Understanding Social Institutions ch- 1 (Part-B) 11th sociology Notes

Understanding Social Institutions

ch- 1 (Part-B) 11th sociology Notes

Introduction

An institution is something that works according to rules established or at least acknowledged by law or by custom. Thus, “an established and structured pattern of behaviour or of relationships that is accepted as a fundamental part of a culture” can be referred to as social institutions. There are social institutions that constrain and control, punish and reward. Social institutions can be macro like the state or micro like the family.

Functionalist perspective on social institution

Social institutions a complex set of social norms, beliefs, values and role relationship that arise in response to the needs of society.
Inother words socialinstitution exists to satisfy social needs.

Conflict perspective on social institution

All individuals are not placed equally in society. All social institutions will operate in the interest of dominant sections of society.
The dominant social section not only dominates political and economic institutions but also ensures that the ruling class idea become the ruling ideas of a society.

Family is a group of persons directly linked by kin connections, the adult members of which assume responsibility of caring for children. Diverse family forms are found in different societies.

Informal Formal

Families linked to other social spheres and families change:

Family, household, its structure and norms are closely linked to the rest of society.
Example:- Unintended consequences of the German unification. During the post - unification period in the 1930s Germany witnessed a rapid decline in marriage because the new German state withdrew all protection and welfare schemes which were provided to the families prior to the unification.

How gendered is the family?

The belief is that the male child will support the parents in the old age and the female child will leave on marriage results in families investing more in a male child.
Despite the biological fact that female baby has better chances of survival than a male baby the rate of infant mortality among female children is higher in comparison to male children in lower age group in India.

Marriage is a socially acknowledged and approved sexual union between two adult individuals. When two people marry, they become kin to one another. The marriage bond also, however, connects together a wider range of people.

Different types of marriages
- Monogamy restricts the individual to one spouse at a time. Under this system, at any given time a man can have only one wife and a woman can have only one husband.
- Polygamy denotes marriage to more than one mate at one time and takes the form of either Polygyny (one husband with two or more wives) or Polyandry (one wife with two or more husbands).

Serial Monogamy : In many societies individuals are permitted to marry again often on death of the first spouse or after divorce. But they cannot have more than one spouse at one and the same time. Such monogamous marriages are termed as serial monogamy.

Why is marriage considered a universal institution?

Marriage has got religious sanctity as it is prescribed in our vedas and puranas as one of the most important ashrams of life .
Marriage helps in taking the family name forward .
Validity isgiven to procreation after marriage.

Rules of Marriage:

Endogamy - marriage within culturally defined group.
Exogamy - requires the individual to marry outside of his/her own group.

Kin who are related through 'blood' are called Consanguinal kin, Kin who are related through marriage are called Affines .
Kinship ties are connections between individuals, established either through marriage or through the lines of descent that connect blood relatives (mothers, fathers, siblings, offspring, etc.)
When two people marry, they become kin to one another. The marriage bond also, however, connects together a wider range of people. Parents, brothers, sisters and other blood relatives become relatives of the partner through marriage.

Types of kinship:

(1) Affinal Kinship: The relatives linked by marital bond.
Example:- Husband & Wife, Wife's Mother, Daughters's Husband, Parents in Law, Son in Law are all affinis.
(2) Consanguineous Kinship : The relatives linked by blood or common ancestry.
Example:- Father, Mother, Son, Daughter, Brother, Sister, Fathes Brother, Father's Brother Son , Grand Children are all Consanguineous Kin.

Transformation of work:

(a) Industrial processes were broken down into simple operations.

(b) Mass production demands mass markets.

(d) Flexible production and decentralisation of work.

Political institutions are concerned with the distribution of power in society.

Two important aspects of political institutions are

(a) Power - The ability of individuals or groups to carry out their will even when opposed by others.

(b) Authority - Power is exercised through authority. Authority is that forms of power which isaccepted as legitimate.

Characteristics of a Family

A mating relationship: A family comes into existence when a man and a woman establish a mating relation between them.
A form of marriage: A family requires a home, a householder, for its living. Without a dwelling place the task of child bearing and child rearing cannot be adequately performed.
A system of nomenclature: Every family is known by a name and has its own system of reckoning descent. Descent may be reckoned through the male line or through the female line. Usually the wife goes and joins her husband’s family in a patriarchal system and vice-versa in a matriarchal system.
An economic provision: Every family needs an economic provision to satisfy the economic needs. The head of the family carries on a certain profession and earns money to maintain the family.

Thus it can be said that family is a biological unit employing institutionalised sex relationship between husband and wife. It is based on the fact of production and nurture of the child is its important function. It is a universal institution found in every era and in every society.

Functions of Family

According to Oghbum and Nimkoff, the functions of family can be divided into the following categories:

Affectional functions
Economic functions
Recreational functions
Protective functions
Religious functions
Educational functions

Essential Functions

Satisfaction of sex needs:
This is the first essential function which the family performs. Satisfaction of sex instincts brings the desire of life from the partnership among male and female.
The modern family satisfies this instinct to a much greater degree than the traditional family. In the earlier traditional families the sexual act was almost always combined with reproduction and the fear of pregnancy and as a result prevented satisfaction.
But in the modern family the invention of contraceptives and use of other birth control measures places the concerned couple in a better position as it allows for satisfaction of sex instincts without fear of conception.

Production and rearing of children:
The inevitable result of a sexual union is procreation. The task of race perpetuation has always been an important function of the family.
It is an institution par excellence for the production and rearing of children.
The function of child rearing is better performed today than in the past because now more skill and knowledge are devoted to the care of the unborn and the newborn child.

Provision of a home:
The desire for home is a powerful incentive for a man and a woman to marriage. Man after the hard toil of the day returns home where in the midst of his wife and children he sheds off his fatigue.
Though in modern times there are many hotels and clubs which also provide recreation to man, but the joy a man gets within the congenial circle of his wife, parents, and children stands far above the momentary pleasure which is provided by clubs and hotels.
Inspite of these other recreative agencies, the home is still the heaven and sanctuary where its members find comfort and affection.

A society is called stateless if it :-

(i) has no rigid boundary or permanent physical territory ;
(ii) follows oraltraditions, and the bureaucratic aspect is absent from it;
(iii) has a single person holding several major powers of religious, economic and political offices within the society;
(iv) there is no fixed rigidly spelt out ideology and has simple economy.
Thus, stateless society :The absence of rules and regulations in society prove chaotic leading to the collapse of social system in other words a society which lacks formal institutions of government.
(a) Modern states are defined by sovereignty, citizenship and the ideas of nationalism.
(b) Sovereignty - The undisputed political rule of a state over a given territorialarea.

Citizenship: It is a permanent membership acquired by individual after continuous stay of five years within a country. Citizenship rights may include civil, political and social rights.
Citizenship rights includes:
(i) Civil rights-freedom of speech and religion etc.
(ii) Political rights - right to participate in election etc.
(iii) Social rights - health benefit, social and welfare rights.
Nationalism: It arises when different elements are joined together such as language, religious, history and symbols . All these give a sense of being part of a single political community. All the modern societies are 'nation-states' 'Nation - States' are the states in which the great masses of population are citizens who regard themselves as a part of single nation.

Non-essential functions

The non- essential functions of a family are the following.

Economic: The family serves as an economic unit. In the pre-industrial, tribal and agrarian societies unit of production is the family. All members of the family equally contribute to the family occupation, such as cultivation, craft, cottage-industry, cattle-rearing etc. The family provides economic security to its members and looks after their primary needs such as food, security, clothing, shelter and also nurses them in unfavorable conditions.
Religion refers to unified system of belief and practices related to supernatural power.
Commoncharacteristics shared by all religious groups are:
(i) Set of symbols , invoking feelings of respect.
(ii) Rituals or ceremonies.
(iii) Acommunityofbelievers .
Rituals associated with religion are very diverse.

Sociology and Religion
(i) Religion has a very close relationship with power and politics.
(ii) Views of classical sociologists , Max Weber, Calvin demonstrate how sociology looks at religion.
(iii) Social forces always and invariably influence religious institutions. Conversely, religious norms influence social understanding.
Education: The child learns the first letter under the guidance of the parents. The joint family was the center for vocational education as the children from the early childhood were associated with family tasks. The modern family has delegated the task of vocational education to technical institutes and colleges.

Classification of family

Studies have shown that diverse family forms are found in different societies on the basis of the following rules:

Rule of residence

With regard to the rule of residence, family form can either be matrilocal or patrilocal. In the first case, the newly married couple stays with the woman’s parents, whereas in the second case the couple lives with the man’s parents.

Rule of inheritance and lineage

With regard to the rule of inheritance and lineage, the family form can be matrilineal or matrilocal. In the first case, the inheritance rights are passed down from mother to daughter and lineage is traced from the mother’s side.

In the second case, the inheritance rights are passed down from father to son and lineage is traced from the father’s side.

Rule of authority and dominance

With regard to the rule of authority and dominance, the family form can be patriarchal or matriarchal.
A patriarchal family structure exists where the men exercise authority and dominance, and matriarchy where the women play a major role in decision-making in the family.