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SOCIOLOGY- THE DISCIPLINE

Modernity and Social changes in Europe and emergence of sociology
● Curious human mind had a desire to know more about its social surroundings
since time immemorial, but such thoughts were systematized in form of a
discipline known as "sociology" only a few centuries back in first half of 19th
Modernity and
century in the backdrop of negative fallouts of modernity. Modernity is defined as
Social changes in
a condition of social existence that is significantly different to all past forms of
Europe and
human experience. Dawn of Modernity is marked with the emergence of
emergence of
Renaissance. Renaissance was a cultural movement in European history (covering
sociology
the 15th CE to 16th CE) which promoted rediscovery of classical philosophy,
literature , science , art & architecture , thus marking the transition from the
Middle Ages to Modernity.
● Modernity is defined as a condition of social existence that is significantly
different to all past forms of human experience. Dawn of Modernity is marked
with the emergence of Renaissance. Renaissance was a cultural movement in
Modernity
European history (covering the 15th CE to 16th CE) which promoted rediscovery
of classical philosophy, literature , science , art & architecture , thus marking the
transition from the Middle Ages to Modernity.
Scope of sociology
● Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behaviour,
patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture
associated with everyday life. Sociology is a systematic study of society and it
studies human society as an interconnected whole and how society and the
individual interact with each other. Sociology seeks to explore how and why
Scope of
societies emerge, persist, and then change. ||| Scope of sociological study is
sociology
extremely wide. It can focus its analysis of interactions between individuals such
as that of a shopkeeper with a customer, between two friends or family members.
Going further, it may analyze national issues, international issues as well. So,
what defines the discipline of sociology and its scope is therefore not just what it
studies but how it studies a chosen field.
Comparison with other social sciences
Comparison with ● Sociology which emerged to address the challenges posed by negative fallouts
other social of modernity (which itself emerged with Renaissance & Enlightment , intensified
sciences with FR, and consolidated with IR) is considered as mother of all social sciences
and hence has close and intimate relationship with all other social sciences
including xxxx.
History

Anthropology

Political science

Economics

Psychology

Ethics

Sociology and Common sense

 ● Sociology has its tryst with common sense since long time and it has been
accused of being no more than common sense right from its birth. Common
sense is sound, practical judgment concerning everyday matters, or a basic
Common Sense
ability to perceive and understand in a manner that is shared by nearly all
people. Oxford dictionary of Sociology defined Common sense as ‘routine
knowledge that people have of their everyday world and activities’.
SOCIOLOGY AS SCIENCE
Science
● Sociology has its tryst with science science and scientific method since the
origin of discipline itself. Early scholars were greatly influenced by the natural
sciences and their impact on humanity. Saint Simon called the new discipline as
‘social physics’ which smacked its obsession with science. Auguste Comte
claimed that sociology is last of the sciences to be discovered and most
Science sophisticated of all the sciences as it deals with all aspects of humanity. Similarly,
Herbert Spencer’s ‘organismic analogy’ was guided by similar influences of
biological sciences and Darwinism. ||| Science is a systematic enterprise that
builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and
predictions about the world. Definition of science is not a single one, often it is
related with a host of characteristics like [Acronym = FUROSE]
Scientific method and its critique
● Scientific method refers to any systematic, empirical, rational, and objective set
of steps to explore the truth or new knowledge or for investigating phenomena or
correcting and integrating previous knowledge. Scientific method is generally
associated with natural sciences and discovery of laws, which govern behaviour
Scientific
of matter, is at the heart of scientific method. ||| Rationale behind adopting a
method and its scientific methodology in sociology is to give concrete shape to sociological
critique concepts, so that they are understood similarly by different people.
Litmus test for any discipline to be termed as scientific can be certain criteria like
–Objectivity and Value Free, Quantifiability, Universal Testability, Inter subjective
reliability, and Theoretical Orientation
Major theoretical strands in research methodology
● Research methodology is the specific procedures or techniques used to
identify, select, process, and analyze information about a topic. Research
methodology will be conceived differently by different researchers, say,
Major theoretical functionalists, interpretivists, positivists and so on. While a positivist researcher
strands in will lean more towards quantitative methods, a non-positivist researcher will
research incline towards qualitative methods. Often, mixed methods are used now a days.
methodology Hence, research methods can be broadly classified as – Quantitative and
Qualitative methods. Quantitative methods include methods like – statistical
methods, data tables etc. Qualitative methods on the other hand include
methods like – questionnaire, interviews, content analysis etc.
Positivism and its critique
Positivism and ● Positivism is an approach of studying sociology as a discipline which aims at
its critique employing principles similar to those used in natural sciences. Positivism
describes an approach to the study of society that specifically utilizes
scientific evidences such as experiments, statistics, and qualitative
results to reveal a truth about the way society functions. It is based on the
assumption that it's possible to observe social life and establish reliable
knowledge about its inner workings. ||| Early sociologists faced two
fundamental questions about course of discipline – (a) What should be the
subject matter of the discipline? (b) What should be the methodology in
Sociology? Influenced by prevailing atmosphere of rationalism and science,
 they too attempted to define subject matter and method in scientific and
objective terms. Thus, early sociologists like Saint Simon, August Comte,
Herbert Spencer and Emile Durkheim laid foundation of positivistic theory.
They contended that society is also governed by certain fixed laws and hence
predictable. According to this approach, behavior of man can also be
objectively quantfied and statements based on objective measures of cause
and effect can be made leading to theories formulation.
Positivism

Fact, Value and Objectivity

Fact ● A fact in sociology refers to an empirically verifiable observation. It has its own
independent existence. Facts can be perceived by our tactical and audio-visual
senses etc in the similar manner by everyone. Facts remain same in all situations
and for all observers.
● Values in sociology refers to subjective disposition arising out of experience,
preferences, bias, beliefs and so on. Values represent what one believes and not
necessarily what actually is. They refer to socially accepted standards of
Value desirability and undesirability. They define what is important, worthwhile, and
worth striving for. They guide our objectives, goals and our actions. Values
can be personal, cultural, temporal and situation specific and may not
remain same over the period of time.

● Objectivity in sociology refers to an approach in which the attitude of a

scientific investigator is detached, unprejudiced, value free and free from biases.
Values are the basis of subjectivity and they flow from different preconceived
notions like caste, class, culture, gender, religion, ideology and so on. Robert
Bierstedt contends that ‘Objectivity means that conclusions arrived at as
Objectivity
a result of inquiry and investigation are independent of the race,
religion, color, creed, nationality, occupation, moral preferences and
political predisposition of the investigator’. Hence, objectivity pre-
supposes value neutrality and predictability about outcome. It is one of
the pillars of ‘Scientific Methods’ and core of positivism.
Non-positivist methodology
● Early sociologists favoured positivist approach in study of sociology amid the
influence of rationalism and natural sciences. However it was later realized by
scholars that sociological issues cannot be addressed using fixed laws only, hence
they turned from positivism to nonpositivism. While positivist methodologies
Non-positivist
viewed society as given and man as mere part of it governed by its rules; non
methodology
positivists on the other hand considered man as independent thinking being who
can influence society also. Non-positivists rejected the over-socialized conception
of man and thus, tried to gauge what goes inside mind of man and how it affects
society.
● Interpretivist sociology is an umbrella term for various streams like Symbolic
interactionism, Phenomenology, Ethnomethodology and so on. According to this
approach, the task of sociology is to interpret the meanings attached by
Interpretivist
individuals to their actions. The basis of this approach is that ‘individual is
methodology
having a voluntary will and his thoughts cannot be understood simply in terms
of external influence’. Human beings have a consciousness which cannot be
predicted. This approach also came to be known as voluntarist approach.
● Symbolic interactionism perspective is a major framework of the sociological
Symbolic theory. According to John Macionis, symbolic interactionism is "a framework for
Interactionism building theory that sees society as the product of everyday interactions of
 individuals". In other words, it is a frame of reference to better understand how
individuals interact with one another to create symbolic worlds, and in return,
how these worlds shape individual behaviours. It is a framework that helps
understand how society is preserved and created through repeated interactions
between individuals. ||| Symbolic interaction theory analyses society by
addressing the subjective meanings that people impose on objects, events, and
behaviours. Subjective meanings are given primacy because it is believed that
people behave based on what they believe and not just on what is objectively
true. Thus, society is thought to be socially constructed through human
interpretation.
People interpret one another’s behaviour, and it is these interpretations that form
the social bond. These interpretations are called the “definition of the situation.”
● Phenomenology perspective is a major framework of the sociological theory.
Phenomenology simply means study of phenomenon, appearance of things
or experience as experienced from the first person point of view. It is an
approach that aims to reveal what role human awareness plays in the production
of social action, social situations, and social worlds. In essence, phenomenology is
the belief that society is a human construction. ||| Phenomenology was
originally developed by a German mathematician named Edmund Husserl. Alfred
Schutz who first used this in Sociology postulated that it is subjective meanings
Phenomenology that give rise to an apparently objective social world. The social world is a world
of meanings and there is no objective reality which lies beyond the meanings of
individual.
Meanings don’t have their own independent existence, instead they are
constructed and reconstructed by the actors in the course of their social
interaction. He argued that people depend upon language and the “stock of
knowledge” they have accumulated to enable social interaction. All social
interaction requires that individuals characterize others in their world, and their
stock of knowledge helps them with this task.
● Ethnomethodology perspective is a major framework of the sociological theory.
Ethnomethodology literally means “systematic description of methods and
practices that a particular socio-cultural group employs in its everyday activities
to accomplish their everyday lives”. Ethnomethodology is concerned with the
organization of everyday life and it examines the methods and practices
that people use to construct and account for their social world. |||
Ethnomethodolo
Ethnomethodology is the study of how social order is produced in through
gy
processes of social interaction. In other words, Ethnomethodology is the
study of how people use social interaction to maintain an ongoing sense of reality
in a situation. To gather data, ethnomethodologists rely on conversation analysis
and a rigorous set of techniques for systematically observing and recording what
happens when people interact in natural settings. It is an attempt to classify the
actions people take when they are acting in groups.
RESEARCH METHODS AND ANALYSIS
Qualitative and Quantative methods
● Quantitative methods refer to objective measurements and the statistical,
mathematical, or numerical analysis of data collected through polls,
Quantative
questionnaires, and surveys, or by manipulating pre-existing statistical data using
methods
computational techniques. Positivists and functionalists use this method more
often.
Qualitative ● Qualitative Methods refer to examination, analysis and interpretation of
methods observations for the purpose of discovering underlying meanings and patterns of
relationship to gain better understanding of symbols, motives and meanings.
Qualitative methods emerged as a reaction to an excessive emphasis on positivist
research, which is considered unsuitable for understanding of social phenomenon.
 Interpretivists and non- positivists favor such methods.
Techniques of data collection
Techniques of ● Techniques of data collection depend on whether the data required is
data collection quantitative or qualitative and whether the data required is primary data or
secondary data or whether the approach is positivist or non-positivist.
Hence, various techniques are also classified accordingly and some of them are
like – questionnaire, field studies, surveys, secondary research and so on.
● Primary data refers to the first hand data gathered by the researcher himself,
whereas Secondary data refers to the data which is already available as a
result of previously done research. It is available in form of government
PRIMARY DATA &
surveys, reports, social studies by other researchers and so on. ||| Emile
SECONDARY
Durkheim employed such data from police stations for his study of suicide.
DATA
However, such data is not always reliable as it may have been collected with a
different purpose. Further, secondary data is also older. It may also be prone to
errors which the researcher might not be aware of.
● Definition of Observation : Observation is the active acquisition of information
from a primary source. According to Pauline V Young, ‘Observation is
systematic viewing along with consideration of seen phenomenon’.
OBSERVATION Rationale behind using observation method is that sociological investigator
(qualitative) should become a part of social phenomenon he wishes to understand. For
reliability and validity of results, observation should be systematic and
scientific in nature and hence it is also called ‘scientific observation’
instead.
CONTENT ● Content analysis is a methodology in the social sciences for studying the
ANALYSIS content of communication. Earl Babble defines it as ‘the study of recorded
(qualitative) human communications, such as books, websites, paintings and laws’. It is also a
qualitative technique of research in sociology and often used in
interpretative sociological research.
● Historical analysis is a method of the examination of past events to understand
to understand current or future events. It is a method which provides sociologists
a luxury to look into past and connect the present with the past and develop a
deeper perspective about current issues and problems. Various sources used in
this method are government archives, historical records, historical works
HISTORIC and personal diaries and so on. ||| Historical facts are collected to gain an
ANALYSIS insight into past events related to a phenomenon. It shows the social values and
(qualitative) ideas which present social structures are based. However, in this method,
collection of facts is a stupendous task and reliability is a big problem.
Historical data cannot be subjected to experimentation and statistics
cannot be used in this method. ‘Documentary research’ is one particular type of
historical analysis in which documents are used a source. Government
documents, memoirs, newspapers can be source of such research

● Focus group technique consists of bringing together a group of people to

have an extensive, free flowing discussion relating to their experiences or opinion
FOCUS GROUP
on a particular focus issue. It is like a group interview. Researcher may act like
TECHNIQUE
a moderator to direct the discussion in a desired direction of research.
(qualitative)
In Sociology, R K Merton popularized this method which was earlier limited to
marketing exercises only.
● Case Study is an in-depth and detailed examination of a social
phenomenon in which every detail of an event is studied in depth. This method
CASE STUDY
considers all related aspects like – antecedents and consequents – of an event in
great detail and hence, offers a holistic treatment of the subject.
 ● Definition : An interview is a guided conversation between the
researcher and the respondent. Interview is a technique in which there is a
INTERVIEW
one to one interaction between researcher and subject. It may happen in
various forms and types like – face-to-face, telephonic, group interview etc.
● A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of pre-set questions in a
pre-set order and is an organized activity of information gathering. It can be
either administrated by an interviewer face to face (as used by Goldthorpe
and Lockwood in their affluent worker study), may be sent by post, or may be
QUESTIONNAIRR
distributed during a large gathering or may be pasted online. It is the
E
cheapest, fastest, and efficient method of obtaining large amounts of information.
||| When questionnaires are administered face to face they have advantage of
being under an expert observation and hence are more likely to be filled correctly
on one hand and a risk of suffering from interviewer’s bias on the other hand.
● A schedule is a structure of a set of questions on a given topic which are asked
by the interviewer or investigator personally. The order of questions, the
SCHEDULE language of the questions and the arrangement of parts of the schedule are not
changed. It is similar to a questionnaire; main difference is that a schedule is
filled by enumerator who is specially appointed for this purpose.
● A survey is a research method used for collecting data from a predefined
group of respondents to gain information and insights into various topics of
interest. When information is to be collected over a large set of population,
SURVEY
techniques like participant observation, focus group cannot be used and survey is
(quantitative)
employed. Information collected through surveys can be analyzed through use
of statistical techniques, mathematical models and computer
simulations.
● Biographical research is a research method concerned with the reconstruction
of life histories and the constitution of meaning based on biographical narratives
and documents. It provides new insights to already existing knowledge as
BIOGRAPHICAL
texts like life histories other biographical material provide new voices. ||| A
RESEARCH
cross check is made by use of available letters, news reports and
contemporary reports. However, this method is prone to suffer from biases
and ideologies of writers who write biographies, narratives etc.
Variables, Sampling, Hypothesis, Reliability and Validity
● Variables are those entities whose value varies as situation changes and
they are key elements of an experiment. ||| Generally, there are two kinds of
variables. In any research method, there are always some ‘dependent
variables’ and there are some ‘independent or fixed variables’. Value of
dependent variables depends upon value of independent variables and other
dependent variables. ||| Variables can also be further classified as –
experimental variables, measured variables, discreet variables,
Variables
continuous variables. ||| In any study, generally measured variable is also a
dependent variable. For example – in studying the educational level of an area,
‘Education Level’ is a dependent variable, which depend on other variables like –
parental income, schools available, teachers quality, cultural values and so on.
Dependent variable in one situation can be independent variable in another
research. For example, in determining the causes of unemployment, education
can be an independent variable with unemployment as an independent variable.
● Definition : Sampling is a process of selection of a limited number of items
from a larger whole of items. Process of sampling requires defining
Sampling
population set first from which samples will be chosen. After that sample
frame is specified. After that, sampling method is specified.
 ● Definition : A hypothesis is a tentative statement, which formulates a
precise and definite relation between two or more variables. It is an
untested statement which awaits validation. Upon validation, a hypothesis may
yield a theory, concept or generalization etc. ||| It states the objective
of a research and tells what a researcher is looking for. It can also be
defined as a conjecture or an educated guess based upon previously
accumulated knowledge about a given state of affairs put in concrete terms to
Hypothesis
provide the basis for empirical testing. According to Stebbing, ‘Every hypothesis
springs from the union of knowledge and sagacity’. Hypothesis should reasonably
show the interconnectedness between two or more variables. For example – a
researcher observes that ‘number of marital breakdowns’ goes up as one
observes ‘rise in annual total family income’ or ‘crime rates’ are higher in ‘slums’
than in other parts of urban areas. A hypothesis will aim at finding
interconnectedness between the two variables mentioned in the sentence.
● Reliability and validity are the two important entities which determines the
correctness and effectiveness of an observation and hence usefulness of a result.
Reliability leads to repetition of same result; validity is the degree of meeting
Reliability &
the desired goal. ||| These are two major challenges in sociology as outcomes
Validity
of sociological research are not a result of a controlled experiment and a situation
never remains same. Different ideologies also guide research methodology and
hence, different results will be produced every time.
SOCIOLOGICAL THINKERS
INTRODUCTION
Positivism
Marxism
● Functionalism is one of the theoretical perspective in sociology according to
which each of the institutions, relationships, roles, and norms that together
constitute a society serves a purpose, and each is indispensable for the
continued existence of the others and of society as a whole. Functionalism as a
perspective evolved with the beginning of sociology as a discipline and Saint
Functionalism
Simon, August Comte, Herbert Spencer, Emile Durkheim put forth ideas
which formed its basis. Its basic premise is that society works as a system of
interconnected parts and each part exists because it has to perform certain
functional prerequisites of the whole system i.e. society behaves like an
organism.
● Master paragraph : Interpretivistis analyse society as a system of
inetractions (human action). We need to understand human action through
Verstehen because the same actions can mean different things to different
people [Max Weber]. We need to understand action in terms of shared
meanings within a group and how the members of that group see themselves
Interpretivism
and how the individuals and the group understand society [G H Mead]. We need
to understand whether an individual is just putting on an act (manipulating props
and just managing an impression) [Erving Goffman] . We need to understand
whether a person has been labelled by agents of social control, whether they
have been stigmatised by society [Howard Beckar].
Neo-Marxism
Neo-
functionalism
Modernism
● Postmodernism is a social solipsism characterized by self-referentiality,
Post-Modernism epistemological relativism, moral relativism, pluralism, irony, irreverence, and
 eclecticism; it rejects the "universal validity" of binary oppositions, stable
identity, hierarchy, and categorization. Postmodernity refers to a globalised
society with the following characteristics: a technologically advanced, mainly
post-industrial service sector economy, high levels of consumption, lots of
individual freedom to shape identities through consumption, and correspondingly
high levels of cultural diversity; media-saturation and hyperreality; high levels of
insecurity and uncertainty.
Post
Structuralist
Feminism

KARL MARX
Karl Marx ● Introduction : Karl Marx was one of the early pioneers of the discipline of
sociology. He laid foundation of ‘conflict perspective’ in sociology which was
radically different from the then prevailing functionalist view. He wrote in a
background when industrialization and capitalism were in full swing and Europe
was witnessing post-French revolutions changes which were too profound
and social environment was in huge flux. It prompted Marx to give a thought
about the misery and suffering of the people whom he saw as the victims of new
economic order called capitalism.
● Master paragraph - Karl Marx analyses society as a social structure which is
divided into dominant upper class in the form of 'haves'
(Bourgeoisie) and subjugated class in the form of 'have nots' (Proletariat) and
the relation between them is of exploitation/antagonistic cooperation/
Surplus value. He employed a critical approach known as Historical
materialism to hold that societal evolution is driven by conflict between two
classes (class conflict) having opposing interests in historical situation of their
Mode of production. MOP which is uniquely defined in terms of a particular
‘FOP’ and ‘ROP’ in a materialistic context constitute Economic Infrastructure
which in turn shapes Social Superstructure. Bourgeoisie exert ideological
control through the
superstructure and keeps Proletariat in false consciousness. But In Capitalist
mode of production , the worker's alienation (no control over labor) is at peak
and when workers will gain a critical mass in terms of true consciousness,
revolution happens. Worker's revolution will result into a state of transition where
they will take over state (dictatorship of proletariat) and then subsequently
establish State of Communism (the final stage of societal evolution) and then
history will end. ||| Karl Marx employed a critical approach (Historical
materialism) to hold that societal evolution is driven by conflict between two
classes (Bourgeoisie and Proletariat) having opposing interests in a particular
Mode of production. In Capitalist MOP , the worker's alienation is at peak and
when workers gain a critical mass in terms of true consciousness, revolution will
happen resulting into establishment of state of communism
● Karl Marx in his work "Contribution to Critique of Political Economy
1859" articulated about Historical materialism. Historical materialism, also
known as the materialist conception of history, holds that that societal evolution
Historical
throughout history are the result of material and technological conditions rather
Materialism
than ideals. HM asserts that materials conditions of society’s MOP or the union of
a society's FOP and ROP fundamentally determines society’s organisation and
development.
● Karl Marx in his work "Contribution to Critique of Political Economy
Mode of 1859" talked about Mode of Production as a particular social formation. MOP
Production refers to the varied ways in which human beings collectively produce the means
 of subsistence in order to survive and enhance social being. It is uniquely
defined in terms of a particular ‘FOP’ and ‘ROP’ in a materialistic context. FOP
include : human labour power and means of production (tools, techniques,
machinery, factory buildings, raw materials, plants, animals, exploitable land
etc). ROP include : the property, power and control relations (legal code) ,
cooperative work associations, relations between man and the things of their
work, and the relations among the social classes. Both FOP and ROP change
continously and together they constitute Economic infrastructure. Economic
infrastructure thus includes ‘forces’ and ‘relations’ being involved in production
and it shapes Social Superstructure. Social superstructure includes all other
aspects of society like – culture, law, state, family, religion, education etc and it
helps in functioning of economic infrastructure.
● Karl Marx in his work "Economic and Political Manuscripts 1844" talked
about Alienation. Alienation is "a condition in social relationships reflected by a
Alienation low degree of integration and a high degree of distance between individuals, or
between an individual and a group of people in a community or work
environment.
● Karl Marx in his work "Das Kapital 1867" talked about Calss conflict. Class
conflict or class struggle or class warfare, is the political tension and economic
Class struggle
antagonism that exists in society consequent to socio-economic competition
among the social classes or between rich and poor.
EMILE DURKHEIM
● Introduction : Emile Durkheim was one of the pioneers of the discipline of
sociology and was also founder scholar of functionalist tradition in sociology
along with August Comte and Herbert Spencer. However, it was Durkheim
who gave distinctive sociological explanations in the field of functional analysis
for the first time. He was also the one who is credited to liberate the budding
discipline from the mysterious methods and terminology of theology and
philosophy. According to him, individual is subordinate to society and is also
governed by it. ‘Society has a reality of its own over and above the individuals
who comprise it’ said Durkheim. He is considered father of sociology for following
reasons –
● Master paragrapgh - Emile Durkheim analyses society as a social structure
Emile Durkheim which exists externally to the individual as a series of social facts (e.g. Relion,
Suicide etc.) and that social structure is made up of norms and values which is
passed down through social institutions. As society evolves, anomie creeps in
which is checked by achieving Social solidarity based on DOL
● Emile Durkheim in his ‘Division of Labor in Society, 1893’ described DOL
as a social phenomenon. DOL refers to separation of tasks in any economic
Division of system or organisation so that participants may specialise (specialisation).
Labour Historically, an increasing division of labour is associated with the growth of total
output and trade, the rise of capitalism, and the increasing complexity of
industrialised processes.
● Emile Durkheim in his book " The Division of Labour in Society 1893 "
described how social order was maintained in societies based on two very
different forms of social solidarity – mechanical solidarity and organic
solidarity. According to Durkheim, social solidarity refers to the system of
Social solidarity
social bonds which link individuals directly to the wider society. The two types
of solidarity can be distinguished by [MNCC] Morphological or structural
features, Types of norms in existence, Formal features of collective conscience,
Content of collective consceince
Social Fact ● Emile Durkheim in his book " ‘The Rules of Sociological Method, 1895 "
 described that ‘social facts are ways of acting, thinking and feeling which are
external to the individual and are endowed with the ‘power of coercion’ by
reason of which they control of him’. Social facts are norms, values, and social
structures that transcend the individual and can exercise social control. Durkheim
argued that the discipline of sociology should be understood as the identification
and empirical study of social facts.
● Emile Durkheim in his work ‘The Suicide, 1897’ described suicide as a social
phenomenon. He defines suicide as ‘Suicide is any case of death caused by
directly or indirectly, positive or negative action of the victim himself, which he
knows will produce this result’. Positive actions are those actions taken by the
individual to end one’s life, for example – consuming poison. Negative actions are
in form of inaction which causes death, for example – starvation, remaining inside
Suicide
a burning house etc. Indirect causes are those when a person has no intention of
dying, though he knows that he may die, as in case of army, fire fighter etc. ||| It
was the first serious effort to establish empiricism in sociology. He exhibited the
use of scientific methodology in sociology for the first time and showed that ‘real
laws are discoverable’ in sociology as well. This theory is well known for the
pragmatic approach of Durkheim in understanding social problems.
● Emile Durkheim in his work ‘Elementary Forms of Religious Life, 1912’
gave functional explanation of existence of religion in the world and observes its
existence as a social fact rather than a supernatural phenomenon. He defines
religion as ‘A unified system of beliefs and practices related to sacred things,
that is to say – things set apart and forbidden, beliefs and practices which
unite them into a single moral community, for all those who adhere to them’. |||
According to Durkheim, beliefs are ‘system of ideas’ , which explain the sacred.
Religion and
Practices are rites or rituals explaining individual’s behavior towards the sacred.
Society There are two types of such rites – positive and negative. Positive rites bring
individual and sacred together and are easier to perform, for example – worship.
Negative rites help in maintaining the distance between the two and are difficult
to perform, for example – fasting, sacrifice etc.

MAX WEBER
● Introduction : Max Weber, like Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx, was one of the
pioneers of the discipline of sociology and one of the early founders of the
interpretivist approach. Like Emile Durkheim, he addressed the problem of
scope and nature of the discipline and he also established first department of
sociology in Germany. Sometimes he is also referred as father of modern
sociology. He is also considered to have bridged the gap between positivism
and idealism. Sticking to positivism, he favored the use of scientific methods in
sociology for the purpose of achieving objectivity, on the other hand drawing
from idealists like ‘Neo-Kantians’, he developed the scope of sociology as ‘the
meaning attached by the actors to their actions’. He was opposed to pure
abstract theorizing. Instead, his theoretical ideas are embedded in his empirical
research, usually historical research. According to him, the behavior of man in
society is qualitatively different from physical objects in natural world and
organisms in biological world. In his book ‘Methodologies of Social Sciences’
Max Weber
written during first decade of 20th century, he defined sociology as ‘Sociology
is a science which attempts interpretivist understanding of social action
in order thereby to arrive at an explanation of its cause and effect’.
● Master paragrapgh -
 ● Max Weber, opines that subject matter of sociology is to study ‘social action’
and he defines social action as – ‘Any act is social by virtue of the meanings
attached to it by the actors, which takes into account the behavior of others and
Social Action is thereby oriented in its course’. In this definition, Max Weber mentions 2
conditions for any action to become social – Action is social if some meaning is
attached to it by the actor +
Action is social if it is oriented to some other things
● Max Weber, one of the “founding fathers” of Interpretivist sociology made the
concept of Verstehen, which loosely translates to ‘understanding’ in German
popular. Weber believed that the interpretation of human actions through
Verstehen
recognition and empathy was crucial for a better understanding of social
phenomena in society. Verstehen is the procedure by which sociologists gain
access to the meanings behind human actions.
● Max Weber opines that the conduct of sociology depends upon the construction
of abstract, hypothetical concepts. According to him, ‘Ideal Types’ is a type of
objective methodology to study social action. He defined ‘Ideal Type’ as – ‘An
ideal type is formed by the onesided accentuation of one or more points of view
and by the synthesis of a great many diffuse, discrete, more or less present and
Ideal types
occasionally absent concrete individual phenomena, which are arranged
according to those one-sidedly emphasized viewpoints into a unified analytical
construct…’. In Weber’s view, the ideal type was to be derived inductively
from the real world of social history and not deductively or from personal
judgments alone.
● Max Weber’s conception of authority is a demonstration of his concept of ideal
type in action. According to him, both power and authority are social in character
and comes into play where relations are there. Power is defined by Weber as ‘The
chance of a man or a number of men to realize their own will in a communal
action, even against the resistance of those who are participating in the
Authority communal action’. Authority according to Weber is a form of ‘legitimate or
socially approved power. According to him, coercion differentiates power from
authority. Power has an element of coercion in it. ||| Like all other concepts,
concept of authority is also developed by Max Weber as an ideal type. According
to him, there are 3 ideal types of authority which are based upon his conception
of various type of social action – RAT
● Bureaucracy refers to a centralized form of management and tends to be
differentiated from adhocracy, in which management tends more to
decentralization. Max Weber, contends that bureaucracy is an ideal type of
Bureaucracy
organization in which structure is based on rational-legal authority and
which suits most the requirements of modern societies where work is done
rationally in pursuit of large scale administrative tasks and organizational goals’.
● Max Weber’s theory of PESC contained in his work ‘The Protestant Ethics
and Spirit of Capitalism, 1904’ is widely known for – its use of scientific
methods in sociology, possibility of studying ‘macro’ phenomenon in terms of
‘micro’ and a demonstration of his idea of ‘causal pluralism’. His study of
Protestant Ethic
capitalism is that of modern capitalism and, unlike Karl Marx who gave primacy
and Spirit of to economic structure and material aspects, Max Weber put more emphasis
Capitalism on ideas leading to an economic system. He was concerned with
Protestantism, mainly as a system of ideas, and its impact on the rise of another
system of ideas, the ‘spirit of capitalism’, and ultimately leading to a capitalist
economic system.
G H MEAD
G H Mead ● Introduction :
 ● G H Mead in his work "Mind, Self and Society 1934" gave theory of self.
Mead's theory of the self maintains that the idea people have of themselves
stems from the process social interaction with others. This theory opposes
biological determinism because it holds that the self does not exist at birth and
may not be present at the beginning of a social interaction, but it is constructed
and reconstructed in the process of social interactions, experience and activity.
||| The self, according to Mead, is made up of two components: the “I” and the
Theory of Self “me.” “I” is the psychological aspect of the self, referring to individual’s own
impulses, desires, emotions etc. Whereas “Me” is the social aspect of the self
which is evaluative & keeps control on “I”. The “me” represents the expectations
and attitudes of others i.e. the "generalized others” organized into a social self.
So, in effect, the "I" is the self as subject while the "me" is the self as object. It is
the complex operation of “I” & “me” which leads to development of self.
According to Mead's theory, the self is developed through three activities:
language, play, and game.
TALCOTT PARSONS
Talcott Parsons ● Introduction :
● Master paragraph- Talcott Parsons analyses society as a social system
which is made of constellation of social actions/system of interactions and
based on value consensus and social order; which requires individuals to be
integrated which is achieved through Socialisation and Social control (Social
regulation). Social system need to fulfill its basic needs/functional
prerequisites (AGIL) which must be met through specialized sub systems for
continued survival of system. Subsystems of overall action system are linked to
each other with Cybernatic hierarchy of control. Actors face various
functional dilemmnas (Parsons call it Pattern variables) during Social
interaction which is resolved through role institutionalisation in the social
system.
● Talcott Parsons in his work ‘Structure of Social Action, 1937’ contends that
as – ‘Any act consciously performed is Social Action’. Parsons considers
that all possible empirical action of the people can be arrested into a universal
Social Action theoretical framework. He developed theory of ‘structure of social action’ and
enumerates 3 types of social action in contrast to Weber’s 4 ideal types of social
action. Unlike Weber who says that action should be oriented towards others for it
to be ‘social’, Parsons instead gave 4 conditions for an action to be social.
● Talcott Parsons in his work “The Social System, 1951” contends that “Social
actions don’t occur in isolation, but in constellation and such constellation in the
form of institutionalised social interactions is called Social system” ||| Social
system is the patterned network of relationships constituting a coherent
whole that exist between individuals, groups, and institutions. It is the formal
Social system structure of role and status that can form in a small, stable group. An individual
may belong to multiple social systems at once; examples of social systems
include nuclear family units, communities, cities, nations, college campuses,
corporations, and industries. A social system has two parts – structure (actors,
environment, relation etc) and functions (performance of which leads to
gratification).
● Talcott Parsons in his work ‘Structure of Social Action, 1937’ gave concept
of Action systems (Cultural system , Social system, Personality system,
Actions System Organismic system) as his grand structural functional framework. Every action-
system need to fulfill its basic needs/functional prerequisites (AGIL) through
specialised sub-systems for continued survival of system.
 ● Talcott Parsons in his work ‘Structure of Social Action, 1937’ gave concept
of Action systems (Cultural system , Social system, Personality system,
Organismic system) as his grand structural functional framework. Every action-
system need to fulfill its basic needs/functional prerequisites (AGIL) through
Cybernatic specialised sub-systems for continued survival of system. Parsons in his
Hierarchy of conceptualisation of action system also see their inter-relation and inter-linkages.
Control Parsons develops what he terms the cybernatic hierarchy of control to
explore these relations among the subsystems of overall action system. He
propunds that those systems which have a high level of information (such as
cultural system) have control over systems which have a high level of energy
(such as Organismic system)
● Pattern variables in more general terms, is referred as ‘types of orientation’
or fundamental dilemmas that actors face in any situation or during social
interaction. Simply put, Pattern Variables are are choices between alternative
variables while performing ‘roles.’ Pattern Variables’ is the connecting link
Pattern Variables
between the Parsonian idea of social action and social system. While pattern
variables are dilemmas, social system is the solution. Pattern Variables allow for
categorisation of dichotomies in Perosnality system (mode of orientation),
Cultural system (value systems) and Social system (normative requirements)
R K MERTON
R K Merton ● Introduction :
● Master paragraph-
Latent and ● Manifest functions are deliberate and known. While latent functions are
Manifest unintended and/or go unrecognized by many. ||| Each system in society has a
function specific function that relies on and is associated to other systems. When these
systems function, it leads to social stability.
When one or more systems dysfunctions , it leads to social instability. Both
functions and dysfunctions can be latent or manifest.
● Middle-range theory, developed by Robert K. Merton, is an approach to
sociological theorizing aimed at integrating theory and empirical research.
Middle-range theory starts with an empirical phenomenon (as opposed to a broad
Middle range abstract entity like the social system) and abstracts from it to create general
statements that can be verified by data. This approach stands in contrast to the
earlier "grand" theorizing of social theory, such as functionalism and many
conflict theories.
● Conformity is the act of matching attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors to group
norms, politics or being like-minded. People often choose to conform to society
rather than to pursue personal desires - because it is often easier to follow the
Conformity and
path others have made already, rather than forging a new one. ||| Deviance
Deviance
explores the actions and/ or behaviors that violate social norms across formally
enacted rules (e.g., crime) as well as informal violations of social norms (e.g.,
rejecting folkways and mores).
● A reference group is a group to which individuals compare themselves, which is
not necessarily a group to which those individuals belong. Thompson and
Hickey (2005), contends that reference groups are ones "that people refer to
Reference
when evaluating their own qualities, circumstances, attitudes, values and
Groups
behaviors. ||| R K Merton developed a theory of the reference group and
elaborated on the concepts of in-group and out-group. For any group of people
there are always other groups whom they look upon to and aspire to be like them.
STRATIFICATION AND MOBILITY
Concepts – Equality & Inequality, Hierarchy, Poverty, Deprivation
Equality & ● Pierre Bourdieu defines Inequality as "patterns of unequal access to social
 resources. These social resources can be divided into four form of capital
(Cultural capital, Social capital, Economic capital, Symbolic capital)". All societies
are marked by differences (either natural or man-made) on various counts like –
sex, color, skills, wealth, status, power, and geography and so on. When society
tends to attach values on such differences in terms of superior or inferior,
desirable or undesirable and so on, it leads to evaluation of differences and thus
‘social differences’ now become ‘inequalities’. While differences are
created by nature, man creates inequalities. These inequalities occur in
specific patterns and these patterns are understood through concept of ‘Social
Stratification’.
● Master paragrapgh : Structural inequalities in the form of Hierarchy,
Exclusion, Poverty, Deprivation and Social stratification based on Class, Status
groups, Gender, Ethnicity, Race are not allowing marginalised groups (Women,
Inequality LGBTQ etc) to go for upward Social mobility. Besides Patriarchy, Sexual DOL,
Violence have further deteriorated the conditions of these groups. Due to
Constitutional & legal safeguards, Education and increased opportunities,
Technology and information empowerment , Women and LGBTQ communities
have challenged the existing male dominated discriminatory systems.
Hierarchy ● Hierarchy refers to “Any relationship of individuals, groups, or classes involving
a system of ranking within society or an organization according to some
criterion of evaluation accepted as relevant within the system”.
● Ruth Lister in her work ‘Poverty, 2004’, refers social exclusion to ways in
which individuals may become cut off from full involvement in the wider
society or prevention of individuals from having the same opportunities that are
available to most of the population (e.g., housing, healthcare, employment, civic
Exclusion
engagement, democratic participation, and due process). Exclusion is a process
by which individuals or households experience multiple deprivations – either
of resources or of social links to the wider community or society – which prevents
them from participating fully in the politico-socio-economic life of the society.
● Amartya Sen defines poverty as – ‘Lack of what one needs to live in society –
Not only to survive, but also for contribution and participation in society’. He
redefines poverty not only in terms of economic status, but also in terms of
capability and hence connects it to the empowerment. Poverty is a social
Poverty
problem which arises due to an inter-related wave of cultural, social, political,
economic and psychological factors, and often expressed in terms of lack
of material resources which one requires for a minimum standard of
life.
● Pierre Bourdieu defines deprivation as "lack of adequate cultural, social,
economic and symbolic capital". Deprivation refers to denial of access to
resources required for self-development and fulfilment of basic necessities of life.
Resources can be social, economic and cultural and basic necessities vary from
Deprivation
one culture to another. When compared to exclusion, while exclusion is ‘from’
social participation, deprivation is ‘of’ resources. When compared to poverty ,
poverty is often expressed in economic terms, deprivation can have other
dimensions as well.
Theories of Social stratification – Structural functionalist theory, Marxist theory, Weberian
theory
● Sutherland and Maxwell defines stratification as ‘a process of differentiation
which places some people higher than the others. Social stratification refers to a
Social
society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors
stratification
like wealth, income, education, occupation, social status, gender, ethnicity, race,
or derived power (social and political).
 ● Structural functionalism is one of the theoretical perspective in sociology
according to which each of the institutions, relationships, roles, and norms that
together constitute a society serves a purpose, and each is indispensable for the
Structural continued existence of the others and of society as a whole. ||| Structure
functionalist functionalists idea of stratification believe that social stratification in society
theory exists because it serves important role in functioning of society. Different strata
are created due to differential capacity of actors and their ability to perform
different roles. Functionalists see existence of various strata in terms of their
interdependence, cooperation and serving the function of integration of society.
● Marxism is one of the theoretical perspective in sociology which focus on how
the economy and our social norms and values shape how we understand our
relationship to the economy and our place within the social structure relative to
others. ||| Marxian idea of stratification flows from his central notion of
Marxist theory dialectical materialism, unequal control over FOP and consequent class formation.
Karl Marx said that nature made everyone equal, but some men deprived others.
He agreed that there are inequalities in society in various fields, but they all
emanate from one thing – control over FOP. Thus, in the Marxist theory social
classes are defined by what relation they have to the MOP.

● Weberian theory of stratification refers to a three-component theory of

stratification, with social class, social status and political party as conceptually
distinct elements. The three-component theory of stratification is in contrast to
Karl Marx simpler theory of social class that ties all social stratification to what
people own. The three components of Weber's theory are: Social class: based on
Weberian theory
economically determined relationship to the market (owner, renter, employee,
etc.) ; Status (German: Stand): based on non-economic qualities like honour,
prestige and religion ; Party: affiliations in the political domain. All three
dimensions have consequences for what Weber called "life chances"
(opportunities to improve one's life).
Dimensions of Social Stratification
Class ● A social class is a form of social stratification which occur in class society in
which, people are grouped into a set of hierarchical social categories based on
wealth, income, education, occupation, and belonging to a particular subculture
or social network.
● Social status refers the level of social value a person is considered to hold.
Status is one of the most ancient system of social stratification where ranking is
done based on the relative position in terms of honour and respect, prestige,
Status
goodwill, fame, personal qualities and social capital of an individual in a
society. Earlier, status was seen as in terms of ascriptive values – e.g. – Caste,
Nobleman, Clergy, Estate owner etc. Today the term status is wider.
Gender ● Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to and differentiating between
femininity and masculinity. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based
social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Stratification based on
gender is one of the most fundamental forms of stratification.
● Master sentence : Structural inequalities in the form of Hierarchy, Exclusion,
Poverty, Deprivation and Social stratification based on
Class, Caste, Gender, Ethnicity, Race are not allowing marginalised groups
(Women, LGBTQ etc) to go for upward Social mobility. Besides
Patriarchy, Sexual DOL, Violence have further deteriorated the conditions of these
groups. Due to Constitutional & legal safeguards, Education and increased
opportunities, Technology and information empowerment , Women and LGBTQ
communities have challenged the existing male dominated discriminatory
 systems.
● Ethnicity is a grouping of people into categories who identify with each other
based on shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups such as a
Ethnicity
common set of traditions, ancestry, language, culture, religion, history,
society, nation, or social treatment within their residing area.
● Race is a grouping of peoples into categories who identify with each other
based on shared attributes mainly physical and biological generally viewed as
Race distinct within a given society such as – color of skin, type of hair, facial
features, size of head etc. While ‘race’ is perceived as biological, ‘ethnicity’ is
cultural or social in its meaning.
Social Mobility- Open & close systems, Types of Social mobility, Sources & causes of
mobility
● Social mobility refers to the movement of individuals, families or groups within
the social strata or between social strata in a society. It is a change in social
Social mobility
status relative to one's current social location within a given society. The concept
of social mobility is closely linked to the concept of stratification.
Open systems ● Open systems are those systems which offer free mobility from one stratum to
another and there are no barriers which cannot be overcome. Ex- modern
societies, Class system
● Closed systems are those systems which are marked by rigid boundaries which
Close systems are unassailable. Individuals cannot cross their strata in ordinary circumstances.
Ex- Caste system, gender stratification, ethnic stratification
IMPACT OF COLONIAL RULE ON BRITISH SOCIETY
Social Background of Indian Nationalism
Social ● Indian nationalism is a modern phenomenon. It came into being during the
Background of British period. This came into being as a result of the action and interaction of
Indian numerous subjective and objective forces and factors which developed within the
Nationalism Indian society, under the conditions of British rule and the impact of world forces.
Modernization of Indian Tradition
● According to Yogendra Singh, modernization is a form of cultural response,
involving attributes which are basically universalistic and evolutionary; they are
pan-humanistic, trans-ethnic and non-ideological. Process of modernization of
Indian tradition started during British rule, but it was not a linear uni-directional
Modernization of
process as it happened in West, but it also involved a dialectical relationship
Indian Tradition
between modernity and tradition and modern was also traditionalized in the
process, though in less significant manner. Modernization of Indian tradition
includes change in traditional institutions, values and processes like caste,
kinship, family, religion, political and social organization, and so on.
Protests and Movements during colonial period
● From the colonial era to post-Independence, Protests & Social movements have
acquired intensity at different times, in different geographies, in different
contexts, and had different outcomes. Protests are generally issue based and
relatively short lived as compared to Social movements. ||| Colonial rule saw
Protests and
numerous types of protests and social movements arising out of discontent with
Movements
colonial rules and structural disparities of Indian society. Colonial rules led to
during colonial
many changes to traditional social structure which was resisted by Indians. Their
period
economic policies, social policies, religious policies etc. all led to reactions from
Indians. So, causes were both internal as well as external. For example – while
peasant movements were largely result of excesses of colonial policies, caste
movements were result of internal fault lines in Indian society.
Social reforms
 ● Social reforms is a kind of movement that aims to make gradual change, or
change in certain aspects of society, rather than rapid or fundamental changes.
British advent into India also brought modern ideas and reformative approach.
Much orthodoxy was prevalent in India when British arrived. While Sati, child
Social reforms
marriage and patriarchy ailed women, caste & untouchability ailed lower castes,
on the other hand educational backwardness, superstition, health problems etc.
ailed society at large. Social reforms during colonial rule came as a result of both
orthogenetic and heterogenetic sources.
PERSPECTIVES IN STUDY OF INDIAN SOCIETY
Indology
● ‘Indology’ literally means ‘systematic study of Indian society and culture using
historical texts’. Task of Indological perspective is to interpret and understand
Indian society and culture based on traditional religious text, historical
documents, and even archaeological evidence. |||
Indology Religious texts like – Mahabharata, Ramayana, Vedas, Upanishads, Smritis etc,
historical texts like – Kautilya’s Arthshastra, Magestheneses’s Indica etc, Writings
and inscription by kings and other archaeological evidences were used for the
study of Indian society. Indology emphasizes upon study of Indian languages,
beliefs, customs etc within broad purview of Indian society.
● Classical Indology refers to a pure-book view. Initial emphasis of this
perspective was on translations of Sanskrit texts and developing an
understanding on this basis. Classical Indology was prevalent before 1920s in the
writings of British intellectuals. William Jones established Asiatic Society of
Classical
Bengal in 1787 which later on emerged as major centre of Indology. Max
Indology
Muller’s ‘Sacred Books of the East’ – a multiple volume work published from
1849-74 – translated Vedas and other sacred texts. Henry Maine’s ‘Ancient Law,
1861’ and ‘Village Communities in East and West, 1871’ were classical Indological
texts.
● Classical Indology was modified by combining it with various sociological
perspectives leading to development of Modern Indology. G S Ghurye combined
Modern Indology Classical Indological approach with anthropological diffusionist approach. Radha
Kamal Mukherjee combined classical Indology with empirical sociology. D P
Mukherjee combined Classical Indology with Marxian analytical framework.

Structural Functionalism
● Structural functionalism is one of the theoretical perspective in sociology
Structural according to which each of the institutions, relationships, roles, and norms that
Functionalism together constitute a society serves a purpose, and each is indispensable for the
continued existence of the others and of society as a whole.
Marxism
● Marxism is one of the theoretical perspective in sociology which focus on how
the economy and our social norms and values shape how we understand our
Marxism
relationship to the economy and our place within the social structure relative to
others.
RURAL AND AGRARIAN SOCIAL STRUCTURE
Idea of Indian Village
● Historically, India is deemed as a land of villages. Village in India is not merely
a spatial unit, but it is Indian society in miniature.
Village
According to Andre Beteille – ‘Village was not merely a place where people
lived… It had a design in which were reflected basic values of Indian society’.
Village studies
 ● Village studies became a prominent feature of study of Indian society in
1950s-60s. Earlier they were either led by colonial administrators or
Indologists. Study of Indian villages began in 18 th century itself with intensive
Village studies survey of land holdings. Early approaches were influenced by the book view and
such studied formed a textually informed orthodox view of Indian villages.
Purpose of such colonial studies was either to make an economic assessment
or draw a cultural map of India for rulers.
Agrarian social structure – Evolution of LTS and LR
● Agrarian social structure refers to the institutional framework under which
agrarian operations are carried out and broadly covers the system of land tenure
Agrarian social
and land tenancy. Since agricultural land is the most important productive
structure –
resource in rural areas, access to land shapes the rural class structure as well.
Evolution of LTS
Historically, caste and land were also linked. Usually, dominant and upper
and LR
castes had the control over the land and the lower castes barely had any land.
Thus, land-caste and class were intimately linked.
● Land tenure refers to the relationship among individuals or groups, with
respect to land. It defines the conditions under which land can be occupied, held
Land Tenure
or managed, by whom and for how long. There are different types of tenure, it
System
may be based on written policies and laws (statutory land tenure) or on unwritten
customs and practices (customary land tenure).
● Land reform refers to efforts to reform of ownership and regulation of land or
process of redistribution of land by the government from landholders to landless
Land Reforms
people for agriculture or special purpose. Land distribution has been part of
India's state policy from the very beginning.
Agrarian class structure
● Agrarian social structure refers to the institutional framework under which
agrarian operations are carried out and broadly covers the system of land tenure
Agrarian class and land tenancy. Agrarian class structure is one of dimensions of Agrarian
social structure. ASS includes caste, class, land ownership, Jajmani system etc
while agrarian class structure will include only classes.
Programmes of rural development, CDP , cooperatives, PAP
● Rural development was one of the topmost agenda of the government of India
as most of the population lived in rural areas. Rural development was also
important for securing food security for our huge population and achieving the
ideal of socio-economic equality as enshrined in our constitution. Further, rural
Programmes of
development was necessary to minimize urban-rural equalities, check
Rural
migration and provide decent standard of living to those living in rural areas. In
development
recent times also, rural development is a big planning concern as it became
clear that the earlier strategies of top down approach remained largely ineffective
in alleviating poverty and inequalities in rural areas, and now rural development
programs seek greater participation of the people.
● CDP which was launched in 1950s was a multi project programme with an aim
of overall development of rural India. This programme consisted of village
industries, agriculture, animal husbandry, irrigation, education, public health etc.
CDP There were officials for each activity at district level to plan, execute and evaluate
the programme up to the village level. CDP was the first major effort for rural
development which was conceived as a method through which the Five Year Plans
would initiate a process of transformation of the socio-economic life of the village.
Cooperatives ● Cooperative is a voluntary group of people on equal basis with similar interests
and activity who leverage their resources for collective as well as individual gains.
In Indian rural context, role of cooperatives was envisaged to cut Intermediaries
 in production chain , extricate rural peasant from the grip of moneylenders,
provide technical knowhow, promote economies of scale and uplift the standard
of living.
● Poverty which stood at around 55% at the time of independence is now at the
level of 22% as per Tendulkar Committee report. Amartya Sen defines poverty
as – ‘Lack of what one needs to live in society – Not only to survive, but also for
PAP contribution and participation in society’. He redefines poverty not only in terms
of economic status, but also in terms of capability and hence connects it to the
empowerment. Government has adopted multiple approaches towards fighting
poverty over the years.
Green revolution
● Green Revolution was a period when agriculture in India was converted into an
industrial system due to the adoption of modern methods and technology, such
as the use of HYV seeds, irrigation facilities, pesticides, fertilizers, and
Green revolution
mechanized farming. It was supported by strengthening of credit facility,
electrification, infrastructure etc. The term Green Revolution was first used by Dr
William Gaud, the administrator of the USAID, in a speech on March 1968.
Changing MOP in Indian agriculture
Changing MOP in ● Indian agriculture continued to have a traditional MOP which was shaped by a
Indian peasant society, Jajmani system and caste in a semi feudal setup till the arrival of
agriculture the British. British rule heralded a new MOP under which land as well as
agricultural produce came to market.
Problems of rural labour including bondage and migration
● Rural labor, historically belonged to the landless class in Indian society and it
worked under the economic system known as – Jajmani system. In wake of little
financial and material security, this labor always led a life of want and misery.
Rural labor
With introduction of private property during colonial rule, new classes emerged
and problems of the rural labor only exacerbated at the hands of Zamindars,
dominant castes, British officials (they were often taken as begar) and so on.
● National Commission on Labor defines bonded labor as ‘labor which remains in
bondage for the debt incurred’. Thus, it is a relation between a creditor and
Bondage
debtor in highly unequal terms. This form of labor is a product of debt bondage
where the dependence and control of labor is through indebtedness.
● Migration of rural labor into other well-off areas is a hallmark of the developing
and the underdeveloped agrarian economies as rural areas are often left behind
in developmental race. Distressed rural labor often resorts to migration to urban
areas for better pastures often ending up in low key jobs.
Migration

CASTE SYSTEM IN INDIA

Perspectives on study of Caste systems
Caste ● Caste system is a closed system of stratification which is peculiar to India. It
existed from centuries and its exact origin is still not known. Primarily, it is a
system called ‘Varna’ system under the Hindu fold of Indian society which divides
society into 4 groups or ‘Varnas’ based on the birth – Brahmin, Kshatriya,
Vaishyas and Shudras. Apart from these, there is a 5th group – which falls
outside the Varna system – and is called ‘Avarna’ or outcastes or untouchables.
While ‘Varna’ is a macro conception, ‘caste or jati’ is the ground reality.
 Caste is an endogamous group having an independent culture and structural
existence. Castes are further divided into sub-caste which are endogamous and
gotras which are exogamous groups.
Features of Caste system
Untouchability- forms and perspectives
● Institution of ‘untouchability’ refers not just to the avoidance of physical
contact but to a much broader set of social sanctions and social disabilities
which are ascriptive in nature within the ritual framework of the caste system. It
Untouchability- refers to a practice in which various types of segregation are imposed within
forms and the cultural framework of the caste system. It is also understood in terms of the
perspectives ‘social distance’ that various castes maintain with each other. 3 main
dimensions of untouchability – namely, exclusion,
humiliationsubordination, and exploitation – are all equally important in
defining the phenomenon.
TRIBAL COMMUNITIES IN INDIA
Definitional Problems
● India has perhaps the highest concentration of tribal population anywhere in
the world except Africa. The term tribe is used in many different contexts to
refer to a category of human social group. Tribals in India are not a homogeneous
Tribes group. Tribals are also distinguished by their distinctive socio-cultural
features which vary from one part of country to another in terms of their traits,
assimilation with larger world, kinship, marriage, and religion so on. Their spread
is also not even.
● Historically, tribes have been addressed by the different authorities by
different names like – Adivasi, aborigines, primitives, backward Hindus and so
on. Definitional problem of tribes deals with two inter-related problems –
problem of defining the tribes and evolving the understanding of tribes in Indian
Definitional context. Today, tribes are generally defined in terms of various general features
problems rather than a fixed definition and are defined as a group of individuals with
shallow history, indigenous in nature, having a particular territory, tied by closed
bonds of kinship, a common name, common ownership of resources, practicing
endogamy, having distinct customs, rituals and beliefs, simple social ranking and
political organization, and so on.
Geographical Spread
● Data : As per some estimates, tribals are concentrated in
about 15% of geographical area and constitute about 8% of
population. There are over 700 tribes which have been
notified under Article 342 and there are many more sub-tribes as well. About 85%
of the tribal
Geographical Spread population lives in central India. Of the remaining 15%, about 11% live in
the NER states, leaving only a little over 3% living in the rest of India.
Colonial Policies and tribes
● Before colonial rule, tribes have been living in forest and hilly area as part and
parcel of Indian population and they enjoyed a free life of their own without
interference of state. British colonial policies towards the tribals had two major
elements. Firstly, it favoured isolation of the tribal areas from the mainstream as
Colonial Policies
they saw their union with larger population as a threat to their colonial empire.
and tribes
Secondly, British administration was interested in ‘civilizing’ these people.
Colonial rulers followed similar policy of exploitation and alienation with tribes
that they followed in rest of India. To maximize their earnings, various attempts
were made to bring tribes into fold of revenue administration.
Issues of tribal integration and Autonomy
Issues of tribal ● Issue of tribal autonomy and integration was identified by the national
 leadership even before independence. The isolationist side argued that tribals
needed protection from traders, moneylenders and Hindu and Christian
missionaries, all of whom were intent on reducing tribals to detribalized landless
labor. The integrationists, on the other hand, argued that tribals were merely
backward Hindus, and their problems had to be addressed within the same
integration and
framework as that of other backward classes. ||| Taking along both autonomy
Autonomy
and integration is a difficult balancing act as they are somewhat conflicting
paradigms in in context of tribal development. Too much focus on autonomy
sometimes leads to secessionist tendencies and also leads to a development of a
narrow ethnocentric view. Integration, on the other hand, may pose a threat to
their cultural identities.
SYSTEM OF KINSHIP
Kinship, Kinship systems types, Regional variations in Kinship in India
● kinship system refers a pattern of social relationships in which a set of persons
recognized as relatives, either, by virtue of a blood relationship
Kinship (consanguineal), or by virtue of a marriage relationship (conjugal relationship),
or by adoption. There are also ‘fictive kins’ especially in societies such as rural
societies where mechanical solidarity is higher.
Family, Household and Marriage
● In simplest terms, family is a social unit, household is a dwelling unit and
marriage is a union of two or more adults. They together form the primary social
units in the society. George Murdock, in his work ‘Social structure, 1949’
Family defines family as ‘A social group characterized by common residence, economic
co-operation and reproduction. It includes adults of both sexes, at least two of
whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship, and one or more
children, own or adopted, of the sexually co-habiting adults’.
● The household or ghar is a residential and domestic unit composed of one or
more persons living under the same roof and eating food cooked in the same
Household
kitchen or chulah. Emotional attachment is core feature of family, while
commensality is core feature of household.
● Marriage can be defined as a socially acknowledged and approved sexual
union between two adult individuals. According to B
Malinowski, ‘Marriage is a contract for the production and maintenance of
children’. According to the Collins Dictionary of Sociology, ‘Marriage is a socially
Marriage
acknowledged and sometimes legally ratified union between an adult male and
an adult female’. This type of union is based on two objectives – sexual
gratification and procreation with socially sanctioned sex-relationships and
economic co-operation.
Lineage and Descent in India
Lineage ● Lineage is understood as a principle on the basis of which alignment or
inheritance is chosen in a linear fashion. Unilineal lineages can be matrilineal or
patrilineal, depending on whether they are traced through mothers or fathers,
respectively.
● Descent (Vansha) is the principle whereby a child is socially affiliated with the
group of his or her parents. The individual belongs simultaneously to several
descent groups – those of the two parents, the four grandparents, the eight great-
Descent
grandparents, and so on. However, this chain is generally limited by memory or
by some conventionally determined cut-off point at, say, four or five degrees
removal or a few generations.
Patriarchy, Entitlements, Sexual Division of Labor & Violence against women
Patriarchy ● Patriarchy is a social system in which men hold primary power and
predominate in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege and
control of property. Sylvia Walby in her ‘Theorizing Patriarchy, 1990’ defines
 patriarchy as "a system of social structures and practices in which men dominate,
oppress, and exploit women".
Entitlements

● Sexual Division of Labor refers to process of dividing work between different

people based on their sex and gender. It is the most basic form of division of labor
SDOL
which has been in existence since time immemorial. It is now acknowledged that
sexual division of labor is socio-culture in nature and not biological.
● Violence against women is primarily a result of unequal patriarchal social
structure. Woman is pushed at margins in relationships, given lesser rights and
is expected to subjugate to whims of male counterparts. Absence of equal
rights and financial liberty coupled with gender stereotypical notions
leave her vulnerable to multiple violence right from birth to death. ||| This
Violence against
violence sometimes appears as manifest form of – feticides, infanticides, rapes,
women
dowry deaths, domestic violence and so on. Sometimes it appears as indirect and
latent form of – unequal rights, low social status, no share in parental property,
poor nutrition of girl child, inferior education of girls, unequal sexual division of
labor, discrimination in employment, pornography and misrepresentation of
women in the media and so on.
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
Sociological theory of Religion
● Religion is a social-cultural system of designated behaviors, beliefs and
practices, morals, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or
organizations, that relates humanity to supernatural, transcendental, and spiritual
elements. Emile Durkheim in his work “Elementary forms of Religious Life
Religion 1912” defines it as ‘a unified system of beliefs and practices related to sacred
things, that is to say – things set apart and forbidden, beliefs and practices which
unite them into a single moral community, for all those who adhere to them’. In
most cases, the sacred includes an element of the supernatural, reverence, awe
etc.
Types of Religious practices : Animism, Monism, Pluralism, Sects & Cults
● Animism is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct
spiritual essence. Animism refers to a given form of religion in which man finds
the presence of anima or spirit in objects, places or notions that surrounds him.
||| Animism is considered to be one of the most primitive ideas that gave birth to
Animism
religion in society and as a religious concept, it is associated with primitive
people.
Even today, many tribals, cults and sects across the world believe in this idea as
religious practice.
Monism ● Monism is belief in a single attribute, god or religious idea. It is centered on
the belief of oneness of all existences or in a single god.
● Religious pluralism is an attitude or policy regarding the diversity of
religious belief systems co-existing in society. Religious pluralism is the belief
that one can overcome religious differences between different religions and
Pluralism
denominational conflicts within the same religion . The existence of religious
pluralism depends on the existence of freedom of religion, fertility of
ideas and mutual tolerance.
● Religion has been an integral part in every man’s life. It guides individuals as
to which path in life to choose, instilling values in them that shape their life.
Sects & Cults There are several major religions in the world, and from them a large number of
sects and cults have emerged. ||| A sect is a small body or group of people who
separated from a larger established group to follow a different doctrine. They
 have their own ideas and beliefs. ||| A cult is a very different organisation not
related with larger established group and has unconventional ideologies and the
members practice very different rituals. The members live isolated from society
and do as their leader commands them to. ||| Summary: (1). A sect is a small
group that separated from a larger group to follow a different doctrine while a cult
is a small, quasi-religious group with very unorthodox ideologies, rituals, and
practices. (2). A sect is a branch of a certain religious organization while a cult is
a totally different organization. (3). Members of a sect live in mainstream society
while members of a cult usually live in isolation away from their families who are
non-believers. (4). Cult members are usually completely obedient and dependent
upon their leader while members of a sect are not. (5). Some sects have been
widely accepted and recognized by other religious groups and most governments
while most cults are not.
Religion in Modern Society : Religion and Science, Secularization , RF, RR
Religion and ● Questions and confusions have always surrounded man and he sought answer
Science to these in either religion or science. Religion and science both acted as
storehouse of complementary knowledge. It is generally agreed that religion
predates science.
● Secularization is the transformation of a society from close identification with
religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular
institutions. The secularization thesis expresses the idea that as societies
progress, particularly through modernization, rationalization, and advances in
science and technology, religious authority diminishes in all aspects of social life
and governance. Bryan Wilson describes the process of secularization as ‘the
Secularization various social institutions gradually become distinct from one another and
increasingly free of the matrix of religious assumptions that had earlier informed,
inspired and dominated their operation’. ||| Thinkers like Karl Marx, Emile
Durkheim, Max Weber etc were of view that traditional religion would become
more and more marginal in the modern world. According to them, a process of
secularization is bound to occur as science become more important in lives of
people to control and explain social world.
Secularism ● Secularism means separation of religion from political, economic, social and
cultural aspects of life, religion being treated as a purely personal matter. It
emphasized dissociation of the state from religion and full freedom to all religions
and tolerance of all religions.
● Religious fundamentalism refers to the belief of an individual or a group of
individuals in the absolute authority of a sacred religious text or teachings of a
Religious particular religious leader, prophet, or God . These fundamentalists strongly
Fundamentalism believe in one and only one true explanation and adherence to literal
meanings of sermons or scriptures or doctrines and apply them to all aspects of
life.
Communalism ● Communalism is a strong allegiance to one's own ethnic group rather than to
society. In India, basis of allegiance had been predominantly religion, so, in
context of India, communalism is chauvinism based on religious identity.
● Religious revivalism seeks to restore commitment and attachment to paricular
group. RR simply means revival of religion – in any form be it institutional
Religious attendance as in church, growth of religious institutions and phenomenon like
Revivalism sects, cults, denominations, rise in individuals pursuing spiritual peace through
personal motions of religion and finally, growth of fundamental ideas or
fundamentalism.
Religious Communities in India
Religious ● India is home to some of the world’s oldest religions like – Hinduism, Jainism,
 Buddhism etc and also to hundreds of new sects and cults. Christianity came to
India in first century itself when Saint Thomas came to India. He was one of the
original 12 apostles of the Christ. Islam came to India in around mid 7th century.
Communities in
Similarly Parsis came to India in 8th century when Persia was invaded by the
India
Muslims. While Muslims and Christians swelled in their numbers due to their open
outlook, Parsis and Jews remained a closed community and remained limited in
numbers.
Problem of Religious minorities in India
● India has numerous ethnic, linguistic and religious groups of various sizes.
Constitution of India also makes a distinction between majority and minority
Problem of groups, but doesn’t define them. Minorities are of two types- linguistic minorities
Religious (determined by state govt) and religious minorities (central govt). Religious
minorities in minorities are six – Muslims (14.2 %), Christians (2.3%), , Sikhs (1.7%), Buddhists
India (0.7%), Jains (0.4%), and Parsis (⤳0) . [Acronym = HM CS BJP] A religious
community is declared minority not on basis of their absolute numbers, but other
factors like their threat perception, cultural development etc.
VISIONS OF SOCIAL CHANGE IN INDIA
Sociology theory of Social change
● Social change involves alteration of the social order of a society which may
include changes in social institutions, social behaviours, or social relations.
Social change Wilbert Moore defines social change as ‘a significant alteration in structure over
time in behavior patterns and culture, including norms and values’.

Agent of Social change

● Agents of social change can be various. They can be from within the society i.e.
endogenous or can be from external sources i.e. exogenous. Internal causes
include factors like – stress and conflict in society, conflicts between ideals of
society and actual reality, charismatic leadership as in case of Gandhi, Lenin,
Agent of Social Mandela etc, planning, political rule, and inventions and so on. Russian Revolution
change is an example of social change driven by internal causes. External causes may
include cultural causes, environmental causes etc. Attack, war, urbanization,
industrialization, westernization trade, migration, are some of social causes and
earthquakes, pollution, deforestation, ecological changes are some of exogenous
physical factors.
Development & Displacement, ES, Dependency
● Development as a social concept involves progressive change from one inferior
state to a superior state of well-being or simply change in the desired direction
and can have many dimensions – cultural, political, economical, etc. Yogendra
Development Singh opines that “Development is a strategy of planned social change which is
considered desirable by the members of a society.” So, the notion of development
may differ from society to society. It often leads to increase in scale, efficiency,
mutuality and freedom.
Development ● Development-induced displacement occurs when people are forced to leave
induced their homes in a development-driven form of forced migration. It can result from
Displacement various development projects such as construction of dams, mining, coal &
nuclear power plants, road developments, environment conservation projects etc.
Environment ● Environmental sustainability is the responsibility to conserve natural resources
sustainability and protect global ecosystems to support health and wellbeing, now and in the
future. Another issue related with developmental process is of environmental
problems and sustainability. In 2013, floods caused major havoc in the regions of
 Uttarakhand which was primarily a result of developmental activities in fragile
Himalayan ecosystem. Similarly, environmental challenges have been posed
by dams construction, mining, coal and nuclear power plants,
unstructured urban growth and so on which has resulted in loss in species
diversification, extinction of indigenous species.
● Dependency theory is of the notion that resources flow from a "periphery" of
poor and underdeveloped states to a "core" of wealthy states, enriching the latter
at the expense of the former. It is a central contention of dependency theory that
poor states are impoverished and rich ones enriched by the way poor states are
integrated into the "world system". ||| Developed countries over the years
Dependency developed their development model primarily based on material well being. The
western notion of development was imposed on newly liberated nations after
WWII. However, soon it was realized that their conditions were not improving and
instead they were facing a net outflow of resources, stagnant levels of poverty
and worst of all a dependency on the western countries. This leads to rise of
‘dependency theories’ in 1950s .
Globalisation ● Globalisation : Choen and Kennedy (2000) in their work "Global Sociology"
defines Globalisation as ‘'the increasing interconnectedness and interdependency
of the world’s nations and their people into a single culture, economic, political
and global system’'

Idea of Development planning and Mixed economy

● Development in Indian context didn’t mean just economic development, but
also cultural and social development as well. Development meant not only
growth, but growth with justice to those who had undergone colonial oppression
and had also suffered from evil practices – like caste, untouchability, bondage,
Development discrimination, patriarchy and so on – that were prevalent in India. Our
Planning constitution itself laid down philosophical framework for development that
was to be undertaken. It declares India a socialist country and directive
principles (Art 39) calls for minimization of inequality whereas Article 15 calls
for positive discrimination for weaker sections. Thus, philosophical basis of
developmental planning in India has deep welfare roots.
Mixed economy ● A mixed economy is the one in which both private and public sectors
participate. To give the ideas of development planning a practical shape, India
went for a mixed economy model.
Constitution, law & social change
● Constitution and legislation play an important role in social change in a diverse
and traditional society like India which suffers from multiple inequalities like –
caste, class, gender, ethnicity, race and regions. Constitution and Law can be a
Constitution, law great tool in the hand of every common man with which he can fight all the
& social change dysfunctional social institutions, irrationalities, dogmas, biases and stereotypes,
hegemony and dominance in a liberal democracy. In India, importance of law and
constitution regarding social change is more pertinent vis-à-vis situation of four
groups – Dalits and other depressed sections, women, the poor and the tribals.
Education and social change
Education and ● Francis J Brown remarks that ‘education is a process which brings about
social change changes in 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’.
Science & Technology and social chnage
Science & ● S&T are essential ingredients of modern life which accompany us from cradle
 to grave. S&T is an important secular medium which transcends local boundaries
and touches lives of everyone. Evolution of mankind can be seen in terms of
Technology and technological evolution as well. Invention of fire and wheel changed the face of
social chnage mankind. Various historical epochs viz – hunter-gatherers, agrarian society,
industrialist society – are distinguished from each other in term of technological
advancement
INDUSTRIALISATION AND URBANISATION
Social organisation of work in different types of socities
● Work is integral part of human existence. Calvinists deem it as a calling and a
possible way of being the ‘chosen one’. Notion of Karma in Hindu philosophy is
also closely linked to work in material world. Work in simplest terms can be
defined as the carrying out the tasks which requires the expenditure of mental or
Work
physical effort, which has its objective of production of goods and services to
cater the human needs.
But in economic sociology, it is generally an activity which results in paid
employment, reward, or contract.
● Social organization of work refers to patterning of activities which involves a
technical as well as social component. Technically it may be called as division
of labor and socially it may reflect the normative structure at workplace in
form of stratified order, power relations, social mobility, alienation and so on.
Social SOW was different in different societies – slave, feudal and capitalist. At a
organisation of particular time also, different societies might have different organization of work.
work While capitalism was in offing in Europe, Asia had ‘Asiatic Mode of Production’
according to Marx. It is argued that in the period of globalization and
modernization, it is the growing competition between firms and countries that
makes it essential for firms to organize production suiting the changing market
conditions.
Formal and Informal organisation of work
● According to Amitai Etzioni, ‘Our society is an organizational society’.
Organizations are different from other social institutions like family, kinships,
friends etc. Organizations are social units which have specific objectives and
goals to achieve. Organizations existed in one form or another since time
Organisation
immemorial from Harrapan urban organizations to modern business houses. Rise
in division of labor has also been accompanied by the consequent rise in types of
organizations. Political, economic and other functions are now performed by
distinctive organizations.
Formal ● Formal Organization of Work is the one in which the worker is governed by the
organisation of formal rules and regulations. A formal organization is rationally designed
work and has explicit objectives & goals and for them, there are explicitly defined
means as well.
Informal ● Informal Organization of Work is the one in which workers are not governed
organisation of by fixed rules and regulations, but by directions of employer. It generally
includes casual labor, contract labor, child labor, domestic labor etc.
work

Labour and society

Labour and ● Concept of work is also associated with industrialization and growth of
society capitalism. Initially, the term ‘worker’ was used for those who worked in
factories and entered into employment out of his own will. In contemporary
sense, worker is the one who is not in a managerial job. In strict sense of
meaning, worker is also differentiated from ‘labor’. The term labor denotes a
worker who lacks choice for any reason. Child labor, rural labor and bonded
labor are ‘labor’ and not ‘worker’ as they lack choice and are often forced into
 work. Workers are generally in a contractual relation with the employer, labor
on the other hand is in feudal or ritual relation with the employer.
Evolution of modern industry in India
● Industrial development is important for socioeconomic and human
development of a country. India, since ancient times, has been famous in the
world for its cottage and household industries. Before the beginning of modern
Evolution of industrial development, Indian pottery, muslin and silk goods were much in
modern industry demand. Traditional handicrafts industry, however, suffered after the advent of
in India the British in India. The British policy of exporting raw material from India to
Britain and importing finished goods into India severely hampered growth of
industries. This critical scenario improved somewhat after the mid-19th century
but the growth of industries was a slow process.
Growth of urban settlements in india
● Process of ‘urbanization’ denotes population growth of the cities and towns,
spread of urban way of life to the countryside. Urbanization is a cultural and
Growth of urban
social psychological process whereby people acquire the material and non-
settlements in
material culture, including behavioral patterns, forms of organization, and ideas
india
that originated in, or are distinctive of the city. Process of urbanization has
demographic as well as social dimensions.
Working class : structure, growth and mobilization
● M Holmstrom, defines working class as ‘a group which share similar
economic situation which distinguishes it from others like property owners,
Working class :
managers and employers. It thus refers to industrial workers and sometimes other
structure, growth
wage earners and petty selfemployed’. Modern working class came into being
and mobilization
with the rise of capitalist MOP. In other words, rise of factory system of
production and working class happened simultaneously.
Child labor
● Child labour refers to the exploitation of children through any form of work that
deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular
school, and is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Child labor is
Child labor
defined as any work done by a person who is under the age specified by
law. Worst forms of child labor, according to ILO, include – bonded labor, mining,
child prostitution, drug-trafficking
Slums and Deprivation in Urban Areas
● Govt of India defines slums as an area where such dwellings predominate,
which by reason of dilapidation, overcrowding, faulty arrangement and design of
Slums buildings, faulty arrangement of street, lack of ventilation, lack of sanitation
facilities, inadequacy of open spaces and community facilities or any combination
of these factors, are detrimental to safety, health or morale’.
Industrial class structure
● Industrial class refers to strata that form due to division of work in factories.
Growth of industrial classes is linked with growth of colonialism and
Industrial class industrialization in India. Industrialization refers to the process that lead to
replacement of manpower by the in-animate source of power and setting up of
plants and machines which lead to mass production and commoditization of labor.
Middle classes in India
● Middle Class as a conceptual stratum in urban class structure emerged only
after industrialization when the concept of class itself emerged in its current sense
Middle class and it’s placed in between the dichotomous property owning and working class.
Thus, structurally they are placed in the middle and have characteristics of both
upper and lower classes.
POLITICS AND SOCIETY
Sociological theories of Power
● Max Weber’s conception of authority is a demonstration of his concept of ideal
type in action. According to him, both power and authority are social in character
and comes into play where relations are there. Power is defined by Weber as ‘The
chance of a man or a number of men to realize their own will in a communal
action, even against the resistance of those who are participating in the
Power communal action’. Authority according to Weber is a form of ‘legitimate or socially
approved power. According to him, coercion differentiates power from authority.
Power has an element of coercion in it. ||| Like all other concepts, concept of
authority is also developed by Max Weber as an ideal type. According to him,
there are 3 ideal types of authority which are based upon his conception of
various type of social action – RAT
Power Elite, Political Parties, Pressure groups
● Elite are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount
of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a society. The Power Elite is a 1956
book by sociologist C. Wright Mills, in which Mills calls attention to the interwoven
interests of the leaders of the military, corporate, and political elements of society
and suggests that the ordinary citizen is a relatively powerless subject of
Power elite manipulation by those entities. The power elite is a term used by Mills to describe
a relatively small, loosely connected group of individuals who dominate American
policymaking. This group includes bureaucratic, corporate, intellectual, military,
media, and government elites who control the principal institutions in the United
States and whose opinions and actions influence the decisions of the
policymakers.
Social elite
Political party ● A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a
particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold
similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or policy
goals.
Pressure groups ● Pressure groups also known as interest groups use various forms of advocacy in
order to influence public opinion and ultimately policy.
Regionalism and decentralization of power
● Regionalism is the feeling of a common sense of identity and purpose by
people within a specific geographical region, united by its unique language,
culture etc. In a positive sense, it encourages people to develop a sense of
brotherhood and oneness which seeks to protect the interests of a particular
Regionalism
region and promotes the welfare and development of the state and its people. In
the negative sense, it implies excessive attachment to one’s region which is a
threat to the unity and integrity of the country. In the Indian context generally,
the term 'regionalism' has been used in the negative sense.
Decentralisation ● Decentralisation refers to a governance process in which power is shared from
Centre and State governments to local government.
The basic idea behind decentralisation is that there are a large number of
problems and issues which are best settled at the local level. ||| Local
governance is well known in India since time immemorial. Panchayats in India are
historical institutions and were known by different names during different periods.
Even during independence struggle, they were envisaged by Gandhiji as the true
realization of Swaraj. After independence, they were demanded as institutions of
local empowerment in a backward nation and many states like Rajasthan took
active steps to promote them.
Nation, State, Citizenship, Civil society, Democracy, Ideology
Nation ● A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a combination of
shared features such as language, history, ethnicity, culture and/or territory. A
nation is thus the collective identity of a group of people understood as defined
by those features.
● Harold Laski defined state as – ‘A way of organizing collective life of a
society’. Max Weber defines state in terms of ‘monopoly over legitimate use of
violence’. Bertrand Russell defines state as a ‘Repository of collective force of
State
its citizens’. ||| When society and other associations and institutes are
integrated into a one single unit, it is termed as state. While nation is an
emotional manifestation of a society, state is a result of desire for political unity.
● Citizenship is a relationship between an individual and a state to which the
individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection. Each state
determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens,
Citizenship
and the conditions under which that status will be withdrawn. Recognition by a
state as a citizen generally carries with it recognition of civil, political, and social
rights which are not afforded to non-citizens.
● According to World Bank, civil society refers to the wide array of non-
governmental and not for profit organizations that have a presence in public life,
express the interests and values of their members and others, based on ethical,
Civil society cultural, political, scientific etc. Organizations and institutions that make up civil
society include labor unions, non-profit organizations, churches, and other service
agencies that provide an important service to society but generally ask for very
little in return.
Democracy ● Democracy is a form of government in which the people have the authority to
deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choose governing
officials to do so ("representative democracy").
● An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of
persons, especially as held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which
"practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones. Sociologists define
Ideology ideology as "cultural beliefs that justify particular social arrangements, including
patterns of inequality”. Dominant groups use these sets of cultural beliefs and
practices to justify the systems of inequality that maintain their group's social
power over non-dominant groups.
Collective action, Agitation, Protest, Social movements, Revolution
Collective action ● Collective action refers to action taken together by a group of people whose
goal is to achieve a common objective and enhance their condition.
● Agitation is a social process which involves ‘intense activity’ undertaken by an
individual or group in order to fulfill a purpose. Purpose and dissatisfaction is
Agitation central to agitation. In general, agitation and protest have only subtle differences.
While protest is a reaction to an event which has already occurred, an agitation
can also be for a future course which is seen as desirable or undesirable.
Protest ● Protest is a social process of opposition directed against any individual, group
or even wider society, which may occur at individual or collective level, manifest
or latent level and may involve action or inaction as a tool of protest. Opposition
and dissent is central in protest. Protest, thus, pre-supposes a prior event against
which a protest is done. For example – fast unto death by Mahatma Gandhi
against British policies is an instance of individual level protest, opposition of
 India to terms of WTO which are unfavorable to developing countries is example
of collective protests.
● A social movement is defined as a sustained collective action aimed at bringing
or resisting social change outside the sphere of established institutions. According
Social movement
to MSA Rao, social movements are characterized by three important features –
orientation of change, ideology and collective mobilization.
● According to James M Jasper, ‘Revolution is a social movement that seeks, as
minimum, to overthrow the government or state’. Broadly it means – radical
change and it is used in many sociological contexts like – Green Revolution,
Revolution
Knowledge Revolution, Social Revolution etc. It often leads to fundamental
change in social structure and social life, changes in political structure and
increased participation of people in political life.
SOCIAL MOVEMENTS IN INDIA
Peasants and Farmers movements
● A peasant movement is a social movement concerned with the agricultural
policy, which claims peasants rights. Anthony Pereira defined a peasant
Peasant
movement as a "social movement made up of peasants (small landholders or
movement
farm workers on large farms), usually inspired by the goal of improving the
situation of peasants in a nation or territory".
● A farmer movement is a social movement concerned with the agricultural
Farmer policy, which claims farmer rights. Farmers movement are largely a post GR
movement phenomenon and emerged in prosperous regions of country and were driven by
interest based ideology and they wanted to extract maximum benefit out of that.
Environment movements
● Environmental movement is a diverse philosophical, social, and political
movement for addressing environmental issues including just and sustainable
management of resources and stewardship of the environment through changes
Environmental in public policy and individual behaviour. ||| The first seed of an environmental
movement movement in India was the foundation in 1964 of Dasholi Gram Swarajya Sangh,
a labour cooperative started by Chandi Prasad Bhatt. It was inaugurated by
Sucheta Kriplani and founded on land donated by Shyma Devi. This initiative was
eventually followed up with the Chipko movement starting in 1974.
Women movement
● Women movement is a diverse philosophical, social, and political movement for
Women addressing women's issues including the inequality between men and women,
Movement women's liberation, reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave,
equal pay, women's suffrage, sexual harassment, and sexual violence.
Backward classes and Dalit movements
Backward ● Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to
classes classify castes which are educationally or socially disadvantaged. It is one of
several official classifications of the population of India, along with General Class,
Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes (SCs and STs). OBCs were found to comprise 52% of the
country's population by the Mandal Commission report of 1980, and were
determined to be 41% in 2006 when the National Sample Survey Organisation
took place. ||| Untouchability is the most visible and comprehensive form of
social discrimination. However, there were a large group of castes that were of
low status and were also subjected to varying levels of discrimination short
of untouchability. These were generally the service castes and artisanal
castes or the so-called Shudras who occupied the lower rungs of the caste
hierarchy. These groups – which need not be based on caste alone but are
 generally identified by caste – were described as the ‘socially and
educationally backward classes’. ||| The term ‘backward communities’
was used for the first time in official parlance by the State of Travancore
in1930s to include all educationally and economically backward sections.
Madras province used it in 1930s to refer the castes which were just above
untouchables. Thus, the concept was there much before it got recognition in
our constitution. Since caste has entered all the major Indian religions and is not
confined to Hinduism alone, members of other religions are also there who
belong to the backward classes and share the same traditional occupational
identification and similar or worse socio-economic status. For these reasons, the
OBCs are a very diverse group.
● Backward classes movement is a diverse philosophical, social, and political
movement for addressing BC issues which includes backwardness such as
Backward class illiteracy and lack of education, poverty, political and economic exploitation, non-
movement representation in services etc

● Dalit is a name for people belonging to the lowest caste in India, previously
characterised as "untouchable". Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna
system of Hinduism and were seen as forming a fifth varna, also known by the
name of Panchama or Avarnas. They were the most deprived section of society
both ritually as well socio-economically. Their sub- human treatment over
Dalits
centuries led to inner revolt in Hindu social organization in form of Dalit
movements. These movements addressed issues of cultural segregation,
political and economic exploitation and the most importantly – a struggle for
recognition as fellow human beings. They have been redemptive, reformative
and revolutionary all at the same time.
● Dalit classes movement is a diverse philosophical, social, and political
movement for addressing dalit class issues which includes issues of cultural
Dalit movement segregation, political and economic exploitation and the most importantly – a
struggle for recognition as fellow human beings. They have been redemptive,
reformative and revolutionary all at the same time.
Ethnicity & Identity movements
● Ethnic movement refers to mobilization of the people based on markers, real or
imagined, which they share – language, region, religion, culture, customs, race,
etc. Generally, those ethnic groups which are in minority involve themselves in
Ethnicity
ethnic mobilization. Ethnic mobilization includes linguistic mobilization, communal
movement
mobilization, Dalit mobilization, caste mobilization, tribal mobilization etc. In
India, only the tribal movements and racial movements are generally kept
under the category of ethnic movements.
Identity ● Identity movement refers to xxxx
movement
● An ethnic conflict is a conflict between two or more contending ethnic groups.
While the source of the conflict may be political, social, economic or religious, the
individuals in conflict must expressly fight for their ethnic group's position within
society. ||| Ethnicity
Definition : The term ‘ethnic’ is derived from the Greek word ‘ethno’ meaning
Ethnic conflicts ‘nation’. It was originally used to denote primitive tribes or societies that formed
a nation based on their simplistic forms of government and economy. The term
was put into use to overcome the controversies related with race and ethnicity
emerged as a key sociological and political concept only in the early 1970s. Today
race is typically associated with perceived (and not actual) biological features and
ethnicity has cultural/social notions. It is now employed in a broader sense to
 signify self-consciousness of a group of people united, or closely related, by
shared experience such as language, religion, common heritage, caste, race etc.
There is nothing innate about ethnicity, it is imbibed in an individual through
socialization. Ethnicity is not fixed; it is situationally defined. According to Barun
De it is a creative response of the group which is marginalized in society.
POPULATION DYNAMICS
Population growth, composition, and distribution
● Population of a country is a horoscope of a country. On the one hand, High
burden of population can take a toll on resources; on the other hand, it can also
Population be converted into demographic dividend if judiciously utilized. Some centuries
growth, ago, Thomas Malthus gave a bleak future for world in wake of rising population,
composition, and but recently China has shown that population may not be necessarily a hurdle in
distribution development. Population of India poses a big challenge and many demographers
term it as root cause of all problems in India. Its high growth rate also poses
another challenge, especially in area of planning.
● Birth rate is the one of the 3 components of population change, the other two
being mortality and Migration. The most commonly used indicators of birth rates
Birth Rate is ‘Crude Birth Rate’. It is generally expressed in number of live births per 1000.
There are also specific birth rates for a particular age group and gender as well.
Birth rates are the expressions of fertility of women of a given population.
● Death rate is the one of the 3 components of population change, the other two
being Birth rate and Migration. There are various measures of mortality: Crude
death rate, Neo-natal mortality rate, Infant mortality rate (IMR), Under 5
Death rate mortality rate, Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR). Crude death rate is the ratio of
the total registered deaths occurring in a specified calendar year to the total mid-
year population of that year, multiplied by 1000. There is an absolute growth in
population if mortality rate is lower than the birth rate.
● Migration is the one of the 3 components of population change, the other two
being mortality and fertility. Human migration involves the movement of people
from one place to another with intentions of settling, permanently or temporarily,
Migration
at a new location. Everett Lee, defines migration broadly ‘as a permanent or
semi- permanent change of residence’. Others like Eisenstadt consider it as a
more or less permanent in nature.
Population planning and Family planning
● While the global population has increased only 3-fold during the last century,
from 2 billion to 6 billion, India's population has increased nearly 4 times from 24
crore to 100 crore in the same period. India has had an official population policy
for more than a half century. In fact, India was perhaps the first country to
Population explicitly announce such a policy in 1952 in the form of the ‘National
planning and Family Planning Programme’. The broad objectives of this programme have
Family planning remained the same – to try to influence the rate and pattern of population growth
in socially desirable directions. In the early days, the most important objective
was to slow down the rate of population growth through the promotion of various
birth control methods, improve public health standards, and increase public
awareness about population and health issues.
Emerging Issues : Agening, Sex ratio, Child mortality, Reproductive health
Ageing ● Ageing is the process of becoming older. In humans, ageing represents the
accumulation of changes occurring over time and can encompass physical,
psychological, and social changes. As a process, it poses challenges at every
phase of life from puberty to old-age. Countries like Japan today face enormous
pressure as a significant chunk of their population is now approaching old age
 and dependency ratio is increasing. Developing societies, such as India, which are
subjected to economic development and modernization, are experiencing an
increasing degree of deterioration in the condition of the aged people. Old aged
people (> 60 years) in India stands at around 8.60% of population or 10.40 crore
in absolute no (Census 2011).
● Sex ratio is defined as the ratio of male and female in a population. In most
sexually reproducing species, the ratio tends to be 1:1. The Indian Census has
preferred to define the sex ratio as the number of females per 1000 males. It can
Sex ratio be further defined as child sex ratio and adult sex ratio. Sex ratio is one of the key
demographic indicators which also reflect the socio- cultural values of a given
society. Poor sex ratio reflects a preference for male child in a patriarchal society
which creates demographic void and has serious implications for society.
● Child mortality is the mortality of children under the age of five. Child mortality
rate or U5MR refers to the probability of dying between birth and exactly five
Child mortality years of age expressed per 1,000 live births. It encompasses neonatal mortality
(the probability of death in the first month of life) and infant mortality (the
probability of death in the first year of life).
● WHO defines health as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-
being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters including
Reproductive reproductive system and its functions. Reproductive health denotes the health of
health an individual's reproductive system during all life stages and concerns with issues
like ability to reproduce, safe motherhood, prevention from STD , hygiene, family
planning and so on.