class debate has arisen to analyze social differentiation
within the caste system.
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According to some sociologists, caste and class are two different forms of social
stratification; and changes are taking place from caste (ranking of groups) to class (ranking
of individuals). The following need to be taken into account: Despite transformation and
changes, the caste system has persisted as an ideology, social structure and practices; The
caste system inherits problems related to economic, political and social domination and
privileges, subjugation and deprivation etc; The Constitution of India has made special
provisions for protection of the deprived castes mainly the Scheduled Castes (SC) and
Other Backward Castes (OBC).
Tribe
Tribal people are other important sociocultural groups in India, constituting over 8 per
cent of the Indian population (2001 Census). However, given the current classification of
tribal groups in India, it is difficult to define the term 'tribe'. In the Imperial Gazetteer, the
word 'tribe' has been defined as 'a collection of families which have a common name and
a common dialect and which occupy or profess to occupy a common territory and which
have been endogamous'. In fact, with regard to tribal groups, the task has often been to
identify the tribal groups, rather than to define them. The academic considerations have not
been given due attention in identifying these groups (Betteille, 1986). According to Singh
(1994). 'tribe' is an administrative and political concept in India.
The categorization of tribal groups has been done state-wise and has not been uniform.
There are cases of the groups that have been classified, as scheduled tribes in one state,
have not been categorized as the tribes in other states. The tribal groups are much behind
their non-tribal counterparts in terms of their educational attainment. With regard to tribal's,
the following issues need to be looked at: The tribal groups differ from other disadvantaged
groups in terms of their cultural specificities. The tribal people in themselves are highly
diversified groups. The degree of tribalism varies from the extremely primitive isolated tribal
groups located in the Andaman Islands to the modem developed tribal groups such as the
Meena in Rajasthan. The tribal groups are further differentiated in terms of size, territorial
locality, racial features, marriage and kinship patterns, languages/dialects, economy, religious
beliefs and practices, development and educational attainment etc. The tribes being a local
community perceive their identity largely at the regional and local levels than at the national
level. The problems faced by the tribal groups vary from region to region, state to state,
and from one tribal group to another.
Gender
Gender is a form of socio-biological difference between man and woman. The sexual
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difference is socially constructed contrasting characteristics labeled as masculine and feminine.

Conceptually the term 'gender' differs from 'sex', as the latter refers mainly to bimodal
distribution of biological and demographic characteristics between male and female. In the
case of gender differences, it is the socio-biological differences that have been historically
conditioned and are accepted as part of the social institutions. The elements of power and
control are embedded in the gender difference. Although both sex and gender differences
are universal, the nature and degree of difference varies from one social group to another.
The educational development in India is characterized by widening gender gap in education.
The picture is dismal, as the female literacy is 54.16 per cent as against 75.85 per cent
for males (2001 Census). The gender disparities exist at all levels of education. For
example, the gender gap at the primary enrolment level was 22 per cent (Haq and Haq,
1998). The gender gap in education needs to be understood in terms of disadvantaged
position of women in Indian society. Although the Indian women suffer from biases in
almost all spheres of their social life, the nature and intensity of this biasness may however
vary across different social groups. The problem is intensified further, when gender
disadvantage is combined with class, caste, religious and other disadvantages. For instance,
the dropout rate at the elementary schooling stage is the highest among rural ST female
children social diversity resulting from social differentiation is characterized by the problems
of disparities and disadvantages. Very often, these group disparities get reflected in regional
imbalances, if there is concentration of disadvantaged groups in certain pockets or regions.
So 'region' although not a social category, shows a certain pattern indicating a particular
socioeconomic status, because of certain categories of social groups inhabiting the region.
For instance, the northern and eastern regions are backward in terms of educational and
economic development, as the regions have higher proportions of the disadvantaged groups.
Disparities within and among different groups need to be studied from different angles. The
following section deals with the impact of social diversity on education.
Disabilities
There are many types of disabilities which can be recognized as an instrument to form
diversity among the mass. There are various types of disabilities or special abilities such as
physical, mental or situational. We should consider these especially abled people as socially
diverse people and on the basis of their disabilities they should be accommodated in our
society.
In addition to the above described major forms of diversity, we have diversity of many
other sorts like settlement patterns - rural, urban; marriage and kinship pattern along
religious and regional lines and so on.
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In this way diversity pervades on the whole of Indian subcontinent. And such diversities
are not the hallmarks of Indian culture. The main theme of Indian culture is unity which
absorbs all these diversities.
Social Inclusion
In every country, certain groups confront barriers that prevent them from fully participating
in their nation's political, economic, and social life. These groups may be excluded not only
through legal systems, land and labor markets, but also through attitudes, beliefs, or
perceptions. Disadvantage is often based on social identity, which may be derived from
gender, age, location, occupation, race, ethnicity, religion, citizenship status, disability, and
sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI), among other factors.
Exclusion can rob individuals of dignity, security, and the opportunity to lead a better
life. Acknowledging this, the United Nations has committed to "leaving no one behind" in
an effort to help countries promote inclusive growth and achieve the Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs). Social inclusion is also an integral part of it.
The World Bank Group defines social inclusion as:
1. The process of improving the terms for individuals and groups to take part in
society, and
2. The process of improving the ability, opportunity, and dignity of those disadvantaged
on the basis of their identity to take part in society.
Socially an inclusive society is that society which can accommodate everyone without
any discrimination. In human history, social inclusion as a policy instrument comes up only
in recent times with the advancement of democracy and new phase of capitalism. It has
otherwise been rare that the political ruling groups would adopt a policy of social inclusion.
It would sound strange as most political system were based on social division and the ruling
groups thrived on divided social fabric. On the other hand, however, there have been
attempts from within the societies to usher new ways and principles of accommodating
individuals, communities and groups. This accommodation proceeded both horizontally as
well as vertically. New groups, or foreign elements either migrating from other locale
required horizontal inclusion into societies.
Indian society has been a very good example where principles and processes to
assimilate, or include and accommodate groups or people have been in operation for
centuries. Many tribal groups, for example, Sakas and Hunas, from central and west Asia
and beyond came and settled in different parts of India. Society, over the time, absorbed
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them through different mechanisms. There were new terms coined to regulate the social
interaction with these new groups. Mlecchas was not only the term for the foreign elements
but also signified the code of relationship that was designed between the native and the
foreign elements. In the course of time, the foreign elements lose their traces and become
part of the local community. The medieval history too witnessed such incorporations by
different groups. In the nineteenth century the British writers and administrators thought that
the Indian society was immobile and non-change was its defining characteristic. The
'unchanging village community' with its 'self-sufficient economy' was thought to be the
example par excellent of this. Theories about caste, religion, etc., by many foreign scholars
were based on these assumptions. In reality, however, there were very dynamic interactions
between institutions and human groups and this relationship transcended villages, regions
and quite often had continental dimensions. Pilgrimage sites were of such interesting networks.
Many groups and ideas and values had their entry into the societies in this horizontal
interaction. What, however, is more intricate is the basis and processes of inclusion vertically.
Historians, for example, pointed out that in modern times colonialism produced the most
intense unequal relationship between societies, between the one which was colonial and
exploited the resources of the colonized societies through various instruments.
The colonial system, in its turn, legitimized this unequal relationship on the basis of race,
technology or civilizing mission. Delving deeper into the working of both the colonial and
colonized societies, one soon discovers that the unequal relationship was based on the
unequal ownership of the factors of production which historian Bipan Chandra had first
pointed out as 'colonial mode of production'. It was further argued that this inequality
characterized even the pre-colonial social order in the colonized societies. Historian Irfan
Habib, for example, showed how the Mughal Empire and economy was an exploitative
economy so far as the poor were concerned. Later day historians showed how the
contemporary society remained anchored on unequal relationship and perpetuated this
unequal economic order, locally, regionally, nationally and globally. It is generally argued
that it was very significant that bases of this unequal order be understood properly so that
appropriate response can be created.
Forms of Inclusion
As we know the process and the basis of exclusion, we understand the way inclusion
principle works. Interestingly, there has always been very powerful movement to protest
the state of exclusion, thereby making the society more inclusive of the diverse communities,
and groups. However, in a society defined and divided by caste, it was always very difficult
to include people without defining their exact location. In 1941, N.K.Bose talked about the
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Hindu ways of absorption and how different tribes have been absorbed within Hindu
society by accommodating them as a group practising the particular specialised crafts. This
was a significant mode of inclusion that was historically obtained. Historians have pointed
out that the most significant process of inclusion, both vertically and horizontally, for centuries,
had been through assumption of particular jati name and become part of the large pantheon
of Indian society. Many have suggested that with Conversion to another religion one has
introduced a new element and organisation principle but a careful observation would
suggest that even after conversion many groups have retained their previous jati identity to
preserve its domain and space in the larger social frame. With the widening of the Indian
national and social horizon, new elements like, for example, Naga, Mizos, or other tribes
from extreme East came under the national rubric who were socially not part of the
erstwhile socio-cultural setting based either on jati or dharma.
The ethnic variety from north-eastern part brought a fresh new component and was
to be accommodated in the social horizon. It remains an extremely significant issue as to
what facilitates inclusion of the new groups into a new national space coming to life during
the last 100 years or so. The idea of a nation in India, with its distinctive inclusive appeal,
has helped to bring many groups and people to a common world of economy, polity and
in many cases a cultural dialogue. The democratic template provides this new nation with
its distinct inclusiveness.
The modern base of the nation in the Indian setting in fact allows one to avoid two
particular extremes, i.e, identity-based exclusive nation and second, the exacerbation of the
primordial identity to the exclusion of all others. Historically, religious movements like
Bhakti movement in the 8th to 12th and later during 15- 17th centuries provided strong
critique of the principle of exclusive and orthodox social order. The Veersaiva movement
in the South and Nanak, Kabir, Ravi Das, provided strong indictment of the existing social
order and brought a new social philosophy of openness. Coming of Islam, with its strong
emphasis on a new social order based on equality, too brought openness which was further
advanced by the Sufi orders which went far and beyond to bring many groups into close
proximity a prerequisite for a sense of togetherness.
Social reforms were integrally connected with religious reforms. That is why when in
the nineteenth century social reform movement phase came, the reformers clearly attacked
the religious core of the legitimizing principles inherent in social inequalities. It is significant
here that the attack on the Hindu social order and its practice of exclusion of lower castes
by the Christian missionaries since the nineteenth century, an attack which is continued even
today by the evangelists, provided one of the major thrust for the religious and social
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reformers to work for removing inequalities from the Hindu social order. It is no wonder
that from 1820s onwards, many intellectuals and social leaders like Raja Rammohun Roy,
Jyotiba Phule, Sri Narayan Guru, Ayothiadas, Dayananad Saraswati, Dadabhai Naoroji
and others saw the urgency of changing the existing social order. In this they all attacked
caste system and practices like untouchability prevalent in India. Raja Rammohun Roy, for
example, attacked the prevailing social division based on caste as antagonistic to any new
vision of a new world. It was later when the Indian Social Conference was set up with the
efforts of the great reformer of India, M.G.Ranade, N.G. Chandravarkar, etc., that a
dedicated modern movement to change such practices came into mainstream.
In the meantime, however, individual efforts to empower groups and communities were
carried on by individuals and groups with tremendous zeal and sacrifice. Jyotiba Phule in
Maharashtra, for example, opened school for women and through his writings, carried on
campaign to attack the basis of inequality.
The Indian national movement was the largest mass movement and this led to its
acquiring its democratic, open and inclusive character. In a mass movement people join the
movement breaking all boundaries of class, caste, region etc. As Visalakshi Menon opines,
during the non-cooperation movement and civil disobedience movement a large number of
women had come out in public breaking the gender prejudice and went to jail. Similarly,
different shades of the communist and socialists who tried to mobilize the peasants, the
working class during the national movement helped in brining large sections of the marginalized
people into the democratic mainstream of the nation.
Gandhi's intervention has been truly phenomenon in the realm of social inclusion. His
success in bringing people of all hues to the national movement and thereby enlarging the
space of further extending the frontiers of freedom was enormous. By bringing up the social
issues to the centre of his movement, he provided that space with a social conscience. This
defined the democratic order later. He brought issues of untouchability and Hindu-Muslim
divide at the highest priority level and did not prioritise freedom from colonial rule at the
cost of these issues. He argued that freedom from foreign rule is meaningless unless
accompanied by freedom from our own ills. The Anti-caste movement led by Gandhi can
be said to be unique in the history of movement for a human society based on the principle
of non-hierarchical arrangement. Gandhi personally led the movement to mobilize public
opinion for such a society and particularly against the prevailing practice of untouchability.
In 1924-25 and again in 1934-35 he toured the whole country to mobilise opinion against
untouchability- a practice which saw a major chunk of humanity being treated as beyond
sub-human level.
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The thrust of Gandhi was that the savarnas or the upper caste who perpetrated the
treatment should own up the responsibility for their acts of omission and commission and take
initiative to end the practice in such a way that the fundamental principle behind the exclusion
is wiped out. He argued that it was the idea of hierarchy that underlies the practice of
untouchability. Once this principle is wiped out of existence, the caste system can be said to
have purged of this principle. He therefore considered other practices as a symbol or symptom
of the disease while the disease was the idea of hierarchy. One of the areas that symbolically
attacked was the temple entry movement in Guruvayur and Vaikom.
Gandhi wanted the upper caste who practised discrimination to change and invite those
who were denied admission. Thus he wanted the social inclusion to take place not on the
basis of the right but of acceptance because he felt that right-based approach does not
endure but the change of heart and mind would. Gandhi made the Hindu Muslim divide a
major political plank and advocated that the divide needs to be broken and both begin to
respect each other's religion and live like brothers. In Noakhali, which was affected by
riots, he asked the Hindu women to make the Muslim women literate as this not only brings
education but also brings down the walls of separation. He negotiated with Jinnah and
resigned to the fact of partition, which he felt, was not to be based on the Two-Nations
theory as that would have been exclusionary.
On the issue of the dalits being converted to Christianity, he attacked the idea of
conversion as he thought that was a wrong way to address the issue. He argued that it
shows disrespect to other religion as it privileges one religion over the other. It does not
address the question of correcting the aberration if any that has crept in any religious
practice. In practice too, one found that conversion- instead of creating a more inclusive
principle- brings a new exclusionary base to come into operation. This also meant that the
process of inclusion should be without violence. However, what is unique in the Gandhian
approach was the attack of the very foundation of the principle of exclusion. Mandela
adopted this approach during the anti-apartheid struggle. Martin Luther King had approached
the issue of blacks in the US similarly
Democratic inclusion
Gandhi's idea of inclusion through non-violent means also foresees a democratic system
to operationalise it. He was in favour of broad-based democratic order reaching up to the
villages. Non-violent inclusion was in some way coterminous with the democratic ways of
inclusion. This interestingly was also the basis on which most of the Indian leaders fought
for inclusion, including Nehru who wanted a socialistic order, Ambedkar who wanted the
current caste-based exclusion to be eliminated, and many others. Democracy and
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development seemed to all of them to be the guaranteed way to bring inclusion without
violence and in the most effective way. The idea of justice and equity was to be prioritised
over anything else. Therefore, from the beginning, at the international level, it argued for
nonracial organization of the world institutions and polity. India was the first country to raise
the voice of anti-racial and anti-colonial world. A very critical component was the tradition
and traditional institutions like community, caste etc. were found to be legitimising the social
order based on discrimination. It is here the role of the education and educational institution
was most critical. The public institution has done the most effective inclusion throughout the
world and the independent India tried to imbibe socially inclusive educational policy. There
are heavy roadblocks as nearly 40% of Indian school going children do not go to school.
Experiments involving millions of children by groups like MV Foundation in Andhra Pradesh
have found that it is not poverty but wrong policy that prevents children from going to
school. Thus education remains the most significant inclusive agenda as it not only brings
different social groups onto a single platform but it also fosters modern ideas of democracy,
gender equality, justice which would sustain the inclusive ideas for the generation. Ambedkar
for example argued that Hindu religion legitimized castes and untouchability; the communists
argued that communities based on religion hide the fact of internal exploitation based on
gender or class. The template of modernization was adopted along with development so
that the idea of citizenship is developed and idea of justice and democracy takes deep root.
6.5 Education and Contemporary Social Issues

6.5.1 Population Explosion
The relationship between education and population has attracted the attention of both
scholars and policymakers, especially since the mid-1970s. The rate of population growth
and the number of people living on earth have both increased spectacularly since the
beginning of the nineteenth century. During the twentieth century, the human population
increased at an average annual rate that was about fifty times as fast as the rate over the
previous 10,000 years. Between 1800 and 2000, the number of people alive increased
nearly seven-fold. Following World War II, the rate of population growth exploded-during
the 1970s it was about four times as great as it had been a century earlier.
By 2000, the living population exceeded the entire population born between the
beginning of settled agriculture and the year 1900-a period of 10,000 years. The implications
of this explosive growth for both the physical environment and human wellbeing alarmed
many observers and prompted an intense public policy debate. Many scholars and
policymakers noted that high levels of educational achievement were associated with more
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moderate rates of population growth, suggesting that important opportunities for alleviating
population pressures might be found in ensuring greater access to education, particularly for
females. The ensuing public policy debate has prompted an examination of how education
affects the birth rate.
The explosive growth of the human population in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
was the result of a historically unprecedented decline in the rate of mortality, rather than
an increase in the birth rate. The proportion of children dying before reaching the age of
five fell from nearly one in three in most of the world to less than one in one hundred in
the most advanced societies over this period, and to one in ten in low-income countries.
In the wealthiest countries, birth rates adjusted quickly to restore a balance between births
and deaths and establish a rate of population growth of less than 1 percent a year. In
economically advanced societies, the average number of children born to each woman over
her reproductive life has fallen from about seven to less than two. However, in the poorest
countries, a sharp drop in death rates has not been accompanied by a corresponding fall
in birth rates. As a result, the rate of population growth-the difference between the average
birth rate and the average mortality rate-has increased dramatically in most of the world.
The growth of population has been greatest in countries that are both poorest and least
able to invest in social and educational services. The combined effects of these forces seem
to imply that the gulf between rich and poor is likely to widen over the foreseeable future
if aggressive policy measures are not introduced. These facts suggest that the key to
ensuring a sustainable rate of population growth lies in reducing the fertility rate. However,
in a highly influential 1979 review of the research literature on the relationship between
education and fertility, the economist Susan Hill Cochrane concluded that too little was
known about the mechanisms through which education affects population growth to allow
policy-makers to rely on improvements in educational opportunities to slow the rate of
population growth. Since 1976 a large number of scholars have focused on the impact of
education-especially the education of the girl child-on fertility, mortality, and population
growth. The central purpose of these studies has been to determine whether the nearly
universal association of low fertility and high levels of educational attainment are causally
linked or merely the result of their association with other forces that directly affect fertility.
For example, the inverse relationship between female literacy and fertility might have nothing
to do with education as such, but might instead simply reveal that societies that seriously
attempt to educate females also care about the welfare of women and therefore seek to
control fertility in order to protect their health.
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6.5.2 Unemployment
A high level of unemployment is a key social problem in many countries. For individuals,
unemployment is usually an undesirable state that increases economic insecurity and, when
prolonged, has negative effects on a wide variety of life opportunities and living conditions.
Unemployment is a serious problem that India has been facing since Independence. The
unemployment problem is also severe in India because of growing population and demands
of job. Slow economic growth, seasonal occupation, slow growth of economic sectors, fall
of cottage industry etc are the reasons which work behind as reasons. The situation has
become so drastic that highly educated people are ready to do the job of sweeper. A large
portion of population is engaged in the agriculture sector and the sector only provides
employment in harvest and plantation time. Unemployment gives raises a number of social
issues: an increase in crime rate, exploitation of labour, political instability, and loss of skills
which eventually lead to the demise of the nation.
6.5.3 Poverty
Poverty is a social condition that is characterized by the lack of resources necessary
for basic survival or necessary to meet a certain minimum level of living standards expected
for the place where one lives. People in poverty typically experience persistent hunger or
starvation, inadequate or absent education and health care, and usually alienated from
mainstream society. Poverty is a consequence of the uneven distribution of material resources
and wealth, of the deindustrialization of Western societies and the exploitative effects of
global capitalism. Poverty may correspond not only the lack of opportunity to improve
one's standard of living and acquire resources. Economic measures of poverty include
access to material needs, typically necessities such as food, clothing, shelter, safe drinking
water, measures of income. Social measures of poverty include access to information,
education, health care and political power. Roles of culture, power, social structure and
other factors largely out of control of the individuals are the main forces which sociologist
uses to explain poverty. In India, about two third of people live under poverty.
Sociologist generally recognizes two definition of poverty:
a) Absolute Poverty:
Absolute poverty is grounded in the idea of material subsistence-the basic needs which
must be in order to sustain a reasonably healthy existence, mainly food, shelter and clothing.
Absolute poverty is also known as 'subsistence poverty' for it is based on assessments of
minimum subsistence requirements or basic 'physical needs'.
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b) Relative Poverty:
Most sociologists today use the concept of relative poverty, which relates poverty to
the standards of living in a particular society.
The main reason for using relative poverty as a measurement is that as societies
'develop', people tend to adjust their ideas of what count as a necessity upwards-for
example in poor areas of less developed countries, running water and flush toilets are not
generally regarded as necessities, while in more developed countries refrigerators and
telephones may be regarded as necessities.
6.5.4 Illiteracy
Illiteracy is the quality or condition of being unable to read and write. Illiteracy is a
major problem throughout the world. Illiteracy in individuals' stems from different generally
inter related causes which together create a series of often insurmountable barriers for those
concerned. For instance, for someone born into an under privileged milieu to parents with
little formal schooling, the likelihood of illiterate or experiencing serious learning difficulties
will be higher. This is known as intergenerational transmission of illiteracy. Illiteracy in India
is more or less concerned with different forms of disparities that exist in the country. There
are gender imbalances, income imbalances, caste imbalances, technological barriers which
shape the literacy rates that exist in the country.
6.6 Summary
In the above unit we have tried to understand what a pluralistic society is and how
India is the best example of it. We have learned about social diversity and its various
markers like language, religion, caste, tribe, gender, and disabilities that categorize society
and brings in plurality and diversity. Then we have learned about social inclusion and its
various forms. After that we have focussed on the various contemporary social issues like-
population explosion, unemployment, poverty, illiteracy etc. and their impact on education.

1. Define Indian society as a pluralist.
2. What is social diversity?
3. Write names of the type of social diversity.
4. Write your opinion about gender inequality?
NSOU  CC-ED-03  136
5. What is the role of language in Indian social perspective?

6. What role does religion play in Indian society?
7. What is social inclusion?
8. What is the adverse effect of social exclusion?
9. What do you understand by democratic inclusion?
10. What is population explosion?
11. Mention any two problems created due to over population.
12. Is there any adverse affect on education due to population explosion? Discuss.
13. What do you mean by unemployment?
14. What is absolute poverty?
15. What is meant by illiteracy?
6.8 References
Choudhury, R.K. (year?). Society and Culture: Plurality of Culture in India Retrieved
from:http://www.ignou.ac.in/upload/Unit%2016.pdf.
Jayaswal, S. (1996). Caste in India, New Delhi.
Prena, (2017). Sociology Group (Web Blog) Retrieved from:https://
www.sociologygroup.com/plural-society-meaning.
Rao, Shakar. C.N. (2012). Sociology (7th ed.).Mangalore, Karnataka: S Chand &
Cpmpany Pvt. Ltd.
Sharma, C. B. (2017). Social Diversity and Education Retrieved from:http://
egyankosh.ac.in/bitstream/123456789/8326/1/Unit-16.pdf.
Sharma, R.S. (1990). Sudras in Ancient India, (3rd ed.) New Delhi.

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PREFACE

In a bid to standardize higher education in the country, the University Grants

UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes and Online Programmes)

I wish the venture a grand success.

Prof. (Dr.) Subha Sankar Sarkar

First Print : November, 2021

Printed in accordance with the regulations of the Distance Education Bureau

Dr. Atindranath Dey Dr. Dibyendu Bhattacharyya

: Course Writer : Course Editor

Course : Sociological Foundation of Education

Unit 1  Education and Sociology 7-21

Unit 2  Sociology as the Foundation of Education 22-35

Unit 3  Education for Socialization 36-58

Unit 4  Social Thoughts 59-95

Unit 5  Social Change 96-119

Unit 6  Indian Social Ethos 120-136

study as anthropology, psychology, economics, clinical sociology or sociology of politics.

1.4 Education and Society

another is 'interaction'. American sociologist MacIver and Page consider, "society as a

1.5 Sociology of Education

 Construction of Curriculum in relation to the cultural and economic needs of the

 It provides an understanding of the problems such as racism, communalism, gender

1.7 Self-Assessment Questions

Unit 2  Sociology as the Foundation of Education

is again emphasized and discussed here. It assembles different approaches, concepts of

2.3 Sociology as the Foundation of Educational Studies

 There should be provision of social programs for participation in social life.

In teaching teacher will develop problem solving and constructive thinking.

 Informal education takes its place outside the school.

Therefore, an education system is where peoples, pupils, building, textbooks, and

2.4 Approaches of Sociology

2.5 Sociological Assumptions

Fig. : General Diagram of Structural-Functionalism.png -

2.7 Self-Assessment Questions

Unit 3  Education for Socialization

3.3 Social Group

3.4 Types of Social group

primary group try to fulfill the condition of continuity or durability of relationship.

Characteristics of a Secondary Group:

3.5 Socialization Process

8. Reward and Punishment:

3.7 Self-Assessment Questions

Unit 4  Social Thoughts

4.3 Indian Social Thinkers

Caste in India Ghurye's understanding of caste is comparative, historical and

Restriction on food, drinks and social intercourse:

In brief, it may be said that Ghurye's approach to 'rural-urbanization' reflected the

He delineates five such values or foundations of culture. These are:

He also vividly recalled the childhood experiences of Muharram processions, Durgapuja

Indian Culture and Civilization:

4.4 Western Social Thinkers

loneliness, which led him to develop an interest in reading and writing.

4.5 Theoretical Paradigms of Sociology

Here we have tried—

orientation which focuses on social structure as well as social functions. Functionalism

4.7 Self-Assessment Questions

8. Write about the suicide theory of Durkheim?

Unit 5  Social Change

5.3 Social change: Concept, Scope and Role of Education