Sociological Concepts - Assignment Example

Sociological Concepts

SLO 1: Societal and Individual Impacts

The social construct denotes the collective themes of individuals who band together for collective of either survival or development and growth. When individuals form systems through which their behavior is regulated and adjudicated, the system is known as a society. Understanding the impact parameters of individuals and societies they live in requires the understanding of the separate variables in the relationship. First, one has to understand individuals within a constructed framework. From the perspective, individuals are animals with social instincts. The instincts push individuals to associate with other individuals within the framework of growth and survival. As people interact on various levels, they create the structure of their interactions which become systems of mutual benefit. Secondly, the understanding of society as an abstract subject that informs the understanding of the interactions of human beings (Croteau and William 15). From the perspective, interactions of individuals within several contexts denote the propagation of interactive groups of people. The interactive patterns then form systems that organize human actions and behavior in relations to individual responsibility and space.

The relationship between the two construct is intrinsic and entwined and therefore possesses little separation difference. Based on the perspective, there exists no society where are no individuals while the only survival mechanism of individuals is societies. The relationship between the two denotes the impact phenomena that present itself in a back and forth pattern to influence each other. The existence of social frameworks is traceable to the growth of the human race. Therein, the influence on each other is only visible through observation of either part of the relationship. One must separate the various facets through which individuals and societies interact to denote the influence and impact aspects in each. For instance, the family is the most basic social unit within any society and has a direct impact on the perspective of the individuals growing in that unit. For example, a child in the unit will learn everything about the universe through the family, and therefore, all perceptions, attitudes, and behavior will be prescribed to that individual through that social unit.

In contrast, collections of individuals from societies based on their particular needs arguably shape the social systems and structures within society. For instance, a nation or country may be described as a society due to the collective interactions of individuals within the geographical location to achieve particular goals. Formation of countries takes the progression of individual visions of pioneers often referred to as the founders of particular states or countries. The process is often due to the immense contribution they make in the country towards the way of life and systems as well as organizational structures contained in the country. In another perspective, individual’s impact on any society may be denoted by individual contribution to altering social systems such as the religious systems (Hossain and Md 130). For instance, the spread of Christianity from Europe to Africa and the rest of the world could be denoted as the influence of individuals to societies. While the African people possessed their own religions of various societies, the evangelism of the European missioners changed the religious facets from the acknowledged traditions to the new mays of worship. Therefore, the impact of societies on individuals is as strong as the corresponding impact of individuals to societies.

SLO 2: Socialization and transmission of culture

The interaction between individuals within the societal framework develops various systems that determine human actions depending on the actions of others. Through time the interactions from specific society patterns that are accepted by all in the interaction process. The accepted norms beliefs, behavior, values as well as other constructs within a society is referred to as the culture of the people. Depending on the nature of interaction and the location and needs of people, culture fluctuates and differs from place to place. Nonetheless, people have a limited lifespan, and like all other living things pass the information and knowledge gained through interactions with incoming generation. The process of learning and teaching these constructs of culture is referred to as the socialization process. It denotes the interaction process of individuals and thus rends an exchange of information and knowledge from one person to another.

Transmission of culture from one generation to the next relies on the socialization process to ensure that individuals of the next generation have the right tools for survival. Cultures represent the accumulation of information and knowledge that have been refined over time to determine a specific way of doing things. Various facets of culture such as beliefs and norms are forged within the interaction process over numerous generations with the purpose to enhance the interaction process. The socialization process ensures that the knowledge is transmitted from one generation to the next. For instance, among the facets of culture include the religion of the people (Hasenfratz and Ariel 1346). Transmission of religion requires the socialization process to pass the religious beliefs and values from one person to the next. The socialization process employs various socialization agents such as the family and schools to transmit the culture to achieve the objective.

For instance, religious practices of a particular culture are transmitted via the family as the basic socialization unit. Children are taught the difference between right and wrong to shape their behavior depending on the religious ideology that the family subscribes to. If the family subscribes to Christianity, Christian values and beliefs are taught to the children and consequently passing the information as well as the culture of the society. Similarly, other socialization agents utilize their unique position in the social structure and organization to transmit cultures to people. For example, the current world of information sharing utilizes mass media to transmit cultural values across the globe. For instance, the famous American culture that is often referred to as the western culture is transmitted across the globe through mass media.

SLO 3: theoretical perspectives and inequality

Interactions within societal frameworks are often in the reflection of inequalities that have developed through time. The injustices perpetrated through a tradition of doing things are reinforced by various ideologies in societies. The ideologies denote the unfair interactions within a society that individuals through time have adhered to inform their norms. Threes theoretical perspective can be used to explain inequality as perpetuated social interactions.

The first theoretical perspective gender and gender roles of a society and its contribution to inequality in societies are huge. Driven by the natural stratification between male and female, gender construct is among the oldest and widest divisive construct in human civilization. The construct denotes the differentiation between mane and women and therefore assignment to responsibilities and benefits depending on that stratification. In a broader perspective, the construct created societies throughout history that favored particular people to the expense of the rest based on gender. For instance, patriarchal societies are heavily dominated by men and creating a rift of inequality against the women of those societies. On the contrary, although rare, matrimonial societies as dominated by women and so favor women as opposed to men (McLeod 232). These injustices perpetuated by the construct have thrived through generations as cultural values and norms while condemning part of the human population to gross inequality.

Second, social stratifications based on the economic capabilities of individuals within the society. Social stratification created social status in the society that led to the separation of people based on their economic capacities. The higher the economic ability of an individual the higher the social status. Thus, eligible for more rights, freedoms, and benefits within the social framework. The division created power dynamics of people over other people through the use of wealth and resources. These marked the beginning of exploitation of other people based on economic reasons and power. As the situation progressed, it gave birth to social injustices such as slavery and racism used by the economically powerful to subjugate people under their will.

Third, natural selection constructs within the societal framework. The theory of natural selection denotes that survival is dependent on the strength of the people. Within a social perspective, the theory employed power through the measure of economic capacity and political power over others. The more powerful individuals have, they utilize that power to gain more power and demonstrate that power over others. As such, the construct has created rifts between people of various power standards, hence, perpetuating inequality. For instance, through demonstration of power and in search of more power people have subjugated the less powerful people for economic and political gains in the world. These construct perpetuated the growth and spread of imperialist thought that led to the creation of colonies.