Social problem

Its perspective
(Functionalist and symbolic )

The term “social problem” is usually taken to refer to social conditions

that disrupt or damage society—crime, racism, and the like. .

Social Problems

When a particular social phenomenon or condition disturbs the social

order and hinders the smooth working of social institutions that come to
be identified as a social problem. At the initial phase, such conditions are
neglected since they do not have any serious adverse effects on the social
system. But gradually, they get accumulated and begin to affect normal
social life. Such a condition is recognized as a social problem. Once a
social problem takes roots and develops beyond the bounds of tolerance,
there arises resentment against it and there is a demand for remedy in the
interest of social harmony. For example, the degradation of the soil in
certain regions of Punjab and Haryana is being caused by the accepted
methods of farming.

Social Problems in Indian Context

Social problems in India have changed with different historical phases.
The major social problems in each of these phases reflect the then
existing social norms and values. The major social problems in the early
phase of the Indian civilization were increasing rigidity of social
hierarchy, continuous conflicts between the Aryans and the Dasas,
emphasis on the observance of rituals, the sacrifice of animals etc. With
the advent of the Muslim rule in India, new social problems like sati,
purdah, the introduction of caste system among the Muslims, etc.
emerged. In the contemporary phase, India is facing several social
problems. We have the problems of terrorism, violence, offences against
women, children and minorities, unemployment, poverty, drug addiction,
communalism, youth unrest, corruption, migration and displacement,
environmental degradation, population explosion, prostitution,
HIV/AIDS, etc. These problems are the result of various factors that
include economic, political, legal, cultural as well as historical.
 Nature of social problems

The social problem is connected to the majority of the members of

society. According to Bernad, the repressive and tense condition
consequent of social problems may be involving three types of elements:
(i) Tension factors which challenge some values of society, (ii) Social
values which are being challenged and (iii) intense reaction of individuals
and groups to challenge.

(i) Disintegrative: Social problems, directly or indirectly disintegrate

the social system. Social problems cause dissatisfaction, suffering
and misery. It seriously affects the values of the society. It is always
disintegrating and disorganizing. It is pathological. It is harmful for
society.
(ii) Multiple Causes: The social problems have no single or simple
cause. Each problem has a complex history and is usually not due to
one but to many causes. War, poverty, unemployment or crimes do
not offer a single or simple explanation of their occurrence.
Sometimes one problem is so interwoven with other problems that it
cannot be solved apart from them.` wawq2
(iii) Inter-Connected: Social problems are inter-connected due to
which these become serious. For example, unemployment, poverty
and crime are inter-connected.
(iv) Many Remedies: Hence the solution of the complex social
problem requires various multi-sided remedies.
(v) Relative Concept: Social problem is a relative concept. What we
call a social problem in our society may not be a problem in other
societies. Similarly, a social problem today may not be a problem
tomorrow.

(vi) Functional Value: Social problem, though disintegrative, has

functional value since its cure leads to social problem and social
development.

Significance of social problems

 (i) Social pathology as a specialized branch to study social
problems: Sociology in its attempts to study social problems
systematically, scientifically, and in their entirety established a new
branch known as “Social Pathology.” It was Ginsberg who strongly
recommended the need for establishing a separate branch of sociology
and called it “Social Pathology”. According to Durkheim, the task of
social pathology is to study the abnormal or pathological conditions of
society. Durkheim who founded two other branches of sociology namely:
“sociology of crime” and “sociology of morals”, expressed the view that
the incidences of suicide are nothing but the social consequences of the
pathological conditions of society.

Study of social problems as the historical responsibility of sociology:

Study of social problems is very much associated with the origin and
emergence of sociology. In fact, the serious social problem such as
poverty, unemployment, exploitation of labourers, women and
children, child labour, slums, uncontrolled migration towards city,
urban crowding, lack of basic amenities in cities, increasing crime
rate etc., that cropped up due to the outbreak of Industrial
Revolution, disturbed the minds of social thinkers such as Auguste
Comte, Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, and other. These thinkers later
on strongly advocated the need to establish a separate science of
society. Comte especially believed that such a science would be able
to find solutions to many of the social problems of the day. Thus,
historically also sociology has an obligation to study social problems
for which purpose it was originally established.

Study of problems is absolutely necessary for finding solutions: A

pathological society is like an individual with ill health. No doctor
will administer treatment without examining the disease of the
patient. This is equally true to society. Unless the social problems
are properly studied, their causes are traced out, their nature is
known, it is not possible to deal effectively with them and to find
befitting solutions to them. Thus, study of social problems assumes
importance in sociology. Sociologists also consider it as their social
responsibility to study these problems and recommend appropriate
solutions for them.

Social problems indicate that cultural values are changing and

getting violated or eroded: Cultural values normally decide or interpret
 what is good and what is bad, what is desirable and what is undesirable,
what is sublime and what is ugly and so on. It is a sociological fact of
general observation that whenever cultural values are continuously
violated or eroded, social problems of some kind or the other, will crop
up. This is true in the case of Indian society also.

Causes

Social change leads to social problems: All social changes do not cause
problems. Those social changes which are ordinary in nature and do not
cause any problems of adjustments for the people to carry on with their
day-to-day activities rarely trigger social problems. But when problems of
adjustment are created by social change, social problems may creep in.

Cultural lag causing social problems: W. F. Ogburn who introduced

the concept of ‘cultural lag’ states that changes are quick to take
place in the material culture. These, in turn, stimulate changes in the
non-material culture. But the non-material culture may be slow to
respond giving rise to a gap or a lag between the material and non-
material cultures. This lag is called the ‘cultural lag’. This lag or
cultural lag may lead to problems of adjustment and also to social
problems.
For example, the process of deforestation is taking place faster
to cater to the needs of the growing paper industry, house
construction,, making furniture, etc. (material culture). But the
art of conservation of forest (non-material culture) does not
keep pace with these industrial developments. The result is the
problem of the environmental population.

Natural disasters:

Biological causes: Serious ups-and-downs in populations, population

explosion, great imbalance in the composition of the population, the
spread of diseases, lack of supply of nutritious food and such other
biological factors disturb the social balance in the society.
Technological inventions: Technology has its own limitations. It has
brought both good and bad results for man. As Ogburn stated,
technology widens the gap between the material and non-material parts of
culture. Men are becoming more materialistic and less traditional. Men
are devoted more to quantity than to quality, to measurement than to
appreciation. Human beings by the use of machines have become less
human, more passive and more mechanical. There has been a movement
towards individualism and hedonism (pleasure – seekers) which has its
own adverse effects on society.

Characteristic
1. It is univrsal concept . no society can denied it.
2. Social problems change when the concerned behavioural patterns are
interpreted differently.
1) All social problems are situations that have harmful consequences for
the society.
2) All social problems are deviations from the ideal situation.
3) Social problems are caused by many factors.
4) All these factors are social in origin.
5) Social problems are interrelated.
6) Social problems affect every individuals of the society.
7) Social problems affect different individuals differently.

Functionalist view
The main sociological approaches to the study of social problems are the
functionalist perspective. Functionalism aims at analysing the social and
cultural phenomenon in terms of the functions they perform. From this
perspective, the main reason for the existence of social problems is that
societies are always changing and the failure to adapt successfully to
change leads to social problems. Functionalist analysis was prominent in
the work of Auguste Comte and Herbert Spencer, two of the founding
fathers of this discipline and was further developed and refined by Emile
Durkheim. Durkheim is the most important sociological forerunner of
modern day functionalism.According to the functionalist perspective,
each part of society is interconnected and contributes to society
performing as a whole.

According to functionalism :-
Social problems weaken a society’s stability but do not reflect
fundamental faults in how the society is structured. Solutions to social
problems should take the form of gradual social reform rather than
sudden and far-reaching change. Despite their negative effects, social
problems often also serve important functions for society.This is certainly
a controversial suggestion, but it is true that many social problems do
serve important functions for our society. For example, crime is a major
social problem, but it is also good for the economy because it creates
hundreds of thousands of jobs in law enforcement, courts and corrections,
home security, and other sectors of the economy whose major role is to
deal with crime.

Symbolic View

Symbolic interaction theory, called symbolic interaction perspective,

is a sociology theory that seeks to understand humans' relationship
with their society by focusing on the symbols that help us give
meaning to the experiences in our life.

Symbolic interactionism reflects the micro-sociological perspective, and

was largely influenced by the work of early sociologists and
philosophers, such as George Simmel, Charles Cooley, George Herbert
Mead, and Erving Goffman. Symbolic interactionism emphasizes that
human behavior is influenced by definitions and meanings that are
created and maintained through symbolic interaction with others.
Sociologist W.I. Thomas (1966) emphasized the importance of
definitions and meanings in social behavior and its consequences. He
suggested that humans respond to their definition of a situation rather
than to the objective situation itself. Hence Thomas noted that situations
that we define as real become real in their consequences.

Symbolic interactionism views social problems as arising from the interaction of individuals.
This interaction matters in two important respects. First, socially problematic behaviors such as
crime and drug use are often learned from our interaction with people who engage in these
behaviors; we adopt their attitudes that justify committing these behaviors, and we learn any
special techniques that might be needed to commit these behaviors. Second, we also learn our
perceptions of a social problem from our interaction with other people, whose perceptions and
beliefs influence our own perceptions and beliefs.