Sociology

1. Introduction to Sociology: Introduction. Welcome. Have you ever wondered how social forces shaped us and our culture? Sociology can help us figure out how these forces operate and the effect they have on our lives. The quest to understand society is urgent and important because our welfare is tied up with what happens to it. By understanding them, we can make better decisions for our own and for our organizations. At the same time, sociology helps us not only better understand the world around us, but also sheds light on how our social environment influences the way we think, feel, and act. This knowledge in turn enables us to effectively influence others. In this course, we will explore a wide range of topics and issues that are prevalent in our society. We will learn how groups operate, how culture changes, how it affects our personality, and much more. Studying sociology is imperative because it allows you to gain a better understanding of human nature and society. Let's get started. 2. How does our social environment affect us?: Social environments. We as humans can do extraordinary things. We can speak, right? Read, build skyscrapers, travel to space, predict natural phenomenon, and countless more. What makes us so different from other species? In this lecture, we will answer this question. Big part of our accomplishments can be credited to our ability to learn. Our ability to learn enables us to understand new information, gain knowledge, and adopt new behaviors. But this capacity is not only limited to us. Other species also exhibit the ability to learn behaviors like those that we perform. For example, chimpanzees have been taught to work a food dispensing machine. They learn to get food by inserting poker chips into the proper slots to distinguish different sizes and colors, to use each chip in the appropriate opening and where necessary to insert two chips. Nonetheless, the apes are incapable of learning to perform the vast majority of behaviors we perform in our everyday lives. An example of this, that apes cannot learn a language. Therefore, we can conclude that even though both humans and apes can learn to act in certain ways, the degree to which they can do so has a substantial and great significance. Why can't apes learn more complex behaviors? Is it because of their hereditary features? Or is it because they are exposed to a different environment than we humans are? What would happen if an ape was raised by humans? Would it be able to adopt complex behaviors? To answer this question, a couple of researchers perform the following experiment. For a short amount of time alongside their son. They raised a female chimpanzee. The chimpanzee and their son were younger than one year old at the time. Both were treated with the same kind of care. They ate, slept, and play together. The chimpanzee, being stronger and physically more mature than their son, was naturally more adept at motor activities such as climbing and acrobatics. She also showed greater speed of movement. More interesting, the ape very readily learn some of the so-called humanizing behavior of which the child is capable. She learned to eat adroitly with a spoon, to drink liquids out of a glass, to skip rope, to open doors. Indeed, she learned to do these things better than their son. And in general was more cooperative and obedient. But in respect to the crucial matter of speech, she lagged behind. The ape, came to comprehend a large number of words and phrases, but she never learned to speak. We can therefore assume that the inability to learn complex behaviors, such as using human language, was not due to our social environment, but the limitation was inborn. There's sun, of course, learned in the customary manner of children. This is the case because humans have the inborn capacity to learn speech. This is in fact, only one of the many skills humans can learn. We don't know the complete limits to our inboard learning ability. We may yet learn to do many more extraordinary things in the future. This simple experiment revealed that hereditary features have a significant impact on what one can comprehend and learn when exposed to a rich social environment. On the flip side, what happens if someone is gifted with the ability to learn complex behaviors? But the environment doesn't foster learning those behaviors. In other words, does our upbringing and social environment influences the expression of our inborn gifts? To answer this question, we may look into how people that were unfortunate enough to be raised among animals away from human beings, adapt to the human environment when they enter civilization. In some cases, they retain their animal-like habits. They eat raw meat and walk on all fours. They gradually, with a lot of care from others, learn to abandon these behaviors, but they tend to lag and learning to speak or they make no progress in this department whatsoever. If we assume that no mental deficiency was present at birth, it becomes evidence that are inborn capacity to learn does not unfold itself, but must be developed by our parents, our peers, or teachers were some other stimulus of our social environments. Let's summarize what we discussed in this lecture. We are capable of extraordinary things. This is in part due to our hereditary features. We have the inborn ability to understand new information, gain knowledge, and adopt new complex behaviors. A prime example of this capacity is that we learn to communicate with others using language. At the same time, our social environment plays a big part in the development of our inborn gets. Without social groups to help us unravel are inborn abilities we would never accomplish much. Therefore, both are hereditary features and our social environment have great significance. The combination of these to give us the characteristics that differentiate us from other animals. 3. What is culture and how it influences us?: Culture. By being around other people, we have plenty of opportunities to learn their customs, institutions, books, and various types of associations. Our environment is enriched with science, tools, art, religion, and more. This rich and varied environment is what we call culture. In this lecture, we will learn about culture and it's significant impact on us. We can understand the impact of culture by contrasting it to our natural environment. Our natural environment consists of the Earth, sun, sky, water, trees, plants, and other animals. It is very important for our survival. But the vast majority of the things we know we have learned in our social environment. For instance, in the Mississippi Valley, the natural environment was the same in the 20th century as it was in the 17th century. Yet children growing up in his natural environment in the two periods would learn quite differently. In the earlier period, a child would learn to hunt, to fish, to trap, to gather different kinds of herbs. He would believe in mystical powers. His language would be Indian. He could not read or write and would not know how to drive an automobile or how to play baseball. In the 20th century, the young person probably learns English and the Christian religion. His moral conduct is different. He learns perhaps the art of salesmanship where the operation of intricate machines. He knows nothing about how to trap and little about witchcraft. But he may learn much about music and painting. And what individuals do. And what they learn will vary for two different cultures. Even though the natural environment is the same for both. Apart from the different skills that we learned depending on our culture. We also, it may be more or less likely to experience particular emotions. For instance, some cultures are more optimistic than others. In others, there may be an attitude of despair. For example, people that live in poverty are more prone to stress and depression. Our cultural environment also affects our predisposition towards some personality characteristics. For example, a culture may discipline youth strictly as an ancient Sparta. In this culture, children would be more self-disciplined. On the contrary, cultures that allow children to grow up with scarcely any discipline at all. As a New Guinea, encouraged self-expression. All things considered, what we learn and who we become depends upon the particular social environment into which we are born. The type of life we follow is likely to be set for us by the particular culture we share. Let's revisit the key points of this lecture. Our culture encompasses the characteristics of knowledge of a group of people. In today's day and age, our culture is rich and varied. Our culture stands in stark contrast to our natural environment. The latter is important for our survival, but it is our social environment that enriches our lives. Even in the same natural environment to cultures can be vastly different. Our culture affects what skills and beliefs we adopt, defines our language as well as our art and recreational activities. It sets up expectations as to how we should behave and what personality characteristics we should adopt. It also affects what emotions we experience. All things considered, our culture has a major impact on our lives. 4. What is the role of the social group?: Social group. From the moment we are born, we need protection and attention from others. Without them, we wouldn't survive. Thus, it doesn't come as a surprise that living with others is an indispensable part of our lives. What functions does group life fulfill for us? This is the question we will answer in this lecture. What is a social group? It is a sum of people that interact with each other. And while they do so, they share a sense of unity. Such groups or families, circles of friends, companies, clubs, and religious congregations among others. What impact of these groups have on us? Firstly, they give us our culture. This is the case because social groups are to a large extent responsible for transmitting the social heritage. As children, we begin to acquire the culture through our family group. Later, the neighborhood playgroups and the school assist the family in this function of familiarizing us with the objects, the ideas, and the values of our culture. Two groups are not the same in our complex and rapidly changing culture. These groups, and consequently the social heritage they pass to their members very significantly. What we learn depends on the particular family we are raised and the special groups we later identify with. For instance, someone who was raised in the country will be different from someone who was raised in a big city. Therefore, in a complex culture such as ours, groups are selective instruments. They determine what aspects and versions of culture we acquire. Secondly, group life also shapes the personality of the individual. Whether a person is a leader or a follower, cooperative or competitive, social or unsocial, may depend on his or her experiences in groups. For instance, a boy brought up in a small family will be different from a boy reared in a large family. And both will be unlike a boy who grew up in an institution. Moreover, all these boys will behave differently in their homes from the way they behave in the school room. And in neither place will they act as if they do at a football game. These adjustments to their behavior will be due to the control that the group exerts over them. Being part of a group requires one to conform to its norms. By belonging to a group, we quickly learned that the opinion of others is very important. No matter if we're in Melanesia or in America, not respecting the rights and opinions of others will make our life uncomfortable. Thus, we are likely to conform by changing our physical appearance the way we talk to our habits, and more. As part of the group, we usually also conform to certain patterns. For instance, we follow the leader of the group and depending on the group, we cooperate, were compete with our associates. These dynamic patterns of human interaction, called social processes, are vital factors in the shaping of our personality. Social groups, while they transmit the culture and shape our personality, are also themselves shaped by the culture. For instance, groups may exercise control in democratic or dictatorial ways. They may praise conflict or they may praise piece. This is due to the fact that some cultures have institutions, either economic or military, that are highly competitive, while other cultures seem to encourage cooperative practices. Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture. A social group is a sum of people that share a sense of unity. Social groups have great significance for us. They give us our culture. They do so while being selected instruments of the aspects and versions of culture they pass through their members. They also shape our personality by exerting control over us. As a result, because we fear rejection from them. We tend to conform to their norms. At the same time, we also follow the social processes of the group. Social groups affect us, but they are also affected by the culture. Understanding the various types of groups and social processes is essential in order to fully understand human experience. 5. What are the origins of our culture?: Origins of culture. We can find culture everywhere. From our museums will have paintings and sculptures, to symphony. Orchestra is playing music to libraries containing thousands of books. Magnificent as these marbles are and constitute only a small fraction of our modern social heritage. How did culture begin to grow, to become so complex and diverse as it is today? What mechanism facilitated it? These are the questions we will answer in this lecture. We can define culture as behavior that is passed through learning from one generation to the other. Culture is dependent on our ability to learn and share ideas. Therefore, without the ability to learn from each other, there is no culture. Since learning is so important for the transmission of culture, we need to understand it further. What is the origin of learning? In the beginning of animal life on the planet, there was no learning. The behavior of animals was a simple response to stimuli, and it still is for the most part. For instance, a moth sees a bright light and it's automatically drawn to it. The light is the stimulus and the moths movement toward it is the response. No one taught them off to go towards the light. Its behavior was due to an inherited mechanism. Thus, its action is an instinctive behavior controlled by heredity. Animals can even exhibit complex behavioral patterns instinctively. For instance, mother cat's bring the prey they hunted back to their kittens and drop it to be eaten all by instinct. Gradually, animals develop the capacity to learn not only through experience by responding to environmental stimuli, but also systematically from those of their own kind through imitation and communication. For example, certain social animals seem to exhibit some behaviors which young learn by imitation. These behaviors include methods of hunting and have stampede, as well as some slight modifications of fighting and sex behaviors. For instance, mother cat's teach their kittens how to catch mice and rats. If the mother cat kills rats in the presence of her kitten before they are four months old. Her kittens are almost twice as likely to develop into rat killers. Kittens raised with rats as companions killed None of them nor any of their kind. Thus, learning plays a large part in determining whether a kitten will be a red color. Not all animals can learn through imitation and communication. Their capacity to learn is a function of the physiology system, especially the nerves and their organization. Therefore, the more elaborate the nervous system, the greater is its capacity to learn. The monkeys and apes learn best of all, though, elephants, horses, and dogs also have great capacity to learn. In the case of humans, our behavior is both determined by heredity and by learning from the social group. For example, heredity contributes to such behavior as sucking, swallowing, and blinking. While behavior like talking English, wearing clothes, and driving a car is learned from others. A factor with a great influence in the development of our culture is our ability to communicate through speech. Even though from the beginning of the animal world, animals could exercise social learning, the absence of speech set limits to what they could learn. The ability to speak and understand a language was the big event that helped to make our culture so magnificent. Why was language so important? A highly developed language gave us the opportunity to convey ideas about a tremendous variety of things. For instance, transmitting an idea such as the flood came and destroyed the houses, was an achievement far superior to the transmission of states of emotion by a small variety of cries. At the same time, a language also perpetuates knowledge over many generations. Gradually, with the development of language, we also developed inventions and cultural traits to accommodate our needs. Therefore, starting a hundreds of thousands of years ago with sticks and crack stones, humans have achieved the amazing technology and social organization we now enjoy. Let's revisit what we discussed in this lecture with the transmission of behavior by learning and especially by established learning through the group. Our culture starts to develop. All the marvelous things our culture encompasses would be impossible if there were no transmission by learning. If the only transmission where by heredity. Animals usually instinctively respond to environmental stimuli. But similarly to us, they can also learn through imitation and communication. Their ability to do so depends on how elaborate their nervous system is. Our behaviour is the result of instincts and learning from a social group. A very significant skill we learned from the social group, the ability to speak a language. By doing so, we can share ideas and past knowledge to the next generations. Thus are opportunities to enrich our culture compound. 6. Is our culture biologically determined?: Culture and biology. These are inherited nature dictate our culture. In this lecture, we will explore the relation of culture to our biological nature. Suppose you visit a hospital with newborn infants from various places of the world. Would you be able to predict what type of family they would form as adults simply by looking at their anatomy? Probably not. What if you were to run psychological tests on their behavior? Again, probably you wouldn't receive an indicative answer. Suppose now that you know in what family they will grow up, as well as what type of families their culture approves up. These might be monogamous families, polyangiitis and polygamous one's family systems with and without divorce. Families with concubine, large family systems and small family systems. With this information available, you are now much more likely to reliably predict his or her future family type. We can therefore conclude that one's culture determines the particular social organization of the family. Not are inherited nature generally are inherited. Disposition gives us a general direction to the shape of our culture. For instance, our sexual nature seems to indicate that there would be some kind of organization of behavior around the sexual activities. Thus, our nature indicates broad trends, but the dictation is not invariable as to detail. If culture we're a direct expression of our biological nature, then culture it would be in complete harmony with biological nature. But evidence shows that there are many customs that are contradictory to our biological needs in our culture. For instance, the bearing of children when the mother is young, yet mature, is biologically appropriate. Yet many women postpone marriage or bearing children until late in life, well past the best biological period. They do this for various cultural considerations. For instance, to focus on their career. The best biological age for marriage does not coincide with the best cultural age. Factors that influence what are inherited nature and culture dictates our learning and discipline. The more learning there is, the greater the chance for disciplining or modifying the natural expression of our biological impulses. Culture also sets up different customs regarding our biological behavior. Customs are types of behavior that are organized and repetitive in a particular culture with the intention of regulating our biological activities and dictating how we will behave. Customs form around a variety of activities such as marriage, birth, trained, production, and aren't particularly binding, or the Moore's customs that are regarded as essential to group welfare. These types of custom set the tone for what is considered morally acceptable within the particular society. For instance, one would hardly advocate that democracy is not the best type of government without raising suspicion of others. Of course, customs and mores might change in the course of time. What is deemed right at one time, maybe deemed wrong at another in the same society. And what is right at one time, maybe wrong at another. For instance, the Moore's make slavery wrong today. You'd at the past, they made slavery right? Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture. Are inherited disposition gives a general direction to how our culture is shaped, but it does not dictate it. Culture consists of an order of phenomenon that are different from our inherited nature and goes its way with a certain amount of independence from it. Our culture might modify and set limits to our natural impulses. When we live in a culture that encourages learning and discipline, we are more likely to act against our natural disposition. Culture is US Customs and Moore's to control our behavior. Customs regulate our behavior and more set the tone for what is considered morally acceptable. With time. They might change. 7. Why do we form groups?: Group life. Other people play a vital part in our lives. They give us our culture and they shape our personality. We would all be different than we are if we lived in a different group or in no group at all. Since the group has such great significance for us. In this lecture, we explore in more detail its role on human experience. Belonging in groups is something that we enjoy doing. Is it because we inherited disposition to live in groups? Whereas the explanation to be found elsewhere, there is no proof that we have an inborn tendency to live with others. Characteristic that the newborn baby shows no preference toward his own mother. His main drive is to satisfy his organic means. The baby is absolutely dependent on outside assistance to help him meet those needs in order to secure his survival. It is this dependence that constitutes the primary reason for group life. Thus, as he grows up, he learns that adults fulfill his needs and he tends to favor them. It is interesting to note that infants below six months of age smile only towards adults. They don't seem to care about being with other children. When other children are present, they usually simply disregard them. At six months of age, there may be a brief period of touching. But even at a somewhat older age, children do not appear to enjoy each other's company. As they grow, older, children begin to appreciate the fact that more and more pleasures are possible only in groups. Boy cannot play baseball by himself. With time. Children understand that in numerous satisfactions are enjoyed in and through groups. Therefore, human association becomes a source of enjoyment in itself. We like to be with others and we feel lonely and uneasy when deprived of human contact for any length of time. Acceptance by the group becomes a source of the greatest pleasure and rejection by the group, the basis for the most severe mental anguish. Although human life is full of group experience, not all groups hold the same degree of significance for us. Groups are meaningful in accordance to what they do for us. For instance, our family is a significant group for us. A group with much less importance is strangers we come across when visiting a busy street. An important question to answer at this point is, do we and the strangers constitute a social group? The answer is yes. Whenever two or more individuals come together and influence one another, they constitute a social group. So although we may not talk to anyone, although we may indeed feel lonely and strange, we will at least have to take others into account as we walk our way through the maze. We have little to no common interests with those on the street, but we still influence each other, even if it is not in a substantial way. As our experience suggests, some social groups are more important to us than others. Which groups hold the greatest significance? For most people? These groups are our family and friend groups. These groups are referred to as primary groups, and they are characterized by intimate association and cooperation. During this association, there is a certain fusion of individuals in a common hole. In order to align with the common life and purpose of the group. We learn how to discipline ourselves, how to feel sympathy for others, and how to pursue mutual passions. As a result, primary groups are fundamental in forming our social nature and our ideals. This is especially true during infancy and early childhood. When primary groups have a great bearing upon personality development. It is important to note that we can form groups even with people that we don't share direct face-to-face association with. Such direct contact is not essential as long as we have developed a level of intimacy with them. For instance, we might make friends online. Even if we haven't met with them. We can still develop a relationship with all the essential significance of a primary group experience. The opposite is also true. We might have face-to-face interactions with someone and not experience any intimacy. For instance, even married couples might feel that they don't really know their partner. We now know that our family is a primary group. What type of group is the group we form with strangers on the street that we previously discussed. This is a secondary group. The characteristic of this type of group is that it is lacking intimacy. Such groups are educational groups, political groups, athletic clubs, and the Church, among others. Usually, when we participate in such groups, we experience indirect contact with others. For instance, We might work from home without ever meeting our colleagues, but we still belong in the same group. Secondary groups might also be impersonal. For instance, a college student sees and hears the lecture, but he may never get to know him. In this case, there is direct contact, but it is impersonal. Nonetheless, in both cases, there is no intimacy between the members of the group. Let's review what we learned in this lecture. Social groups play a vital role in human experience. We don't inherit a disposition to live in groups, but from the moment we are born, we depend on others. Later, we understand that more and more pleasures are possible only in groups. As a result, human association becomes a source of enjoyment in itself. Some groups, such as family and friends have great significance for us. Such groups are referred to as primary groups and are characterized by intimacy and cooperation. Primary groups greatly affect our personality development and teach us various skills. Secondary groups are less significant for us. The members of these groups lack intimacy and they experience impersonal and indirect contact. 8. Do we alter our behavior when we are part of a group?: Behavior and Greeks. Do we modify our behavior in order to be part of a group? Does the group deliberately control our behavior? These are the questions we will answer in this lecture. Depending on how important that particular group is to us, we are more or less inclined to be loyal towards that group. If we value it, we tend to be kindly disposed toward those whom we identify with in our own group. We treat them sympathetically with something of the personal touch. We are sensitive to one another's opinions. We seek to win group approval and to avoid group disapproval. Therefore, we are eager to change our behavior in order to be accepted. As a result, we can conclude that group relations are effective influences on personality because of the pressure they exert. To what extent do we feel that we need to change ourselves, or in other words, conform to be part of the group. To answer this question, researchers performed various experiments. In one experiment, they tried to find out if and how much we alter our judgment simply by belonging to a group. To test this idea, they presented the subjects of the study with 10 different. Their task was to rate each odor. But what makes this study interesting is that the participants would rate the odors both apart from and in the presence of a group of other participants. When they rated the odors alone, their judgements were more extreme. The unpleasant odors were judged to be very unpleasant and the pleasant odors very pleasant. When they were asked to evaluate the odors in the presence of a group, their judgements were more moderate. Therefore, the effect of the group was to cut off extreme judgements, suggesting that the group exerts a restraining were conservative influence on human behavior. In this experiment, the participants, just by virtue of belonging in a group, decided to express conservative judgments. What if they knew what the opinion of the majority of the group was on a subject, would they adopt that opinion? A rather simple experiment revealed the answer to these questions. The participants of the experiment were asked to make judgments in the fields of morals by indicating which of two ethical choices they regarded as a less offensive. For example, disloyalty to friends were cheating on exams after making their choices. They were informed as to the majority opinion of the group and they were retested. As you might expect, there was a swing away from their original answers and they exhibited a greater degree of conformity to the majority opinion. Therefore, we can conclude that by belonging in a group, we let go of our standpoints and we are more inclined to adopt the opinion of the majority of the group. This adjustment to our standpoints most of the time, it's done automatically and at an unconscious level. And it is only a small part of the changes we make in our behavior as a part of the group. We usually make a lot of adjustments because by interacting with others, we are always subject to social pressure. What is social pressure? Is the pressure that is used by a society to regulate the conduct of its members. Furthermore, it comprises its system of social control and it is used to maintain order. In smaller societies, the means by which social pressure gains effectiveness are public opinion and gossip. Usually in these societies, order is preserved without the need for a constituted authority. Since individuals have their behaviour regulated automatically by an formulated social pressure. This is the case because in these societies, the group is the best of disciplinary lens. The group is frequently able to exert more effective control over the conduct of its members. Then can an outside individual charged with special authority? As a rule, the most efficient regulator of all is a group of people of the same agent interests. For instance, a child might have a serious disciplinary problem, but when being in the presence of other children, he is more likely to give up his antagonistic ways and conform to the group because he doesn't want them to dislike him. Informal social pressure is effective when we have a small, homogenous, relatively stable group, where each individual is sensitive to the opinion of the others, is it's still effective, enlarge heterogeneous or rapidly changing groups. In a large community, like a modern city, contacts tend to be impersonal and escape into anonymity is possible. At the same time, cities are comprised of diverse individuals who might hold conflicting moral standards. Thus, under these circumstances, gossip is a less effective instrument of social control. Therefore, formal and organized instruments are required for adequate social control. These formal instruments are predominantly the laws, the police, and the courts. Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture. When we are kindly disposed towards a group, we care about its members and we are sensitive to their opinion. We seek approval of the group and we tend to modify our behavior and opinions in order to be accepted. As experiments revealed, we adopt conservative standpoints and conform to the majority opinion. Usually, these changes are done automatically. An unconscious level when interacting with others, we are subject to social pressure, which is used to regulate conduct. In small homogeneous groups where each individual is sensitive to the opinion of others. Public opinion and gossip are an effective means of regulating behavior. On the contrary, enlarge communities where contacts are impersonal. Gossip is a less effective instrument of social control. Thus, constituted authorities are responsible for regulating the conduct of the members of the community. 9. What is status and how is it determined?: Social status. The aristocratic classes in many countries where work is considered to be medial, would rather be poor than risk the loss of status that would result from going to work. This illustrates how acutely humidity feels about rank and position. Since status is so prominent in our society, it is worth inquiring what status is, how it is acquired, and how different groups, namely social classes, vary in respect to it. These are some of the fundamental matters we will illustrate in this lecture. What is social status? The simplest definition of social status is that it represents the position of the individual in the group. A person status is his group standing or ranking in relation to others. Thus, we say that a person has a high or low status in the group, that he is a leader for, a follower, if one has a high social status, he is perceived to be competent in a way that facilitates the group. Therefore, he is more likely to be respected and honored by his fellow group members. At the same time, status also conveys the idea of formalized behavior of some sort. The leader makes plans, issues, orders, and makes sure that they are carried out. He has certain functions to perform a definite role, to play. Behavior associated with a particular status is what we refer to as a rule. A person's role in the group is the dynamic aspect of his status. Since status is positioned in a group, a person has as many statuses as he has group affiliations. For instance, one might have the status of a male, an adult, a husband, and a father. He also had status and his occupational group, as well as other groups that he is a part of. Some of his statuses are based on biological factors. For example, his sex and age and others on the basis of merit. For example, being a husband. We refer to the first type of status as an ascribed status, and the second one as an achieved status. An ascribed status is assigned at birth on the basis of biological factors. The most common ones are sex, race, and age. The achieved status is the status one has earned. To further understand them, let's examine how society regulates the status of individuals according to age. An individual's privileges and obligations changes. He grows older. In our society, for example, a very young child enjoys certain immunities. He is held to be incapable of crime, hence cannot be punished by the law. On the other hand, he is subject to special restrictions. He must go to school, he cannot marry, he cannot vote. The fact that he is a child plays an important part in defining his role in the group. The specific respects in which children's roles differ from those of adults in each group vary from culture to culture. But such differences exist everywhere. All in all, people are given various statuses. These statuses determine the rules they must play in the group. This assorting process is called social differentiation, goes on in all societies. For example, women have a status distinct from that of men, and children have a status unlike that of adults. Why is SIT, interested in assigning an immediate status to the individual? Usually this is the case because the earlier people are adjusted to a particular status, the more efficiently they are likely to function. And additionally, everyday business of society cannot be left to chance. Let's review the key points of this lecture are social status represents our position in a group. Depending on our status, we are assigned a role. In other words, we are expected to perform certain functions. We have as many statuses as we have group affiliations. We might be given a status by birth. This is referred to as ascribed status, or we might earn it. This is called achieved status. The process of giving a status and subsequently roles to us is what we call social differentiation. This process is necessary for the efficient execution of our functions in a group. 10. What is social class?: Social class. Our status is our position in a group particularly significant as a determinant of status is our social class. In this lecture, we will learn what a social class is, how it is determined, and the hierarchy between classes. We will also learn about social mobility. A social class is the aggregate of persons having essentially the same social status in a given society. These people enjoy the same level of respect and have the same level of assumed competence in that society. How is our social class determined? Usually in today's day and age? In most societies, people are grouped together based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, education, occupation, race, and gender, among others. For instance, to identify one social class, we can examine the clubs to which he belongs, the size of his fortune, and the circles in which he moves. When considering his social class, we pass over his status in individual groups. We focus on his status in the social sent. For example. He might have a great reputation as a scientist. But that doesn't mean that he is part of the upper class for reasons such as poverty, were race. Thus, class status overshadows all other statuses. How our societies with social class is structured. Not all societies are composed of social classes, but those that do have a social structure that generally resembles a pyramid. The lowest social class is at the base of the pyramid. And the other social classes are arranged above it in a hierarchy of rank and distinction. This grouping of people based on social classes, referred to as social stratification. Since there is a hierarchy of rank, the fundamental characteristic of a social class is its position of relative superiority or inferiority to other social classes. Why would a class be superior to another? This is because of those in the higher social classes receive better social rewards. They are more socially acceptable and they have a high standard of living. Thus, it doesn't come as a surprise that most of us would prefer to be identified with the upper-class. But does that guarantee that we would receive those same rewards? More often than not? That is very likely. The members of the same class have more or less the same life chances. They have the same probability of securing the good things of life, such as freedom, a high standard of living, leisure, deference, or whatever things are highly valued in a given society. Thus, by belonging to the high class, we would get similar life chances with those in that glass. And we would also receive social rewards. So for those of us that don't belong there already, is it possible to become a member of the upper-class? Well, that depends. To answer this question, we need to look into the chances individuals have of changing their social class in a given society. This is what is referred to as social mobility. The good news is that in many societies, it is not uncommon for individuals to move up or down the social ladder, where this is the case, the society is said to have open classes. The bad news is that even in the most mobile of stratified societies, the great mass of individuals remain forever in the class into which they happen to be born. This can be shown, for example, by an examination of the statistics on occupations, marriage, and the link for several generations of the population. Sadly, the idea that opportunities are open equally to all individuals of equal ability must be regarded as a fantasy. So moving up the social ladder is very hard, but still possible in societies with open classes, social mobility is not allowed at all. In societies with closed social classes. In these societies, individuals remain through a lifetime in the class into which they happened to be born. In other words, a class is strictly hereditary. Such closed classes are casts. In casts, if your parents didn't belong to your desired cast, you would never be able, no matter what you did to be part of it. At the same time, your cast would determine not only the work you would do, the group within which you would marry, but the very routine of your daily conduct. Let's revisit the key points of this lecture. A social class is the aggregate of persons having essentially the same social status in a given society. Our social class is determined predominantly by socioeconomic factors. Societies with social classes have a social structure that resembles a pyramid, signifying that there is a hierarchy between classes. The superior glasses offer to their members higher standards of living, and more social rewards. Usually all the members of a class receive more or less the same rewards. The chances individuals have of moving up or down the social ladder is referred to as social mobility. Societies that allow social mobility have open classes, whereas others that prohibited have closed glasses. 11. What are the differences between urban and rural communities?: Rural and urban. We rarely, if ever exist alone. We are linked in many different ways to a group in infancy. The most important group is our family. In later life, along with our family, we become part of various groups. All these groups constitute a community in the particular area where we live. It is not surprising that we tend to resemble, in a sense, the community in which we live. At the same time, people rarely rise much above the level of their community. Thus, choosing the right community to live in is important. In this lecture, we will learn about two large communities, the rural and the urban ones. We will compare the two and get an overview of the advantages and disadvantages of each. Before we analyze these two types of communities, we need to first note that there are several kinds of each. For instance, in the United States, farmers generally live in a farmhouse located on the land they cultivate. Hence, the farming community is scattered over a large area and is sometimes referred to as the open country, in contrast to the village. This mode of life differs from that in many parts of Europe, where the homes of the farmers are clustered in a village. Lands often lie in narrow strips some distance away from the village. As you might expect. This difference in ecological pattern is accompanied by significant differences in social organization. European farmers, for example, are reputed to be more sociable, while American farmers are said to be more individualistic. Thus, European villages of farming people are more cooperative. They're greater solidarity is basic to the greater influence which European farmers exert on European society. Nonetheless, despite their differences, all rural communities have a few characteristics in common. They do not have many specialized stores. Manufacturing establishments were different kinds of buildings for various purposes. As a result, usually small rural areas do not have specializations that enable each community to have a theatre or let's say a store for furniture. Such lax raised no particular problem. But there is a serious social problem in other cases, such as the absence of libraries, high schools, hospitals which furnish needed social services to the people. Recreational facilities are also limited in these rural communities. Why do row communities lack these services? One major cause of these differences between rural and urban communities. Big difference in income. The cities have a greater per capita wealth than the rural communities. The multimillionaires are found in the cities. Even when the higher incomes in cities are accompanied by higher living costs and additional expenditures compared to those of rural communities. The range in prices and living costs is not as great as the range of incomes between villages and cities. The economic prospects, as well as the opportunities for intellectual stimulation and amusement, contribute increased attractiveness for cities. But despite their advantages, we must keep in mind that cities are an artificial environment. The buildings are tall and crowded close together so that the sky is less visible while the dust and smoke reduce the effectiveness of the sunlight. Meanwhile, there is limited access to nature. Another characteristic of city life is living in close contact with such large numbers of people. This is accompanied by congestion and heterogeneity of the population, which in turn, profoundly modified group life. One of the biggest implications of large numbers living together is anonymity, a condition that is comparatively rare in small communities. In the latter, usually intimate primary group relationships prevail. In a large city. Different families living in the same apartment house may not be known to each other. These differences are significant. For instance, it is not easy in a small place for one person to steal from another, for he would have difficulty in using the stolen goods. The actions of an individual are more likely to be observed. And gossip acts as a substitute for the police. On the contrary, the conditions of city life are such as to favor stealing. This is the reason why it is said that crime is an urban phenomenon. Additionally, the contacts in cities are characterized by impersonality. The fact that it is easy to be lonely in a large city and not in a small town is of psychological significance. The closer identification with the group in a small place, though lessening freedom of action may lead to more normal life for many individuals, especially for those who have been conditioned in early years to live in a close small group. Apart from loneliness, city residents are more likely to experience various mental health issues, such as depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia compared to rural residents. Moreover, family life in the largest cities suffers by comparison with that of the smaller communities. The decline of the family is represented by fewer marriages, smaller families, and less home ownership. As a result, there is a lower birth rate in urban areas compared to rural ones. Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture. There are various types of urban and rural communities with different social organization. All the rural communities have in common that they lack some social services and recreational activities. At the same time, they have lower income than urban communities. On the other hand, urban communities offer various economic prospects and opportunities for intellectual stimulation and amusement to their residents, but they lack access to nature. There is also congestion and heterogeneity of the population. As a result, there is more anonymity and impersonality. City residents are more likely to experience mental health issues. Meanwhile, family life also suffers in the largest cities. 12. How is society organized?: Institutions. Do we need organization in our society? How and why is our society organized? These are the questions we will answer in this lecture. Suppose you are the leader of a team and you want to complete a project. You already know that by assigning roles and tasks to the members of the group, you are more likely to achieve the desired results. Collective behavior, if organized, is more effective than if unorganized. The effectiveness of organization is well-recognized by military leaders, by labour unionists, political parties, by propaganda agencies, and by the thousands of special-purpose associations that exist in modern society. Hence, we need organization when we are dealing with collective behavior. But how are the members of the group organized? In most cases, social organization is the result of conscious effort. A few members of the group set the blueprint for the rest of follow. In other cases, organization among the members of a group happens without it having been consciously plan for a specific purpose. For instance, people since the beginning of time have created families. They gather in a house, around a table, in sleeping quarters. When you're hunting and fishing grounds. The activities of sleeping, food gathering, toolmaking, and I'm trading are not just done once, but are repeated often. Due to the repetition, the participants have the opportunity to select the best ways to complete these actions by selecting only the optimal practices repeatedly, they achieve some organization. With time, these consequent activities become social patterns. Therefore, in a family, they act in a certain way by following organized social patterns of behavior that had been already established. Since the family is a system that provides these social patterns to its members, we may refer to it as an institution. Social institutions are systems of organizing our actions. Institutions are found generally in a large number of cultures and have existed through long periods of time. Why do we need social institutions to systematize our activities? We need them because they are important in satisfying our basic human needs. Each principle social institution is organized to perform some central function. For instance, the family exists for the rearing of children. But since our activities are numerous and greatly varied, it is more common for this social institutions to perform a variety of functions. For instance, the family institution satisfies fundamental group needs such as security, food, and shelter, sex expression, and the training of the young. Apart from the family. There are a few more substantial institutions. A type of them are religious institutions. Their central function is to organize our belief and higher powers. At the same time, religion is closely related to moral conduct and to many types of behavior and events such as birth, marriage, and death. Another institution is the state. Its function is to look out for the welfare of the whole group. To maintain the common welfare, administers justice, protects the week from the strong and punishes those who disturbed group harmony. One cluster of important social institutions is organized around economic functions, such as industrial, agricultural, and financial institutions. In the early beginnings of culture, the economic organizations were developed around food gathering, hunting, and fishing. As technology developed, so did property and personal possessions, such as clothing, jewelry, furniture, and tools. As a result, many rules regarding the acquisition and disposition of property developed. Just as before. There were rules for the acquisition and disposition of food. With the development of trade and money, economic activities became more elaborate and the growth of specialization produced a great number of economic institutions. These are some of the institutions with functions which serve as the basis of important social functions found in almost all cultures. There are, of course, other social institutions, such as those pertaining to education, science, communication, recreation, arts, and health, among others. Let's sum up what we learned in this lecture. Collective behavior, once it's organized, is more effective than unorganized. Thus, organization is a powerful means of getting something done. In some cases, organization of the group is the result of conscious effort from a few members of the group. In other cases, it happens unconsciously through the repetition of best practices and the adoption of social patterns. Social institutions are systems of organizing our actions that have existed through long periods of time. Their purpose is to satisfy our basic human needs. The greatest social institutions are the family, the state, the religion, and the economic institutions. 13. What are the origins of our current economic institutions? : Economic institutions. There is a close connection between economics and culture. The economic processes concerning exchange, trade, production, and distribution are very much in accord with the values of the community. In this lecture, we will learn about the origins of our economic life in order to get a comprehensive picture of the development of our current economic organization. Are present. Elaborate economic organization had its humble origins in the food gathering cultures hundreds of thousands of years ago. Earliest economic activities consisted largely in searching for fruits, nuts, greens and grains, and hunting of animals. Among primitive people, there is no separate economic organizations such as we have today. But a beginning is found in the division of labor between men and women. Men are generally hunters. Women are more often the gatherers of plants and seeds. Primitive people do not generally live in single families, but in small communities or bands of a score of individuals or a score or more of families. Thus, the hunting and gathering might be supplemented by the community. These communities are self-sufficient. In other words, they produce everything they need, and as a result, there is no need to trade items. Therefore, trading does not appear to be instinctive or even natural. It has to be invented or learned. And apparently it is a late social invention in the evolution of culture. Within the community, the main mechanisms of exchange, our hospitality and gifts, services are rendered or goods given without payment, but with the expectation of a later return in kind. It is interesting to note that the hunting people remember with great precision the value of the gift. There are no wages, but the general understanding about labor is that if you help me, I will help you sometime to exactly the same degree. When it comes to property. There is private ownership of personal items, such as clothing, weapons, and tools. But they collectively share the land and the food supply. Since these goods were relatively scarce, primitives generally strived not so much for private gain as for status and reputation. The best hunter not only has the most food, he also has the biggest reputation. Eventually, they discovered how to domesticate animals, particularly the big animals, such as cattle, and how to cultivate plants. In other words, agriculture. The development of agriculture and of the parallel pastoral economy meant a more certain and substantial food supply and a larger population. With a stable life of agriculture, there seemed to have been associated other inventions such as pottery making and weaving. Pursuits as such, require advanced skills. And out of 100 individuals, some would do a job better than others. These are the ones likely to specialize. The foundations of exchange were thus laid under agriculture, there was a greater chance of trade. In time, pastoral life and agriculture were brought together in farm life. By now, property had become highly developed. Since agriculture emphasize the private ownership of land, there was also individual ownership of equipment and products. This in return, resulted in a growth of property in the competition between our quest for possessions and our desire for intangible values such as reputation or affection. The former was gaining ground. During this period, the handicrafts flowered, enriching the material culture, further increasing the social emphasis on the acquisition of material objects. The greater the variety and number of such objects of hand manufacture, the greater the requirement of labor. And hence, there was an impetus to an extension of the division of labor beyond the principles of sex and age. Specialization was furthered by the discoveries of the use of copper, tin, gold, bronze, and iron. Since it was not easy for each household or each male in a household to become adept in the working of metals. The development of specialists outside each family meant that there had to be a further exchange of goods with a specialization in the handicrafts and improvements in transportation, the volume of trade increased. One evidence of this was the city, which may be thought of as a place where the inhabitants do not grow enough food to feed themselves. They therefore must import it from outside, which means transportation and trade and exchange cloth, leather, metal goods or something else for it, trade was predominantly by barter. There were some goods and frequent demand which were exchanged most often when such goods were light and durable, as was the case with gold and silver ornaments, money developed. Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture, are economic organization has its origins in the food gathering cultures that existed hundreds of thousands of years ago. Primitive people used to gather plants and animals. There was a division of labor in these activities. They lived in self-sufficient communities where they exchanged services and gifts. When it comes to property, they had a few personal items, but they shared the land and the food supply. Things changed when they discovered how to domesticate animals and developed agriculture. The ownership of land was emphasized. At the same time, the stable access to food allowed for more inventions. To exercise the new skills related to them, one had to develop some expertise. Therefore, specialization of labor emerged. At the same time, they had to exchange the goods that they produced for other goods. Thus, the need for Trade arose later with further specialization and improvements in transportation, trading was increasing and money was developed. All these advances greatly speeded the development of some of the economic processes familiar to us. 14. How was capitalism developed & what are its implications?: Capitalism. In this lecture, we will continue exploring how the economic organization has evolved throughout the years to our present day. We will also discuss some of the shortcomings of our modern economic system of capitalism and how they are being ameliorated. Preceding the emergence of our modern order, the necessity for protection against marauding groups in Europe. The feudal type of organization, especially where a central government did not exist or was breaking up. Owners of property and large holders of land found they could extract payments of money or goods from weaker farmers. With this money, soldiers can be maintained. With their soldiers. They secured control over surrounding neighbors and offered protection to the farmers. Gradually, wealth started to accumulate in the hands of a few. This led to greater division of labor and to an increase in the variety of goods produced. During this period, a great step forward was taken with the development of power beyond that supplied by human beings and domesticated animals, especially the development of steam in making steel tools. Steam power gave a great impetus to production. As the volume and variety of economic goods increased, the differentiation between consumers goods and producers goods became more pronounced. Producers goods were now more intricate, expensive, and more difficult to acquire because financing was necessary. Money for their purchase was called capital. And the raw materials and tools purchased were known as capital goods. Sometimes the heads of two or more families joined forces to conduct a business better or to increase their capital. A drawback to this practice, each partner in such an economic organization was liable for the whole indebtedness of the partnership, which was a protection for the creditors. At the same time, such a partnership was not always available to meet the expanding needs of business and thus began a movement away from family domination of industry. The availability of funds was a service better furnished by the corporation, which made it possible for any number of persons to supply the needed capital. In return, each investor received his proportionate share of stock and was in general liable only up to the value of the shares he held. When the corporation was very large, the ownership was divorced for management. The Management was then delegated to a committee who chose a president or manager. So different was this new type of industrial life from that of the household economy and the handicrafts that a special name was devised for it. Because capital played such a prominent part in financing the new system. It was called capitalism. In particular. Capitalism is a large system which includes production, transportation, and distribution, which employs labor, pays interest and dividends on investments, and supplies. The great variety of ones of large heterogeneous populations. This type of economic organization has been the prevailing one in the expansion and growth of industry in the Western world. It is raised the standard of living and built a marvellous economic civilization. Despite its benefits, it also has a few disadvantages. Firstly, the shareholders and the management of a corporation are removed from intimate contact with the workers. A situation which results in impersonal and unsatisfactory labor relations. Secondly, there is also much difficulty in providing regular employment. The smooth operation of our complex economic system depends on the synchronization of many parts. A common factor of turmoil is business depression, which often leads to increase in unemployment. The large-scale introduction of automation that reduces the need for labor also creates considerable unemployment, at least temporarily. Additionally, there is a marked inequality in the distribution of the wealth produced. Under private capitalism, not everyone gets the same income. The salary of a rich person is multiple times as much as the poor person's. These are only wages. The rich person also receive interest on bonds and dividends on stock so that the variation in income is even greater. Furthermore, sometimes businesses trying to eliminate the competition and maximize profits by creating monopolies. This happens because in some types of business, a tremendous initial capital is required to start it. Therefore, less people can afford it. Consequently, there is no competition to keep the prices of the products these businesses produce down. Sends one business controls the supply. It can also control the price. Usually, a private, unregulated monopoly maintains the price, which will give it the greatest total profit. In some cases, when only a few owners of a particular business remained, they often get together and agree on a price that will give each one a profit. To protect both workers and the public against exploitation. The government undertakes to regulate some businesses and to aid other businesses. Usually, the state regulates monopolies to allow for healthy competition. It creates minimum wage laws designed to raise the incomes at the lower classes and to combat the inequalities in income, it sets up income taxes that take a larger proportion of high incomes. Let's revisit the key points of this lecture. Feudalism is the economic system where owners of large property received payments from farmers in exchange for protection. This lead to the accumulation of wealth in the hands of a few, to increased specialization and to an increased variety of goods. Eventually, the machinery that was used to produce consumer goods became intricate and expensive. Thus, families had to combine their capital to afforded. Since this wasn't always an option, corporations offered the necessary funds with the help of shareholders. Eventually, the corporation dominated the industry and it gave rise to our current economic system of capitalism. Capitalism raise the standard of living, but it has some shortcomings. These include impersonal labor, unemployment, inequality in wealth distribution, and rise of monopolies. To counteract these problems, governments take measures by passing laws to protect workers, consumers, and other businesses. 15. What constitutes a family and how was it developed?: Family origins are home, is the place where our personal and social virtues are developed. The type of citizen we become is related closely to the type of mother, father, and home life we have. In this lecture, we will study the family in the earliest hunting cultures and what changes occurred in it as the material culture developed into our present civilization. By doing so, we will get a better understanding of our family life today and it's possible changes in the future. When you picture a family, what comes to mind? Most people would picture an association of husband and wife with or without children or of a single parents, man or woman with children. In other words, the mates and their offspring. The mates have distinctive sex and functions that constitute the primary reason for the creation of the institution. This type of family is referred to as the nuclear family. Others, when picturing a family would include apart from the parents and their children, more individuals such as grandparents, relatives, in-laws, and grandchildren. This larger family forms a unit which we call a household. Therefore, it is significant that the structure of the family is not fixed. It varies in different cultures. Likewise, the functions of the family are flexible. The family may do few or many things. For instance, the family may provide economic services for its members. It may help to educate them, give them religious guidance, furnace recreation, protect them against dangers of various sorts and provide affection and connection. The family that consists of a male, one or more females and children with perhaps a relative or so is found in every hunting society known to us, no matter how simple it's culture. The husband is a hunter. The wife prepares food, and the women and children helped to gather wild vegetables, to dig roots, or to pick berries. Besides getting food and caring for the young, the anthropoids help each other in fights, and the male protects the female against marauding males. The early family group seems to have many resemblances to the modern family in its small size and limited economic and social functions. Thus, the history of the family does not suggest any great evolution. Nonetheless, the family has varied greatly in different cultures. Such variations are evident when we look into the institution of marriage. Most marriages all over the world, even among pre-literate people, consist of one husband and wife. That is to say, monogamy is practiced more largely than any other arrangement. But we also encounter cultures where polygamy, the marriage of more than one female to one male. Where polyandry, the marriage of more than one female to one male, our favorite. Additionally, the family has shown a great deal of variation at different time periods. Are modern families stands in marked contrast to the earlier agricultural family. In the latter, economic functions are particularly prominent. The family being an almost completely self-sustaining business enterprise. In particular, with the advent of the plow and the domestication of cattle, the various handicrafts became much more highly developed. Such things as the grinding of green, preparation of soap, molding of pottery, fabrication of leather, construction of furniture, and concoction of medicines were done at the homestead by members of the household. Thus, while developing a variety of important economic activities, the household had become a significant business enterprise. Under these conditions, marriage was favored since a wife was needed on the farm and children were useful workers. In such a system, the efficiency and suitability of mates was emphasized over affection as a basis for marriage. A man usually looked for a good housekeeper and a woman for a capable provider. A good marriage was thought to be one in which the capabilities of the young couple were high, rather than one where the love element was strong. While love was regarded as a desirable factor for marriage, it was not important enough to be the sole basis for it. It was assumed that after marriage, affection and can geniality would develop between the couple. The system gave rise to a highly developed household economy, which existed in Europe through the Middle Ages into the nineteenth-century. The same type of family is also found widely distributed in Asia. This household economy was developed chiefly in villages around which agriculture was practiced. Or in the open country where farms were scattered. For only a very small percentage of the population lived in cities. Let's summarize what we learned in this lecture. Our families shape our personality. There are various types of families, but the most common today is the nuclear family. The structure of the family has varied across cultures and time periods, but it is always based around the mates and their offspring. The families between primitive people were small and had limited economic function. Extended economic function had the agricultural families where the members of the family exercised important economic activities within it. As a result, creating a family was a necessity during that time. Less emphasis was placed on affection and love between the couples, but rather on their capacities to work efficiently. 16. What are the characteristics of modern families?: Modern families. With the growth of the factory system and the rise of cities, family life undergoes profound changes. In this lecture, we will explore the effects of these changes in the structure of the family, as well as the characteristics of our modern family. One change that had a significant impact on the evolution of the family. The transfer of the production from the home to the factory, with the development of various inventions, such as the use of steam as a source of power applied to tools. And with the availability of cheaper iron and steel, big machinery was developed. This type of machinery required more space and more workers than were to be found in the household. The need for labor in various handicrafts was not so much for family labor as for individual labor. Eventually, the factory instead of the Homestead, became the unit of production. The process of the transfer of economic functions from the urban family to outside agencies has gone quite far in the past century. Only activities such as cooking, the care of the house, and laundering our left now chiefly in the urban family. But even promotions of the ladder functions have been transferred. As for instance, cooking of lunches to restaurants and some laundering to outside laundries. The transfer process is not yet finished. Men's functions were among the first to leave the homestead as farming was given up. Women's more varied household duties have been transferred more slowly. This decline in the economic significance of the family led to its transformation to the type of family most of us are familiar with today. One of its typical characteristics is its small size. The family is now shaped more closely than ever before around the marital pair. This is the case because the economic activities of the family no longer require the assistance of relatives and married children. Hence, there is no longer any need for their presence in the household. Moreover, the natural biological family itself is contracting in size. Children are expensive to have. So with the advancement in the knowledge and methods of contraception, having children depends on the discretion of the couple. At the same time. It isn't as necessary as before to create a family. A mate is no longer automatically a worker and an economic asset as before, but may now be an economic liability. Hence, the economic motives for marriage long characteristic of the institution, cease to be prominent. As a result, in urban communities, the proportion of individuals not living in any family is large. For instance, in the United States, single person households have doubled over the last 50 years. In Norway and Sweden, they are half of the total number of households with the economic function of the family diminished. What prompts us to form families? Nowadays, increasing emphasis is placed on psychological values such as affection, companionship, and emotional security. Many families have as their main function that are providing affection between the mates. In the light of the foregoing, it has to be that in marriage today, the fictional element would be emphasized to the extreme. The present emphasis on affection as the chief basis for marriage means that companionship is the principal benefits sought from the Union. The main concern of mates with each other is one of happiness. At the same time, the family system is necessary for the rearing of young children. The very early years of a child's life are spent almost exclusively in the family. Thus, since the personality of the child is dependent upon the way the early years are spent. The responsibility placed on the parents seems to be very great. Even when the children are of school-age, the parents still educate their children. At the same time. Parents strive to provide a happy and wholesome childhood for their young. The changes in incentives for formation of the family influence, the strength of the tie uniting the couple. Formerly the family was held together by many different bonds, economic and religious. At presence. The chief remaining bond is affection. One bond does not hold as firmly as several. The affectionate bond is often very strong at the inception of marriage, but it does not always endure when it breaks married couples and naturally wish to separate from each other. About 45 percent of married couples in the United States divorce. Ordinary observation suggests that all disappointed couples do not resort to such drastic action. Some remain together despite their difficulty. There are a few factors that contribute to this. Usually, couples that have been married for many years are less likely to separate. In the United States, 60 percent of all divorces involve individuals aged 25 to 39. At the same time, married couples are held together by children. In the United States, about 65 percent of divorces are granted the childless couples. Thus, affection and responsibility for children tend to hold the family together. Another factor affecting the stability of marriage, the type of community in which the family lives. For instance, in cities, the divorce rate is much higher than in rural regions. Finally, religion is a factor that influences the stability of the family. Some religions permits separation, but not divorce, forbidding a second marriage. Other churches deplored the breaking of the marriage time, but condone it under a variety of circumstances. Let's review what we discussed in this lecture. The different functions of the family found in the various pre-literate cultures and in the historical periods, shows that the family has changed a good deal in the past and has assumed many different forms and functions. The family has proved to be a very resilient and flexible institution. Despite radical changes in form and function, the family has continued to exist in every society known to us. The craving for infection and the need of rearing children have undoubtedly been fundamental factors in making the family and omnipresent and enduring social institution. What has been happening in recent years is the decline of the family as an economic institution. So great has been the change that today we think of the family chiefly as an institution or the provision of marital happiness and the rearing of children. 17. What are the origins of government & which are its functions?: Government. Every day of our lives, we come in contact directly or indirectly with the government. State policies affect the price and amount of food, clothing, and fuel we bought. They also regulate our recreational activities and tell us what we can and cannot do. A fair sized proportion of all the money we earn must be paid to the government in taxes. In many countries, the government provides medical care for us when we are sick and gives us 8 when we are out of work. These are only a few examples of how the government affects our lives. Since the government plays such an important role, it is necessary to take a look backward at its origins and to see something of how it is varied in time. We will also discuss what functions the government undertakes, as well as the types of government placing special emphasis on democracies. What is the government? It is an organization which maintains order for the whole group. Such an organization is lacking among primitive people with the simplest material culture. They have no specially constituted government. This is evident from the fact that they have no established ruler. But when a special occasion arises, which calls for group action, a temporary leader maybe selected. His leadership ceases when the work is done. The lack of government can be attributed to the fact that there is a little disorder among them. Disorders which do occur are handled by organizations such as the family and the clan. The groups are very small, which means that public opinion can operate effectively as a regulatory force. The idea of government as a special separate institution gains in favor as the conception of the group as a whole entity develops. When families are organized along kinship lines into clans, there is a sense of locality. Thus, those settlements which are contiguous have a consciousness of belonging to the same kind. This unity sets them apart from outsiders. Consequently, local bands become affiliated in sentiment forming tribes. The tribe may be regarded as the forerunner of the state. Since drives develop under a plethora of factors in different places, there is not a uniform development of government for all cultures. Hence, it is not possible to trace the evolution of the state except for particular groups. What may be shown, however, are the principal factors which are correlated with the development of government. A crisis involving the whole group or territory is the sort of situation out of which the idea of discipline for the whole group would arise. Serious competition between whole groups would also seem to be favorable to the creation of distinct. This competition might even lead to war, which requires organized force between two politically independent units in pursuit of tribal policy. Other factors are the presence of dominant personalities, conquest and social classes. When we have some or multiple of these factors interrelated, a state is formed. Different combinations of these factors produce different types of government in various societies. Fast-forward in modern times, states are everywhere, and the scope of the state has expanded enormously. Some of its functions usually have been the promotion of general welfare, administration of justice, national defense, as well as economic and social regulation. Governments render these services and exert the controls through national and local agencies of many different types. Some are democratic and others dictatorial. In other words, in some countries, the government's purpose is to serve the individual. And in others, the individual is said to exist for the good of the state. Since the mid 1970s, there has been an upward trend toward democracies around the world. The adoption of democracy has been encouraged by a wider education and a higher standard of living. The masses because of public education and higher wages, more capable of voting intelligently and are able to contribute more taxes. One of the most important benefits of democracy is the power of the people is available as a check against abuses by elected officials. But in cases where the people are not fully oriented and interested, it is in those who thus circumvent the people. Such groups are party clicks and special pressure groups. In most cases, their goal is to get the government to do something for them. Let's review what we learned in this lecture. Indirectly or directly. We always come in contact with the government. Such an organization is lacking among primitive people. With the conception of the group as a whole entity, the idea of government emerges even though the evolution of the state cannot well be traced. It is possible to indicate factors and situations correlated with the conception of the state. Such factors are crisis, competition, and conquest. And governmental institutions today are mostly focused on promoting general welfare. And most of them are democratic. Despite the fact that the power in a democracy lies within the people, it is not uncommon to witness corruption. 18. Conclusion: Conclusion. This brings us to the end of this course. You now hopefully have enriched your understanding of human nature and culture. I am very glad to have shared my knowledge with you. I hope that you find it just as valuable as I did. I really hope you've enjoyed this course. I certainly enjoyed teaching you. Goodbye.