MODULE - III

SOCIAL PROCESSES

3.1. Social Process- Types

Introduction
This module focuses on three important concepts in the sociology. These three
concepts, namely social process, socialization, and social mobility, help us to understand
society in a better manner. Understanding and analyzing of these three basic concepts in
sociological inquiry give us a foundation to understand social order and social change in the
contemporary societies. As a member of the society, individual or group of individuals
interact with others and other groups. As we know each and every individual is a social and
cultural being. It is very difficult for people to live without interacting his or her fellow being.
Human being cannot live in isolation and they always live in various groups and associations.
These interactions create a pattern in the society and help them to act and behave in a certain
manner. In each and every moment, behavior of each individual is affected by the behaviour
of others. This interaction is the essence of social life.
Social Interaction and Social Processes
Social interaction is a two-way process in which each individual or group stimulates
the other and modifies the behaviour of the participants in different ways. These kinds of
interactions affect the behaviour and personality characteristics of individual members of a
group and make a significant impact over the functioning of a group as well as the behavior
of individual. Consequently, the behaviour of each individual is affected by the behaviour of
other individual. This is known as interaction process and it is the essence of social life. So this
interaction is the essence of socio-cultural life of the individual. It helps to the formationsof
social groups and institutions. Thus social interactions are the basic element of the social
relationship and it work as a basic form of the social process.
Different scholars' defined social interactions in different ways. According to Green it
is 'the mutual influences that individuals and groups have on one another in their attempts to
solve problems and striving towards goals'. Dawson and Gettys define 'social interactions are
the process whereby men interpenetrate the mind of each other.' These definitions focus on
the reciprocal stimulations and responses between individuals in the society and groups. Erving
Goffman, in his Encounters (1963) and Behavior in Public Places (1963), has distinguished
two types of interaction:
 First, focused interaction is interaction in a group of persons that have a common
goal. These persons may have been familiar with one another in the past or they may become
familiar for the first time during their focused interaction. An example of this is a group of
students studying together for a final examination. Secondly, unfocused interaction includes
neither a common goal nor such familiarity even during the process of interaction. In fact, the
interacting persons may be unaware of their interaction. An example given by Goffman himself
is the interaction between pedestrians, who avoid disastrous collisions by following traffic
protocols and regulations.
In every society social interaction usually takes place in the form of cooperation,
competition, conflict, accommodation and assimilations and combinations of these forms of
social interactions are called social processes. In broader sense, the study of social processes
enables us to understand aspects of human society, which may lead to the creative control of
society and social change.
Definitions of Social Process
Etymologically these two words, namely 'social' and 'process' have different meanings. The
'social' is used with different contexts and shades of meanings. Sometime it may refer to
instinctive adjustments that result in corporate action like "social" animals and insects. Some
time it refers to human behavior regarded as good, in opposite to asocial. Some other time it
means to similar responses to a given stimulus, as in crowd action or adjustive behavior based
upon interaction of mechanisms acquired through communication, and so on. In sociological
term 'social' means 'human beings are capable of acquiring sufficiently similar action patterns
to permit reciprocal behavior'.
The "process" merely means 'a series of actions or steps taken in order to achieve a
particular end' or "the fact of going on or being carried on: progress, course." Some sociologists
focused on the etymological implication of progressive action or advance. The common usage
emphasizes the dynamic, changing characteristics of social phenomena without any
commitment on the normative nature of the activities or occurrences. There is also the
implication that the goings-on are regular, continuous, and repetitive.
Social processes are the corner stone of all sociological enquiries. So, sociological
studies start with the understanding and analyzing of social interactions and social processes.
Some sociologists define Sociology as a 'study of social processes'. An interaction between
members of the society or different societies leads to the different kind of social processes.
These repetitive forms or patterns of behaviors, actions, and reactions constitute human
society and social system he or she inherits. In the social world, these social processes are
necessary for the very life, existence and smooth functioning of the system. Sociologists are
interested in studying and analyzing these social process to understand and interpret social
behavior a society or social group. Each social process assumes four different forms:
1. Intrapersonal - interaction between the parts of a personality.
2. Person to person.
3. Person to group or group to person.
4. Group to group
In sociological literature the term social process is used with different meanings and in different
contexts. There are different terms which convey almost same meaning such as social
interaction, social change, social dynamics, social organization, etc. Through social processes
individuals interact and establish relationships. Some of this interactions result in to the creation
of stability and order in the society. Some other time this social interactions leads to the
disintegrations and conflicts in the social sphere. Social Process has the following essential
elements.
1. Sequence of events
2. Re petition of events
3. Relationship between events
4. Continuity of events
5. Special Social results

Definitions
 According to Mac Iver, "social process is the manner in which the relations of the
members of a group, once brought together, acquire a distinctive character."
 Ginsberg defines "social processes as the various modes of interaction between
individuals or groups including co-operation and conflict, social differentiation and
integration, development, arrest and decay."
 According to Horton and Hunt, "social processes refer to the repetitive forms of
behavior which are commonly found in social life."
 According to Gillin and Gillin, “By social process we mean those ways of interacting
which we can observe when individuals and groups meet and establish system of
relationships of what happens when changes disturb already existing modes of life.”
All these above mentioned definitions of the social processes emphasized on interactions
between individuals or groups and establish relationship between each other. And as a
sociological concept it helps us to understand the relatively regular on-going-ness of societal
phenomena. And social processes are bound to take place in the organized life of society.
Classification of Social Process
As we understood social processes are certain repetitive, continuous forms of patterns in the
social systems that occur as individuals, groups, societies, or countries interact with each other.
On the one hand social process contributes to the maintenance of social stability and social
equilibrium in the society and on the other hand some social process creates chaos and
disorganizations in the society. Sociologist and social Psychologists classified social processes
in different ways. There are three ways to classify social process. They are;
1) On the basis of the people involved in the process i.e., one-with-one; one-with- group;
and its reverse, group-with-one, and group-with-group.

2) On the basis of the degree of intimacy of the individual and groups in interaction i.e.,
primary, secondary and tertiary or marginal groups.

3) On the basis of the nature or types of the processes i.e., associative, and dissociative.

In the social system there are hundreds of social processes such as political process, educational
process, industrial process, economic process, religious process etc. Different sociologist
adopted different perspective to classify social process in their analysis. Forexample, for
some sociologist there are two broader categories of social process, they are, conjunctive and
disconjuctive. Park and Burgess (1924) in their work Introduction to the Science of Sociology
outlined four fundamental type of social process; they are 1) Competition, 2) Conflict, 3)
Accommodation, 4 ) Assimilation. On the basis of the nature of the social process famous
German Sociologist George Simmel classified social process in to two main categories. They
are; 1) Associative social process, 2) Dissociative social process.

Associative Social process: Associative processes are also called the integrative or conjunctive
social processes which are essential for the integration and progress of the society. The
associative processes of social interaction are of positive type of interaction. The associative
process is always worked for the integration and benefit of society. These processes bring
progress and stability in society. According to Max Weber, “a social relationship will be called
associative if and in so far as the orientation of social action within it rests on a rationally
motivated adjustment of interests”. The major types of associative processes are the following.
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1. Co-operation

2. Accommodation

3. Assimilation

4. Acculturation

Dissociative social process: Dissociative social processes are also called the disintegrative or
disjunctive social processes. These processes are quite opposite to the associative social
processes. They breed contempt, tension and bring disunity among the members of a group or
society. Although these processes hinder the growth and development of society, their absence
results in stagnation of society. These are some of the important types of dissociativeprocesses

1. Competition

2. Conflict

3. Contravention

4. Differentiation

These are the fundamental processes through which men interact and establish relationship
with each other in society. Interaction refers to an action done in response to another action.
When this interaction repeats itself then it is called as social process. In social life individuals
continuously come in contact with one another. They co-operate and compete with one another
for their respective interests. They also struggle with each other for their rights. In the following
section we will discuss different associative and dissociative social process in detailed manner.

Types of Social Process

Social processes may be manifested in a number of ways. There are generally five modes of
social processes. These are competition, conflict, cooperation, accommodation and
assimilation. These are universal modes; they take place at micro and macro levels. One
mode of social process may balance another; e.g., competition by cooperation. One may also
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yield another they take place in an unending cycle. For example, competition may yield
conflict.

Social interactions

Social Processes

Associative Social process Dissociative social process

Co-operation
Competition

Accommodation
Conflict

Assimilation Contravention

Acculturation Differentiation

1) Cooperation

Cooperation is one of the important associative social processes. It involves individuals or

groups working together for the achievement of their individual or collective goals. In other
word, cooperation may involve only two people who work together towards a common goal.
The word “Co-operation” has been derived from the two Latin words. ‘Co’, means ‘together’
and ‘Operate’ means ‘to work’. Hence, co-operation means working together for the
achievement of a common goal or goals. Cooperation is important in the life of an individual
that it is difficult for man to survive without it. C.H. Cooley says that Cooperation arises only
when men realize that they have a common interest. They have sufficient theme, intelligence
and self control, to seek this interest through united action. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
considered cooperation as an ancient social process and dealt with it through his concept of
mechanical solidarity. Mechanical solidarity is the social integration of members of a society
who have common values and beliefs. These common values and beliefs constitute a
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“collective conscience” that works internally in individual members to cause them to

cooperate. Different scholars define cooperation in various ways. Some of them are;

 Green defines cooperation as “the continuous and common Endeavour of two or more
persons to perform a task or to reach a goal that is commonly cherished.”

 According to Merrill and Eldredge, “Cooperation is a form of social interactionwherein

two or more persons work together to gain a common end.”

 Fairchild define “Cooperation is the process by which individuals or groups combine

their effort, in a more or less organised way for the attainment of common objective.”

 According to C H Cooley “Co-operation arises when men see that they have acommon
interest and have, at the same time, sufficient intelligence and self-control to seek this
interest through united action: perceived unity of interest and faculty of organization
are the essential facts in intelligent combination.”

All above mentioned definitions emphasized on the joint activities of individuals or groups in
pursuit of common goals or shared rewards. Thus, it is goal oriented and conscious form of
social interaction which involves two elements

 Common end

 Organized effort

Man can't associate without cooperating, without working together in the pursuit of common
interests. It is the process by which individuals or groups combine their effort, in a more or less
organized way for the attainment of common objective. Co-operation is brought about by
several factors which includes the following:

 Desire for individual benefits

 Desire to give and share
 Total decision on common purposes
 Situational necessity and
 Desire to achieve larger goals.

Characteristics of Cooperation:
1. Co-operation takes place between two or more individuals.
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2. Co-operation is a conscious process.

3. Co-operation is an associative process.

4. Co-operation is a personal process.

5. Co-operation is a continuous process.

6. Co-operation is a universal process.

Types of Cooperation
On the basis of the nature and characteristics of the cooperative process cooperation can be
divided into five principal types. They are;

1. Direct Cooperation: Those activities in which people do like things together

play together, worship together, labor together in myriad ways. The essential
character is that people do in company, the things which they can also do
separately or in isolation. They do them together because it brings social
satisfaction.
2. Indirect Cooperation: Those activities in which people do definitely unlike tasks
toward a single end. Here the famous principle of the 'division of labour' is
introduced, a principle that is imbedded in the nature of social revealed
wherever people combine their difference for mutual satisfaction or for a
common end.

3. Primary Cooperation: It is found in primary groups such as family,

neighborhood, friends and so on. Here, there is an identity end. The rewards
for which everyone works are shared or meant to be shared, with every other
member in the group. Means and goals become one, for cooperation itself is a
highly prized value.

4. Secondary Cooperation: It is the characteristic feature of the modern civilized

society and is found mainly in social groups. It is highly formalized and
specialized. Each performs his/her task, and thus helps others to perform their
tasks, so that he/she can separately enjoy the fruits of his/her cooperation.
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5. Tertiary Cooperation: It may be found between 2 or more political parties,

castes, tribes, religions groups etc. It is often called accommodation. The two
groups may cooperate and work together for antagonistic goals.

Role and Importance of Co-operation

Co-operation is indispensable for both society and individual. It creates direct relationship
between individual and individual, group and group and between group and individual. It
controls the behaviour of individual. It brings all round development of society as well as
individuals.

2) Accommodation
Accommodation is another form of associative process. It is a social process whereby people
try to accept one another, avoiding the sources of conflict to live in peaceful coexistence. It is
a conscious adjustment and compromise among conflicting groups so that they can live with
one another without overt conflict. Sometimes new conditions and circumstances arise in the
society. These new conditions lead to conflict. In such a context people may decide to
consciously avoid the source of conflict thereby arriving at an agreement to live accepting
one another, co-exist at relative peace, avoiding overt conflict. The resolution of theseconflicts
is called accommodation.

In another word, accommodation means a mutual adjustment to group conflict in which the
participants retain their respective identities but avoid open hostility. Thus, accommodation is
social adjustment in which the participants modify their attitudes, habits, behavior, customs,
and even entire social institutions.
Robert Park and Ernest Burgess’s model of the social interaction, accommodation play an
important role. Utilizing Simmel’s model of dominance and its pivotal role in super ordinate
and subordinate relations, Park and Burgess describe accommodation as a procedure which
limits conflicts and cements relations, in that groups and individuals recognize dominant
individuals and groups as well as their positions within these super and subordinate relations.
In another way, Summer referred to accommodation as “antagonistic co-operation.”
Definition of Accommodation
So, accommodation is the process by which competing and conflicting individuals andgroups
adjust their relationship to each other in order to overcome the difficulties which arise in
competition, contravention or conflict. Thus, it helps to develop temporary working
agreements between conflicting individuals or groups. And also contribute to relieve the
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tension of competition and conflict. Different thinkers define accommodation according to

the nature and characteristics of the process.
 According to Mac Iver and Page “The term accommodation refers particularly to the
process in which one can attain a sense of harmony with his environment".
 Ogburn and Nimkoff say “Accommodation is a term used by the sociologists to
describe the adjustment of hostile individuals or groups.”
 According to Reuter and Hart: As a process, accommodation is the sequence of steps
by which persons are reconciled to changed conditions of life through the formation
of habits and attitudes made necessary by the changed conditions themselves.

 H. T. Mazumdar: “Accommodation is a non-violent response or adjustment (a) to a

stubborn situation which cannot be changed, or (b) to a situation which has changed
as a result of violence and hostility, or as a result of new rules and requirements.”

 Mack and Young: “The word accommodation has been used in two senses to indicate
a condition of institutional arrangement and to indicate a process. As a condition,
accommodation is the fact of equilibrium between individuals and groups. As aprocess
it has to do with the conscious efforts of men to develop such working arrangements
among themselves as will suspend conflict and make their relations more tolerable and
less wasteful of energy.”

 Park and Burgess: “Accommodation is a natural resolution of conflicts. In

accommodation the antagonism of the hostile element is for the time being regulated
and conflict disappears as overt action although it remains latent as a potential.”

The above mentioned definitions of accommodations emphasize on the notions of living

together and 'live and let live'. It mineralizes the conflict and competition between individuals,
communities and in the society at large. Thus it promotes cultural and social pluralism in the
society.
Characteristics of Accommodation
1. Accommodation is an associative process of social interaction.

2. It is a conscious activity.

3. Accommodation is a universal process.

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4. Accommodation is a continuous process.

5. Accommodation is a mixture of love and hate.

Types of Accommodation
The types of the accommodations by various, and conflicting, racial, ethnic, linguistic, and
religious groups are determined by the situations and circumstances in which they engage and
participate. In sociology literature, different scholars tried to categorize social accommodation
in different ways. First type of accommodation is an accommodation in which there is a great
power imbalance between two or more groups, based on population, military and police
powers, and the economic and legal controls exerted by dominant groups. Less powerful groups
must adjust to this power imbalance. Second type of accommodation represents an
accommodation in which contending groups may be relatively equal in size. Issues may revolve
around how and why the groups settled into a territory, and how political and economic division
of labor was defined and distributed among groups.
1. Individual accommodation: This is at the psychological person.
2. Group accommodation: The opposite refers to the social structure and is at the
collective level.
3. Stable accommodation: This type has resolved major issues and resulted in substantial
social harmony.
4. Unstable accommodation: This is a temporary solution of minor problems only.
5. Creative accommodation: This form is voluntary, stresses common goals, and
Forms or Methods of Accommodation:
Accommodation is social adaptation that involves the invention or borrowing of devices
whereby the one ethnic group develops modes of life, economic and otherwise, that
complements or supplements those of the others. It is primarily concerned with the adjustment
issuing from the conflict between individuals and groups. Accommodation or resolution of
conflicts may be brought about in many different ways and accordingly may assume various
forms, the most important of them being the following:

Yielding to coercion or admitting one’s defeat: Coercion means the use of force or the threat
of force to terminate a conflict. It usually involves parties of unequal strength, the weaker party
yields because has been over-powered or because of fear of being over-powered. An armistice
or peace treaty following a war is an example of this form of accommodation.
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Compromise: When the combatants are of equal strength neither may be able to prevail over
the other, they attain accommodation by agreeing to a compromise. In compromise each
party to the dispute makes some concessions and yields to some demand of the other.

Arbitration and Conciliation: Accommodation is also achieved by means of arbitration and

conciliation which involve attempts on the part of the third party to bring about an end of the
conflict between the contending parties. The labour management conflicts, the conflict between
the husband and the wife and sometimes even the political conflicts are resolved through the
intervention of an arbitrator or a mediator in whom both the parties have full confidence. In
International Law mediation or arbitration is a recognized mode of settling international
disputes.

Toleration: Toleration is the form of accommodation in which there is no settlement of

difference but there is only the avoidance of overt conflict. In toleration no concession is made
by any of the groups and there is no change in basic policy. It involves acceptance of some
state of affairs definitely objectionable; to the accepting group but for some reasons not deemed
possible or/and advisable to dispose of in a more conclusive manner.

Conversion: Conversion involves conviction on the part of one of the contending parties that it
has been wrong and its opponent right. Accordingly it may go over to the other side and identify
itself with the new point of view. This process thus consists of the repudiation of one’s beliefs
or allegiance and the adoption of others. Ordinarily conversion is thought of only in
connection with religion but it may also occur in politics, economics and other fields.

Rationalization: Accommodation through rationalisation involves plausible excuses or

explanations for one’s behaviour instead of acknowledging the real defect in one’s own self.
One thus justifies one’s behaviour by ascribing his failure to discrimination against him instead
of admitting lack of ability.
Super-ordination and Subordination: The most common accommodation is the establishment
and recognition of the order of super-ordination and subordination. The organisation of any
society is essentially the result of such a type of accommodation. In the family the relationships
among parents and children are based in terms of super-ordination and subordination.
Role and Importance of Accommodation:
1. Accommodation maintains peace and security in the society.
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2. Accommodation checks conflict, competition and contradiction.

3. Accommodation brings unity and integrity in the society.

4. Accommodation resolves conflict.

3) Assimilation

Assimilation is a process in which formerly distinct and separate groups come to share a
common culture and merge socially. Assimilation is the social amalgamation of an ethnic,
racial, or cultural group, or of an immigrant, into an adopted society, which produces a new,
common, and fairly homogeneous culture. In their new socio-cultural situation, the members
of an assimilated minority are spread here and there and participate in the social life of the
majority, which further decreases their visibility and distinctiveness. Milton Gordon was the
one of the pioneering American Sociologist put an effort to study different dimensions of
assimilation. In his book 'Assimilation in American Life: The Role of Race, Religion, and
National Origins' Gordon elaborated the process of assimilation into seven sub processes.
And makes the distinction between cultural (e.g., language, beliefs) and structural (e.g., social
relations, organizations) components. Broadly he divided assimilations in tothree. They
are
1) Cultural assimilation, or acculturation - Members of the minority group learns the
culture of the dominant group.
2) Structural assimilation, or integration - The minority group enters the social
structure of the larger society.
3) Marital assimilation, or intermarriage - Primary structural integration typically
precedes this process.
He further elaborated these three processes of assimilations in to seven. They are;

1) Acculturation: newcomers adopt language, dress, and daily customs of the host
society (including values and norms).
2) Structural assimilation: large-scale entrance of minorities into cliques, clubs and
institutions in the host society.
3) Marital assimilation: widespread intermarriage.
4) Identification assimilation: the minority feels bonded to the dominant culture.
5) Attitude reception assimilation refers to the absence of prejudice.
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6) Behavior reception assimilation refers to the absence of discrimination.

7) Civic assimilation occurs when there is an absence of values and power struggles.

Definitions of Assimilation
In this process weaker group or the minority that is absorbed by the stronger group or the
majority. In the Gordon's seven dimensions of assimilation – cultural, structural, marital,
identity, prejudice, discrimination, and civic – he emphasized on the process of acculturisations
and .
 According to Park and Burgess “Assimilation is a process of interpenetration and fusion
in which persons and groups acquire the memories, sentiments, attitudes of other
persons or groups and by sharing their experiences and history are incorporated with
them in a cultural life”

 Bogarcdus define “Assimilation is a process whereby altitudes of many persons are

united, and thus develop into a united group.”

 According to Biesaru "Assimilation is the “social process whereby individuals or

groups come to share the same sentiments and goals.” -

 Nimkoff define “Assimilation is the process whereby individuals or groups once

dissimilar become similar, and identified in their interest and outlook.”

 According to Lundberg “Assimilation is a word used to designate a process of mutual

adjustment through which culturally different groups gradually obliterate their
differences to the point where they are no longer regarded as socially significant or
observable.”

 For Mack and Young “Assimilation is the fusion or blending of two previously
distinct groups into one. Obviously, assimilation requires more fundamental changes
than ant agonistic co-operation, which are called accommodation.”

 According to Horton and Hunt “The process of mutual cultural diffusion through which
persons and groups come to share a common culture is called assimilation.”

Levels of Assimilation
The process of assimilation takes place mainly at three levels: individual, group, and culture.
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Individual level: A socialized individual when enters or joins a new group having different
cultural patterns, he or she has to adopt new patterns of values, habits, customs and beliefs of
the other group in order to be fully accepted by the new group.
In course of time, he or she becomes assimilated into the second group. For example, as
mentioned above, a Pakistani woman after marriage starts with dissimilar backgrounds and
develops a surprising unity of interests and identifies herself with the family of her husband.
The tendency is to conform to other’s behavioural pattern and differences in time may largely
disappear.

Group level: When two groups with dissimilar patterns of behaviour come in close contact,
they inevitably affect each other. In this process, it is generally seen that the weaker group
would do more of the borrowing from and would give very little to the stronger group.
For instance, when we came into contact with Britishers, being a weaker group, we have
adopted many cultural elements of them but they have adopted a very few such elements
from Pakistan society.

The adoption of elements of dominant culture paves the way for total absorption, if not
checked, of the new cultural group with the dominant culture. Similarly, immigrants in
America or Britain usually adopt the material traits (dress pattern, food habits, etc.) easily in
order to adjust themselves in the new cultural environment.

Culture level: When two cultures merge to produce a third culture which, while somewhat
distinct, has features of both merging cultures. In western countries chiefly but also in
developing countries to some extent, rural and urban cultures which were radically different
are, with rapidly increasing communication, merging as differences continue to disappear
although they still exist.

Difference between accommodation and assimilation

Accommodation Assimilation
1 Accommodation may take place suddenly Assimilation is a slow and a gradual
and in radical manner. process. It takes time.
Example: workers after having talks with For example, immigrants take time to get
the management may decide to stop their assimilated with the majority group
month-long strike all on a sudden.
2 It may or may not provide permanent Assimilation normally provides a
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solution to group differences and permanent solution to inter-group dispute

disputes. it may only provide a temporary and differences.
solution
3 It may be both conscious andunconscious It is mostly an unconscious process.
a process .in most of the instances it takes Individuals and groups involved in it are
place consciously. often not aware of what actually happens
Example: Labor leaders who come for within themselves or in their group.
talks are sufficiently aware of the fact that
they are purposefully seeking out a
solution to their dispute.

Competition
Competition is a form of social interaction and dissociative social processes. It is the struggle
for position to gain economic status. It occurs whenever there is an insufficient supply of
anything that human being desire - insufficient in the sense that all cannot have as much of it
as they wish. Sometimes competition happens because of limited supply and also difficult for
equal distribution. In other words, competition is the struggle by individuals or groups for the
ownership and use of goods that are limited or are believed to be limited. The demand for such
goods is greater than their supply. The process of competition is due to the limitednature
of our planet and the fact that human and natural resources are rather scarce. The specific goals
of the competition are may be material goods, social status, power, positions, and the like.
Moreover, competition may be personal or impersonal, conscious or unconscious, and direct
or indirect.
Definition of Competition

Robert Park and Ernest Burgess thought of impersonal and unconscious competition as the
main concept of human ecology. They conceived of this process as interaction without social
contact, which often challenge into personal and conscious conflict.
 According to Anderson and Parker, “Competition is that form of social action in
which we strive against each other for the possession of or use of some limited material
and non-material goods.”
 According to Sutherland, Woodward and Maxwell, “Competition is an impersonal,
unconscious continuous struggle which, because of their limited supply, all may not
have.”
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 Park and Burgess defined competition as “interaction without social contact.”

Characteristics of Competition
The characteristics of competition are:
1) Competition is impersonal struggle. Park and Burgess defined competition as
“interaction without social contact.” We can say it is inter-individual struggle that
is impersonal. It is usually not directed against any individual or group in particular.
2) Competition is universal. There is no society which is devoid of competition. Not
only this, degree of competition may vary from society to society. It is very common
for society as well as culture.
3) Competition is considered as conducive to progress. Competition provides the
individuals better opportunities to satisfy their desires for new experiences and
recognitions.
4) Both associative and non-associative dimensions of social processes indicate
competition.
5) Competition is mainly an unconscious activity but personal competition or rivalry
is a conscious activity.
6) Competition may create emotional disturbances.
7) Competition is an innate tendency.
8) Competition is a social phenomenon.
9) Degree of competition is determined by social values and social structure.
Comparison between Cooperation and Competition
Cooperation Competition
1 Cooperation refers to a form of social Completion is a form of social interaction
interaction wherein two or more persons wherein the individuals try to monopolize
work together to gain a common end. rewards by surpassing all the rivals
2 Cooperation is always based on the Competition can take place at the level of
combined or the joint efforts of the the group and also at the level of the
people. individual.
3 Cooperation normally brings about Though competition can bring about
positive results. It rarely causes losses to positive results, it can cause damages or
the individuals losses to the parties and persons involved.
4 Cooperation is boundless. It has no Competition has its own limitations. It is
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limitations. One can go to any extent to bond by norms. Limitless or unregulated

help others. competition can cause much harm.
5 As C H Cooly has pointed out Competition requires qualities such as
cooperation requires qualities such as strong aspirations, self-confidence, the
kindness, sympathy, concern for others, desire to earn name and fame in society,
mutual understanding and some amount the spirit of adventure and the readiness
of readiness to help others. to suffer and struggle.
6 Cooperation brings people satisfaction But competition may cause satisfaction as
and contentment. well as dissatisfaction, anxiety,
indefiniteness and uncertainties.

Conflict

Conflict is a form of social interaction involving two or more individuals or groups that
consciously attempt to prevent one another's goals or to defeat, injure, or even destroy the
opponent. Thus, conflict is a highly intense type of competition and includes force or violence.
It is rooted in social differences of class and status, of wealth and opportunity, of material
interests, where scarce resources are unequally shared.
Karl Marx (1818-1883) made the most important contributions to the concept of conflict, which
he considered inevitable and conducive to progress. Such conflict is based on economic forces
and occurs between two social classes, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. More specifically,
this class struggle is determined by ownership of the means of production and, since persons,
groups, and social institutions support one side or the other, culture and society become less
unified. Also, because this economic class struggle covers additional spheres, conflict
intensifies. According to Marx, this conflict goes through seven stages: individual conflict,
minor demonstrations, organized economic conflict, organized political conflict, revolution,
dictatorship of the proletariat, and classless society.
Different sociologist and social anthropologist emphasized the importance of social conflict
in the society. Some of the specific functions of conflict are as 1) It creates new social norms
and social rules. 2. It identifies different kinds of social and economic problems to be solved
by various kinds of societal interventions. 3) It generates group solidarity when there is some
threat from outside. 4) When a certain degree of conflict is expressed, major explosions may
be prevented. In the modern society conflict takes various shapes to change the structure of
society or to resist such social change. Some common types of social conflicts are:
54

1. Social movement: A strong sense of unjust suffering readily provides the rationale for
a social movement, such as Gujjars’ Andolan (2007 and 2008) for reservation in ST
category in Rajasthan or Namak Andolan of Gandhiji.
2. Riots and rebellions: Riot is a situation in which a large crowd of people behave in a
violent and uncontrolled manner, especially when they protest about something.
Rebellion is an organized attempt to change the government/leader of a country using
violent methods.
3. Civil politics: In modem democratic societies there is an effort to bring conflict into the
political institution, to get people to work ‘inside’ the system instead of ‘outside’. It is
a principle of liberal politics that all classes and groups should have access to the
political process and be encouraged to pursue their goals through conventional political
means.
4. Revolution: A revolution is the ultimate form of struggle against the prevailing social
structure, in which the intent is to alter the society’s institutions and create a whole new
social order based on a radically different set of principles. It is a sweeping, sudden and
comprehensive change in the basic practices and ideas of an institution or society.
Definition of the Conflict
 According to Gillin and Gillin, “Conflict is the social process in which individuals or
groups seek their ends up directly challenging the antagonist by violence or threat of
violence.”
 Green defined, “Conflict is the deliberate attempt to oppose, resist and coerce the will
of another or others.”
 According to Max Weber (1968), ‘a social relationship will be referred to as conflict
in so far as action within it is oriented intentional to carrying out the actor’s own will
against the resistance of the other party or parties’.
Characteristics or Nature of Conflict

1. It is a universal process found in every society.

2. It is the result of deliberate and conscious efforts of individuals or the groups.

3. The nature of the conflict is personal and direct. In conflict the incumbents or
participants know each other personally.
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4. It is basically an individual’s process. Its aim is not directly connected with the
achievement of the goal or an objective but is rather directed to dominate others
or to eliminate the opponent.

5. Conflict is of brief duration, temporary and intermittent in character. But, once

begun, the conflict process is hard to stop. It tends to grow more and more bitter
as it proceeds. Being temporary, it gives way to some form of accommodation.

6. It is a process loaded with impulsiveness of human emotions and violent

passions. It gains force and then bursts open. Unlike fighting of animals,
generally in human groups, the spontaneous fighting is inhibited. It is often
avoided through the process of accommodation and assimilation.

7. It may be latent or overt. In the latent form, it may exist in the form of tension,
dissatisfaction, contravention and rivalry. It becomes overt when an issue is
declared and a hostile action is taken.

8. It is mostly violent but it may take the form of negotiations, party politics,
disputes or rivalry.

9. It is cumulative; each act of aggression usually promotes a more aggressive

rebuttal. Thus, termination of conflict is not easy.

10. It tends to be more intense when individuals and groups who have close
relationships with one another are involved.

11. Groups previously in conflict may co-operate to achieve a goal considered

important enough for them to unite despite their differences.

12. It may emerge as a result of opposing interests. It is layered in a history of binary

perceptions: exile/homeland, outsider/insider, us/them, patriotic/unpatriotic.

13. It has both disintegrative and integrative effects. It disrupts unity in a society
and is a disturbing way of setting issues. A certain account of internal conflict,
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however, may serve indirectly to stimulate group interaction. External conflict

can have positive effects by unifying the group.

Causes of Conflict

According to Freud and some other psychologists, the innate instinct for aggression in man is
the main cause of conflicts. Generally it arises from a clash of interest within groups and
societies and between groups and societies. The significant causes are:
Individual difference – It is true that, we, the human being, are not alike by nature, attributes,
interests, personalities etc. These differences may lead to conflict among thehuman being.
Cultural differences – The culture of a group differs from the culture of the other group. The
cultural differences among the groups sometimes cause tension and lead to conflict.
Differences of opinion regarding interest – In fact, the interests of different people or groups
occasionally clash. For example we can say that interests of the employers andemployees
vary in many respects which may ultimately leads to conflict among them.
Social change – Social changes occur off and on in each and every society. Conflict is an
expression of social disequilibrium. Social change is the cultural log which leads to conflict.
Types of Conflicts
Robert Maclver (1937) defined conflict as a strife among humans for some objective and he
divided conflicts in to two basic types: first, direct conflict, which occurs when humans
hinder or control or prevent or injure one another in an effort to attain a goal; and second,
indirect conflict, which merely involves an attempt to obstruct the achievement of same
objectives. According to Simmel (1955) there are four types of conflict: (i) War; (ii) feud or
fictional strife; (iii) litigation; and (iv) conflict of impersonal ideals. For him, antagonistic
impulse is a foundation of all conflicts. Apart from these types of conflict sociologistidentified
different kinds of conflict in the social world. Some of them are following;
Cultural conflict: Hostility between two culturally homogeneous groups that try to eliminate
some of each other's cultural elements.
Class conflict: Violent opposition between two distinct groups each of which special social
characteristics - religion, education, occupation, income, instance, lower classes versus upper
classes, workers versus employers, radicals reactionaries, liberals versus conservatives, and
so on. The dominant groups control their society's resources, goods, and services mainly for
their own and the exploited classes fail to secure a fair share of this wealth they organize
themselves and revolt against the system.
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Race conflict: The struggle between two racial groups motivated primarily race consciousness.
Not infrequently, however, there are various nonracial leading to conflict.
Revolutionary conflict: A violent and rather rapid strife that involves new norms and
movements. In this case, the government may change drastically authority may pass from one
political party or social class to another. Revolutionary conflict is progressive, not
conservative; swift, not evolutionary; violent, not and all-encompassing, not limited.
Overt and Covert conflict: An overt conflict occurs when people openly disagree and choose
to confront (address) an issue with the other person. Covert conflicts occur when people have
differences yet do not discuss them openly. In other word, overt conflict has some
manifestation but covert conflict or latent conflict primarily remains invisible.
Destructive and constructive conflict: destructive conference focuses on the struggle allowing
no compromise and stressing opponent's injury and annihilation. Constructive conflict is
hostility between two groups that oppose each goal but also seek compromises conducive to
harmony.
Difference between Conflict and Competition
The comparisons between conflict and competitions are based on the nature, means, end and
characteristics of these social processes. In competition, the primary focus is the goal, and
interaction is according to culturally defined rules of behaviour and procedure. In conflict, the
focus is on the competitor or opponent (not on the goal) themselves with an objective of
annihilation or incapacitation of them, so that the way is cleared for achievement of the goal.
In competition the direct aim is the success of the actor in achieving the goal; indirectly, it may
result in the failure of the competition but in conflict the direct result of the action of oneperson
is to impede, prevent or destroy the act of another. In the following table we will illustrate the
differences between competition and conflict.

Competition Conflict
1 Unconscious process Conscious process
2 Impersonal process Personalized process
3 Continuous process Intermittent process for a brief
duration
4 Attention on the goal Attention on the competitors
(opponent) themselves
5 Non-violent May involve violence or threat of
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violence
6 Regard for norms (rules and regulations of No regard for any norms
competition)
.
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3.2 Socialization-Types and Agencies

Introduction
In this module we will start our discussion with the meaning and definitions of the
concept of socialization. In the second part we will focuses on the types and agencies of
socialization to understand the different dynamics of socialization process in the society. And
finally we will end up this chapter by looking at types, agencies and theories of socialization
which help us to have an in depth understanding of the constitution of social system and order
in the society.
Socialization is an important process through which the individual get training to get adapted
to the society. So, socialization is a process for the functioning and continuation of society.
Different societies have different ways and methods to train their new born members so that
they are able to develop their own personalities. It's considered as the passing of culture from
one generation to the next. In another word, socialization is a process of learning rules, habits
and values of a group to which a person belongs whether it is family, friends, colleagues or any
other group. It is the process by which a child slowly becomes aware of her/himself as a
member of a group and gains knowledge about the culture of the family and also the society
into which she/he is born.
Socialization is a concept which helps us to explain the ways people acquire the general
competencies necessary for participation in society. Socialization take place at three level. First
at the societal level, socialization helps explain how and the extent to which large numbers of
individuals comes successfully to cooperate and adapt to the demands of social life. Second at
the organizational level, it summarizes processes by which newcomers to social groups and
organizations are transformed from outsiders to participating members. Third, at the personal
level, it refers to the social and cultural shaping and development of themental, emotional, and
behavioral abilities of individuals.
Over the period different Sociologist gave different meaning to the concept of socialization.
Some of them look at how social order is possible given the egoistic, asocial nature of
individuals. Socialization helps us to describe the ways that people come to understand societal
norms and expectations, to accept society’s beliefs, and to be aware of societalvalues.
So, socialization is firstly, a process of learning, secondly, a process of personality formation
and the development of self and finally, a process of internalisation of socialnorms,
values, moral codes and ideals of society.
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Definition of Socialization
 According to Horton and Hunt, Socialization is the process whereby one internalizes
the norms of his groups, so that a distinct ‘self emerges, unique to this individual.

 Green defined socialization “as the process by which the child acquires a cultural
content, along with selfhood and personality”.

 According to Lundberg, socialization consists of the “complex processes of interaction

through which the individual learns the habits, skills, beliefs and standard of judgment
that are necessary for his effective participation in social groups and communities”.

 Peter Worsley explains socialization “as the process of “transmission of culture, the
process whereby men learn the rules and practices of social groups”.

 H.M. Johnson defines socialization as “learning that enables the learner to perform
social roles”. He further says that it is a “process by which individuals acquire the
already existing culture of groups they come into”.

 W.F. Ogburn: “socialization is the process by which the individual learns to conform
to the norms of the group”.
 Peter Worsley explains socialization as the process of “transmission of culture the
process whereby men learn the rules and practices of social groups”.
In the above mentioned definitions of socialization emphasized on the process of cultural
learning whereby a new person acquires necessary skills and education to play a regular part
in a social system. The process is essentially the same in all societies, though institutional
arrangements vary. On the basis of the definition and the meaning of socialization we can list
out seven main objectives of socialization. They are;

a. Socialization inculcates basic disciplines and self-control in the individual.

b. Socialization develops skills and capacities needed to fit into the society.

c. Socialization teaches social roles (responsibilities) and their supporting

attitudes.

d. Socialization instills aspirations and satisfies needs of the individual.

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e. Socialization helps in the transmission of culture from generation to

generation.

f. Socialization develops a sense of identity and the capacity for independent

thought and action.

g. Socialization develops conscience which is one important characteristic

product of this process.

Types of Socialization

The socialization process is continues and life long process, from birth to the adulthood. So,
the process of socialization passes through different phases and there are different types of
socialization. There are six main type of socialization, they are;

1. Primary Socialization
2. Secondary socialization
3. Gender socializations
4. Anticipatory Socialization
5. Re-socialization
6. Adult Socialization

Primary Socialization: Primary socialization takes plays in the early years of a child's life.
During the infancy and childhood individual learn basic knowledge and language to survive
in the society. Most of the time primary socialization takes place in the family. From the family
and through the interactions with the relatives he/she learn language and some basic skills.
Through direct and indirect observation and experience, he/she gradually learns the basic
norms values relating to the social life.

Secondary socialization: The secondary socialization start from outside the immediate family
relationship. During this phase more than the family some other agents of socialization like
school and peer groups begin to play important role. The growing child learns very important
lessons in social conduct from these groups. In other word, secondary socialization generally
refers to the social training received by the child in institutional or formal settings and continues
throughout the rest of his life.
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Gender socializations: Gender socialization is very powerful, and challenges to it can be

disturbing. Gender learning by infants is mainly an unconscious process. Before a child can
see itself as either a boy or a girl, it receives a range of pre-verbal cues from adults. Men and
women usually handle infants differently, women’s cosmetics contain scents which are
different from those babies learn to associate with men, and other systematic differences in
dress, hairstyle, and so on, provide visual cues during the learning process. By the age of two,
children have an understanding of whether they are boys or girls and can usually categorize
others accurately. Not until the age of five or six does a child know that a person’s gender
doesn’t continually change.

Anticipatory Socialization: Anticipatory Socialization is a process by which someone is

consciously socialized for future occupations, positions and social relationships. Through
anticipatory socialization people are socialized into groups to which they wish to or have to
join so that entry into the group does not seem to be very difficult. Some people suggest that
parents are the primary source of anticipatory socialization when it comes to socializing their
children for future careers or social roles.

Re-socialization: Re-socialization refers to the process of leaving certain behaviour patterns

and roles in order to adopt new ones as part of one’s evolution in life. Resocialization occurs
when there is a major transformation in the social role of a person. It occurs throughout life
where individuals experience radical breakthroughs from their past experiences and learn
new manners and values which are starkly different from what they had learnt previously.

Adult Socialization: Adult socialisation takes place in adulthood when individuals adapt to new
roles such as that of a husband, a wife or an employee. This is related to their needs and wants.
People continue to learn values and behaviour patterns throughout life. Socialisation does not
have any fixed time period. It begins at birth and continues till old age. In traditionalsocieties
the older people had a significant influence in important matters related to the family.

Agents of Socialization

As we understood, socialization is a lifelong process. It starts from the early childhood and
continue until the death. At every stage of our lives, we confront new situations and have to
learn new ways of doing things, new values, or new norms. Though the crucial time of
socialization is infancy and early childhood in the later stage also we confront with new
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situations and social order. In the early childhood individual learns the language of his/her
group and come to understand the norms and values important to their family and society.
In this section we will discuss about the agencies of socialization. Agencies of
socialization are groups or social contexts in which significant processes of socialization take
place. In the primary socialization is the most intense period of socio-cultural learning. In this
time children learn language and basic behavioural patterns that form the personality of the
individual and help him/her to learn social norms and values. In this stage family play an
important role and work as the main agent of socialization. Secondary socialization takes place
later in childhood and into maturity. In this phase, other agents of socialization takeover
some of the responsibility from the family. Schools, peer groups, organizations, the media and,
eventually, the workplace become socializing forces for individuals.
The various agencies can be classified as formal/informal, active/passive or primary/
secondary. However, there is no clear demarcation as all of them are very much interrelated.
We shall examine the various agencies at three levels,
1. Micro Level Socialization: Family, Peer Group and Neighbourhood.
2. Meso Level Socialization: School, Religion, Social Class.
3. Macro Level Socialization: Global Community, Electronic Media, Social Networking.
Micro level demand small group interaction. This level of socialization involves face to
face, intense, and intimate interaction. Under micro-level socialization, we will discuss the role
played by family, peer group and neighborhoods. Meso level units are intermediate size social
units smaller than the ones at macro level but larger than the micro units like the familyor the
local community. It may include schools, educational institutions, political groups, etc. These
organizations and institutions may not be as big as the global units but are beyond the personal
experiences encountered in everyday life. Macro level comprises larger units. Here we look at
entire nation, global forces and international units. In this following section wewill elaborate
some important agents of the socialization.
Family: Family is the most important agents of socialization. Among the family members it
is the mother who plays an important role the socialization of the child. Socialisation in basic
values such as love and affection, and manners are taught in the family. In the traditional joint
family other than parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents play an important role in the socialization
of the child. Family socialization has often been conceptualized as children learning their
parents’ beliefs, values, worldviews, and behaviors. Some researchers arguethat families
serve as seedbeds of a child’s basic orientations to society, and that parental social attitudes
serve as powerful predictors of children’s attitudes throughout life.
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Peer groups: ‘Peer groups’ means those group made up of the contemporaries of the child, his
associates in school, in playground and in street. He learns from these children, facts and facet
of culture that have they have previously learnt at different times from their parents. The
members of peer group have other group sources of information about the culture – their
peers in still other peer groups – and thus the acquisition of culture goes on. It is true that the
‘peer culture’ becomes more important and effective than be ‘parental culture’ in the adolescent
years of the child.
School: It is in the school that the culture is formally transmitted and acquired. It is not only
the formal knowledge of the culture that is transmitted there but most of its premises as well-
its ethical sentiments, its political attitudes, its custom and taboos. Wherever they are, and at
whatever age, the communications they receive from their teachers help to socialize them and
to make them finally mature members of their societies.
Religion: Religions play an important role in the process of socialization of the individual. The
religious institutions such as synagogues, temples, churches, mosques, and similar religious
communities play in important role in the shaping of individuals behavior. Like other
institutions, these places teach participants how to interact with other people and teach codes
of contact for the betterment of the social system. For some people, important ceremonies
related to family structure—like marriage and birth—are connected to religious celebrations.
Many religious institutions also uphold gender norms and contribute to their enforcement
through socialization. From ceremonial rites of passage that reinforce the familyunit to power
dynamics that reinforce gender roles, organized religion fosters a shared set of socialized values
that are passed on through society.
Mass media: Over the years mass media (radio, television, newspapers, magazines, media
portals and websites) has become the greatest source of influence especially for children, when
compared to the other tools of communication. The mass media is a vehicle for spreading
information on a massive scale and reaching to a vast audience or a large numberof people.
There are different kinds of programmes that are available on the these mass medias ranging
from serials, movies, cartoons to news, music, fashion, food, history and geography that cater
to people belonging to different age groups. In the last few decades, children have been
dramatically socialized by one source in particular i.e. television. Today, every home has at
least one television which influence in the process of socialization of the younger generation. .
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Family
Religion
Peers groups

Agents of
Work place Socialization Schools

Mass media

Stages of socialization
Socialization is a gradual process of learning. The new born child is not a taught all the things
about social life at once. It proceeds from simplicity to complexity. Socialization consists of
four stages from infancy to adulthood. They are;
a. The oral stage,
b. The anal stage,
c. The oedipal stage,
d. The adolescence stage.
1) The Oral Stage. This stage begins with the birth of the child and continues
up to the completion of one year. For everything the child cries a great deal.
By means of crying the child establishes its oral dependency. The child here
develops some definite expectations about the feeding time.The child also
learns to give signals for his felt needs. In this stage thechild is involved
in himself and his mother.
2) The Anal Stage. The second stage normally begins soon after the first
year and is completed during the third year “toilet training” is the main
focus of new concern. The child is taught to do some tasks such as toileting,
keeping clothes clean etc. The child in this stage internalizes two separate
roles – his own role and that of his mother. The child receives ‘care’ and
also ‘love’ from the mother and learns to give love in return.The child is
enabled to distinguish between correct and incorrect actions. The correct
actions are rewarded and the incorrect action is not rewarded but punished.
In this second stage the socializing agent, that is, the mother plays the dual
role. She participates in the interaction system with the child
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in a limited context and she also participates in the larger system that is the
family.
3) The Oedipal Stage. This stage mostly starts from the fourth year of the
child and extends up to puberty (the age of 12 or 13 years). It is in this stage
the child become the member of the family as a whole. It is here the child
has to identify himself with the social role ascribed to him on the basis of
his sex. According to Freud, the body develops the ‘Oedipus complex” – the
feeling of jealousy towards father and love towards mother. In the same way,
the girl develops the ‘Electra Complex’ – the feeling of jealousy towards the
mother and love towards the father. In this stage sufficient social pressures
are brought on the child to identify with theright sex. Boys begin with
rewarded, for behaving like boys and girls are rewarded for acting like girls.
4) The Fourth Stage – The Stage of Adolescence. The fourth stage starts with
the period of adolescence. Due to the physiological and the psychological
changes that take place within the individual this stageassumes importance.
During this stage the boys and girls try to becomefree from parental
control. At the same time they cannot completely escape from their
dependence on their parents. Hence they may experience a kind of strain or
conflict in themselves.
Theories of Socialization:
As we discussed, the main focus of the process of socialization is the development and
constitutions of the individual self. So, the theories of socialization try to elaborate different
dimensions of the development of the self. In this section we will discuss three important
theories of the development of self in sociology and social psychology. The first theory is the
'looking-glass self' developed by Charles Horton Cooley in 1902. It state that a person’s self
grows out of society’s interpersonal interactions and the perceptions of others. The term
refers to people shaping themselves based on other people’s perception, which leads people
to reinforce other people’s perspectives on themselves. People shape themselves based on what
other people perceive and confirm other people’s opinion on themselves.

In the second theory George Herbert Mead explain how social experience develops an
individual’s personality. Mead’s central concept is the self: the part of an individual’s
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personality composed of self-awareness and self-image. Mead claimed that the self is not there
at birth; rather, it is developed with social experience.

Sigmund Freud, in the third theory, proposed that the human psyche could be divided into three
parts: Id, ego, and super-ego. The id is the completely unconscious, impulsive, child- like
portion of the psyche that operates on the “pleasure principle” and is the source of basic
impulses and drives; it seeks immediate pleasure and gratification. The ego acts according to
the reality principle. Finally, the super-ego aims for perfection and it comprises that organized
part of the personality structure. In the following section we will discuss each theory in detailed
manner.

Charles Horton Cooley and “Looking Glass Self”

Charles Horton Cooley the American sociologist is best known for his concept of the “looking
glass self”. Children develop a concept of their selves with the help of others around them.
She/he forms an idea about oneself based on the opinions of others about her/him. The kind of
social self that develops out of an imagination of how one appears to the other person and the
kind of feeling about one’s self can be referred to as “looking glass self” or “reflectedself”. The
knowledge about ourselves develops in us through the opinions and reactions of others around
this. The social “looking glass self” consists of these other people through whom we build an
image of ourselves. This knowledge about one’s self is first obtained fromthe parents and later
it is reformed by the judgements of others. Cooley believed, personality arises out of people’s
interactions with the world. According to Cooley, there are three main features that make up
the idea of the self. They are;
a. How we think others see in us

b. What we think they react to what they see.

c. How we respond to the perceived reaction of others.

According to Cooley, primary groups play crucial role in the formation of self and personality
of an individual. Contacts with the members of secondary groups such as thework group
also contribute to the development of self. For Cooley, however, their influenceis of lesser
significance than that of the primary groups. The ‘looking glass self assures the child which
aspects of the assumed role will praise or blame, which ones are acceptable to others and which
ones unacceptable. People normally have their own attitudes towards social
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roles and adopt the same. The child first tries out these on others and in turn adopts towards his
self. The self thus arises when the person becomes an ‘object’ to himself. He is now capable of
taking the same view of himself that he infers others do. The moral order which governs the
human society, in large measure, depends upon the looking glass self.

This concept of self is developed through a gradual and complicated process which continues
throughout life. The concept is an image that one builds only with the help of others. A very
ordinary child whose efforts are appreciated and rewarded will develop a feeling of acceptance
and self-confidence, while a truly brilliant child whose efforts are appreciated and rewarded
will develop a feeling of acceptance and self – confidence, while a truly brilliant child whose
efforts are frequently defined as failures will usually become obsessed with feelings of
competence and its abilities can be paralyzed. Thus, a person’s self image need bear no relation
to the objective facts.

G.H. Mead and the Development of Self

The American psychologist George Herbert Mead (1934) went further in analysing how the
self develops. According to Mead, the self represents the sum total of people’s conscious
perception of their identity as distinct from others, just as it did for Cooley. However, Mead’s
theory of self was shaped by his overall view of socialisation as a lifelong process. Like Cooley,
he believed the self is a social product arising from relations with other people. At first,
however, as babies and young children, we are unable to interpret the meaning of people’s
behaviour. When children learn to attach meanings to their behaviour, they have stepped
outside themselves. Once children can think about themselves the same way they might think
about someone else, they begin to gain a sense of self.

The process of forming the self, according to Mead, occurs in three distinct stages. The first
is imitation. In this stage children copy the behaviour of adults without understanding it. A
little boy might ‘help’ his parents vacuum the floor by pushing a toy vacuum cleaner or even
a stick around the room. During the play stage, children understand behaviours as actual
roles- doctor, firefighter, and race-car driver and so on and begin to take on those roles in
their play. In doll play little children frequently talk to the doll in both loving and scolding
tones as if they were parents then answer for the doll the way a child answers his or her parents.
This shifting from one role to another builds children’s ability to give the same
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meanings to their thoughts; and actions that other members of society give them-another
important step in the building of a self.

According to Mead, the self is compassed of two parts, the ‘I’ and the ‘me’. The ‘I’ is the
person’s response to other people and to society at large; the ‘me’ is a self-concept that consists
of how significant others – that is, relatives and friends-see the person. The ‘I’ thinksabout and
reacts to the ‘me’ as well as to other people. For instance, ‘I’ react to criticism by considering
it carefully, sometimes changing and sometimes not, depending on whether I think the criticism
is valid. I know that people consider ‘me’ a fair person who’s always willing to listen. As they
I trade off role in their play, children gradually develop a ‘me’. Each time they see themselves
from someone else’s viewpoint, they practise responding to that impression.

During Mead’s third stage, the game stage, the child must learn what is expected not just by
one other person but by a whole group. On a baseball team, for example, each player follows
a set of rules and ideas that are common to the team and to baseball. These attitudes of ‘other’
a faceless person “out there”, children judge their behaviour by standards thought to be held by
the “other out there”. Following the rules of a game of baseball prepares children to follow the
rules of the game of society as expressed in laws and norms. By this stage, children have gained
a social identity.

Sigmund Freud: Theory of Personality Development

Sigmund Freud’s theory of personality development is somewhat opposed to Mead’s, since it
is based on the belief that the individual is always in conflict with society. According to Freud,
biological drives (especially sexual ones) are opposed to cultural norms, and socialization is
the process of taming these drives.

The Three-part self: Freud’s theory is based on a three-part self; the id, the ego, and the
superego. The id is the source of pleasure-seeking energy. When energy is discharged,tension
is reduced and feelings of pleasure are produced, the id motivates us to have sex, eat and
excrete, among other bodily functions. The ego is the overseer of the personality, a sortof
traffic light between the personality and the outside world. The ego is guided mainly bythe
reality principle. It will wait for the right object before discharging the id’s tension. When the
id registers, for example, the ego will block attempts to eat spare types or poisonous berries,
postponing gratification until food is available. The superego is an idealized parent: It
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performs a moral, judgemental function. The superego demands perfect behaviour according
to the parents’ standards, and later according to the standards of society at large.
All three of these parts are active in children’s personalities. Children must obey the reality
principle, waiting for the right time and place to give into the id. They must also obey the moral
demands of parents and of their own developing super egos. The ego is held accountable for
actions, and it is rewarded or punished by the superego with feelings of pride or guilt.

Stages of Sexual Development: According to Freud, personality is formed in four stages. Each
of the stages is linked to a specific area of the body an erogenous zone. During each stage, the
desire for gratification comes into conflict with the limits set by the parents and latter by the
superego.
 The first erogenous zone is the mouth. All the infant’s activities are focussed on getting
satisfaction through the mouth not merely food, but the pleasure of sucking itself. This
is termed the oral phase.
 In the second stage, the oral phase, the anus becomes the primary erogenous zone. This,
phase is marked by children’s struggles for independence as parents try to toilet-train
them. During this period, themes of keeping or letting go of one’s stools become silent,
as does the more important issue of who is in control of the world.
 The third stage is known as the phallic phase. In this stage the child’s main source of
pleasure is the penis/ clitoris. At this point, Freud believed, boys and girls begin to
develop in different directions.
 After a period of latency, in which neither boys nor girls pay attention to sexual matters,
adolescents enter the genital phase. In this stage some aspects of earlierstages are
retained, but the primary source of pleasure is genital intercourse with a member of the
opposite sex.
Jean Piaget:
A view quite different from Freud’s theory of personality has been proposed by Jean Piaget.
Piaget’s theory deals with cognitive development, or the process of learning how to think.
According to Piaget, each stage of cognitive development involves new skills that define the
limits of what can be learned. Children pass through these stages in a definite sequence, though
not necessarily with the same stage or thoroughness.
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The first stage, from birth to about age 2, is the “sensorimotor stage”. During this period
children develop the ability to hold an image in their minds permanently. Before they reach
this stage. They might assume that an object ceases to exist when they don’t see it. Any baby-
sitter who has listened to small children screaming themselves to sleep after seeing their parents
leave, and six months later seen them happily wave good-bye, can testify to this developmental
stage. The second stage, from about age 2 to age 7 is called the preoperational stage. During
this period children learn to tell the difference between symbols and their meanings. At the
beginning of this stage, children might be upset if someone stepped on a sand castle that
represents their own home. By the end of the stage, children understand the difference between
symbols and the object they represent.

From about age 7 to age 11, children learn to mentally perform certain tasks that they formerly
did by hand. Piaget calls this the “concrete operations stage”. For example, if children in this
stage are shown a row of six sticks and are asked to get the same numberfrom the nearby
stack, they can choose six sticks without having to match each stick in the row to one in the
pile. Younger children, who haven’t learned the concrete operation of counting, actually line
up sticks from the pile next to the ones in the row in order to choose the correct number. The
last stage, from about age 12 to age 15, is the “stage of formal operations. Adolescents in this
stage can consider abstract mathematical, logical and moral problems and reason about the
future. Subsequent mental development builds on and elaborates the abilities and skills gained
during this stage.
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3.3 Social Mobility-Forms and Significance

Human societies are divided into various social strata. These strata are arrangedhierarchically
and are considered superior or inferior to one another according to the prevalent value system
in society. But, any system of social stratification is not absolutely closed. Individuals or groups
can move from one social status to another in the socialhierarchy. This process of shifting of
social status is called social mobility.
Sorokin was the first sociologist who wrote a book “Social and Cultural Mobility”. Social
mobility refers to the process by which individuals or groups move from one social status to
another in the social hierarchy. Social mobility can be either upward or downward. Upward
social mobility is one where the individual or group moves from a lower status in the
hierarchy to the upper. Downward mobility is when a person or group moves from a higher
status to a lower one in the hierarchy.
Sorokin has identified two types of social mobility on the basis of direction of mobility, i.e.,
vertical and horizontal. Vertical mobility refers to transition of an individual or group from one
social stratum, to another, either upward or downward. A scheduled caste membergetting
a high post in an organisation, and a Brahman working as a landless agricultural laborers are
examples, on an individual level, of upward and downward social mobility respectively. By
horizontal social mobility is meant shifting from one social group to another situated broadly
on the same level. The shift from agricultural labour to factory labour is an example. The
following factors facilitate social mobility,
1. Economic, social and professional motivation
2. Achievements and Failures in a field motivate people to move his/her position
3. Education helps to improve social and cultural capital and it promote social
mobility.
4. Acquiring of Skills and Training helps for the mobility in the social positions
5. Migration from one place to another accelerate mobility in the society
6. Industrialization led to the creation of different job and mass production
promoted mobility in the society.
7. Urbanization facilitates social mobility by removing different barriers such as
caste, religion and gender.
8. Legislation and enactment of new laws also facilitate social mobility.
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Forms of Social Mobility

Horizontal Mobility: Horizontal social mobility means movement by individuals or groups
from one position to another in society which does not involve a shift into a higher or lower
stratum. In other word, horizontal social mobility means the transition of an individual or social
group from one social group to another situated on the same level. For example, from one
religious group to another, from one citizenship to another, from one factory to another in the
same occupational status, are all instances of horizontal social mobility.
Vertical Mobility: vertical mobility means moving up or down the socio-economic scale.
Hence people whose income, capital or status increases are said to be upwardly mobile, while
those who's economic or status position worsens are downwardly mobile. So, the vertical
mobility involves a movement which ensures enhancing or lowering of rank. Examples of
vertical mobility is a promotion or demotion, a change in income, marriage to a person of
higher or lower status, a move to a better or worse neighborhood.
Intergenerational Mobility: There are two ways of studying social mobility. Either, one can
study individual's own careers-how far they move up or down the social scale in the course of
their working lives. This is usually called Intragenerational mobility. So, intragenerational
mobility looks at how far individuals move up or down the social scale overtheir lives.
Intergenerational Mobility: Alternatively, one can analyse how far children enter the same
type of occupation as their parents or grandparents. Mobility across the generation is called
Intergenerational mobility. Hence, intergenerational mobility explores whether and how far
children move up or down the social scale compared to their parents or grandparents.
Upward mobility: It is when a person moves from a lower position in society to a higher
one. It can also include people occupying higher positions in the same societal group.However,
upward mobility, while seen as a good thing, can also come at a cost forindividuals. When a
person moves upwards, they need to leave behind familiar surroundingssuch as family and
places. They may also need to change their way of thinking and behavior. Downward
mobility: Downward mobility takes place when a person moves from a higher position in
society to a lower one. It can occur when someone is caught performinga wrongful
act that can result in the loss of the position they currently hold. Downwardmobility can
be extremely stressful for people who face a rapid decline in their social status;they may find
it hard to adapt to the new environment as it is not similar to the standard ofliving they are
used to.