Social system- one of the most complex systems of living nature, which is a set of people, relationships between them, their knowledge, skills, abilities. The main generic feature of a social system is their human nature and essence, since it is formed by people, is the sphere of their activity, the object of their influence. This is the strength and vulnerability of social management, its creative nature and the possibility of manifestations of subjectivity and voluntarism.
The concept of a "social system" is based on a systematic approach to the study of ourselves and the world around us, and therefore this definition can be considered both in the "broad" and in the "narrow" sense. In accordance with this, a social system can be understood as either a human society as a whole, or its individual constituent components - groups of people (society), united according to some criterion (territorial, temporal, professional, etc.). At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the essential features of any systems are: multiplicity of elements (at least two); the existence of connections; the holistic nature of this education.
Social systems, unlike others that have received a program of their behavior from the outside, are self-regulated, which is inherent in society at any stage of its development. As an integral totality, a social system has specific stable qualities that make it possible to distinguish between social systems. These characteristics are called systemic signs.
It is necessary to distinguish the concept of "system signs" from the concept of "system signs". The first characterizes the main features of the system, i.e. those features of society social group, collective, which give us reason to call this social education a system. The second is the qualitative characteristics inherent in a particular system and distinguishing it from another.
The signs of a social system, or, in other words, society, can be divided into two groups, the first of which characterizes external conditions life of a social organism, the second reveals the internal, most important points its existence.
External signs .
The first a sign of society is usually called territory, on which the development of various social relations takes place. In this case, the territory can be called a social space.
Second a sign of society - chronological framework its existence. Any society has existed for as long as the expediency of continuing social connections, its constituents, or to what extent there are no external reasons capable of liquidating a given society.
The third a hallmark of society is relative isolation, which allows us to consider it as a system. Consistency allows us to divide all individuals into members and non-members of a given society. This leads to the identification of a person with a particular society and the consideration of other people as "strangers". In contrast to the animal herd, where identification with society occurs on the basis of instinct, in the human collective, the correlation of oneself with a given society is built, first of all, on the basis of reason.
Internal signs.
First the hallmark of society lies in its relative stability, achieved through the constant development and modification of social ties that exist in it. Society, as a social system, can exist only through constant development and modification of social ties that exist in it. The stability of the social system is thus closely related to its ability to develop.
Second sign - presence internal public structures... In this case, the structure is understood as stable social formations (institutions), connections, relations that exist on the basis of any principles and norms defined for this society.
The third a hallmark of society is its ability to be self-sufficient self-adjusting mechanism... Any society creates its own specialization and infrastructure, which allow it to have everything it needs for a normal existence. Any society is multifunctional. Various social institutions and relations ensure the satisfaction of the needs of members of society and the development of the whole society as a whole.
Finally, ability to integrate, is an seventh a sign of society. This sign consists in the ability of a society (social system) to include new generations (systems, subsystems), to modify the forms and principles of some of its institutions and connections on the basis of basic principles that determine one or another character of social consciousness.
I would like to especially note that the main distinctive feature social systems, arising from their nature, is the presence goal setting. Social systems always strive to achieve certain goals. Nothing is done here without a conscious intention, without a desired goal. People unite in various kinds of organizations, communities, classes, social groups and other kinds of systems, which are necessarily inherent in certain interests and common goals. There is a close connection between the concepts of "goal" and "interest". Where there is no community of interests, there can be no unity of goals, since the unity of goals based on common interests creates the necessary prerequisites for the development and improvement of such a supersystem as society as a whole.
One and the same object (including the social system), depending on the objectives of the study, can be considered both statically and dynamically. At the same time, in the first case we are talking about the structure of the object of research, and in the second - about its functions.
All the variety of social relations are grouped into certain spheres, which make it possible to single out individual subsystems in the social system, each of which performs its own functional purpose... Relationships within each subsystem are functionally dependent, i.e. acquire in the aggregate such properties that do not individually possess.
The social system can effectively implement its tasks when performing the following functions:
1) it must have the ability to adapt, adapt to changed conditions, be able to rationally organize and distribute internal resources;
2) it must be goal-oriented, capable of setting the main goals, objectives and maintaining the process of achieving them;
3) it must remain stable on the basis of general norms and values assimilated by individuals and relieve tension in the system;
4) it must have the ability to integrate, to include new generations in the system. As you can see, the above is not only a set of functions, but also distinctive features social systems from others (biological, technical, etc.).
In the structure of society, the following main subsystems (spheres) are usually distinguished:
- economic- includes social relations of property, production, exchange, distribution and consumption of material and spiritual goods;
- political- a set of social relations regarding the functioning of political power in society;
- social- a set of social relations (in the narrow sense of the term) between groups of people and individuals who occupy a certain position in society, have a corresponding status and social roles;
- spiritual and cultural- includes the relationship between individuals, groups of individuals about spiritual and cultural benefits.
When studying any phenomenon, it is important to highlight not only its characteristic features that distinguish it from other social formations, but also to show the diversity of its manifestation, development in real life... Even a cursory glance allows you to capture a multicolored picture of social systems that exist in modern world... Chronological, territorial, economic, etc. are used as criteria for differentiating the types of social systems. factors, depending on the goals and objectives of the study.
The most common and generalized is the differentiation of social systems in accordance with the structure of social activity and social relations, for example, in such spheres of social life as material production, social (in the narrow sense), political, spiritual, family and household. The listed main spheres of public life are subdivided into private areas and their corresponding systems. All of them form a multi-stage hierarchy, the diversity of which is due to the complexity of society itself. Society itself is a social system of the highest complexity, which is in constant development.
Without dwelling on the types of social systems and their characteristics (since this is not included in the objectives of this course), we only note that the system of internal affairs bodies is also one of the types of social systems. We will dwell on its features and structure below.
1Social system is a way of organizing the life of a collective of people, which arises as a result of the interaction of individuals on the basis of dictated social roles. The system arises as a union into an ordered and self-preserving whole with the help of norms and values that ensure both the interdependence of the parts of the system and the subsequent integration of the whole.
The social system can be represented as a hierarchical structure of the following organizational levels: biosphere, ethnosphere, sociosphere, psychosphere, anthroposphere. At each level of the hierarchical pyramid (Fig. 1), we describe the behavior of an individual, as a member of a group, through certain rules of behavior aimed at achieving the set goal.
At the lower, biospheric, level, a group of people is a subsystem of the ecological system, living mainly at the expense of the energy of the Sun and participating in the exchange of biomass with other subsystems of this level. The biosphere of the Earth is considered from the point of view of the theory of V.I. Vernadsky. Society in this case is a collection of individual consumers of someone else's biomass who do not exert any noticeable influence on each other, who give up their biomass as a result of biological death. This society is better called a population.
At the second, ethnic, level, a group is already a collective of individuals capable of single unconscious actions and characterized by the same unconscious responses to external influences, that is, a quite definite stereotype of behavior generated by the landscape (regional) conditions of residence. Such a society is called an ethnos. An ethnos lives on the biochemical energy of a passionary impulse originally received at birth, which is wasted on culture and art, technical innovations, wars, and the maintenance of the nourishing surrounding landscape, which are characteristic only of it. The basis for building a model at this level is the ethnic theory of the historian L.N. Gumilyov.
At the third, social level, the group is a society. Each individual has his own system of action, which is consistent with public consciousness... Here we consider society based on T. Parsons' theory of social action. By uniting individuals into a cohesive group, society regulates the behavior of everyone within this group. The behavior of group members is based on social actions determined by social statuses and a set of social roles.
On the fourth, psychic level, the group is the crowd. Each member of the group has a set of collective reflexes. A collective reflex is a synchronous response of a group of people to an external stimulus. Group behavior is a chain of successive collective reflexes. The basis of the model at this level is the theory of collective reflexes by V.M. Bekhterev.
At the final level, the group is a thinking organization, each member of which has its own inner world... To construct a multi-agent model of society at a given level, we can choose N. Luhmann's theory of autopoietic systems. Here, the elements of the system are communications. Communication is not only a process of transferring information, but also a self-referential process.
Various theories describing society can be used to model a social system. But these theories complement rather than contradict each other. Modeling a social system based on the chosen theory, we get a model of a certain level. Next, we combine these models in a hierarchical manner. Such a multi-level model will most adequately reflect the dynamics of development of a real society.
b) The concept of hierarchy is based on such a phenomenon as social status.
Social status is a position held by a person or group in society and associated with certain rights and responsibilities. This position is always relative, i.e. viewed in comparison with the statuses of other individuals or groups. Status is determined by profession, socioeconomic status, political opportunities, gender, origin, marital status, race and nationality. Social status characterizes the place of a person or social group in the social structure of society, in the system of social interactions and necessarily contains an assessment of this activity from the side of society (other people and social groups). The latter can be expressed in various qualitative and quantitative indicators - authority, prestige, privileges, income level, award, title, fame, etc. 1
There are different types of statuses.
Personal status is the position that a person occupies in a small or primary group, depending on how he is assessed by his individual qualities.
Social status is the position of a person, which he automatically occupies as a representative of a large social group or community (professional, class, national).
Each person in society has not one status, but rather a set of status - the totality of all statuses belonging to one individual. In this regard, it becomes necessary to single out the main status - the most characteristic status for a given individual, according to which others identify him or with which they identify him.
It is also customary to distinguish the prescribed status (independent of the desires, aspirations and efforts of a given person) and the achieved status (a position that a person achieves through his own efforts).
Thus, social stratification is the arrangement of people in the status hierarchy from top to bottom. The term “stratification” is borrowed from geology, where it refers to the vertically located layers of the earth found in the section. Stratification is a certain section of the social structure of a society, or a theoretical perspective on how human society works. In real life, people certainly do not stand above or below others.
Russian sociologist A.I. Kravchenko offers a kind of generalizing model of social stratification. 2 He places the status hierarchy from top to bottom according to four criteria of inequality:
1) unequal income,
2) the level of education,
3) access to power,
4) the prestige of the profession.
Individuals with approximately the same or similar characteristics belong to the same layer, or stratum.
The inequality here is symbolic. It can be expressed in the fact that the poor have a minimum income determined by the poverty line, live on government benefits, are unable to buy luxury goods and hardly buy durable goods, are limited in spending good rest and leisure, have a low level of education and occupy positions of power in society. Thus, the four criteria of inequality reflect, among other things, differences in the level, quality, way and style of life, cultural values, the quality of housing, and the type of social mobility. 3
These criteria are taken as the basis for social stratification. Allocate stratifications:
economic (income),
political (power),
educational (level of education),
professional.
Each of them can be represented as a vertically located scale (ruler) with marked divisions.
In economic stratification, the divisions of the measuring scale are the amount of money per person or family per year or per month (individual or family income, expressed in national currency). What is the respondent's income, he occupies such a place on the scale of economic stratification.
It is difficult to build political stratification according to a single criterion - this does not exist in nature. His substitutes are used, for example, positions in the state hierarchy from the president and below, posts in companies, organizations, posts in political parties, etc. or combinations thereof.
The educational scale is based on the number of years of study at school and university - this is a single criterion indicating that society has a unified education system, with formal certification of its levels and qualifications. A person with elementary education will sit at the bottom, with a college or university degree in the middle, and a doctorate or professor at the top.
The prestige of professions can only be determined by a sociological survey. In order to obtain information for the whole society, the survey should be carried out on a national sample.
C) Social community
Our central concept - the societal community - has as its main function (as an integrative subsystem) the determination of obligations arising from loyalty to the societal collective, both for its members as a whole, and for various categories of differentiated statuses and roles within society. Thus, in most modern societies, military readiness is a test of loyalty for men, but not for women. Loyalty is the willingness to respond to a properly “grounded” call made on behalf of a collective or in the name of a “public” interest. The normative problem is determining when such a response imposes a duty. In principle, any collective needs loyalty, but it is of particular importance for the societal community. Usually, government agencies act on behalf of and in the interests of societal loyalty, and they also monitor the implementation of the relevant norms. However, there are other public instances that enjoy the same right as the state, but are not varieties of its structures.
Of particular importance are the relationships between the loyalties of subgroups and individuals in relation to the societal collective, that is, the entire society, and in relation to other collectives of which they are members. A fundamental trait of all human societies role-based pluralism, the participation of the same people in a number of groups. Expanding role pluralism is an important component of the differentiation processes leading to the emergence of modern societies. Therefore, one of the significant integration problems facing the societal community is the problem of regulating the loyalty of its members in relation to itself and to other collectives. Individualist social theory persistently exaggerated the importance of individual “self-interest” as an obstacle to the integration of social systems. In general, the personal motives of individuals are effectively channeled into the social system through loyalty and membership in collectives different to them. The immediate problem for most individuals is the problem of choosing and balancing their obligations in cases of conflict of competing loyalties. For example, a normal adult male in societies modern type is both an employee and a family member. While the demands placed on these two roles are often in conflict, most men have a vital stake in maintaining loyalty to both roles.
The societal community is a complex network of interpenetrating collectives and collective loyalties, a system characterized by differentiation and segmentation. Thus, family units, business firms, churches, government offices, educational establishments etc. separated from each other. And each such type of collective consists of many specific collectives, for example, from many families, each of which has several people, and from many local communities.
Loyalty to the societal community should rank high in any stable hierarchy of loyalty and therefore is a matter of special concern for society. And yet, the highest place in this hierarchy belongs to the cultural legitimization of the normative order of society. First of all, it acts through the institutionalization of the value system, which is an integral part of both societal and cultural systems. Then, sample values, which are concretizations of common value patterns, become part of each specific norm, integrated into the legitimate order. In a system of norms that govern loyalty, therefore, the rights and obligations of collectives must be consistent not only with each other, but also with the legitimate foundations of order as a whole.
2) society as a social system.
society is a definite collection (association) of people. But what are the boundaries of this aggregate? Under what conditions does this association of people become a society?
The characteristics of society as a social system are as follows:
The association is not part of any larger system (society).
Marriages are concluded (mainly) between representatives of this association.
It is replenished mainly at the expense of the children of those people who are already its recognized representatives.
The association has a territory that it considers its own.
He has own name and its own history.
It has its own control system (sovereignty).
Association exists longer than the average life span of an individual.
It unites general system values (customs, traditions, norms, laws, rules, morals), which is called culture.
Characteristics of society as systems
One of the urgent problems of modern social science remains the definition of the concept of society, despite the fact that there are a lot of definitions of society in modern literature. They distinguish various aspects of society, and this is not surprising, since society is an extremely complex object. Taking into account its multilevel, ambiguity, abstractness and other characteristics, some scholars have come to the conclusion that it is generally impossible to give a single, universal definition of society, and all the definitions available in the literature somehow reduce society to one single feature. From this point of view, the definitions of society can be divided into three groups:
subjective - when society is viewed as a special amateur collective of people. So, S.G. Spasibenko defines society as “the totality of all methods and forms of interaction and unification of people”;
active- when society is viewed as a process of collective existence of people. For example, K.Kh. Momjian defines society as organizational form joint activities of people;
organizational- when society is viewed as a social institution, i.e. a system of stable connections between interacting people and social groups. G.V. Pushkareva notes that society is a universal way of social organization, social interaction and social ties, ensuring the satisfaction of all basic needs of people - self-sufficient, self-regulating and self-reproducing
Is there rationality in all these definitions? grain, since society really consists of actively acting subjects, interconnected by fairly stable relations. Which of these definitions is preferred should be determined, most likely, by the specific task of the study.
We will continue to identify the essential characteristics of society. Unlike the philosophy of the 17th - 18th centuries, which was characterized by social atomism (i.e., society was viewed as a mechanical sum of individuals), modern philosophy considers human society as a set of many different parts and elements. Moreover, these parts and elements are not isolated from each other, not isolated, but on the contrary, are closely related to each other, constantly interact, as a result of which society exists as a single integral organism, as one system(a system is defined as a set of elements that are in lawful relationships and connections with each other, which forms a certain integrity, unity). Therefore, to describe society, the concepts generally accepted in system theory are now widely used: "element", "system", "structure", "organization", "relation". The advantages of the systemic approach are obvious, the most important of them is that by building the subordination of the structural elements of society, it allows us to consider it in dynamics, thereby helping to avoid unambiguous, dogmatic conclusions that limit the value of any theory.
The analysis of society as a system assumes:
Revealing the structure of the social system - its elements, as well as the nature of their interaction;
Determination of the integrity of the system, a backbone factor;
Study of the degree of determinism of the system, the variability of such development;
Analysis of social changes, the main forms of such changes
Of course, when analyzing society as a system, one should take into account its specifics. A social system differs from systems existing in nature in a number of features:
plurality elements of society, subsystems, their functions, connections and relationships;
Heterogeneity, different quality social elements, among which, along with material, there are also ideal, spiritual phenomena.
The special specificity of the social system is given by the uniqueness of its main element - the person; possessing the ability to freely choose the forms and methods of their activities, the type of behavior, which gives the development of society a large degree of uncertainty, and, consequently, unpredictability.
Social is called a system that includes a person or is intended for a person.
General system-forming factors of social systems:
the overall goal of the entire set of components;
subordination of the goals of each component common goal systems and the awareness of each element of their tasks and understanding of the common goal;
the performance of each element of its functions, due to the task;
relations of subordination and coordination between the components of the system;
principle feedback between the controlling and the controlled subsystems.
The most important component of social systems is a person (Fig. 6.1) - a being, first of all, a social, conscious, goal-setting, connected with other people by a thousand different relationships and forms of interaction. In the process of labor, people are united into groups, artels, social strata, communities and organizations. The presence of a human component is the most important feature of a social system that distinguishes it from other holistic systems.
Second group components of a social system - processes (economic, social, political, spiritual), the totality of which is a change in the states of the system as a whole or some part of its subsystems. Processes can be progressive and regressive. They are caused by the activities of people, social and professional groups.
Third group components of the social system - things, i.e. items involved in the orbit of economic and social life, the so-called second nature items (industrial buildings, tools and means of labor, computer and office equipment, communication and control equipment, technological devices created by man and used by him in the process of production, managerial and spiritual activities) ...
Fourth group components of the social system has a spiritual nature - these are social ideas, theories, cultural, moral values, customs, rituals, traditions, beliefs, which are again conditioned by the actions and deeds of various social groups and individuals.
Depending on the essence, purpose, place in society, type of organization, functions, relationship with the environment, some basic levels of social systems can be identified (Fig. 6.2.).
The widest and most difficult level- the entire concrete historical society (Russian, American, Chinese, etc.), the totality of the members of this society and the entire complex of social relations - economic, political, proper social, spiritual and economic; in this broadest understanding of the social, a concrete society acts as a dynamic social system.
Second level social systems are communities, associations of people of a lesser order (nations, estates, social and ethnic groups, elites, settlements).
Third level social systems are organizations operating in the real sector of the economy (credit and financial institutions, scientific, scientific and educational firms, corporations, public associations, etc.).
Fourth (primary) level social systems are workshops, brigades, sections, professional groups within a firm, an enterprise. Their distinctive feature is direct contacts, each with each other.
Society is also characterized by other systemic formations, for example, administrative-territorial, having several levels: federation, subjects of the federation (republic, territory, region, national district, autonomous region), municipal associations (city, town, village, village, farm). Each of the levels, in turn, represents complex system with many different components, specific structure, functions, controls.
Another type of systems formation is in the spheres of public life: economic, political, social and spiritual.
For example, the economy is industry, agriculture, transport, communications, construction; industry, Agriculture etc., in turn, are divided into sectors, sub-sectors, and those into corporations, financial and industrial groups, firms, enterprises (small, medium, large), workshops, sections, departments, teams.
The political sphere is the state (legislative bodies, executive bodies, judicial bodies), public associations (political parties, social and political movements).
Spiritual sphere - mass media, cultural foundations, creative unions, scientific professional associations, etc.
The social structure of Russian society
Despite the fact that society is a complex social system, it consists of relatively independent parts. Concepts such as "social structure" and "social system" are closely related to each other.
The social system is represented by social phenomena and processes. They have connections with each other and form an integral social object. As part of the social system, the social structure integrates social composition and social ties.
The elements of the social composition form the social structure. The set of connections of these elements form its second component. Social structure is a stable connection of elements in a social system and means the division of society into groups.
These groups are different in their social status and in relation to the mode of production. Classes, groups, for example, ethnic, professional, socio-territorial communities - city, village, are the main elements of the social structure. These elements have their own subsystems and connections.
The structure reflects the features of social relations of classes and groups. These relationships are determined by their place and role.
The Russian social structure of society consists of five main strata:
- The ruling elite and big businessmen belong to the upper class. Their financial independence is assured. Representatives of the "top" are a small part of the citizens of Russia;
- An emerging stratum sits between the elite and the middle class. These include small and medium entrepreneurs, managers and owners, as well as the petty bourgeoisie.
- The largest stratum in the social structure of Russia is a very motley base stratum. As a result, it is difficult to combine them with each other. The base stratum is represented by the intelligentsia, highly qualified workers and peasants. Among them there are people who have higher education and professionals without education, but with vast experience. They are united by their desire to maintain their positions.
- In the social structure, there is also a very motley lower stratum - these are workers with low qualifications, refugees and displaced persons. Their incomes are at the level of the subsistence level. As statistics show, the basic and lower strata are the main part of Russian society and represent the so-called “people”.
- There are representatives of the so-called “social bottom” in the social structure of society. This category citizens, a number of researchers do not include in general scheme, but they are also part of Russian society - they are drug addicts, prostitutes, homeless people, alcoholics, pimps, and representatives of the criminal environment. This "bottom" is isolated from the rest of the classes. It is sometimes impossible to change a person who finds himself in such an environment. The “social bottom” exists in all countries of the world and has similar outlooks on life.
Thus, the social structure is a kind of framework for the entire system of social relations organizing social life... The diversity of social strata of society is studied by the theory of social stratification.
The concept of "social system"
Definition 1
A social system is understood as a way of organizing the life of a collective on the basis of their social roles. It appears as the unification of parts of the system into a whole with the help of norms and values.
It can be represented as a hierarchical structure of levels: biosphere, ethnosphere, sociosphere, psychosphere, anthroposphere. The behavior of an individual as a member of a group is described at each level of this hierarchical pyramid.
The American sociologist T. Parsons in his work "The Social System" has developed its problems, considering society as a whole.
Self-preservation is a mechanism of a social system that seeks to maintain balance, which means that there is a problem social control... Control is defined as a process that counteracts the social deviations of the system.
Together with the processes of socialization, control ensures the integration of individuals into society. This happens through the assimilation of norms, values, cultural heritage, i.e. through interiorization.
Society is developing, the conditions of society are constantly changing, so a person must be able to adapt to new conditions.
Interiorization consists of three stages:
- individualization, which, according to L. Vygotsky's theory, is the closest zone of the child's development;
- intimization, when there is a change from "We" to "I", i.e. there is self-awareness;
- crystallization of personality is the stage of giving back the processed knowledge, experience, information.
The process of socialization and forms of social control cannot do without the determining role of culture. It reflects the nature of interactions between individuals and groups.
Remark 1
Thus, the social system is nothing more than a product and a special type of interaction between people, their feelings, emotions, moods. Social systems are structural elements social reality.
Social system and its structure
A system is a phenomenon or a process that consists of a collection of elements. The elements form a single whole and interact with each other and are able to change their structure.
For any system characteristic features is integrity and integration. Integrity means the objective form of the existence of a phenomenon. Integration fixes the process and the mechanism for combining its parts.
The sums of the incoming parts will be less than the whole, which means that each whole has new qualities that are not mechanically reducible to the sum of its elements. These new qualities are designated as systemic and integral.
Among the elements of a social system, there can be ideal and random.
The basis of a social system is one or another community of people, and people are elements of the social system. Human activity is not isolated, but occurs in the process of interaction with other people. As a result of this interaction, the individual is systematically influenced, in the same way as he affects other people and the social environment.
Thus, the community of people becomes a social system and possesses qualities that are not individually included in any element included in it.
Individuals with certain social positions and certain social functions in accordance with the norms and values of a given social system, form its structure.
Remark 2
“Social structure” has no universally accepted definition. V different works this concept is defined as "organization of relations", "pattern of behavior", "relationship between groups and individuals", etc., which does not contradict at all, but complements each other and gives an integral idea of the properties and elements of the social structure.
The social structure has its own types:
- ideal, linking together imaginations, beliefs, beliefs;
- normative, including social roles, values, norms;
- organizational, defining the relationship of positions or statuses;
- random, which includes the elements that are currently available and included in its functioning.
Organizational and regulatory structures are considered as a whole, and their elements are considered strategic.
Ideal and random structures, together with their elements, can cause both positive and negative deviations in the behavior of the social structure as a whole. The consequence will be a mismatch in the interaction of various structures and a dysfunctional disorder of this system.
The structure of a social system has its own determinism. The patterns of development and functioning of a social system can have positive or negative socially significant consequences for a given society.
A social system is a qualitatively definite phenomenon, the elements of which are interconnected and form a single whole.
The specifics of the social system:
1) The social system is formed on the basis of a certain, one or another social community(social group, social organization).
2) The social system represents integrity and integration. Integrity and integration are essential features of a social system.
Integrity - fixes the objective form of the existence of phenomena, that is, existence as a whole.
Integration is the process itself and the mechanism for bringing parts together.
The structure of the social system:
1. People (even one person, person).
3. Norms of communication.
Signs of a social system.
1) Relative constancy and stability.
Forms a new one integrative quality, not reducible to the sum of the qualities of its elements.
3) Each system is somewhat unique and retains its independence (“society” is each individual phenomenon of the social system).
4) Social systems can mutually regroup according to the types of synthesis (Japanese society, there is no tough confrontation between traditions and innovations), symbiosis (like white and yolk; our country: something new was introduced, but its traditional roots are always preserved) or by force ( it is also typical for us ...).
5) Social systems develop according to certain patterns that take shape within them.
6) The individual must obey the laws of the social system in which he is included.
7) The main form of development of social systems is innovation (that is, innovation).
8) Social systems have significant inertia (stability, non-perception, there is an effect of "resistance" to innovation).
9) Any social system consists of subsystems.
10) Social systems as much as possible complex formations, since their main element - a person - has a wide range of choice of behavior.
11) Social systems have a significant uncertainty of functioning (they wanted the best, but it turned out as always).
12) Social systems have controllability boundaries.
Types of social systems.
I. By system level:
1) Microsystems (personality is a complex social system; small group- student, family; study their microsociologies).
2) Macrosystems (about society as a whole ...).
3) Megasystems (planetary system).
II. By quality:
1. Open, that is, those that interact with other systems through multiple channels.
2. Closed, that is, those that interact with other systems through one or two channels. Let's say the USSR was a closed system.
3. Isolated social systems. This is very rare since isolated systems are not viable. These are the ones that don't interact with others at all. Albania.
III. By structure:
1) Homogeneous (homogeneous).
2) Heterogeneous (heterogeneous). They are made up of different kinds of elements: environmental, technical and social elements (people).
Society as a sociocultural system.
Society is a historically established and developing set of relations between individuals in the process of their joint life.
Signs of society.
1. Community of the territory.
2. Self-reproduction.
3. Self-sufficiency (general economy).
4. Self-regulation.
5. Existence of norms and values.
The structure of society.
1. Social communities and groups (people create themselves).
2. Social organizations and institutions.
3. Norms and values.
The source of the development of society: the innovative energy of people.
The functioning of the society.
The functioning of a society is its constant self-reproduction based on:
1) Socialization (based on the assimilation of the norms of society).
2) Institutionalization (when we enter into more and more new relationships).
3) Legitimation (when laws are already brought under relations in society).
Algorithm for the development of society:
Innovation =>
Shock (imbalance) =>
Bifurcation (separation) =>
Fluctuation (wobble) =>
NEW SOCIETY.
Functions of society.
1. Creation of conditions for meeting the various needs of the individual.
2. Providing individuals with opportunities for self-realization.
Types of societies.
I. By the way of production.
· Primitive society.
· Slave society.
· Feudal society.
· Capitalist society.
· Communist society.
II. According to the civilization criterion.
· Traditional societies(pre-industrial, agricultural).
· Industrial societies.
· Post-industrial societies.
III. By political criterion:
· Totalitarian societies.
IV. Religious criterion.
· Christian societies: Catholic (there are most of them); Protestant; Orthodox.
· Muslim - Sunni and Shiite societies.
· Buddhist (Buryats).
· Jewish societies (Jews).
Regularities in the development of social systems.
1. Accelerating history. In fact, each subsequent society goes through its own life cycle faster than the previous one (primitive is the longest, the rest are less ...).
2. Consolidation of historical time. At each next stage comparable to the previous stage, more events take place than at the previous stage.
3. The pattern of uneven development (uneven development).
4. The growing role of the subjective factor. This means an increase in the role of the individual, of each person.
Social organization.
In Russian, the concept of "organization" refers to the meaning of "where a person works, in which organization" ... In our example, "the organization of the educational process", that is, "how to organize, streamline people's lives."
Social organization is a way of ordering and regulating the activities of people.
Signs ( required elements, structural analysis) of social organization:
1. Having common goals and interests.
2. The system of statuses and roles (there are three statuses at the university: students, teaching staff and something like service personnel. Roles of students: headmen, students, trade organizers ... Professor and teaching status, roles: associate professor, candidate of sciences ...).
3. Relationship rules.
4. These are relations of public authority. Is not political power, but rather the right to influence, the ability to influence (according to Max Weber).
Social properties of the organization.
1) The organization is created as tool solving social problems.
2) The organization develops as a specific human (that is, social) community.
3) Organization is objectified as an impersonal structure of connections and norms (before us there were students and teachers and after us there will be).
The effectiveness of a social organization depends on cooperation (from synergy - synergy, new science synergetics is the science of cooperation), where the main thing is not the number, but the method of unification.
Scientists claim that the most stable small groups are five people. Two people are extremely unstable. Three is more stable. But five is considered the best, optimal option.
Combination options: circle, snake, game and steering wheel:
Circle Serpent Y Player Steering Wheel
It is better to have a group of an odd number of people so that it does not break in half.
In order for the energy of social organization to increase, it is necessary:
1. Simultaneity and one-pointedness of many efforts.
2. Division and combination of labor.
3. Consistent dependence of participants on each other is necessary.
4. Psychological interaction (for those who will live in a confined space for a long time - such as space, a submarine ...).
5. Group control.
Functions of a social organization.
1) Coordination of people's actions.
2) Smoothing conflicts between managers and subordinates.
3) Cohesion of group members.
4) Maintaining a sense of individuality.
Types of social organizations.
I. The size of the organization can be:
1) Large (states).
2) Medium (youth organization, trade union organizations).
3) Small (family, student group ...).
II. On a legal basis.
1) Legitimate organizations and illegal organizations.
2) Formal (has statutory documents) and informal organizations.
Both legal and illegal organizations can be both formal and informal.
Formal organization was described by Max Weber in his theory of rationality and is called the "theory of bureaucracy." According to Weber, formal organization is an ideal type of bureaucracy. Management activities are carried out constantly, there is a ceiling of competence at each level, higher managers exercise control over the lower ones (the vertical of power), each official is separated from the ownership of management tools. Management work is becoming a special special profession (people must acquire special knowledge. RAKS - Russian Academy ... In general, 2/3 of the officials did not appear there).
III. By historical type:
1) Estates-feudal organization. It still exists today. In this organization, statuses and roles are rigidly fixed (it is impossible to change statuses and roles in it)
2) Command and control organization. The USSR in in full survived. This organization is characterized by the so-called statism (a large role of the state), parthenalism (a large role of the first person).
3) Civil society as a type of social organization. This is primarily legal, welfare state, democracy, mobility, pluralism, self-government, individual autonomy, plus broad rights and freedoms that are guaranteed.
Legal organization (as a separate organization).
It arose quite late - only in the 19th century.
Legal organization is government agency or public organization, specially created for the professional performance of legal functions, that is, to establish legal facts and resolve conflicts on the basis of law.
Legal organizations include: all law enforcement, these are courts, prosecutors, police, lawyers, notaries and even administrative institutions.
But what does not apply to legal organizations: they do not include bodies government controlled(including the Ministry of Justice) and the so-called penal institutions.
The essence of social organization is to ensure social (public) order in society.
Social institutions.
A social institution is the form regulation of joint activities using a system of rules and regulations.
The structure of a social institution:
1. A certain area of activity (political, economic, social, cultural).
2. This is a group of persons performing organizational and managerial functions.
3. These are norms and principles, rules of relations between people.
4. These are material resources.
Functions social institutions:
1) Ensuring the development of society.
2) Implementation of socialization (the process of mastering the rules of life in society).
3) Ensuring continuity in the use of values and the transmission of norms of social behavior.
4) Stabilization of public relations.
5) Integration of people's actions.
Types of social institutions (typology):
I. By type of activity:
1) Economic activity (economics) - the institution of production, property, exchange, trade, market, money, banks ...
2) Socio-political institutions (politics as a social institution) - this includes the institution of the state, the institution of the presidency, parliament, government ... In addition to the state, this is an institution of power (executive, legislative and judicial), an institution political regimes and political parties... Institute of Law.
3) Socio-cultural institutions (cultural institutions) - these include religion, education and science. Now this sphere is beginning to include the institution of public leisure.
4) Social institutions in social sphere... This includes the institution of the family (relations between a husband and wife, parents and other relatives), the institution of marriage (relations between a man and a woman), an educational institution, an institute of medicine or health care, an institute of social welfare and welfare.
II. Depending on the functions performed:
1) "Relational" social institutions (that is, determining the role structure of society).
2) Regulatory social institutions (defining the permissible framework for independent actions of the individual in society).
3) Integrative social institutions (responsibility for ensuring the interests of the social community as a whole).
The change in social institutions occurs under the influence of objective and subjective, external and internal factors and reasons.
Institutionalization is the process of bringing rules and regulations under certain kind relationships between people.
Social processes.
1. The essence of social processes.
2. Social conflicts and crises.
3. Social reforms and revolutions.