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Unlock This CourseSocial processes are the ways in which individuals and groups interact, adjust and establish relationships and form patterns of behaviour that are essential to social life. These processes help us understand how societies function, maintain order and change over time.
Key Definitions:
Social processes help us understand how people become members of society, how social order is maintained and how societies change over time. They explain why we behave the way we do and how our behaviours are shaped by the world around us. By studying social processes, sociologists can better understand social problems and suggest solutions.
Sociologists use various research methods to study social processes, including surveys, interviews, observations and experiments. They look for patterns in human behaviour and try to explain why these patterns exist. This helps them develop theories about how society works and how it might be improved.
Socialisation is the process through which people learn the norms, values and behaviours expected in their society. It's how we become functioning members of our social groups.
Occurs in early childhood, mainly within the family. Children learn basic skills like language, toilet training and fundamental cultural values. Parents or guardians are the main agents of primary socialisation.
Example: A child learning to say "please" and "thank you" from their parents.
Takes place outside the family as individuals enter wider society. Schools, peer groups, media and workplaces become important agents of socialisation. People learn more complex norms and roles.
Example: Learning how to behave in a classroom setting or workplace.
The process of preparing for future roles or statuses. People learn the attitudes, values and behaviours associated with positions they expect to occupy.
Example: A student teacher practising classroom management techniques before becoming a full teacher.
Cases of "feral children" who grew up with minimal human contact show the critical importance of socialisation. Genie, discovered in California in 1970 at age 13, had been kept isolated in a room since infancy. She couldn't speak, walk properly, or interact normally with others. Despite intensive therapy, she never fully developed language skills, demonstrating how crucial early socialisation is for human development. These rare cases help sociologists understand what aspects of human behaviour are learned through socialisation rather than being innate.
Social control refers to the methods used by society to regulate individual and group behaviour, encouraging conformity to norms and preventing deviance. It helps maintain social order and stability.
Informal social control involves unwritten rules enforced through social interactions like approval, disapproval, praise, or ridicule. It includes:
Example: Friends giving disapproving looks when someone uses their phone during a film at the cinema.
Formal social control involves official, written rules enforced by designated authorities with specific punishments. It includes:
Example: Getting a fine for speeding or breaking traffic laws.
Social change refers to alterations in social structure, social institutions, or social behaviour over time. These changes can be gradual or rapid, planned or unplanned.
Several key factors contribute to social change in modern societies:
Social media platforms have dramatically altered how social movements organise and spread. During the Arab Spring (2010-2012), platforms like Twitter and Facebook helped protesters coordinate actions, share information and bypass state-controlled media. Similarly, movements like #MeToo and Black Lives Matter gained momentum through social media, allowing personal stories to become part of larger conversations about social issues. This demonstrates how technological changes can facilitate rapid social change by connecting people across geographic boundaries and amplifying voices that might otherwise go unheard.
Social mobility refers to the movement of individuals or groups between different social positions within a society's stratification system. It's a key concept for understanding inequality and opportunity.
Vertical mobility: Movement up or down the social hierarchy
Horizontal mobility: Changing position without changing social class (e.g., a teacher becoming a social worker)
Intergenerational mobility: Changes in social position between generations (parents and children)
Intragenerational mobility: Changes in social position within one's lifetime
Several factors can limit social mobility in societies:
Social processes don't operate in isolation they interact with and influence each other. Socialisation shapes how people respond to social control. Social change affects patterns of social mobility. Understanding these connections helps sociologists develop a more complete picture of how societies function and evolve.
By studying social processes, we gain insight into both individual experiences and broader social structures. This knowledge can help us address social problems and work toward creating more equitable and functional societies.