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Social structure of society and its main elements. Basic elements of the structure of society Social structure of society and its elements

With the appearance of people, they began to unite into tribes and clans, from which, after thousands of years, peoples and societies were formed. They began to populate and master the planet, leading at first a nomadic lifestyle, and then, settling in the most favorable places, organized a social space. Further filling it with objects of labor and life of people became the beginning of the emergence of city-states and states.

For tens of thousands of years, a social society has been formed and developed in order to acquire the features that it has today.

Defining social structure

Each society goes through its own path of development and formation of the foundations of which it consists. To understand what a social structure is, it should be borne in mind that it is a complex interconnection of the elements and systems functioning in it. They constitute a kind of skeleton on which society stands, but at the same time it tends to change, depending on conditions.

The concept of social structure includes:

• elements that fill it, that is, various types of communities;
• social ties that affect all stages of its development.

The social structure consists of a society divided into groups, strata, classes, as well as ethnic, professional, territorial and other elements. At the same time, it is a reflection of the relationship between all its members, based on cultural, economic, demographic and other types of ties.

It is people who, creating not arbitrary, but permanent relationships with each other, form the concept of social structure as an object with established relationships. Thus, a person is not completely free in his choice, being part of this structure. He is limited by the social world and the relationships established in it, into which he constantly enters in various spheres of his activity.

The social structure of society is its framework, within which there are various groups that unite people and put forward some requirements for their behavior in the system of role relationships between them. They may have some limits that must not be violated. For example, a person, working in a team, where they did not impose strict requirements on appearance employees, having got to another job, where they are, will perform them, even if he does not like it.

Distinctive features of the social structure are the presence of real subjects that create certain processes in it. They can be both separate individuals and different segments of the population and social communities, regardless of their size, for example, the working class, religious sect or intelligentsia.

The structure of society

Each country has its own social order with its inherent traditions, norms of behavior, economic and cultural ties. Any such society has a complex structure based on the relationship of its members and the relationship between castes, classes, strata and strata.

It is made up of large and small social groups, which are usually called associations of people united by common interests, work activities or the same values. Large communities are distinguished by the amount of income and the methods of obtaining it, by social status, education, occupation, or other characteristics. Some scholars call them "strata", but the concepts of "stratum" and "class" are more common, for example workers, who make up the largest group in most countries.

Society at all times had a clear hierarchical structure. For example, 200 years ago, estates existed in some countries. Each of them had their own privileges, property and social rights, which were enshrined in law.

Hierarchical division in such a society operates vertically, passing through all the available types of ties - politics, economics, culture, professional activity. As it develops, groups and estates change in it, as well as the internal relationship of their members. For example, in medieval England, an impoverished lord was more respected than a very wealthy merchant or merchant. Today, ancient noble families are honored in this country, but they are more admired by successful and wealthy businessmen, athletes or people of art.

Flexible social system

A society in which there is no caste system is mobile, since its members can move from one layer to another both horizontally and vertically. In the first case, the social status of a person does not change, for example, he simply moves from one position to a similar one in another job.

Moving vertically implies an increase or decrease in social or financial status. For example, a person with an average income occupies a leadership position that generates incomes that are much higher than previous ones.

In some modern societies, there are social inequalities based on financial, racial or social differences. In such structures, some layers or groups have more privileges and capabilities than others. By the way, some scholars believe that inequality is a natural process for modern society, as a large number of people with outstanding abilities, talents and leadership qualities gradually emerge in it, which become its foundation.

Types of social structures of the ancient world

The formation of society throughout the history of human development directly depended on the division of labor, the level of development of people and socio-economic relations between them.

For example, during the primitive communal system, the social structure of a society was determined by how useful the representatives of the tribe or clan were to the rest of its members. The sick, the elderly and the crippled were not kept if they could not make at least some feasible contribution to the well-being and safety of the community.

The slave system is another matter. Although it was divided into only 2 classes - slaves and their masters, the society itself was made up of scientists, merchants, artisans, the army, artists, philosophers, poets, peasants, priests, teachers and representatives of other professions.

For example Ancient Greece, Rome and a number of countries of the East, one can trace how the social society of that time was formed. They had well-developed economic and cultural ties with other countries, and the strata of the population were clearly divided into representatives of various professions, into free and slaves, into those in power and legalists.

Types of social structures from the Middle Ages to the present day

What is the social structure of feudal society can be understood by tracing the development of the European countries of that period. It consisted of 2 classes - feudal lords and their serfs, although society was also divided into several estates and representatives of the intelligentsia.

Estates are social groups that occupy their position in the system of economic, legal and traditional ties. For example, in France there were 3 estates - the secular (feudal lords, nobility), the clergy and the largest part of society, which included free peasants, artisans, merchants and traders, and later - the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.

The capitalist system, especially the modern one, has a more complex structure. For example, the concept of the middle class arose, which formerly included the bourgeois, and today they are merchants and entrepreneurs, and highly paid employees and workers, and farmers, and representatives of small businesses. Belonging to the middle class is determined by the level of income of its members.

Although this category includes a large part of the population in highly developed capitalist countries, representatives of big business have the greatest influence on the development of the economy and politics. Separately, there is the class of the intelligentsia, especially the creative, scientific, technical and humanitarian. Thus, many artists, writers and representatives of other intellectual and creative professions have income typical of big business.

Another type of social structure is the socialist system, which should be based on equal rights and opportunities for all members of society. But the attempt to build advanced socialism in Eastern, Central Europe and Asia led many of these countries to poverty.

A positive example is the social system in countries such as Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and others, which are based on capitalist relations with full social protection of the rights of its members.

The constituent parts of the social structure

To understand what a social structure is, you need to know what elements are included in its composition:

1. Groups that bring together people with a common interest, values, professional activities or goals. More often they are perceived by those around them as communities.
2. Classes are large social groups that have their own financial, economic or cultural values, based on their inherent code of honor, behavior and interaction of their representatives.
3. Social strata are intermediate and constantly changing, emerging or disappearing social groups that do not have a clearly expressed connection with the means of production.
4. Strata are social groups limited by some parameter, for example, profession, status, income level, or other characteristic.

These elements of the social structure determine the composition of society. The more there are, the more complex its design, the more clearly the hierarchical vertical is traced. The division of society into various elements is noticeable in the attitude of people to each other, depending on the criteria inherent in their class. For example, the poor dislike the rich because of their financial superiority, while the latter despise them for their inability to make money.

Population

System different types communities with strong internal ties between their members - this is what the social structure of the population is. There are no rigid criteria that separated people in them. These can be both main and non-main classes, layers, strata within them and social groups.

For example, before the arrival of Soviet power in Ukraine, most of its population was made up of artisans and individual peasants. A third were landlords, wealthy peasants, merchants and workers, while there were very few employees. After collectivization, the population of the country already consisted of only three layers - workers, employees and peasants.

If we consider the historical stages of the development of countries, the absence of a middle class, namely entrepreneurs, small businesses, free artisans and wealthy farmers, led them to impoverishment and a sharp economic contrast between strata of society.

The formation of the "middle peasants" contributes to the growth of the economy, the emergence of a whole class of people with a completely different mentality, goals, interests and culture. Thanks to them, the poorer stratum receives new types of goods and services, jobs and higher wages.

Today, in most countries, the population consists of the political elite, clergy, technical, creative and humanitarian intelligentsia, workers, scientists, farmers, entrepreneurs and representatives of other professions.

Social system concept

If for the sages who lived 2500 years ago, this term meant the orderliness of life in the state, today the social system is a complex formation, which includes the primary subsystems of society, for example, economic, cultural, spiritual, political and social.

• The economic subsystem implies the regulation of human relations in solving issues such as production, distribution, use or exchange of material goods. It must solve 3 problems: what to produce, how and for whom. If one of the tasks is not met, then the entire economy of the country collapses. Since the environment and the needs of the population are constantly changing, the economic system must adapt to them in order to satisfy the material interests of the entire society. The higher the standard of living of the population, the more needs it has, which means that the economy of a given society functions better.
• The political subsystem is associated with the organization, establishment, work and change of power. Its main element is the social structure of the state, namely its legal institutions, such as courts, prosecutors, electoral bodies, arbitration and others. The main function of the political subsystem is to ensure social order and stability in the country, as well as to quickly resolve the vital problems of society.
• The social (public) subsystem is responsible for the prosperity and well-being of the population as a whole, regulating the relationship between its various classes and strata. This includes healthcare, public transport, utilities and consumer services.
• The cultural and spiritual subsystem is engaged in the creation, development, dissemination and preservation of cultural, traditional and moral values. Its elements include science, arts, upbringing, education, morality and literature. Its main responsibilities are the education of young people, the transfer of the spiritual values ​​of the people to the new generation, and the enrichment of the cultural life of people.

Thus, the social system is the fundamental part of any society, which is responsible for the even development, prosperity and safety of its members.

Social structure and its levels

Each country has its own territorial divisions, but in most of them they are approximately the same. IN modern society levels of social structure are divided into 5 zones:

1. State. She is responsible for making decisions concerning the country as a whole, its development, security and international situation.
2. Regional social space. Refers to each region separately, taking into account its climatic, economic and cultural characteristics. It can be independent, or it can depend on the higher state zone in matters of subsidies or budget redistribution.
3. A territorial zone is a small subject of the regional space that has the right to elections to local councils, to form and use its own budget, to resolve issues and tasks at the local level.
4. Corporate zone. Possible only under conditions market economy and is represented by farms that carry out their labor activities with the formation of a budget and local government, for example, shareholders. It is subject to territorial or regional zones according to the laws formed at the state level.
5. Individual level. Although it is located at the bottom of the pyramid, it is its basis, since it implies the personal interests of a person, which are always above the public. The needs of an individual can have a wide range of desires - from a guaranteed decent salary to self-expression.

Thus, the formation of a social structure is always based on the elements and levels of its components.

Changes in the structure of society

Every time countries switched to new level development, their structure changed. For example, the change in the social structure of society during the time of serfdom was associated with the development of industry and the growth of cities. Many serfs went to work in factories, passing into the class of workers.

Today, similar changes concern wages and labor productivity. If even 100 years ago physical labor was paid higher than mental labor, today the opposite is true. For example, a programmer can earn more than a highly skilled worker.

Any society appears not as something homogeneous and monolithic, but as internally divided into various social groups, strata and national communities. All of them are in a state of objectively conditioned connections and relations - socio-economic, political, spiritual. Moreover, it is only within the framework of these connections and relations that they can exist, manifest themselves in society. This determines the integrity of society, its functioning as a single social organism, the essence of which was disclosed in their theories by O. Comte, G. Spencer, K. Marx, M. Weber, T. Parsons, R. Dahrendorf and others.

The social structure of a society is a set of those connections and relationships that social groups and communities of people enter among themselves about the economic, social, political, spiritual conditions of their life.

The development of the social structure of society is based on the social division of labor and property relations for the means of production and its products.

The social division of labor determines the emergence and further existence of such social groups as classes, professional groups, and large groups, consisting of people of the city and village, representatives of mental and physical labor.

Ownership of the means of production economically reinforces this internal dismemberment of society and the social structure that is taking shape within it. Both the social division of labor and property relations are objective socio-economic prerequisites for the development of the social structure of society.

O. Comte and E. Durkheim, Russian thinkers M.I. Tugan - Baranovsky, M.M. Kovalevsky, P. A. Sorokin and others. A detailed teaching on the role of the social division of labor in the historical process is contained in the socio - economic theory of Marxism, which also reveals the role of property relations in this process.

TO basic elements of the social structure of society can be attributed:

classes that occupy different places in the systems of social division of labor, property relations for the means of production and distribution of the social product. Sociologists of different directions agree with this understanding of them; residents of the city and village; representatives of mental and physical labor; estates; socio-demographic groups (youth, women and men, older generation); national communities (nations, nationalities, ethnic groups).

Almost all elements of the social structure are heterogeneous in composition and, in turn, are divided into separate layers and groups, which appear as independent elements of the social structure with their inherent interests, which they realize in interaction with other subjects.

So the social structure in any society is quite complex and is the subject of attention not only of sociologists, but also of representatives of such a science as social management, as well as politicians and statesmen. It is important to understand that without understanding the social structure of society, without a clear idea of ​​what social groups exist within it and what their interests are, i.e. in which direction they will act, it is impossible to take a single step forward in the leadership of society, including in the field of economics, social, political and spiritual life.

This is the significance of the problem of the social structure of society. Its solution must be approached on the basis of a deep understanding of social dialectics, scientific generalization of the historical and modern data of social practice.

In examining the subject of sociology, we found a close connection between the three fundamental concepts of sociology - social structure, social composition, and social stratification. The structure can be expressed through a set of statuses and can be likened to empty cells of a honeycomb. It is located, as it were, in a horizontal plane, and is created by the social division of labor. In a primitive society there are few statuses and a low level of division of labor, in modern society there are many statuses and a high level of organization of the division of labor.

But no matter how many statuses there are, in the social structure they are equal and connected and connected with each other functionally. But now we filled the empty cells with people, each status turned into a large social group. The set of statuses gave us a new concept - the social composition of the population. And here the groups are equal to each other, they are also located horizontally. Indeed, in terms of social composition, all Russians, women, engineers, non-partisans and housewives are equal.

However, we know that in real life inequality of people plays a huge role. Inequality is the yardstick by which we can place some groups above or below others. The social composition turns into social stratification - a set of social strata located in a vertical order, in particular, the poor, the well-to-do, the rich. Stratification is a “oriented” composition of the population in a certain way.

In sociology, there are four main dimensions of stratification - income, power, prestige, education. They exhaust the range of social benefits that people strive for. More precisely, not the goods themselves, but the channels of access to them.

Thus, social structure arises in relation to the social division of labor, and social stratification - in relation to the social distribution of the results of labor, i.e. social benefits. And it is always unequal. This is how social strata are positioned according to the criterion of unequal access to power, wealth, education and prestige.

2.Social relations and types of social structures... The interrelation of social groups and communities of people existing in society is by no means static, but rather dynamic, it manifests itself in the interaction of people regarding the satisfaction of their needs and the realization of interests. This interaction is characterized by two main factors: 1) the very activity of each of the subjects of society, guided by certain motives; 2) those social relations that social subjects enter in order to satisfy their needs and interests. These relationships are very diverse. In a broad sense, all social relations can be called social, i.e. inherent in society.

Social relations act as specific relations that exist along with economic, political and others. They are formed between the subjects, including between social groups, regarding the satisfaction of their needs in appropriate working conditions, material benefits, improvement of life and leisure, education and access to objects of spiritual culture, as well as medical care and social security.

The most important aspect of the functioning of the social sphere of the life of society is the improvement of the social relations arising here between people.

Historically, various types of social structures have developed depending on the level of development of the division of labor and socio - economic relations.

The social structure of the slave-owning society was made up of the classes of slaves and slave-owners, as well as artisans, merchants, landowners, free peasants, representatives of mental activity - scientists, philosophers, poets, priests, teachers, doctors, etc.

The social structure of feudal society was the interconnection of the main classes - feudal lords and serfs, as well as estates and various groups of the intelligentsia. Estates occupy a special place. Estates are social groups, the places of which in society are determined not only by their position in the system socio-economic relations, but also established traditions and legal acts. This determined the rights, duties and privileges of such estates as secular feudal lords and clergy.

Capitalist society, especially modern one, has a complex social structure. Within the framework of its social structure, primarily various groups of the bourgeoisie, the so-called middle class and workers, interact. The middle class plays a special role. It includes small and medium-income entrepreneurs, farmers, traders, and highly paid workers and employees. The middle class includes the majority of the population of industrially developed capitalist countries based on the level of its income.

The experience of building a socialist society in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Asia revealed the main directions of the development of its social structure. Its main elements were considered the working class, the cooperative peasantry, the intelligentsia, the layers of private entrepreneurs that survived in some of these countries, as well as professional and demographic groups and national communities.

3. Social stratification. Under the socially stratified structure of society understood (according to Kharcheva) a multidimensional, hierarchically organized social space in which people differ (are grouped) depending on the degree of possession of power, property, social status, corresponding value orientations.

T. Parsons under social stratification understands the differentiating ranking of individuals of a given social system. It is a way of looking at individuals as having a lower or higher social position relative to each other in some socially important aspects.

E. Giddens defines stratification as structural inequalities between different groups of people, each of which differs in the amount and nature of social privileges.

In a textbook on sociology by American scientists L. Bloom, C. Bonjon, D. Brum, the following definition of social stratification is given: "A system of different levels of goods, power and prestige."

N. Smelzer deduces the essence of the concept of "social stratification" from the concept of "inequality". By the latter, he understands the conditions under which people have unequal access to such social goods as money, power and prestige. Accordingly, stratification relates to the ways in which inequality is passed from one generation to the next; at the same time, various strata of society are formed.

According to P. Berger, the classification of society can be based on a wide variety of criteria, present a wide variety of advantages that appear in the form of privileges (in the sense of access to material things and services), power (in the understanding of M. Verber, who saw in it the likelihood of achieving his own even despite the resistance of others) and prestige. To enroll people in a particular category, you can use various criteria - physical strength, age, gender, origin, economic success, the favor of the king or the verdict of an oracle.

The basis of stratification, according to many sociologists, is social inequality... R. Dahrendorf highlights the following forms of inequality :

- natural variety of appearance, character, interests;

- natural inequality of minds, talents and forces;

- social differentiation of fundamentally equivalent positions;

- social stratification by prestige and wealth as rank ordering of social status, i.e. there is an individual and social inequality.

R. Dahrendorf in his work " Current situation the theory of social stratification "notes that in the sociological literature the following approaches to causes of social stratification (inequalities):

- Davis and Moore argue that stratification is universally necessary to "instill in suitable individuals a desire to take certain positions and, once they are in those positions, a desire to fulfill the responsibilities associated with them." Inequality, in their opinion, is necessary because stimulates the advancement of people to prestigious social positions.

- Tumin and Rong argued that stratification should be viewed in relation to domination, namely, that stratification systems help those who dominate.

- Simson argues that social stratification is an economic phenomenon arising from the interaction of supply and demand in the distribution of personnel and social positions.

- Dahrendorf and Lepsius write that stratification is the result of unequal stratification of positions in relation to dominant values.

Let us consider in more detail the concept of G. Lenski, formulated in the work "Power and Privilege". In his opinion, social structures consist of activities that guarantee the physical survival of an individual in society and activities beyond consumption and survival, i.e. in the area of ​​economic social surplus. The former structures are the realm of functional coordination and cooperation, the latter are the realm of domination and coercion. Physical survival efforts do not generate much inequality, unlike the distribution of surplus, which generates both inequality and conflict. The surplus grows as the technological basis of society develops; and together with the emerging surpluses, it is more difficult, problematic and more distinctly fixed according to the positions of the stratification system.

The main elements of social stratification in modern society are (according to T. Parsons) are:

- belonging to a related cell. Belonging to it can be determined by both birth and marriage, etc .;

- personal qualities, i.e. characteristics of a person that distinguish him from other people and which can be considered as a basis for evaluating him above others: gender, age, personal attractiveness, intelligence, strength, etc.;

- achievements, i.e. the results of the actions of individuals considered as a value;

- ownership, i.e. individual items that are characterized by the fact that they can be transferred;

- power.

P. Sorokin believed stratification in society can be of three types: economic, political and professional ... This means that it is necessary to divide society according to the criteria of income (wealth, i.e. accumulation), according to the criteria for influencing the behavior of members of society, according to criteria related to the successful use of social roles, the availability of knowledge, skills, skills and intuition, which is assessed and is rewarded by members of the community.

Karl Marx had the greatest influence on the formation of the concept of stratification. He believed that everything social phenomena are determined by the economy... K. Marx argued that in any economic system there is a ruling class that owns1 the means of production, a class of the oppressed, working for the owners. The former, exploiting the latter, do not pay them the full cost of their labor, they sell the product produced by the proletarians for more than the cost of its production, thereby creating a surplus value that the bourgeoisie uses at its own discretion. The workers, as we can see, are subject to exploitation and alienation from their true nature, i.e. they are unable to express themselves through work and experience any satisfaction from it, thereby limiting their creativity, depriving life of meaning. Over time, there is a polarization of classes: the bourgeoisie and the proletariat are in opposition to each other. Having a common "enemy", spending most of their time together in factories, the proletariat becomes homogeneous, and common class interests appear, which leads to class conflict.

The class that owns the means of production controls the economy through them and implements the policy of the state, i.e. he is the ruling class.

Let us consider in more detail the once popular but now forgotten theory of the classes of K. Marx and F. Engels. Class, according to K. Marx and F. Engels, is a group of people defined in relation to the means of production, according to their place in the system of social division of labor. The definition of classes, classical for the Marxist theory, was given in his work “Great Initiative” by V. I. Lenin: “ Classes are large groups of people that differ in their place in a historically defined system of production, in their relation to the means of production, in their role in public organization labor. Classes are such groups of people, of which one can appropriate the labor of another due to the difference in their place in a certain structure of the social economy.". Formulated on the basis of this approach the concept of the social structure of society boils down to the following provisions:

- the social structure of society consists of three main elements - classes, social strata and social groups;

- the "core" of the social structure of society consists of classes defined in relation to the means of production (owners and those without property), namely the classes of exploiters (slave owners, feudal lords, bourgeoisie) and exploited (slaves, peasants, proletariat);

- the formation of classes is, first of all, a product of economic relations - classes are formed as a result of the social division of labor (primarily into mental and physical) and the emergence of private property;

- the process of the formation of classes, according to K. Marx and F. Engels, proceeded in two main ways - by separating the exploiting elite (clan nobility and wealthy people) in the tribal community and by turning captive foreigners into slavery, and fellow tribesmen into debt bondage;

- the possession or non-possession of the means of production determines the role of classes in the system of organization of social labor (control and management), with the system political power(dominant and subordinate), their property status (rich and poor, i.e. paupers);

- the struggle between the exploiting and exploited classes, resolving in the form of revolutions, serves as a driving force social development;

- at the same time, in addition to the main social classes closely related to the dominant mode of production (exploiters and exploited), Marxist theory distinguishes the so-called. non-mainstream classes are either the remnants of the previous classes (the nobles under capitalism), the emerging new classes (the commercial bourgeoisie under feudalism), or classes passing from one formation to another (the peasantry);

- in addition to classes, social strata (or strata) are distinguished in the structure of society - i.e. intermediate or transitional social groups that do not play a decisive role in the system of socio-economic relations: the so-called. the petty bourgeoisie (artisans, merchants) and the intelligentsia;

- the intelligentsia, in turn, is divided into proletarian, petty-bourgeois.

Max Weber, like Karl Marx, defined the social class of people by its economic power, but unlike Karl Marx, he identified other factors that influence the formation of inequality relations. For example, social status (social prestige and belonging to certain political circles), in his opinion, is an important characteristic for a person in society. He called it status.

Weber for the first time lays in the basis of class division the system of stratification that exists at a given time. He divided the class of owners and the "commercial class", divided the working class into several classes (depending on the type of property of the enterprise where they work). M. Weber proves that anyone has the opportunity to improve their status.

P. Berger proposes the following definition of a class: “ A class is a group of people whose privileges derive from its role in production process and which is distinguished by common interests and common cultural characteristics ". A class society, in his opinion, is a society in which the class form of stratification dominates. The class system creates a situation in which, at least in principle, only economic success determines the material privileges available to a particular individual. Given this situation, it can be assumed that other advantages, especially prestige and power, can be acquired in a similar way.

In modern Western sociology, it is customary to distinguish two approaches to class definition- subjective and objective. Subjective based on the principle of "self-identification", i.e. on the self-assignment of an individual to a particular class. Objective approach based on criteria independent of the opinion of the individual. In foreign sociological literature, there are two such criterion:

- the nature of the activity (labor);

- the amount of income.

Along with them, other criteria are taken into account, which are closely related to the first two and follow from them:

- educational level;

- qualified level;

- job level;

- features of value orientations and work motivation;

- the quality of life;

- consumption standards.

Functionalist stratification theories T. Parsons argued:

- different sectors of society and different groups are interconnected and must cooperate in order for the life of society to go on as usual;

- there is a generally accepted classification of people in society; in the West, this is usually done on the basis of individual success, ambition and hard work, so that talented or high-ranking people have higher earnings and have earned greater authority among others;

- a system of stratification, when people with higher earnings are more respected than others, is seen as inevitable and fair.

- The power of the upper social strata is considered legitimate because it is exercised with the aim of benefiting society.

The concept and phenomenon of “poverty” is closely connected with the concepts of “social stratification”, “social inequality”, social mobility.

Russian sociologists L. A. Belyaeva and L. A. Gordon distinguish between absolute and relative forms of poverty. Absolute poverty is a condition in which an individual on his or her income is unable to satisfy even the basic needs for food, clothing, or is able to satisfy only the minimum needs that ensure biological survival. The numerical criterion is the poverty threshold ( living wage). Under relative poverty is understood as the inability to maintain the level of a decent life accepted in a given society.

4. Social mobility... The social structure of any society is a rather complex formation. In addition to classes, estates, intelligentsia, whose role in the modern era of the scientific and technological revolution and multiple complications public life is constantly growing, such demographic groups as youth and women, striving to improve their position in society, to more fully realize their interests, are making themselves known more and more persistently.

National relations have acquired particular acuteness at the present time. In the context of the renewal of society, each nation and nationality strives to realize their economic, political and spiritual interests.

In the social structure of society, large and small social groups can be distinguished, firstly, formed objectively, i.e. ultimately, regardless of the consciousness and will of people, and secondly, formed in the course of the conscious and organizing activity of the participants in the historical process themselves.

The former include the social groups described above, including classes, estates, professional, demographic, and national communities; to the second - political parties, trade union and youth organizations, scientific societies, hobby clubs and even groups of friends.

Among these social groups and organizations, formal and informal organizations can be distinguished. Formal organizations operate more often on the basis of the charters and programs they have adopted, and have their own permanent coordinating and governing bodies. In informal organizations, all this is absent, and their actions are carried out mainly on the basis of personal contacts, by organizing meetings, conferences, rallies, and mass movements. They are created to achieve well-defined goals - current and long-term.

In Western sociology, functional groups are especially distinguished, which are united depending on the functions and social roles they perform. These are professional groups engaged in the field of political, economic and spiritual activities, groups of people of different qualifications, groups of different social status - entrepreneurs, workers, employees, representatives of the intelligentsia, groups of urban and rural residents, as well as socio-demographic groups. The beginning of a serious study of the functional activity of various social groups was laid in his time by E. Durkheim, then it was continued in the works of his followers in European countries and in the USA. The works of American sociologists T. Parsons, R. Merton and other representatives of structural and functional analysis in modern sociology should be especially noted.

The efforts of many sociologists are aimed at studying the so-called small groups. They are formed on the basis of the emergence of more or less constant and close contacts between several people or as a result of the disintegration of any large social group. Often, both of these processes occur simultaneously. It happens that a number of small groups appear and operate within the framework of a large social group.

The number of people in small groups ranges from two to ten, rarely more. In such a group, the social and psychological contacts of its members are better preserved, often relating to significant moments in their life and work. A small group can be a group of friends, acquaintances, or a group of people connected by professional interests, working at a factory, in a scientific institution, in a theater, etc. Performing production functions, they at the same time establish interpersonal contacts with each other, characterized by psychological harmony and general interest in something.

Such groups can play an important role in the formation of value orientations, in determining the direction of the behavior and activities of their representatives. Their role in this may be more significant than the role of large social groups or means mass media... Thus, they constitute a specific social environment influencing the personality, which sociology should not ignore. Studying the interactions of people in small groups, the sociologist discovers many of the true motives of their behavior and activities.

A characteristic section of the theory of the social structure of society is the problem of social mobility. It is about the transition of people from some social groups and strata (stratum - from Lat. - layer, flooring.) to others, for example, from the urban stratum to the rural stratum, and vice versa. The social mobility of the population is influenced by circumstances such as changes in living conditions in the city or countryside, people getting new professions or changing the type of activity. All this represents important point functioning of the social structure of society.

Changes in public opinion regarding the prestige of certain professions and, as a result, changes in professional interests among various groups of people are among the reasons that enhance social mobility.

Interest in the nature and content of work and living conditions can change from generation to generation, and maybe this happens more and more often in people of the same generation. As a result, the process of transition of people from one professional and social stratum to another is going on more intensively.

5. Actual problems of the development of the social structure of modern Kazakhstani society. Until recently, the social composition of the USSR and all its constituent republics was represented mainly by the working class, the peasantry and the intelligentsia. In all the republics, the working class constituted the majority of the population. The second largest social group was, as a rule, the group of employees and the intelligentsia.

It is not easy to judge how optimal such a social structure of the population was. In any case, it did not provide the proper dynamics of the development of society. The currently developing new social groups add dynamism to society, although the directions of their social activity sometimes diverge from the interests of other social groups and society. The expediency of enriching the social structure of society due to the emergence of new social groups, primarily entrepreneurs, farmers, cooperators, is beyond doubt. But it is necessary to enrich and intensify the activities of long-standing social groups, primarily workers, peasants, and intelligentsia. Today it is a fundamental socio-economic problem of the development of Russia, Kazakhstan, and other states that were previously part of the USSR.

Among the new social groups, new categories of cooperators, farmers and representatives of self-employment in cities and rural areas should be noted. But, first of all, it should be mentioned entrepreneurs engaged in the industrial sector, more financial and intermediary business, as well as the owners of joint ventures. These social groups are now active in Kazakhstan. The ongoing processes of denationalization of property and its privatization multiply the number of collective and private owners, most of all in the field of trade, services and intermediary activities.

All this significantly changes the social structure of modern Kazakhstani society and activates the processes of social mobility of the population. Two main trends in the development of the social structure of modern society can be noted: 1) an active process of social differentiation of society, the emergence of new social groups and strata of the population; 2) the processes of integration in the economy going on all over the world, which inevitably affects the social structure of society. Working conditions, its nature and content are converging among representatives of various social groups. Consequently, the conditions of their life and the structure of interests are converging. All this leads to their socio-economic, and often spiritual and political consolidation.

In its social policy statesmen must take into account both tendencies, which are organically interconnected and dialectically interact with each other. This is necessary for a conscious impact on the development of social structure and social dynamics in society and, to some extent, for the scientific management of these processes.

Main literature:

V.I. Dobrenkov, A.I. Kravchenko. Sociology. Short course. Moscow. 2003 S. 140-162.

V.N. Lavrinenko. Sociology. Textbook for universities. Moscow. 2003 S. 132-148.

R. T. Mukhaev. Sociology. Textbook for universities. Moscow. 2003 S. 154-165.

Additional literature:

A.A. Radugin, K.A. Radugin. Sociology. Moscow. 1006 BC

J.T. Toshchenko. Sociology. Moscow. 1994 year

N. Smelzer. Moscow. 1994

K.G. Gabdullina. Sociology. Tutorial. Almaty. 1997 year

Lecture 6.

Society is a complex social system, structurally organized integrity, which is formed by various elements, components. In turn, they also have a certain level of organization and orderliness of their own structure. This gives grounds to assert that the social structure of society is a complex, multidimensional formation.

The social structure of society is basic in the study of all processes and phenomena in social life, since changes in the social structure is the main indicator of changes in the social system of society.

The concept of "social structure" has several interpretations. Most often, this term is used in order to divide society into different social groups, systems of stable ties between them, and also to determine the internal structure of certain social communities.

There are two main levels of structural organization: 1) microstructure, 2) macrostructure. Microstructure means stable ties in small groups (work collective, student group, etc.). The elements of structural analysis in this case are individuals, social roles, statuses, group norms and values. Microstructure significantly affects the processes of social life, such as socialization, the formation of social thought.

Macrostructure- this is the composition of classes, strata characteristic of a given society, ethnic groups and social categories, the totality of stable relations between them and the peculiarity of their structural organization. The main aspects of the macrostructure of society are socio-class, socio-professional, socio-demographic, socio-territorial and socio-ethnic substructures.

Social structure- an ordered set of individuals, social groups, communities, organizations, institutions, united by connections and relationships, differing in their position in the economic, political, spiritual spheres of their life.

In other words, this is the internal structure of society, which consists of ordered elements interconnected with each other: individuals, social groups, social strata, classes, estates, social communities (socio-ethnic, socio-professional, socio-demographic, socio-territorial).

A person practically never becomes directly involved in the structure of society. He always belongs to a certain group, whose interests and norms of behavior do not affect him. And already these groups form a society.

The social structure has certain characteristics:

1) the stability of the connection between any elements of society, i.e. stable interdependencies, correlations;

2) the regularity, stability and repeatability of these interactions;

3) the presence of levels or "floors" according to the significance of the elements that are included in the structure;

4) regulatory, initiated and dynamic control over the behavior of elements, including various norms and sanctions adopted in a given society.

The social structure has a "horizontal projection" and "vertical projection" - a hierarchically organized aggregate of statuses, groups, classes, strata, etc.

The concept of "social structure" covers the system-organizational and stratification aspects. According to the system-organizational aspect, the main content of the social structure is formed by social institutions, primarily such as: economics, politics (state), science, education, family, preserving and supporting existing relations and connections in society. These institutions normatively regulate, control and direct the behavior of people in vital spheres, and also determine stable, regularly reproduced role positions (statuses) in different types of social organizations.

Social status is the primary element of the social structure of society, which determines the place of a person in the social structure of society. It is conditioned by profession, age, education and financial situation. Social positions (statuses) and the connections between them determine the nature of social relations.

Social status- This is the social position (position) of the individual in the social structure of society, associated with belonging to a social group or community, the totality of its social roles.

Social status- a generalized characteristic covering the profession, economic situation, political opportunities and demographic characteristics of a person. For example, "builder" is a profession; "Hired worker" is an economic trait; "Party member" - a political characteristic; “A man of 30 years old” is a demographic feature. All these characteristics describe the social status of one person, but from different angles.

It is necessary to distinguish personal and social types of status. Social status has two meanings - wide and narrow. Status in a broad sense is the social position of a person in society, which gives him a generalizing characteristic. In a narrow sense, this is the position of a person, which he automatically occupies as a representative of a large social group (professional, class, national).

Personal status- This is the position that a person occupies in a small social group (family, among friends, in a team, sports team, student group, etc.), depending on how he is assessed by his individual qualities. In them, everyone can occupy a high, medium or low status, i.e. be a leader, independent or outsider.

Status can be prescribed(surname, pedigree), reached or mixed.

Prescribed cannot be identified with born. Only three biologically inherited statuses are considered natural: gender, nationality, race, which a person inherits regardless of his will and consciousness.

Achievable status a person receives through his own efforts, desire, free choice. The more attainable statuses in a society, the more dynamic and democratic it is.

Mixed status at the same time has the features of both prescribed and achieved. For example, the title of professor is initially a status that is attained, but eventually becomes prescribed. is eternal, although not inherited.

Social role - typical human behavior associated with his social status, which does not cause negative reactions from others. An individual can fulfill several social roles. For example: friend, athlete, public figure, citizen, student. Each person has several social roles and statuses.

Any society can be represented as a set of status-role positions, and the more there are, the more complex the society. However, status-role positions are not a simple heap devoid of inner harmony. They are organized, interconnected by countless threads. Organization and orderliness are ensured thanks to more complex structural formations - social institutions, communities, organizations - that connect status-role positions with each other, ensure their reproduction, and create guarantees for their stability.

On the basis of close social statuses that establish the potential for the participation of an individual in the corresponding types of activity, more complex structural elements of society are formed - social groups.

Social group- a relatively stable, historically formed set of people united on the basis of common characteristics, interests, values, group consciousness.

The concept of "social group" is generic with respect to the concepts of "class", "social stratum", "collective", "nation", "community", as it fixes social differences between individual groups of people in the process of distribution of labor and their results. These differences are based on the relationship to the means of production, power, the specifics of labor, specialty, education, income level, gender, age, nationality, place of residence, etc.

Class- any social stratum in modern society that differs from others in income, education, prestige, attitude to power.

Social layer- a group of individuals engaged in equivalent types of work and receiving approximately equal remuneration.

Social community - a set of people, united by relatively stable social ties, relations, having common features that give it a non-repeated originality.

In every society there is a certain number of social groups, the creation of which is due to:

General activities (for example, professional groups, collectives);

General spatio-temporal existence (environment, territory, communication);

Group attitudes and orientations.

It is necessary to distinguish social groups from random unstable associations such as: bus passengers, readers in the library, spectators in the cinema.

Social groups arose on the basis of objective conditions of existence, a certain level development of society. Thus, at the dawn of mankind, a clan and tribe arose. With the division of labor, professional groups appeared (artisans, farmers, hunters, gatherers, etc.). With the advent of private property - classes.

The formation of a social group is a long and complex process of its social maturation, which is associated with the awareness of its position, community and interests, values, the formation of group consciousness and norms of behavior. A social group becomes socially mature when it realizes its interests, values, forms norms, goals and objectives of activity, which are aimed at maintaining or changing its position in society. R. Darendorf, in this regard, identifies hidden and open group interests. It is the awareness of interests that turns a group of people into an independent subject of social action.

In the social structure, social groups of different numbers interact. Traditionally, they are divided into small and large.

Small social group- a small group of people, whose members are united by common activities and enter into direct communication, which is the basis for the emergence of emotional relationships and special group values ​​and norms of behavior.

A generic sign of a small social group is the presence of directly long-term personal contacts (communication, interaction), typical of, for example, a family, a team of workers, a group of friends, a sports team, etc.

Large social group- a large group of people united for common activities, but the relationship between them is mostly formal.

These include professional, demographic, national communities, social classes.

The social structure of modern Ukrainian society depends on the direction of the essence of social transformations, the essence of which is in changing functional ties in society. It is based on:

1. Changing the social form of all basic social institutions - economic, political, cultural, educational; deep social upheaval and reform of those social regulators that form the social structure of society (it has become less rigid, more mobile).

2. Transformation of the social nature of the main components of the social structure - classes, groups and communities; their renewal as subjects of property and power; the emergence of economic classes, strata and strata with a corresponding system of social conflicts and contradictions.

3. Weakening of the existing stratification constraints in society. The emergence of new channels for improving status, strengthening the horizontal and vertical mobility of Ukrainians.

4. Intensification of processes of marginalization.

Marginalization- (lat. Margo - edge, border) - the process of loss of an individual's objective belonging to a particular social group, without the subsequent subjective entry into another community, stratum.

This is the process of a subject changing one socio-economic status to another. In Ukrainian society at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries, it is characterized by a transition mainly to the lower strata of the population (the phenomenon of the “new poor”, social groups of the military, the intelligentsia).

5. Changing the comparative role of the components of social status. If the stratification of Soviet society was dominated by the administrative-official criterion associated with a place in the system of power and management, then in modern society the criterion of property and income is decisive. Previously, the political status determined the material position, now the amount of capital determines the political weight.

6. Increasing the social prestige of education and qualifications, strengthening the role of the cultural factor in the formation of high-status groups. This is due to the formation of the labor market. However, this applies to specialties that are in demand in the market, primarily - economic, legal and management.

7. Changes in the qualitative and quantitative parameters of the social structure. It is known that the more progressive the age and sex structure, the great opportunities development it is endowed with, the more stable the social (labor, intellectual, cultural) potential of the population. Due to negative demographic trends, the population of Ukraine decreases by 400 thousand people every year, against the background of a general depopulation of the population (every fifth Ukrainian family does not have children), the birth rate decreases, the average life expectancy decreases (if at the beginning of the 90s of the twentieth century. health Ukraine ranked 40th in the world, then ten years later it moved to the second hundred).

8. Deepening social polarization of society. The property indicator is the core of transformations. The economic status and lifestyle of the elites, the upper stratum, increased sharply, while for the majority of the population they sharply decreased. The boundaries of poverty and poverty expanded, a social “bottom” emerged - the homeless, declassed elements.

The structure of Ukrainian society, which has received significant changes in comparison with Soviet society, continues to retain its features. For its significant transformation, it is necessary to systematically transform the institutions of property and power, which takes a long time. The stratification of society will continue to lose stability and uniqueness in the future. The boundaries between groups and layers will become more transparent, and many marginalized groups with an undefined or contradictory status will arise.

The social structure of Ukrainian society, based on the sociological research of N. Rimashevskaya, in general terms can be presented as follows.

one." All-Ukrainian elite groups", Which unite in their hands property in amounts equal to the largest western countries, and also own the means of power influence at the national level.

2. " Regional and corporate elites», Which have a significant Ukrainian position and influence at the level of regions and entire industries or sectors of the economy.

3. The Ukrainian "upper middle class", which owns property and incomes that meet Western consumption standards, as well. Representatives of this stratum seek to improve their social status, are guided by the established practice and ethical norms of economic relations.

4. Ukrainian "dynamic middle class", which owns incomes that meet the average Ukrainian and higher standards of consumption, and is also characterized by a relatively high potential adaptability, significant social aspirations and motivations and an orientation towards legal ways of manifestation.

5. "Outsiders" who are characterized by low adaptation and social activity, low incomes and an orientation towards legal ways of obtaining it.

6. "Marginalized" who are characterized by low adaptation, as well as antisocial and antisocial attitudes in their socio-economic activities.

7. “Criminals”, which are characterized by high social activity and adaptability, but at the same time fully consciously and rationally oppose the legal norms of economic activity.

The contemporary American anthropologist Julian Steward, in his Theory of Cultural Change, departed from Spencer's classic social evolutionism based on labor differentiation. Each society, according to Steward, consists of several cultural fields:

• technical and economic;
• socio-political;
• legislative;
• artistic, etc.

Each cultural field has its own laws of evolution, and the whole society as a whole is in unique natural and social conditions. As a result, the development of each society is unique and does not obey any economic and formational linearity. But most often the leading reason for the development of local societies is the technical and economic sphere.

Marsh (1967), in particular, indicated the signs in which a social community can be considered society:

• permanent territory with a state border;
• replenishment of the community as a result of childbearing and immigration;
• developed culture (concepts of experience, concepts of the relationship between elements of experience, values-beliefs, norms of behavior that correspond to values, etc.);
• political (state) independence.

As you can see, the economy is not among the listed features.

The structure of society in Parsons sociology

The most famous, complex and used in modern sociology is the understanding of society proposed. He views society as a kind of social system, which in turn is a structural element of the system of action. The result is a chain:

• action system;
• social system;
• society as a form of social system.

The action system includes the following structural subsystems:

• social subsystem, the function of which is the integration of people into social connection;
• cultural a subsystem consisting in the preservation, reproduction and development of a model of human behavior;
• personal a subsystem consisting in the realization of goals and the execution of the process of action inherent in the cultural subsystem;
• behavioral organism, whose function is to implement physical (practical) interactions with the external environment.

The external environment of the action system is, on the one hand, the "higher reality", the problem of the meaning of life and action, contained in the cultural subsystem, and on the other hand, the physical environment, nature. Social systems are open systems that are in constant exchange with the external environment, "formed by the states and processes of social interaction between the actors."

Society is "Type of social system in the aggregate social systems, which has reached the highest degree of self-sufficiency in relation to its environment. " It consists of four subsystems - organs that perform certain functions in the structure of society:

• the societal subsystem is the subject of social action, it consists of a set of norms of behavior that serve to integrate people and collectives into society;
• cultural subsystem of preservation and reproduction of a sample, consisting of a set of values ​​and serving for the reproduction of a sample of typical social behavior by people;
• a political subsystem that serves as a societal subsystem for setting and achieving goals;
• economic (adaptive) subsystem, which includes a set of roles of people, interaction with the material world (Table 1).

The core of society is the societal community - a kind of people, and the rest of the subsystems act as instruments for the preservation (stabilization) of this community. It is a complex network of interpenetrating collectives (families, businesses, churches, government agencies, etc.) within which people share common values ​​and norms and are distributed between statuses and roles and. "Society," writes Parsons, "is a type of social system in the entire totality of social systems that has reached the highest degree of self-sufficiency in relations with its environment." Self-sufficiency includes the ability of a society to control both the interaction of its subsystems and external processes of interaction.

Table 1. The structure of society according to T. Parson

The main social problem, according to Parsons, is the problem of order, stability and adaptation of society to changing internal and external conditions. He pays special attention to the concept of "norms" as an essential element of social connection, institution, organization. In reality, no social system (including society) is in a state of complete integration and correlation with other systems, because destructive factors are constantly acting, as a result of which constant social control and other corrective mechanisms are required.

Parsons' conception of social action, social system, society has been criticized from various sociological points of view. First, his society turned out to be squeezed between the cultural and anthropological (personality and behavioral organism) subsystems, while the cultural subsystem remained outside the society. Secondly, the societal community is not part of the political, economic, cultural subsystems, therefore, societal statuses, values, norms turn out to be functionally undifferentiated in relation to social systems. Thirdly, the main element of society is the societal community, which is formed by values ​​and norms, and not a process of activity leading to a certain result.

In my opinion, the structure of society proposed by Parsons can be significantly changed. It makes sense to add to the subsystems of society demosocial, associated with the reproduction and socialization of people. It is not covered by personal and behavioral subsystems, playing a fundamental role in society. Need to split cultural subsystem on spiritual and mental, since their mixing in the cultural subsystem interferes with Parsons himself when analyzing individual cultural subsystems - for example, the church and the religious worldview. Should be included in all social systems of society societal parts (functional societal communities).

Modern ideas about the structure of society

From my point of view, society consists of the following main systems-spheres:

• geographical (the natural basis of existence and the subject of production);
• demosocial (demographic and social) - the reproduction and socialization of people;
• economic (production, distribution, exchange, consumption of material goods);
• political (production, distribution, exchange, consumption of power-order, ensuring integration);
• spiritual (artistic, legal, educational, scientific, religious, etc.) - production, distribution, exchange, consumption of spiritual values ​​(knowledge, artistic images, moral norms, etc.), spiritual integration;
• mental, conscious, subjective (a set of instincts, feelings, attitudes, values, norms, beliefs inherent in a given society).

Each of the listed systems includes subsystems that can be considered as relatively independent parts of society. These representations can be schematically shown as follows (Scheme 1).

Scheme 1. Basic systems of society

The systems of society, first of all, are arranged in such a "ladder", first of all, depending on the ratio of material (objective) and mental (subjective) in them. If in the geographic sphere the subjective component (worldview, mentality, motivation) is absent, then in the conscious one it is present in full measure. When moving from a geographic (unconscious) to a mental (conscious) system, the role of values ​​constructing a society, that is, a conscious component of human life, increases. Simultaneously, there is an increase mismatches everyday (empirical) and scientific (theoretical) knowledge and beliefs. Secondly, demosocial, economic, political, spiritual systems are focused on meeting functional needs (demosocial, economic, etc.). Therefore, the concept of social connection (sociality) acts as a methodological basis for the analysis of these systems of society. Thirdly, these systems are complementary, complement one another and build on top of one another. A variety of cause-and-effect, essential-manifest and functional-structural connections arise between them, so that the “end” of one social sphere is simultaneously the “beginning” of another. They form a hierarchy, where the result of the functioning of one system is the beginning of another. For example, the demosocial system is the source for the economic system, and the latter for the political, etc.

One and the same person acts as a subject of different social systems, and therefore societal communities, implements different motivational mechanisms in them (needs, values, norms, beliefs, experience, knowledge), performs different roles (husband, worker, citizen, believer, etc.) etc.), forms various social ties, institutions, organizations. This, on the one hand, enriches the status-role set of people, and on the other hand, preserves the unity of social systems and societies. The individual, his activities, motivation are ultimately one of the main integrators of the population into the society-people. In Understanding Sociology, Parsons Sociology and
phenomenological sociology, individual social action is the main element of the social.

Public, social, societal being - it is a set of demosocial, economic, political, spiritual systems and connections between them. The listed terms express, in essence, the same thing. Systems of social communication, social life, social systems are the processes of production, distribution, exchange and consumption of some social benefits (goods, order, truths, etc.).

Society - it is a set of social systems with the exception of geography. In sociology textbooks, as a rule, there is a section culture of society, which in the narrow sense of the word means the system of values, norms, thoughts, actions characteristic of a given society. In the broadest sense of the word, society and culture society - identical concepts, therefore in this textbook I have excluded the section "culture": it is considered in different topics due to the great vagueness of the very concept of "culture". Culture human was considered earlier.

Society - it is the totality of all social systems and connections between them, its main metasystems - people, formation and civilization. In social systems (social life), three main parts can be distinguished in order to simplify their understanding and role in society. First, it is initial, subjective, societal part of social systems includes functional communities (demosocial, economic, etc.) that have a functional subjectivity(needs, values, knowledge), ability to act, and roles.

Secondly, it is basic, activity part - the process of producing some public goods - representing the coordinated actions of individuals with different roles, their mutual communication, the use of objects and tools (the situation of activity). An example is managers, engineers and workers, together with the means of production in the activities of an industrial enterprise. This part is basic, because this social system depends on it.

Thirdly, it is effective, supportive the part that includes produced social goods: for example, cars, their distribution, exchange and consumption (use) by other social systems. The productive part of the social system should include and reinforcement initial and basic parts, confirmation of their adequacy to their purpose. Such, realistic, the point of view softens the extremes of subjectivist, understanding, positivist and Marxist sociology.

Unlike Parsons, the functional societal community in this interpretation is the initial element of each social system, and does not act as a separate system. It also includes a status-role structure that characterizes this social system. It, and not a cultural subsystem, acts as a concrete functional cultural part of the social system.

Further, not only the economic and political, but also the demosocial and spiritual systems act social, that is, they have their own functional societal communities, with their own needs, mentality, abilities, as well as actions, norms, institutions and results.

And, finally, in all social systems, cultural, societal, personal, behavioral subsystems are in unity, and individual(elementary) action is included in the basic part of every social system, including: a) the situation (objects, tools, conditions); b) orientation (needs, goals, norms); c) operations, results, benefits.

Thus, society can be defined as a natural-social organism, consisting of mental, social, geographic systems, as well as connections and relationships between them. Society has different levels: villages, cities, regions, countries, systems of countries. Humanity includes both the development of individual countries and the slow formation of a common human superorganism.

In this tutorial, society is depicted in the form of a hierarchical structure, which includes: 1) the basic elements of society; 2) systems (subsystems), spheres, organs; 3) metasystems ( peoples characterizing the "metabolic" structure of society; formations characterizing the "social body" of society; civilizations characterizing his "soul").

Saint-Simon, Comte, Hegel and others believed that driving force changes in societies is in the sphere of consciousness, in those ideas, methods of thinking and projects with the help of which Man tries to explain and predict his practical activity, to control it, and through it the world. Marxists saw the driving force behind historical changes in the struggle between rich and poor classes, productive forces and economic relations, that is, in economic system... In my opinion, the driving force behind the development of societies is also the contradictions of the mental, societal, objective within social systems, between social systems within society, between different societies.

Society is a group of people created thanks to purposeful and reasonably organized joint activities, and the members of such a group are not united by such a deep principle as in the case of a true community. Society rests on a convention, a contract, and the same orientation of interests. The individuality of an individual changes much less under the influence of his involvement in society than depending on his involvement in the community. Often, society means the sphere that lies between the individual and the state.

The work contains 1 file

1) The concept of society

Society is a group of people created thanks to purposeful and reasonably organized joint activities, and the members of such a group are not united by such a deep principle as in the case of a true community. Society rests on a convention, a contract, and the same orientation of interests. The individuality of an individual changes much less under the influence of his involvement in society than depending on his involvement in the community. Often, society means the sphere that lies between the individual and the state.

After attempts to explain the essence of the concept of "society" in antiquity (Aristotle) ​​and in the Middle Ages (Augustine and Thomas Aquinas), this question became, especially in the 18th century, a political-philosophical problem, the exhaustive solution of which Comte tried to give in his sociology; therefore, society became the subject of consideration and the central point of a new science - sociology.

In the broadest sense, the society studied by social philosophy acts as sociality in general, as a society, or a special kind of being in the world.

There are various interpretations of society: subjective, which considers society as a special amateur collective of people; active, which believes that society should be considered not so much the collective itself as the process of the collective existence of people; organizational, which considers society as an institutional system of stable ties between interacting people and social groups.

Society as an extremely broad concept to designate that part of the material world that has become isolated from nature and interacts with it in a certain way. This isolation is as follows: in contrast to spontaneous natural forces, a person with consciousness and will stands at the center of social development. Nature exists and develops according to its own laws, independent of man and society. In this sense, society is the totality of all forms of association and ways of interaction between people, both among themselves and with the natural world around them.

This last definition is considered in this work as the main one.

2) The structure and historical types of societies.

The concept of structure is also used in a different, broader sense as

a set of elements and their interconnections. In this case, the concept of structure,

in essence, it is identified with the concept of the whole, since, for example,

"Elementary" particles and atoms, molecules and other objects and phenomena,

being integral formations, they are referred to as material structures.

The structure is the orderliness, organization of the system. Naturally

therefore, an essential characteristic of the structure is the measure

orderliness, which in its most general form, in the cybernetic sense,

acts as a degree of deviation from the state of its thermodynamic

balance. Social systems tend to increase the degree of order,

own functioning and development.

When applied to society as a system, the structure acts as an internal

organization of society or its individual links. The structure of society is

the totality of social relations. The structure is possessed by the society as a whole and

any specific subsystem within it. Moreover, any specific system

within the framework of the "global" whole - society - has its own specific

structure, organization, which is the concretization of a more general

structure, structure, dominant in society.

Since the main component of any social system is

people, then the main element of its structure, so to speak, is its

the central link is the relationship of people, primarily production

relations. People, however, operate in various spheres of public life -

economic, socio-political, spiritual, family and household. From here

the presence of specific structures for specific areas of the whole society -

economic structure, socio-political structure, structure

spiritual life, the structure of everyday life and seed life. Each of them has

their characteristics, which bear the stamp of the qualitative nature of society and

are determined primarily by the forms of ownership prevailing in it.

The structure of the social system acts but only as a relationship

people to each other. Relations between various spheres of public life -

economic and socio-political, economic and spiritual, relations

other social spheres are also structural elements.

Relationships of things can also be structural elements. At the same time, it is impossible

forget, of course, that things are of a social nature. Structure, for example

such a system as an enterprise also contains a certain connection,

the order of the arrangement of machines, mechanisms, the relationship of technological

processes, etc.

The structure is also manifested in people's attitudes to things, in particular to

means of production, then awn in the forms of ownership, which

represent the most important element of the structure of society. She can

and act as the relationship of people to ideas. This is a process of development, perception,

spreading ideas by certain groups of people, classes, etc. have

the place and relationship of ideas to ideas, the connection of ideas of various kinds, etc.

for example, public consciousness as a system of ideas has certain

forms, they, these forms - science, political ideas, art, etc.

are in a certain connection, relationship.

The structure is also the attitude of people to economic processes,

political, etc., the ratio of various processes in society, say

revolution and reforms, economic and socio-political processes, etc.

Basic elements of the structure of society

The first necessary element of social activity is living

human individual subjects of activity with whom its launchers are associated

and regulatory mechanisms.

The second element is the object of social activity. Objects

social activities can be divided into two classes:

1. Things, "tools" with the help of which people influence

the real world around them. With these things, people

carry out adaptive activities, adapting to the environment

by means of its material and energy alteration,

purposeful transformation.

2. Symbols, signs (books, paintings, icons, etc.). These items

serve not to directly change reality, but to change

our ideas about the world. They affect our consciousness,

aspirations, goals, and through them, indirectly, affect

a reality different from consciousness. The function of symbols is to embody

in itself in a special way encoded information, to serve

means of its storage, accumulation, transmission, allowing people

coordinate the goals of their collective activities.

The need for symbols is due to the fact that any ideas, images,

feelings designed to influence people's behavior can do

this, and only in that case they will acquire some "bodily shell"

becoming material conductors, "carriers

If things serve as direct instruments of adaptation, then symbols provide

purposefulness of human activity.

3) The social structure of society.

Social structure and social institutions. In sociology, the concept of social structure (separate parts of society ordered into one whole) is interpreted in broad and narrow senses.
In a narrow sense, social structure is social stratification, i.e. distribution in a hierarchical order of groups and strata, distinguished according to any criterion (economic, political, professional, etc.).
In a broad sense, the social structure is a set of social institutions, status relations, groups, strata, classes of a given society.