Heylo & Online Sociology Course

Dear Friends,

I expect you all must have had a good break after the exams and most of you may have begun prep again. Unfortunately I haven't been able to do this. And I have been inactive on the blog front too. For those of you who have been checking the blog for new posts (esp Ramesh who wrote in)- am sorry for the lack of response. But I seek your indulgence for a little more time. I will be active from January onwards for certain.

Meanwhile, I have come across an online course on "Introduction to Sociology". This is not tailored to our syllabus but it seems as if it will help us understand how to apply sociology better- and given the increasing emphasis on application-based questioning, I think it will be useful. Do check it out. The website has other interesting courses too.
(https://www.coursera.org/course/soc101)

Else all well. Take care. Ciao.

Spurthi

Women and work

Sub-contracting in factory-work depresses the daily wage rates for both male and female workers. Patriarchal values distinguish ‘male jobs’ from ‘female jobs’, leaving the unskilled jobs for women- most often also the most labour-intensive ones. Women across various types of production units are generally recruited for more casual types of labour than men. They are also explicitly denied access to apprenticeships, a major channel by which they could potentially ‘graduate’ to more secure and better paying categories of labour.

Reproduced from: http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/623/584
Chattopadhyay, Molly: Sub-Contracting System and Women Workers: A Study of Mica-Manufacturing Industry of Jharkhand. Sociological Bulletin 56, 2 (2007): 289-307.

Media and Democracy

Role of Media in fostering Democracy

• building a tolerant society, and help to sustain India’s plural cultural heritage. 
• media have gradually become more gender-sensitive, increased coverage of weaker and marginalized groups, 
• Assisted the promotion of mass participation in the political process and in decision-making, 
• Connecting the government with the governed. 
• Democracy implies the rule of law, and the media play an important role in the defense of the rule of law, Exposing people to diverse views and ideas and educating the public on the functioning of the democratic setup and on government policies and programmes.
• disseminating information about government services, expenditures, laws, the rights and obligations of citizens, etc.: all are the act of providing essential information for the functioning of a healthy democracy. 
• an antagonistic relationship between media and government represents a vital and healthy element of a fully functioning democracy. 

Nationalist Response to Women's Education

Though not of any direct relevance to our exam, still important facts to be aware of. - Spurthi

A heated debate had taken place in the late nineteenth century between advocates of women’s education, like Lokhitwadi Gopal Hari Deshmukh, Gopala Krishna Gokhale, Jyotirao Phule, Mahadev Govind Ranade, Dondho Keshav Karve, and those strongly against it, like Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Vishnu Shastri Chiplunkar.

Gokhale supported women’s right to education, while Ranade considered women’s education important for the political advancement of the nation and to free women from restrictive life-styles. On the other hand Tilak, a nationalist leader, argued against women’s education, citing the traditional role of women, their
contribution to the nationalist movement by reproduction of the species, their domestic responsibilities, and the likely corruption of women by English-language instruction, and so on. Tilak argued vehemently against the teaching of English to women as being against the sentiments of orthodox Hindus and potentially
destructive of ‘the Hindu household’, and he used his resources to ban educational institutions, especially in Poona.

The author also elaborates on Tilak’s stand in the notorious Rakhmabai case for the restitution of conjugal rights in which a woman had had to face imprisonment on account of her refusal to live with her husband.
The author then discusses in detail two issues of Tilak’s journal, Maharatta, published on 18 September 1887 and 13 November 1887 on the question of the curricula for female education, to demonstrate
Tilak’s stand against women’s education and especially the teaching to women of subjects like arithmetic, English and music, which Tilak considered ornamental and unnecessary

Source: Rao, Parimala V.:  Women’s Education and the Nationalist Response in Western India: Part I-Basic Education.  Indian Journal of Gender Studies 14, 2 (2007): 307-16.
http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/644/605

Population Studies [Sociology]

Barrett, Kenley: The Determinants of Female Decision-Making Power and its Demographic Implications: An Analysis of Northern and Southern India. Demography India 36, 1 (2007): 1-19.

This paper examines the correlation between female decision-making power and fertility levels by comparing northern India (the states of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab) with southern India (Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh).  Generally it is assumed that female autonomy and greater decision-making power within the household are directly related to the reduction of fertility levels, since greater autonomy enables the wife to negotiate with her husband and other family members regarding reproductive decisions.  

The study finds that:
- women who are younger or who are in a relationship of ‘daughter-in-law’ to the head of household have less decision-making power,
- while self-employed women or those who are in non-family employment have greater decision-making power.
- Exposure to the media is also positively correlated with decision-making power,
- Southern women with greater decision-making power have lower ideal fertility
- Northern women with greater decision-making power prefer fewer children and they are also more likely to use contraception.
- But overall the data show that women with high decision-making power have high fertility. , suggesting that high fertility usually promotes high decision-making power.

The paper concludes that, in the absence of the expected negative relationship between female decision making power and the number of births, it is important that researchers should develop a better understanding of the fertility preferences of men, and where these differ from those of women.

Class Formation among Tribals [Sociology]

Trivedi, Mridula: Social Mobility and Class Formation among the Bhils of Rajasthan.  Guru Nanak Journal of Sociology 28, 1 & 2 (2007): 46-56

While the non-tribal caste society has been and continues to remain hierarchical, tribal society was, until recently, strongly egalitarian. The change of Bhil tribal society from an egalitarian to a  hierarchical society in terms of the distribution of power and wealth is quite new. According to the author, the recent emergence of an elite class of rich Bhils has been due to a combination of factors, including the introduction of constitutional safeguards and protection measures, along with education and employment opportunities for tribals, and the expansion of agricultural capitalism. Along with the growing inequality among the tribal peoples has come a growing class awareness and formation of middle class identity as members of the tribal elite begin to merge into the mainstream society

http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/672/631

Politics of 'merit'

The article below throws light on the arguments around 'merit' and has special significance for us in understanding reservation politics. - Spurthi

Madan, Amman: Sociologising merit. Economic and Political Weekly 42, 29 (2007): 3044-50.

The idea of ‘merit’ is one of the most controversial issues in Indian social and political life today. The promotion of merit is regarded as a great improvement over nepotism, based on the one hand on an argument of efficiency, and on the other on an argument of equality. There is also a moral argument embedded in the debate on merit.

This article examines the meaning of merit in a society which has a strong commitment to values of equality and freedom, while at the same time being highly stratified. According to the author, the notion of merit is problematic for several reasons:
(i) it is based on an assessment of individual actions, instead of seeing individuals as part of a social structure, drawing from the cultural and social resources available to them;
(ii) it legitimizes a sharp inequality of rewards;
(iii) it legitimizes an economic system based on injustice;
(iv) it promotes the advantages of birth, rather than of deeds;
(v) it claims technical efficiency, which may be more apparent than real;and
(vi) it legitimizes status group politics.

The real challenge should be to create a society where merit really speaks for goodness as well as for equality of opportunity and does not serve as a label that legitimizes systematic inequality and injustice.
The main argument of this article is that ‘merit’ is a component of a discourse emerging from stratified societies that have a widely held faith in the possibility of social mobility. It is part of a cultural system of individualism and stresses the importance of effort. At the same time, merit is a part of an assumption and acceptance of inequalities and of the unequal distribution of resources at one end, while giving equal opportunity to everyone at another end –celebrating equality while at the same time opposing it.  It is a concept that requires re-thinking.

Reproduced from: http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/670/629

Self Help Groups

Ramesh, Jairam: Self-Help Groups Revolution: What Next? Economic and Political Weekly 42, 36 (2007): 3621-24.

This article discusses the existing scenario and changing face of SelfHelp Groups (SHG) with special reference to the state of Andhra Pradesh (AP). SHGs are conceived as entities for saving and borrowing, linked to processes of social mobilization and empowerment in rural areas in particular.

According to the author, the success of SHGs in Andhra Pradesh has been facilitated by the existing federal structure: each SHG of 10-15 women members is federated into a Mahila Mandal Samakhya, which in turn is federated at the district level to form a Zilla Samakhya. It is this unique combination of a federal structure and the principle of subsidiarity from government which makes Andhra’s SHG movement a trendsetter.

Besides its original purposes, SHGs in Andhra are taking up certain new responsibilities that lie at the core of livelihood security for the poor: for instance,
-the marketing of home/agricultural produce commodities;
- developing direct linkages with exporters and processors;
- the timely disbursement of pensions;
- purchase of dairy livestock;
- and non-pesticide techniques in agriculture.
- traditional land development works and soil and moisture conservation,
- horticulture and agroforestry plantation.
In addition, SHG institutions in Andhra have played a useful supporting role in Social Audit, for instance, in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA). Working closely with the village panchayats, they help in fostering social mobilization and empowerment of the rural population, women in particular.  The article concludes that SHGs such as those in AP not only enhance financial security, but also create alternative livelihoods.


Sooryamoorthy, R.: Microcredit for Microenterprises or for Immediate Consumption Needs? Sociological Bulletin 56, 3 (2007):401-13


The author finds that a large majority of women SHG members had used loans for their immediate needs, rather than for SEM.  In order to make women members economically independent and to assist them in earning a stable income, they need to be encouraged to use loans for SEM (self-employment micro-enterprises). While the literature on microfinance suggests that women have the potential, skills and ability to succeed in micro-enterprises, two things are required for success:
(i) a general and visible improvement in the living conditions of the members after they have joined the group and availed themselves of credit; and
(ii) the creation of a realization that the use of loans primarily for immediate needs cannot bring about a steady improvement in their living standards and hence that they need to initiate some form of regular income-generating self-employment enterprise.
(iii) The self-help groups also need to provide support services (financial and managerial expertise) on a sustained basis at every stage, beginning with the start of SEM initiatives.


Reproduced from: http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/622/583

Panchayats and Democratic Decentralisation: Some studies

Useful for both Public Administration and Sociology and even GS, come to think of it.
Hope your prep is on course and speed. 
Spurthi

Rao, C.B., Manish Gupta, P.R. Jena, ‘Central Flows to Panchayats: A Comparative Study of Madhya Pradesh’, Economic and Political Weekly, XLII (5), February 3, 2007, pp. 365-368.

Panchayati Raj Institutions have emerged as decentralised grassroot level structures for governance in rural areas. With a continuous increase in the magnitude of funds flowing to the panchayats, mainly through Centrally Sponsored Schemes like NREGA, NRHM etc, and the spread of schemes, the PRIs have emerged as decentralised structures of governance functioning in a newfound “culture of faith and freedom”

There are three major mechanisms for transfer of resources from the centre to the states, viz., on the recommendations of
(i) Central Finance Commissions,
(ii) plan grants by the Planning Commission, and
(iii) Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) of various ministries and departments of Government of India.

Some of the significant conclusions of the authors of the paper are :
(1) the PRIs receive resources both directly for some schemes and through state budget for other schemes;
(2) a sizeable part of CSS funds goes directly to the PRIs- an indication of growing importance of PRIs;
(3) another indicator of PRIs as locus of local development is that, they have been entrusted with the
implementation of a number of important schemes, such as SGRY, IAY and NREGS;
(4) existence of an inverse relationship between per capita releases to states and per capita GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) across major states, possibly to bridge inter-state disparities;
(5) poor level of utilisation of funds under different CSS is a common trend across Indian states.

Caste matters: Seminar issue

Dear Friends,

Seminar, a reputed journal of social science, has published a volume on Caste in May 2012. So, flagging for your interest and reading pleasure. :)

http://www.india-seminar.com/semframe.html

Spurthi

Contemporary Questions on Caste

Q 1. Changes and Continuities in Caste System

Caste hierarchies have lost much of their power over the thinking and actions of people in rural areas where they have always been strongest. This change has occurred unevenly, but it is a very widespread trend.As has been argued by some scholars, ‘caste’ is increasingly becoming a ‘difference’ rather than ‘hierarchy’. This is one of the two most important changes to occur in India since Independence – the other being the emergence of a consolidated democracy. [James Manor]

Today, we talk about caste mostly in the context of assertion by ‘backward castes’ and Dalits against deprivation, social injustice. We could say that the present moment of caste denotes social identity in terms of power relationships rather than ritual hierarchy. With adult franchise, frequent and competitive electoral processes and panchayati raj institutions, the ritual aspect of caste in social relationships has little meaning. But at the same time the caste ethos/mindset in terms of ‘high’ and ‘low’ continues. How do we read this? The answer to this question lies in engaging with empirical reality, probing empirical situations with comparative perspectives across the regions and time. [Ghanshyam Shah]

The present day context of change is primarily in the arena of politics and society at various levels. - - (a) First, ‘power’ relationships among caste groups at the village or local level are undergoing significant change. Here both collaboration and competition among dominant and lower castes takes place. This, at times, also results in cases of atrocity. In the rural areas of the country, the landed backward castes have emerged as the direct oppressors of the Dalits. 
(b) Second, in politics, caste still matters in voting patterns. Caste is also a vote bank, but not in the same way as it was earlier when Dalits formed the vote banks of mainstream parties. Today Dalits, and in some cases other lower castes, form the core constituency of Dalit parties and they are proud of it. Their support is on the basis of identity, and not on the earlier patron-client relationships which have broken down. In UP for example, they tend to vote for the BSP. They feel that by doing so they are putting their ‘own government’ in power. 
(c) Third, there is greater awareness about sub-castes and they are playing a more important role than earlier. 
(d) Fourth, there is increasing talk about the rise of a small but influential educated middle class generation of Dalits who are demanding a share in the fruits of development. 
(e) It is not only the lower castes but also the upper castes who use caste to improve their economic and political status. 

In sum, there is now a greater diversity in the political and socio-economic position of caste groups particularly at the lower levels of the caste ladder.  [Sudha Pai]

Case Studies for Religion and Society (Sociology)

Source: http://www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/viewFile/639/600

Indira Khangembam, 2007

Socio-cultural, and religious beliefs of the Lois of Manipur, and the challenges to these beliefs brought about by the Hinduization of

the dominant Meitei society in the state. The Lois comprise about two per cent of the total population of Manipur state and are generally considered to be a distinct ethnic group.

Religion is one of the most important aspects of Lois culture.  It is firmly rooted in the physical ecology, and is the basis of their distinct cultural identity.  The Lois’ religious practices and beliefs contain elements of naturism, animism and ancestor worship.with the ascent of Hinduism in Manipur, a gap has

been created between the Lois and Meiteis, the degraded status of the former being further reinforced as a result of their denomination as a Scheduled Caste by the government of independent India. The Lois now face political subordination and social discrimination in the Meitei-dominated Hinduized society of Manipur.

Meera Nanda, 2007 Secularism without Secularization

The very idea of secularism, its origin and various manifestations, is constantly being called into question in the so-called ‘secular state’. Using a comparative approach, this article discusses the origins of secularism and its influence on the shaping of contemporary state politics in the United States and India. Both nations have prescribed secularism through constitutional provisions, but these secular laws are not firmly anchored in a secular civil society. On the contrary, secularism at the state level encourages the flourishing of a thriving religious supermarket in civil society. Christian theocracy in the US is associated with the idea of liberty, while Hindu nationalism in India is associated with the idea of spiritual enlightenment. 

The existing malfunctions of the secular state arise due to the imposition of secularism without the concomitant secularization of civil society. She argues that the defense of secularism in the present time must start with the defense of scientific reason along with the cultivation of secular culture. Only then can a constitutionally imposed secularism grow meaningfully. 

Mohan Jharta and Sneh 2007,  Religious Conversion of Dalits from Hinduism to Christianity

Oppressed castes from the Hindu fold have always moved out of its fold in search of a religion which might give them security and better social status, embracing Islam, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, and also Christianity. While conversion to Christianity is observed to have brought about some changes in the social status of Dalit Christians, the author argues that there has not been much change in their economic status, and they remain economically more or less on par with their nonconverted Scheduled Caste brethren. The author therefore surmises that Dalits are embracing Christianity in order to improve their social status, and that it is not religion but the caste factor that provokes the decision to convert. In conclusion the authors suggest that further efforts are required by the government and the upper castes to assure Dalits of a respected and dignified status in society, and thereby to retain them within the folds of the Hindu community.

Secularism without Secularization

[Useful for Secularism and Secularization debate in "Religion and Society" of Sociology- Spurthi]

Nanda, Meera: Secularism without Secularization: Reflections on God and Politics in US and India. Economic and Political Weekly 42,1 (2007): 39-46.

The very idea of secularism, its origin and various manifestations, is constantly being called into question in the so-called ‘secular state’. Using a comparative approach, this article discusses the origins of secularism and its influence on the shaping of contemporary state politics in the United States and India. Both nations have prescribed secularism through constitutional provisions, but these secular laws
are not firmly anchored in a secular civil society. On the contrary, secularism at the state level encourages the flourishing of a thriving religious supermarket in civil society. Christian theocracy in the US is associated with the idea of liberty, while Hindu nationalism in India is associated with the idea of spiritual enlightenment. The prevailing religious majoritarianism presents scientific inventions and discoveries as illustrations of religious phenomena, an idea that gains support through the politics of the ‘vote bank’.

According to the author, a critical historical approach suggests that the existing malfunctions of the secular state arise due to the imposition of secularism without the concomitant secularization of civil society. She argues that the defense of secularism in the present time must start with the defense of scientific reason along with the cultivation of secular culture. Only then can a constitutionally imposed secularism grow meaningfully.

Reproduced from: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:jOi7dRbx8D8J:www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/view/632/593+&hl=en&gl=in&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShtC9WvUMwr6ABFlNWJCXIHge9tnuCTQ03oBkudXVvVkGHv4D3KYXnunrBxTHowkUVxJb46KY1K-Xa5XajYKV4Orlcrh0Kt-6Z4fvuTyflfHZw7GniIxbxx4f_URvROQJt3B6tY&sig=AHIEtbTxSbGPW0Z5qK2djKxsXP1Bqm2tkA

Civil Society and Politics

[Useful for Civil Society topics of both Sociology and Public Administration, and Politics and Society (Sociology)- Spurthi]

Harriss, John: Antinomies of Empowerment: Observations on Civil Society, Politics and Urban Governance in India. Economic and Political Weekly 42, 26 (2007), 2716-24.

Along with its liberalization policy, India follows a ‘Post-Washington consensus’ in respect to issues of governance, characterized by privatization, decentralization, civil society participation and community involvement. This paper is concerned with the two elements of this model that are directly related to the notion of ‘empowerment’, namely, civil society participation and community involvement, which together are expected to encourage the development of ‘self rule’ and of people’s capacities to look after themselves and their communities.

The author questions the empowerment-oriented decentralized form of governance typical of a post-liberalization regime through an ethnographic study of associational activity in Chennai, conducted from January to March 2005 using snowball sampling techniques. The study found that the notion of ‘empowerment’ has become very diffuse, and the distinction of ‘subject’ and ‘object’ very prominent in the area of civil society participation. Empowerment and civil society voices are relevant only for the ‘upper strata’, while the ‘urban poor’ stand as the object of middle class and upper caste paternalism. Thus, the attractive new system appears fatally corrupted by the dominance, over-representation and personal advantages of some, excluding others from the ‘new politics’ and forms of governmentality of the post-liberalization state. This new politics is strongly associated with technocratic, rational and modern ideas, and tends to be about ‘problem solving’ rather then the messy politics of democracy. However contradictions arise when poor people show a strong preference for representative democracy.

In short, this paper concludes that the kind of local organization in civil society associated with the agenda of ‘empowerment’ is found in urban India, but that it largely excludes the urban poor as active political agents. It acts as an organization of and for the ‘consumer-citizen’ subjects of the neoliberal state, and many of the activities that it sustains are directed at displacing the urban poor rather than supporting their struggle over right to housing, livelihood protection or self-realization.

Reproduced from: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:jOi7dRbx8D8J:www.inflibnet.ac.in/ojs/index.php/JARSSA/article/view/632/593+&hl=en&gl=in&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShtC9WvUMwr6ABFlNWJCXIHge9tnuCTQ03oBkudXVvVkGHv4D3KYXnunrBxTHowkUVxJb46KY1K-Xa5XajYKV4Orlcrh0Kt-6Z4fvuTyflfHZw7GniIxbxx4f_URvROQJt3B6tY&sig=AHIEtbTxSbGPW0Z5qK2djKxsXP1Bqm2tkA

Sociology material

Dear Friends,

I have come across an interesting ebook which could be useful for Paper 1. It covers the ussual topics of sociological perspectives, stratification, deviance etc, but also has chapters on aging, health, population etc. Although written for undergraduate students of the USA it would be useful in understanding theory. Do take a look.

Sociology: Understanding and Changing the Social World, Brief Edition, v. 1.0

by Steven E. Barkan

http://catalog.flatworldknowledge.com/bookhub/reader/2?e=barkbrief-ch01_s03

Spurthi

Macrosociology and Microsociology

Reproduced from:  http://catalog.flatworldknowledge.com/bookhub/reader/2?e=barkbrief-ch01_s03#fn-1

The theoretical perspectives of sociology can be broadly categorised into two camps: macrosociology and microsociology. Macrosociologists focus on the big picture, which usually means things as social structure, social institutions, social-political-economic change. They look at large scale social forces that change the course of human society and the lives of individuals. Microsociologist, on the other hand study social interaction. They look at how families, co-workers and other small groups interact; why they interact the way they do, and how they interpret the meanings of their interactions and social settings.

Eg: In studying armed robbery, macrosociologists would discuss why robbery rates are higher in some communities than others, whether changes in national economy affects robbery rates etc. Microsociologists would focus on why individual robbers decide to commit robbery and how they decide their targets. 

Within the broad macro camp two perspectives dominate: functionalism and social conflict theories. Within the micro camp the dominating perspectives are: symbolic interactionism and utilitarianism (rational choice theory/exchange theory).  [Randal Collins 1994, Four Sociological Traditions].

How practical is Scientific Sociology?

‘Scientific’ sociology is understood here as Sociology’s effort to be a science- ‘positivistic’ sociology. August Comte proposed the concept of positivism as the scientifically-based sociological research that uses scientific tools such as survey, sampling, objective measurement, and cultural and historical analysis to study and understand society. 

The key components of any science are:

-      Methodology inspired from pure sciences: establishment of ‘cause-and-effect’ social laws; quantitative methods

-          Objectivity

-          Verifiable Conclusions/ Reliability

-          Value Neutrality

-      Relativism (means that there are no universal absolute principles, and all principles are subject to change- falsifiability of theories)

There are some difficulties for sociology to be a science because:

1. Nature of subject matter: (Wo)men have consciousness thus may act differently in different contexts and  also different people may act differently in the same context.
2. Objectivity: the researcher is also human and in her interactions with the subjects may project her prejudices on the latter.
3. Value Neutrality: Marxists have doubts about the value neutrality of positivist thinkers because of the latter’s preoccupation with social order, social consensus and stability.

Pure Science vs. Applied Science

JJ Thompson (discoverer of electron) in 1916 said that pure science was one which was motivated by curiosity and a desire to learn more about the laws of nature. Applied science on the other hand is an attempt to answer specific questions. In Sociology too, this tussle between understanding society for its own sake, or to use that knowledge to reform society dates back to the beginning of the discipline. Thus sociology gas been identified with having two tasks:

Pure Sociology: to study the basic laws of social change and social structure

Applied Sociology:  Involved the conscious use of this knowledge to attain a better society.

This dual purpose is evident from the works of early sociologists onwards. Comte and Durkheim were disturbed by the social unrest caused due to the French Revolution and Enlightenment. Comte developed social physics to understand social statics and social dynamics (the pure sociology part). This knowledge was to be used by sociology to assist in the ‘reforms’ that were propelling society towards the positivistic stage (the applied part of sociology).

Durkheim too, perturbed by the social disorder of his times (industrial strikes, church-state discord, political anti-Semitism), was driven to seek an improved understanding of society. He developed a research tool- ‘social fact’. Through this he identified the differences in earlier societies and modern societies. Durkheim argued that early societies were characterized by strong collective conscience (common morality) which provided cohesion to the society and support to its members. Alternatively modern societies had a weak collective conscience. This was the pure science part of his sociological theory. In applying this knowledge Durkheim argues that common morality could be strengthened in modern societies which would help people to cope better with the pathologies of their society.

For, feminist theorists the understanding of society is invariable succeeded by using the knowledge in social reform. This activism was as much part of their doing sociology as creating theory was.

Source: George Ritzer 2000, Sociological Theory