Sociology studies human social relationships and institutions through a diverse lens. It covers issues ranging from religion, family, crime, nationalism, race, caste and class. It elaborates on shared beliefs of common culture, social stability, and evolving society. Sociology helps us understand human action and how it is shaped by the surrounding cultural and social structures.
Social psychology examines the role of society in shaping human behaviour. Social contexts are situations and environments in which people interact with others. The norms, expectations and values define social contexts that influence how individuals think, feel and behave. For instance, people’s behaviour will be subdued during a social gathering for a funeral but elated at a wedding. In many instances, people may behave differently when they are alone or among family members and differently in the presence of outsiders.
Social influences refer to the impact of other people on a person. There are three types of social influence - compliance, conformity and obedience. When people adjust their behaviour to match those of a group it is called conformity. For instance, when a person wears traditional wear for festivals or religious gatherings it is for conforming with the group. Compliance is agreeing to demands or requests from someone in a position of authority. For instance, when an employee comes to work on their day off or stays in the office overtime to comply with their bosses’ orders. Obedience is following orders or instructions from an authority figure. For instance, students dressing in the correct uniform and adhering to the school’s rules is obedience.
An individual’s concept of self-identity is derived from their group membership. These will include their race, gender, religion, nationality, profession and even caste. Social identity has a strong role in impacting an individual’s behaviour, beliefs and attitude. For instance, the Sabbath is a day of rest for both Jews and Christians, however, Jews follow the Sabbath on Saturday and Christians on Sunday.
Social identity distinguishes groups and can lead to solidarity and bias, based on individual and collective behaviour. For instance, the caste system in India excludes many groups, causing a superiority complex among the upper caste people.
The evaluation of people's objects and ideas that influence behaviour is called attitude. Attitudes evolve through the influence of factors such as social norms, personal experiences and cognitive processes. It is important to evolve with times and circumstances, which can be challenging. Understanding the root of how attitudes are formed and changed can help develop effective interventions for changing behaviour.
Prejudice is a negative consequence of social identity and refers to a group’s negative attitudes and beliefs. Prejudices can have severe social and psychological consequences on an individual such as low self-esteem, loss of fair opportunities, poor mental health and even physical harm.
Social cognition guides in understanding how:
Social cognition plays a critical role in understanding how we interact with others and what influences our behaviour towards them. If one is exposed to positive views, then the impression is also positive. For instance, in India, there is a common notion that South Indians are highly educated, Parsi community people are charitable, or that Gujarati and Marwari community people have high business acumen. While these are positive social impressions, social cognition can also lead to negative social impressions. For instance, the prejudiced view against girl children in a patriarchal society leads to evils such as female infanticide, child marriage or illiteracy among girls.
The concepts we study in sociology can help us understand the social influence on individual behaviour and identity. It will help us recognise causes of discrimination and pinpoint habits or practices that are contributing to their positive development in society. We can better understand some serious problems in contemporary society and develop effective interventions to improve people’s lives and ensure social justice.
Society evolves and individual behaviour evolves with that. What is normal now can become deviant behaviour later. For instance, child marriage was a common practice, and so was polygamy, both of which are considered crimes in today’s society.
Society impacts individual behaviour through cultural norms, religious practices and geographical necessities.
In the context of society’s impact on individual behaviour, we study a branch called social psychology which studies the impact of social structure in shaping an individual’s behaviour and thought process.
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