The plan of the election campaign in the Russian Federation. The electoral system in the Russian Federation plan s8

The concept of "behavior" came to sociology from psychology. The meaning of the term "behavior" is different from the meaning of such traditionally philosophical concepts as action and activity. If action is understood as a rationally justified act that has a clear goal, a strategy that is carried out with the involvement of specific conscious methods and means, then behavior is just a reaction of a living being to external and internal changes. This reaction can be both conscious and unconscious. Thus, purely emotional reactions - laughter, crying - are also behavior.

social behavior - it is a set of human behavioral processes associated with the satisfaction of physical and social needs and arising as a reaction to the surrounding social environment. The subject of social behavior can be an individual or a group.

If we abstract from purely psychological factors and reason at the social level, then the individual's behavior is determined primarily by socialization. The minimum of innate instincts that a person possesses as a biological being is the same for all people. Behavioral differences depend on the qualities acquired in the process of socialization and, to some extent, on congenital and acquired psychological individual characteristics.

In addition, the social behavior of individuals is regulated by the social structure, in particular the role structure of society.

Social norm of behavior- this is a behavior that is fully consistent with status expectations. Due to the existence of status expectations, society can predict the actions of the individual in advance with sufficient probability, and the individual himself can coordinate his behavior with the ideal model or model accepted by society. Social behavior corresponding to status expectations is defined by the American sociologist R. Linton as social role. This interpretation of social behavior is closest to functionalism, since it explains behavior as a phenomenon determined by social structure. R. Merton introduced the category of "role complex" - a system of role expectations determined by a given status, as well as the concept of a role conflict that occurs when the role expectations of the statuses occupied by the subject are incompatible and cannot be realized in some single socially acceptable behavior.

The functionalist understanding of social behavior was subjected to fierce criticism from, first of all, representatives of social behaviorism, who believed that it was necessary to build a study of behavioral processes on the basis of the achievements of modern psychology. The extent to which psychological moments were really overlooked by the role-based interpretation of the command follows from the fact that N. Cameron tries to substantiate the idea of ​​the role-based determinism of mental disorders, believing that mental illness is the incorrect performance of one's social roles and the result of the patient's inability to perform them the way it is. society needs. Behaviorists argued that at the time of E. Durkheim, the successes of psychology were insignificant and therefore the functionality of the expiring paradigm met the requirements of the time, but in the 20th century, when psychology reached a high level of development, its data cannot be ignored when considering human behavior.

Forms of human social behavior

People behave differently in this or that social situation, in this or that social environment. For example, some demonstrators peacefully march along the declared route, others seek to organize riots, and others provoke mass clashes. These various actions of the actors of social interaction can be defined as social behavior. Consequently, social behavior is the form and method of manifestation by social actors of their preferences and attitudes, capabilities and abilities in social action or interaction. Therefore, social behavior can be considered as a qualitative characteristic of social action and interaction.

In sociology, social behavior is interpreted as: o behavior, expressed in the totality of actions and actions of an individual or group in society and depending on socio-economic factors and prevailing norms; o external manifestation of activity, a form of transformation of activity into real actions in relation to socially significant objects; about the adaptation of a person to the social conditions of his existence.

To achieve life goals and in the implementation of individual tasks, a person can use two types of social behavior - natural and ritual, the differences between which are of a fundamental nature.

"Natural" behavior, individually significant and egocentric, is always aimed at achieving individual goals and is adequate to these goals. Therefore, the individual does not face the question of the correspondence between the goals and means of social behavior: the goal can and must be achieved by any means. The "natural" behavior of the individual is not socially regulated, therefore, as a rule, it is immoral or "cavalier". Such social behavior has a "natural", natural character, since it is directed to the provision of organic needs. In society, "natural" egocentric behavior is "forbidden", therefore it is always based on social conventions and mutual concessions on the part of all individuals.

ritual behavior("ceremonial") - individually-unnatural behavior; It is precisely through such behavior that society exists and reproduces itself. Ritual in all its variety of forms - from etiquette to ceremony - so deeply permeates the entire social life that people do not notice that they live in a field of ritual interactions. Ritual social behavior is a means of ensuring the stability of the social system, and the individual who implements various forms of such behavior participates in ensuring the social stability of social structures and interactions. Thanks to ritual behavior, a person achieves social well-being, constantly being convinced of the inviolability of his social status and maintaining the usual set of social roles.

Society is interested in the social behavior of individuals to be of a ritual nature, but society cannot cancel the “natural” egocentric social behavior, which, being adequate in goals and unscrupulous in means, always turns out to be more beneficial for the individual than “ritual” behavior. Therefore, society seeks to transform the forms of "natural" social behavior into various forms of ritual social behavior, including through the mechanisms of socialization using social support, control and punishment.

Such forms of social behavior are aimed at the preservation and maintenance of social relations and, ultimately, the survival of a person as homo sapiens (a reasonable person), such as:

  • cooperative behavior, which includes all forms of altruistic behavior - helping each other during natural disasters and technological disasters, helping young children and the elderly, helping future generations through the transfer of knowledge and experience;
  • parental behavior - the behavior of parents in relation to offspring.

Aggressive behavior is presented in all its manifestations, both group and individual - from verbal insults to another person and ending with mass extermination during wars.

Concepts of human behavior

Human behavior is studied by many areas of psychology - in behaviorism, psychoanalysis, cognitive psychology, etc. The term "behavior" is one of the key in existential philosophy and is used in the study of a person's relationship to the world. The methodological possibilities of this concept are due to the fact that it allows you to identify the unconscious stable structures of the personality or the existence of a person in the world. Among the psychological concepts of human behavior that have had a great influence on sociology and social psychology, we should first of all name the psychoanalytic trends developed by Freud, C. G. Jung, and A. Adler.

Freud's representations are based on the fact that the individual's behavior is formed as a result of a complex interaction of the levels of his personality. Freud singles out three such levels: the lowest level is formed by unconscious impulses and urges determined by innate biological needs and complexes formed under the influence of the subject's individual history. Freud calls this level It (Id) to show its separation from the conscious Self of the individual, which forms the second level of his psyche. The Conscious Self includes rational goal setting and responsibility for one's actions. The highest level is the Superego - what we would call the result of socialization. This is a set of social norms and values ​​internalized by an individual, which exerts internal pressure on him in order to force out of his consciousness undesirable (forbidden) impulses and inclinations for society and prevent them from being realized. According to Freud, the personality of any person is an ongoing struggle between the id and the superego, which loosens the psyche and leads to neuroses. Individual behavior is wholly conditioned by this struggle and fully explained by it, since it is only a symbolic reflection of it. Such symbols can be images of dreams, slips of the tongue, slips of the tongue, obsessions, and fears.

The concept of C. G. Jung expands and modifies Freud's teaching, including in the sphere of the unconscious not only individual complexes and drives, but also the collective unconscious - the level of key images common to all people and peoples - archetypes. The archetypes contain archaic fears and value ideas, the interaction of which determines the behavior and attitude of the individual. Archetypal images appear in the basic narratives - folk tales and legends, mythology, epic - historically specific societies. The socially regulating role of such narratives in traditional societies is very great. They contain ideal behaviors that shape role expectations. For example, a male warrior should behave like Achilles or Hector, a wife like Penelope, and so on. Regular recitations (ritual reproductions) of archetyonic narratives constantly remind the members of society of these ideal patterns of behavior.

Adler's psychoanalytic concept is based on the unconscious will to power, which, in his opinion, is an innate personality structure and determines behavior. It is especially strong in those who, for one reason or another, suffer from an inferiority complex. In an effort to compensate for their inferiority, they are able to achieve great success.

Further splitting of the psychoanalytic direction led to the emergence of many schools, in disciplinary terms occupying a borderline position between psychology, social philosophy, and sociology. Let us dwell in detail on the work of E. Fromm.

Fromm's positions - The representative of neo-Freudianism in and - more precisely, can be defined as Freilo-Marxism, since along with the influence of Freud, he was no less strongly influenced by the social philosophy of Marx. The peculiarity of neo-Freudianism in comparison with orthodox Freudianism is due to the fact that, strictly speaking, neo-Freudianism is more of a sociology, while Freud is, of course, a pure psychologist. If Freud explains the behavior of the individual by complexes and impulses hidden in the individual unconscious, in short, by internal biopsychic factors, then for Fromm and Freilo-Marxism in general, the behavior of the individual is determined by the surrounding social environment. This is his similarity with Marx, who explained the social behavior of individuals in the final analysis by their class origin. Nevertheless, Fromm seeks to find a place for the psychological in social processes. According to the Freudian tradition, referring to the unconscious, he introduces the term "social unconscious", implying one psychic experience common to all members of a given society, but most of them do not fall on the level of consciousness, because it is displaced by a special mechanism that is social in nature, belonging not to the individual, but to society. Thanks to this mechanism of displacement, society maintains a stable existence. The mechanism of social repression includes language, the logic of everyday thinking, a system of social prohibitions and taboos. The structures of language and thinking are formed under the influence of society and act as an instrument of social pressure on the psyche of the individual. For example, coarse, anti-aesthetic, absurd abbreviations and abbreviations of "Newspeak" from the Orwellian dystopia actively disfigure the consciousness of people who use them. To one degree or another, the monstrous logic of formulas like: "The dictatorship of the proletariat is the most democratic form of power" became the property of everyone in Soviet society.

The main component of the mechanism of social repression is social taboos that act like Freudian censorship. That in the social experience of individuals that threatens the preservation of the existing society, if it is realized, is not allowed into consciousness with the help of a "social filter". Society manipulates the minds of its members by introducing ideological clichés that, due to frequent use, become inaccessible to critical analysis, withholding certain information, exerting direct pressure and causing fear of social exclusion. Therefore, everything that contradicts socially approved ideological clichés is excluded from consciousness.

Such taboos, ideologemes, logical and linguistic experiments form, according to Fromm, the "social character" of a person. People belonging to the same society, against their will, are, as it were, marked with the seal of a “common incubator”. For example, we unmistakably recognize foreigners on the street, even if we do not hear their speech, by their behavior, appearance, attitude towards each other; these are people from a different society, and, getting into a mass environment alien to them, they stand out sharply from it due to their similarities. Social character - it is a style of behavior brought up by society and unconscious by the individual - from social to everyday. For example, Soviet and former Soviet people are distinguished by collectivism and responsiveness, social passivity and undemandingness, obedience to the authorities, personified in the person of the "leader", a developed fear of being different from everyone else, and gullibility.

Fromm directed his criticism against modern capitalist society, although he paid much attention to the description of the social character generated by totalitarian societies. Like Freud, he developed a program to restore the undistorted social behavior of individuals through the awareness of what was repressed. “By transforming the unconscious into consciousness, we thereby transform the simple concept of the universality of man into the vital reality of such universality. This is nothing but the practical realization of humanism.” The process of derepression - the liberation of socially oppressed consciousness - is to eliminate the fear of realizing the forbidden, to develop the ability to think critically, to humanize social life as a whole.

A different interpretation is offered by behaviorism (B. Skinner, J. Homans), who considers behavior as a system of reactions to various stimuli.

Skinner's concept in fact, it is a biologization one, since it completely removes the differences between the behavior of a person and an animal. Skinner identifies three types of behavior: unconditioned reflex, conditioned reflex, and operant. The first two types of reactions are caused by the impact of appropriate stimuli, and operant reactions are a form of adaptation of the organism to the environment. They are active and spontaneous. The body, as it were by trial and error, finds the most acceptable way of adaptation, and if successful, the find is fixed in the form of a stable reaction. Thus, the main factor in the formation of behavior is reinforcement, and learning turns into "guiding to the desired reaction."

In Skinner's concept, a person appears as a being whose entire inner life is reduced to reactions to external circumstances. Reinforcement changes mechanically cause behavioral changes. Thinking, the higher mental functions of a person, the whole culture, morality, art turn into a complex system of reinforcements designed to evoke certain behavioral reactions. This leads to the conclusion about the possibility of manipulating people's behavior through a carefully developed "technology of behavior". With this term, Skinner denotes the purposeful manipulation control of some groups of people over others, associated with the establishment of an optimal reinforcement regime for certain social goals.

The ideas of behaviorism in sociology were developed by J. and J. Baldwin, J. Homans.

The concept of J. iJ. Baldwin is based on the concept of reinforcement, borrowed from psychological behaviorism. Reinforcement in the social sense is a reward, the value of which is determined by subjective needs. For example, for a hungry person, food acts as a reinforcement, but if a person is full, it is not a reinforcement.

The effectiveness of the reward depends on the degree of deprivation in a given individual. Sub-deprivation refers to the deprivation of something that the individual experiences a constant need for. As far as the subject is deprived in any respect, so much his behavior depends on this reinforcement. The so-called generalized reinforcers (for example, money) do not depend on deprivation, acting on all individuals without exception, due to the fact that they concentrate access to many types of reinforcements at once.

Reinforcers are divided into positive and negative. Positive reinforcers are anything that the subject perceives as a reward. For example, if a certain exposure to the environment brought a reward, it is likely that the subject will seek to repeat this experience. Negative reinforcers are factors that determine behavior through the withdrawal of some experience. For example, if the subject denies himself some pleasure and saves money on it, and subsequently benefits from this saving, then this experience can serve as a negative reinforcer and the subject will always do so.

The effect of punishment is the opposite of reinforcement. Punishment is an experience that makes you want to never repeat it again. Punishment can also be positive or negative, but here everything is reversed compared to reinforcement. Positive punishment is punishment with a suppressive stimulus, such as a blow. Negative punishment affects behavior by depriving something of value. For example, depriving a child of sweets at dinner is a typical negative punishment.

The formation of operant reactions has a probabilistic character. Unambiguity is characteristic of reactions of the simplest level, for example, a child cries, demanding the attention of his parents, because parents always come to him in such cases. Adult reactions are much more complex. For example, a person who sells newspapers in train cars does not find a buyer in every car, but knows from experience that a buyer will eventually be found, and this makes him persistently walk from car to car. In the last decade, the receipt of wages at some Russian enterprises has taken on the same probabilistic character, but nevertheless people continue to go to work, hoping to receive it.

Homans' behavioral concept of exchange appeared in the middle of the 20th century. Arguing with representatives of many areas of sociology, Homans argued that a sociological explanation of behavior must necessarily be based on a psychological approach. The interpretation of historical facts should also be based on a psychological approach. Homans motivates this by the fact that behavior is always individual, while sociology operates with categories applicable to groups and societies, so the study of behavior is the prerogative of psychology, and sociology should follow it in this matter.

According to Homans, when studying behavioral reactions, one should abstract from the nature of the factors that caused these reactions: they are caused by the influence of the surrounding physical environment or other people. Social behavior is just an exchange of socially valuable activities between people. Homans believes that social behavior can be interpreted using Skinner's behavioral paradigm, if supplemented with the idea of ​​the mutual nature of stimulation in relations between people. The relationship of individuals among themselves is always a mutually beneficial exchange of activities, services, in short, it is the mutual use of reinforcements.

Homans briefly formulated the exchange theory in several postulates:

  • the postulate of success - those actions that most often meet with social approval are most likely to be reproduced;
  • incentive postulate - similar reward-related stimuli are highly likely to cause similar behavior;
  • postulate of value - the probability of reproducing an action depends on how valuable the result of this action seems to a person;
  • the postulate of deprivation - the more regularly a person's act was rewarded, the less he appreciates the subsequent reward;
  • the dual postulate of aggression-approval - the absence of an expected reward or an unexpected punishment makes aggressive behavior likely, and an unexpected reward or the absence of an expected punishment leads to an increase in the value of the rewarded act and makes it more likely to be reproduced.

The most important concepts of the theory of exchange are:

  • the price of behavior - what this or that act costs an individual - the negative consequences caused by past actions. In worldly terms, this is retribution for the past;
  • benefit - occurs when the quality and size of the reward exceeds the price that this act costs.

Thus, the theory of exchange depicts human social behavior as a rational search for benefits. This concept seems simplistic, and it is not surprising that it has provoked criticism from a variety of sociological schools. For example, Parsons, who defended the fundamental difference between the mechanisms of human and animal behavior, criticized Homans for the inability of his theory to explain social facts on the basis of psychological mechanisms.

In his exchange theories I. blau attempted a kind of synthesis of social behaviorism and sociologism. Realizing the limitations of a purely behaviorist interpretation of social behavior, he set the goal of moving from the level of psychology to explaining on this basis the existence of social structures as a special reality that is irreducible to psychology. Blau's concept is an enriched theory of exchange, in which four successive stages of transition from individual exchange to social structures are singled out: 1) the stage of interpersonal exchange; 2) the stage of power-status differentiation; 3) the stage of legitimation and organization; 4) the stage of opposition and change.

Blau shows that, starting from the level of interpersonal exchange, exchange may not always be equal. In cases where individuals cannot offer each other sufficient rewards, the social bonds formed between them tend to disintegrate. In such situations, there are attempts to strengthen disintegrating ties in other ways - through coercion, through the search for another source of reward, through subordination of oneself to an exchange partner in the form of a generalized loan. The latter path means a transition to a stage of status differentiation, when a group of persons capable of giving the required remuneration becomes more privileged in terms of status than other groups. In the future, legitimation and consolidation of the situation and the separation of opposition groups take place. In analyzing complex social structures, Blau goes far beyond the paradigm of behaviorism. He argues that the complex structures of society are organized around social values ​​and norms, which serve as a kind of mediating link between individuals in the process of social exchange. Thanks to this link, the exchange of rewards is possible not only between individuals, but also between an individual and a group. For example, considering the phenomenon of organized charity, Blau determines what distinguishes charity as a social institution from the simple help of a rich individual to a poorer one. The difference is that organized charity is socially oriented behavior, which is based on the desire of a wealthy individual to conform to the norms of the wealthy class and share social values; through norms and values, a relationship of exchange is established between the sacrificing individual and the social group to which he belongs.

Blau identifies four categories of social values ​​on the basis of which exchange is possible:

  • particularistic values ​​that unite individuals on the basis of interpersonal relationships;
  • universalist values, acting as a measure for evaluating individual merits;
  • legitimate authority - a system of values ​​that provides the power and privileges of a certain category of people in comparison with all others:
  • oppositional values ​​- ideas about the need for social change, allowing the opposition to exist at the level of social facts, and not just at the level of interpersonal relations of individual oppositionists.

It can be said that Blau's exchange theory is a compromise, combining elements of Homans theory and sociologism in the treatment of reward exchange.

Role concept by J. Mead is a symbolic interactionist approach to the study of social behavior. Its name is reminiscent of the functionalist approach: it is also called role-playing. Mead considers role behavior as the activity of individuals interacting with each other in freely accepted and played roles. According to Mead, the role interaction of individuals requires them to be able to put themselves in the place of another, to evaluate themselves from the position of another.

Synthesis of exchange theory with symbolic interactionism also tried to implement P. Singelman. Symbolic actionism has a number of points of intersection with social behaviorism and exchange theories. Both of these concepts emphasize the active interaction of individuals and consider their subject from a microsociological perspective. According to Singelman, relationships of interpersonal exchange require the ability to put oneself in the position of another in order to better understand his needs and desires. Therefore, he believes that there are grounds for merging both directions into one. However, social behaviorists were critical of the emergence of the new theory.

social behavior

The concept of "behavior" came to sociology from psychology. The meaning of the term "behavior" is different from the meaning of such traditionally philosophical concepts as action and activity. If action is understood as a rationally justified act that has a clear goal, a strategy that is carried out with the involvement of specific conscious methods and means, then behavior is just a reaction of a living being to external and internal changes. This reaction can be both conscious and unconscious. So, purely emotional reactions - laughter, crying - are also behavior.

social behavior is a set of human behavioral processes associated with the satisfaction of physical and social needs and arising as a reaction to the surrounding social environment. The subject of social behavior can be an individual or a group.

If we abstract from purely psychological factors and reason at the social level, then the individual's behavior is determined primarily by socialization. The minimum of innate instincts that a person possesses as a biological being is the same for all people. Behavioral differences depend on the qualities acquired in the process of socialization and, to some extent, on congenital and acquired psychological individual characteristics.

In addition, the social behavior of individuals is regulated by the social structure, in particular the role structure of society.

Social norm of behavior- this is a behavior that is fully consistent with status expectations. Due to the existence of status expectations, society can predict the actions of an individual in advance with sufficient probability, and the individual himself can coordinate his behavior with the ideal model or model accepted by society. Social behavior corresponding to status expectations is defined by the American sociologist R. Linton as social role. This interpretation of social behavior is closest to functionalism, since it explains behavior as a phenomenon determined by social structure. R. Merton introduced the category of "role complex" - a system of role expectations determined by a given status, as well as the concept of a role conflict that occurs when the role expectations of the statuses occupied by the subject are incompatible and cannot be realized in some single socially acceptable behavior.

The functionalist understanding of social behavior was subjected to fierce criticism from, first of all, representatives of social behaviorism, who believed that it was necessary to build a study of behavioral processes on the basis of the achievements of modern psychology. The extent to which psychological moments were really overlooked by the role-based interpretation of the command follows from the fact that N. Cameron tries to substantiate the idea of ​​the role-based determinism of mental disorders, believing that mental illness is the incorrect performance of one's social roles and the result of the patient's inability to perform them the way it is. society needs. Behaviorists argued that in the time of E. Durkheim, the successes of psychology were insignificant and therefore the functionality of the expiring paradigm met the requirements of the time, but in the 20th century, when psychology reached a high level of development, its data cannot be ignored when considering human behavior.

People behave differently in this or that social situation, in this or that social environment. For example, some demonstrators peacefully march along the declared route, others seek to organize riots, and others provoke mass clashes. These various actions of the actors of social interaction can be defined as social behavior. Consequently, social behavior is the form and method of manifestation by social actors of their preferences and attitudes, capabilities and abilities in social action or interaction. Therefore, social behavior can be considered as a qualitative characteristic of social action and interaction.

In sociology, social behavior is interpreted as: o behavior, expressed in the totality of actions and actions of an individual or group in society and depending on socio-economic factors and prevailing norms; o external manifestation of activity, a form of transformation of activity into real actions in relation to socially significant objects; about the adaptation of a person to the social conditions of his existence.

To achieve life goals and in the implementation of individual tasks, a person can use two types of social behavior - natural and ritual, the differences between which are of a fundamental nature.

"Natural" behavior, individually significant and egocentric, is always aimed at achieving individual goals and is adequate to these goals. Therefore, the individual does not face the question of the correspondence between the goals and means of social behavior: the goal can and must be achieved by any means. The "natural" behavior of an individual is not socially regulated, so it is usually immoral or "cavalier". Such social behavior has a "natural", natural character, since it is directed to the provision of organic needs. In society, "natural" egocentric behavior is "forbidden", therefore it is always based on social conventions and mutual concessions on the part of all individuals.

Ritual behavior ("ceremonial")- individually-unnatural behavior; It is precisely through such behavior that society exists and reproduces itself. Ritual in all its variety of forms - from etiquette to ceremony - permeates all social life so deeply that people do not notice that they live in a field of ritual interactions. Ritual social behavior is a means of ensuring the stability of the social system, and the individual who implements various forms of such behavior participates in ensuring the social stability of social structures and interactions. Thanks to ritual behavior, a person achieves social well-being, constantly being convinced of the inviolability of his social status and maintaining the usual set of social roles.

Society is interested in the social behavior of individuals to be of a ritual nature, but society cannot cancel the “natural” egocentric social behavior, which, being adequate in goals and unscrupulous in means, always turns out to be more beneficial for the individual than “ritual” behavior. Therefore, society seeks to transform the forms of "natural" social behavior into various forms of ritual social behavior, including through the mechanisms of socialization using social support, control and punishment.

Such forms of social behavior are aimed at the preservation and maintenance of social relations and, ultimately, the survival of a person as homo sapiens (a reasonable person), such as:

    cooperative behavior, which includes all forms of altruistic behavior - helping each other during natural disasters and technological disasters, helping young children and the elderly, helping future generations through the transfer of knowledge and experience;

    parental behavior - the behavior of parents in relation to offspring.

Aggressive behavior is presented in all its manifestations, both group and individual - from verbal insults to another person and ending with mass extermination during wars.

Human behavior is studied by many areas of psychology - in behaviorism, psychoanalysis, cognitive psychology, etc. The term "behavior" is one of the key in existential philosophy and is used in the study of a person's relationship to the world. The methodological possibilities of this concept are due to the fact that it allows you to identify the unconscious stable structures of the personality or the existence of a person in the world. Among the psychological concepts of human behavior that have had a great influence on sociology and social psychology, one should name, first of all, the psychoanalytic trends developed by Z. Freud, C. G. Jung, A. Adler.

The concept of "behavior" came to sociology from psychology. The meaning of the term "behavior" is different from the meaning of such traditionally philosophical concepts as action and activity. If action is understood as a rationally justified act that has a clear goal, a strategy that is carried out with the involvement of specific conscious methods and means, then behavior is only the reaction of a living being to external and internal changes. This reaction can be both conscious and unconscious. Thus, purely emotional reactions - laughter, crying - will also be behavior.

social behavior -϶ᴛᴏ a set of human behavioral processes associated with the satisfaction of physical and social needs and arising as a reaction to the surrounding social environment. The subject of social behavior can be an individual or a group.

If we ignore purely psychological factors and reason at the social level, then the individual's behavior is determined primarily by socialization. The minimum of innate instincts that a person possesses as a biological being is the same for all people. Behavioral differences depend on the qualities acquired in the process of socialization and, to some extent, on congenital and acquired psychological individual characteristics.

Excluding the above, the social behavior of individuals is regulated by the social structure, in particular the role structure of society.

Social norm of behavior— ϶ᴛᴏ such behavior, which is completely ϲᴏᴏᴛʙᴇᴛϲᴛʙ conforms to status expectations. Due to the existence of status expectations, society can predict the actions of an individual in advance with sufficient probability, and the individual himself can coordinate his behavior with the ideal model or model accepted by society. Social behavior that conforms to status expectations is defined by the American sociologist R. Linton as social role. It is this interpretation of social behavior that is closest to functionalism, since it explains behavior as a phenomenon determined by social structure. R. Merton introduced the category of "role complex" - a system of role expectations determined by a given status, as well as the concept of a role conflict that occurs when the role expectations of the statuses occupied by the subject are incompatible and cannot be realized in some single socially acceptable behavior.

The functionalist understanding of social behavior was subjected to fierce criticism from, first of all, representatives of social behaviorism, who believed that it was necessary to build a study of behavioral processes on the basis of the achievements of modern psychology. The extent to which psychological moments were really overlooked by the role-based interpretation of the command follows from the fact that N. Cameron tried to substantiate the idea of ​​the role-based determinism of mental disorders, believing that mental illness is an incorrect performance of their social roles and the result of the patient's inability to perform them in the way ϶ᴛᴏ society needs. Behaviorists argued that at the time of E. Durkheim, the successes of psychology were insignificant and therefore the functionality of the expiring paradigm met the requirements of the time, but in the 20th century, when psychology reached a high level of development, its data cannot be ignored when considering human behavior.

Forms of human social behavior

People behave differently in this or that social situation, in this or that social environment. For example, some demonstrators peacefully march along the declared route, others seek to organize riots, and others provoke mass clashes. These various actions of the actors of social interaction can be defined as social behavior. Consequently, social behavior -϶ᴛᴏ the form and method of manifestation by social actors of their preferences and attitudes, capabilities and abilities in social action or interaction. Therefore, social behavior can be considered as a qualitative characteristic of social action and interaction.

In sociology, social behavior is interpreted as: o behavior, expressed in the totality of actions and actions of an individual or group in society and depending on socio-economic factors and prevailing norms; o external manifestation of activity, a form of transformation of activity into real actions in relation to socially significant objects; about the adaptation of a person to the social conditions of his existence.

To achieve life goals and in the implementation of individual tasks, a person can use two types of social behavior - natural and ritual, the differences between them are of a fundamental nature.

"Natural" behavior, individually significant and egocentric, is always aimed at achieving individual goals and is adequate to these goals. Therefore, the individual does not face the question of the goals and means of social behavior: the goal can and must be achieved by any means. The "natural" behavior of the individual is not socially regulated, therefore it is traditionally immoral or "cavalier". Such social behavior has a "natural", natural character, since it is directed to the provision of organic needs. In society, "natural" egocentric behavior is "forbidden", therefore it is always based on social conventions and mutual concessions on the part of all individuals.

ritual behavior("ceremonial") - individually-unnatural behavior; It is precisely through such behavior that society exists and reproduces itself. Ritual in all its variety of forms—from data-ket to ceremony—permeates all social life so deeply that people do not notice that they are living in a field of ritual interactions. Ritual social behavior will be a means of ensuring the stability of the social system, and the individual who implements various forms of such behavior participates in ensuring the social stability of social structures and interactions. Thanks to ritual behavior, a person achieves social well-being, constantly making sure of the inviolability of his social status and maintaining the usual set of social roles.

Society is interested in the fact that the social behavior of individuals would be of a ritual nature, but society cannot cancel the “natural” egocentric social behavior, which, being adequate in goals and indiscriminate in means, always turns out to be more beneficial for the individual than “ritual” behavior. Therefore, society seeks to transform the forms of "natural" social behavior into various forms of ritual social behavior, incl. through the mechanisms of socialization using social support, control and punishment.

Such forms of social behavior are aimed at the preservation and maintenance of social relations and, ultimately, the survival of a person as homo sapiens (a reasonable person), such as:

  • cooperative behavior, which includes all forms of altruistic behavior - helping each other during natural disasters and technological disasters, helping young children and the elderly, helping future generations through the transfer of knowledge and experience;
  • parental behavior - the behavior of parents in relation to offspring.

Aggressive behavior is presented in all its manifestations, both group and individual - from verbal insults to another person and ending with mass extermination during wars.

Concepts of human behavior

Human behavior is studied by many areas of psychology - in behaviorism, psychoanalysis, cognitive psychology, etc. Note that the term "behavior" is one of the key terms in existential philosophy and is used in the study of a person's relationship to the world. The methodological possibilities of the ϶ᴛᴏth concept are due to the fact that it allows you to identify the unconscious stable structures of the personality or the existence of a person in the world. Among the psychological concepts of human behavior that have had a great influence on sociology and social psychology, we should first of all name the psychoanalytic trends developed by Freud, C. G. Jung, and A. Adler.

Freud's representations are based on the fact that the individual's behavior is formed as a result of a complex interaction of the levels of his personality. Freud singles out three such levels: the lowest level is formed by unconscious impulses and urges determined by innate biological needs and complexes formed under the influence of the subject's individual history. Freud calls this level It is important to understand - it (Id), ɥᴛᴏ to show its separation from the conscious Self of the individual, which forms the second level of his psyche. Conscious I contains rational goal-setting and responsibility for ϲʙᴏ and actions. The highest level is the Superego - what we would call the result of socialization. This is a set of social norms and values ​​internalized by an individual, which exerts internal pressure on him in order to force out of consciousness undesirable (forbidden) impulses and inclinations for society and prevent them from being realized. According to Freud, the personality of any person is an incessant struggle. It is important to understand that it is also the Super-I, which loosens the psyche and leads to neuroses. Individual behavior is wholly conditioned by the ϶ᴛᴏth struggle and fully explained by it, since it is only its symbolic reflection. Such symbols can be images of dreams, slips of the tongue, slips of the tongue, obsessions, and fears.

The concept of C. G. Jung expands and modifies Freud's teaching, including in the sphere of the unconscious not only individual complexes and drives, but also the collective unconscious - the level of key images common to all people and peoples - archetypes. Archaic fears and value ideas are fixed in the archetypes, the interaction of which determines the behavior and attitude of the individual. Archetypal images appear in the basic narratives - folk tales and legends, mythology, epic - historically specific societies. The socially regulating role of such narratives in traditional societies is very great. It is worth noting that they contain ideal behaviors that form role expectations. For example, a male warrior should behave like Achilles or Hector, a wife like Penelope, and so on. Regular recitations (ritual reproductions) of archetyonic narratives constantly remind the members of society of these ideal models of behavior.

Adler's psychoanalytic concept has in its basis an unconscious will to power, which, in his opinion, will be an innate personality structure and determines behavior.
It is worth noting that it is especially strong in those who, for one reason or another, suffer from an inferiority complex. In an effort to compensate for their inferiority, they are able to achieve great success.

Further splitting of the psychoanalytic direction led to the emergence of many schools, in disciplinary terms occupying a borderline position between psychology, social philosophy, and sociology. Let us dwell in detail on the work of E. Fromm.

Fromm's positions - a representative of neo-Freudianism in psychology and the Frankfurt School in sociology - it can be more accurately defined as Freilo-Marxism, since along with the influence of Freud, he was no less strongly influenced by Marx's social philosophy. The peculiarity of neo-Freudianism in comparison with orthodox Freudianism is due to the fact that, strictly speaking, neo-Freudianism is more of a sociology, while Freud will certainly be a pure psychologist. If Freud explains the individual's behavior by complexes and impulses hidden in the individual unconscious, in short, by internal biopsychic factors, then for Fromm and Freilo-Marxism in general, the individual's behavior is determined by the surrounding social environment. In ϶ᴛᴏm, it is similar to Marx, who explained the social behavior of individuals in the final analysis by their class origin. It is important to note that, however, with all this, Fromm seeks to find a place for the psychological in social processes. According to the Freudian tradition, referring to the unconscious, he introduces the term "social unconscious", implying one mental experience common to all members of a given society, but most of them do not fall into the level of consciousness, because it is supplanted by a special mechanism that is social in its nature, belonging not to the individual, but to society. Thanks to this mechanism of displacement, society maintains a stable existence. The mechanism of social repression contains the language, the logic of everyday thinking, the system of social prohibitions and taboos. The structures of language and thinking are formed under the influence of society and act as an instrument of social pressure on the psyche of the individual. For example, coarse, anti-aesthetic, ridiculous abbreviations and abbreviations of "newspeak" from Orwellian dystopia actively disfigure the consciousness of people who use them. To one degree or another, the monstrous logic of formulas like: "The dictatorship of the proletariat is the most democratic form of power" became the property of everyone in Soviet society.

The main component of the mechanism of social repression is social taboos that act like Freudian censorship. That in the social experience of individuals that threatens the preservation of the existing society, if it is realized, is not allowed into consciousness with the help of a "social filter". The society manipulates the minds of its members, introducing ideological clichés, which, due to frequent use, become inaccessible to critical analysis, withholding certain information, exerting direct pressure and causing fear of social isolation. Therefore, everything that contradicts socially approved ideological clichés is excluded from consciousness.

Such taboos, ideologemes, logical and linguistic experiments form, according to Fromm, the "social character" of a person. People belonging to the same society, in addition to her will, are, as it were, marked with the seal of a “common incubator”. For example, we unmistakably recognize foreigners on the street, even if we do not hear their speech, by their behavior, appearance, attitude towards each other; ϶ᴛᴏ people from another society, and, getting into a mass environment alien to them, they stand out sharply from it due to their similarities. Social character -϶ᴛᴏ style of behavior brought up by society and unconscious by the individual - from social to everyday. For example, Soviet and former Soviet people are distinguished by collectivism and responsiveness, social passivity and undemandingness, obedience to the authorities, personified in the person of the "leader", developed fear of being different from everyone else, gullibility.

Fromm directed his criticism against modern capitalist society, although he paid much attention to the description of the social character generated by totalitarian societies. Like Freud, he developed a program to restore the undistorted social behavior of individuals through the awareness of what was repressed. “By transforming the unconscious into consciousness, we thereby transform the simple concept of the universality of man into the vital reality of such universality. This is nothing but the practical realization of humanism.” The process of derepression - the liberation of socially oppressed consciousness is to eliminate the fear of realizing the forbidden, to develop the ability to think critically, to humanize social life as a whole.

A different interpretation is offered by behaviorism (B. Skinner, J. Homans), who considers behavior as a system of reactions to various stimuli.

Skinner's concept in fact, it will be a biological one, since it completely removes the differences between the behavior of a person and an animal. Skinner identifies three types of behavior: unconditioned reflex, conditioned reflex, and operant. The first two types of reactions are caused by exposure to ϲᴏᴏᴛʙᴇᴛϲᴛʙ stimuli, and operant reactions are a form of adaptation of the organism to the environment. It is worth noting that they are active and arbitrary. The body, as it were by trial and error, finds the most acceptable way of adaptation, and if successful, the find is fixed in the form of a stable reaction. Based on all of the above, we come to the conclusion that the main factor in the formation of behavior is reinforcement, and learning turns into "pointing to the desired reaction."

In Skinner's concept, a person appears as a being, the whole inner life of a human being leads to reactions to external circumstances. Reinforcement changes mechanically cause behavioral changes. Thinking, the higher mental functions of a person, the whole culture, morality, art turn into a complex system of reinforcements designed to evoke certain behavioral reactions. This leads to the conclusion about the possibility of manipulating people's behavior through a carefully developed "technology of behavior". With this term, Skinner denotes the purposeful manipulation control of some groups of people over others, associated with the establishment of an optimal reinforcement regime for certain social goals.

The ideas of behaviorism in sociology were developed by J. and J. Baldwin, J. Homans.

The concept of J. iJ. Baldwin is based on the concept of reinforcement, borrowed from psychological behaviorism. Reinforcement in the social sense - ϶ᴛᴏ reward, the value of which is determined by subjective needs. For example, for a hungry person, food acts as a reinforcement, but if a person is full, it will not be a reinforcement.

The effectiveness of the reward depends on the degree of deprivation in a given individual. Sub-deprivation refers to the deprivation of something that the individual experiences a constant need for. As far as the subject is deprived in any respect, so much his behavior depends on this reinforcement. The so-called generalized reinforcers (for example, money) do not depend on deprivation, acting on all individuals without exception, due to the fact that they concentrate access to many types of reinforcements at once.

Reinforcers are divided into positive and negative. Positive reinforcers - ϶ᴛᴏ everything that is perceived by the subject as a reward. For example, if a certain exposure to the environment brought a reward, it is likely that the subject will seek to repeat ϶ᴛᴏt experience. Negative reinforcers - ϶ᴛᴏ factors that determine behavior through the rejection of some experience. For example, if the subject deprives himself of some pleasure and saves money on ϶ᴛᴏm, and subsequently benefits from ϶ᴛᴏth savings, then this experience can serve as a negative reinforcer and the subject will always act like this.

The effect of punishment is the opposite of reinforcement. Punishment is an experience that makes you want to never repeat it again. Punishment can also be positive or negative, but here everything is reversed compared to reinforcement. Positive punishment - ϶ᴛᴏ punishment with a suppressive stimulus, such as a blow. Negative punishment affects behavior by depriving something of value. For example, depriving a child of sweets at dinner is a typical negative punishment.

The formation of operant reactions has a probabilistic character. It is important to note that unambiguity is characteristic of reactions of the simplest level, for example, a child cries, demanding the attention of his parents, because parents always approach him in such cases. Adult reactions are much more complex. For example, a person who sells newspapers in train cars does not find a buyer in every car, but knows from experience that a buyer will eventually be found, and ϶ᴛᴏ makes him persistently walk from car to car. In the last decade, the receipt of wages at some Russian enterprises has taken on the same probabilistic character, but nevertheless people continue to go to work, hoping to receive it.

Homans' behavioral concept of exchange appeared in the middle of the 20th century. It is worth saying that, arguing with representatives of many areas of sociology, Homans argued that a sociological explanation of behavior must necessarily be based on a psychological approach. The interpretation of historical facts should also be based on a psychological approach. Homans motivates ϶ᴛᴏ by the fact that behavior is always individual, while sociology operates with categories applicable to groups and societies, so the study of behavior will be the prerogative of psychology, and sociology in ϶ᴛᴏm should follow it.

According to Homans, when studying behavioral reactions, one should abstract from the nature of the factors that caused these reactions: they are caused by the influence of the surrounding physical environment or other people. Social behavior is nothing but the exchange of activities of some social value between people. Homans believes that social behavior can be interpreted using Skinner's behavioral paradigm, if supplemented with the idea of ​​the mutual nature of stimulation in relations between people. The relationship of individuals among themselves is always a mutually beneficial exchange of activities, services, in short, the mutual use of reinforcements.

Note that Homans briefly formulated the exchange theory in several postulates:

  • the postulate of success - those actions that most often meet social approval are most likely to be reproduced;
  • incentive postulate - similar reward-related stimuli are highly likely to cause similar behavior;
  • postulate of value - the probability of reproducing an action depends on how valuable the result of the ϶ᴛᴏth action seems to a person;
  • the postulate of deprivation - the more regularly a person's act was rewarded, the less he appreciates the subsequent reward;
  • the dual postulate of aggression-approval - the absence of an expected reward or an unexpected punishment makes aggressive behavior likely, and an unexpected reward or the absence of an expected punishment leads to an increase in the value of the rewarded act and makes it more likely to be reproduced.

Do not forget that the most important concepts of the exchange theory will be:

  • the price of behavior - what this or that act costs an individual - the negative consequences caused by past actions. Speaking worldly, ϶ᴛᴏ retribution for the past;
  • benefit - occurs when the quality and size of the reward exceeds the price that this act costs.

Based on all of the above, we come to the conclusion that the theory of exchange depicts human social behavior as a rational search for benefits. This concept seems simplistic, and it is not surprising that it has provoked criticism from a variety of sociological schools. For example, Parsons, who defended the fundamental difference between the mechanisms of human and animal behavior, criticized Homans for the inability of his theory to explain social facts on the basis of psychological mechanisms.

In ϲʙᴏey exchange theories I. blau attempted a figurative synthesis of social behaviorism and sociologism. Realizing the limitations of a purely behaviorist interpretation of social behavior, he set the goal of moving from the level of psychology to explaining the existence of social structures on a ϶ᴛᴏ basis as a special reality that is unsuitable for psychology. Blau's concept is an enriched theory of exchange, in which four successive stages of transition from individual exchange to social structures are distinguished: 1) the stage of interpersonal exchange; 2) the stage of power-status differentiation; 3) the stage of legitimation and organization; 4) the stage of opposition and change.

Blau shows that, starting from the level of interpersonal exchange, exchange may not always be equal. In cases where individuals cannot offer each other sufficient rewards, the social bonds formed between them tend to disintegrate. In such situations, there are attempts to strengthen disintegrating ties in other ways - through coercion, through the search for another source of reward, through subordination of oneself to an exchange partner in the form of a generalized loan. The latter path means a transition to a stage of status differentiation, when a group of persons capable of giving the required remuneration becomes more privileged in terms of status than other groups. In the future, legitimation and consolidation of the situation and the separation of opposition groups take place. In analyzing complex social structures, Blau goes far beyond the paradigm of behaviorism. It is worth noting that he argues that the complex structures of society are organized around social values ​​and norms, which serve as a kind of mediating link between individuals in the process of social exchange. Thanks to this link, the exchange of rewards is possible not only between individuals, but also between an individual and a group. For example, considering the phenomenon of organized charity, Blau determines what distinguishes charity as a social institution from the simple help of a rich individual to a poorer one. The difference is that organized charity is ϶ᴛᴏ socially oriented behavior, which is based on the desire of a wealthy individual ϲᴏᴏᴛʙᴇᴛϲᴛʙto conform to the norms of the wealthy class and share social values; through norms and values, an exchange relation is established between the sacrificing individual and the social group to which he belongs.

Blau identifies four categories of social values, on the basis of which exchange is possible:

  • particularistic values ​​that unite individuals on the basis of interpersonal relationships;
  • universalist values, acting as a measure for evaluating individual merits;
  • legitimate authority - a system of values ​​that provides the power and privileges of a certain category of people in comparison with all others:
  • oppositional values ​​- ideas about the need for social change, allowing the opposition to exist at the level of social facts, and not just at the level of interpersonal relations of individual oppositionists.

It can be said that Blau's exchange theory is a compromise, combining elements of Homans theory and sociologism in the treatment of reward exchange.

Role concept by J. Mead is a symbolic interactionist approach to the study of social behavior. Its name is reminiscent of the functionalist approach: it is also called role-playing. Mead considers role behavior as the activity of individuals interacting with each other in freely accepted and played roles. According to Mead, the role interaction of individuals requires them to be able to put themselves in the place of another, to evaluate themselves from the position of another.

Synthesis of exchange theory with symbolic interactionism also tried to implement P. Singelman. Symbolic actionism has a number of points of intersection with social behaviorism and exchange theories. Both of these concepts emphasize the active interaction of individuals and consider this subject from a microsociological perspective. According to Singelman, relationships of interpersonal exchange require the ability to put oneself in the position of another, in order to better understand his needs and desires. Therefore, he believes that there are grounds for merging both directions into one. At the same time, social behaviorists were critical of the emergence of a new theory.

Lecture on social science on the topic "Social behavior" ( according to the textbook by Vazhenin A.G. Social studies for free software)

Behavior - the process of interaction of individuals with the environment, manifested in their external (motor) and internal (mental) activity. Behavior includes actions within the framework of any human activity and any form of his communication with other people.

Somewhat different in essence is social behavior. This term denotes way of life and actions of a large number of people, which has a significant impact on social life and the stability of society. The subjects of social behavior are the masses, the public, the crowd and, in some cases, individual individuals and their interpersonal associations (family, circle of friends, etc.).

Mass name a large number of people who cannot be united on any common basis. According to the political and economic situation, the number of people who make up the mass may be more or less, but can never be absent. Such people are politically neutral, content with their position, do not join any party and almost never go to the polls.

The concept has a slightly different meaning. "popular masses". They denote the presence in society of the working majority, which in some cases, for example, during periods of political instability, becomes the driving force of social progress.

Crowd- this is an outwardly unorganized community of people who are in direct contact with each other, connected by a common emotional state and an object of attention. The crowd is characterized by activity and a high degree of conformity, i.e. easily suggestible.

Allocate random, expressive, conventional and acting types of the crowd. random crowd are people gathered, for example, near the scene. expressive crowd is a group of people who jointly express joy or grief, anger or protest. Under conventional crowd refers to a group of people whose behavior falls within the norms established for certain situations, but goes beyond the usual behavior, for example, rampaging fans at a concert. acting crowd- is a group of people, carrying out active actions in relation to a particular object. It is subdivided into aggressive, escaping, acquisitive and ecstatic. Aggressive for example, is represented by a crowd of thugs. escaping the crowd brings together people who are in a state of panic. money-grubbing are marauders, ecstatic- brought to a frenzy as a result of any rituals.

Public- this is a large group of people, formed on the basis of their common interests, without any organization, but always in the presence of a situation that affects these interests. The audience arises together with the appearance of the subject of general attention. It can be an event, a person, a scientific discovery, an art object, etc. Unlike the crowd, elements of rational discussion, criticism and struggle of opinions are possible for the public.

Varieties of social behavior include social movements, collective behavior and social behavior of the individual.

Social movements are mass actions of representatives of a social group aimed at ensuring group or public interests, contributing to or hindering social change. Depending on the goals and nature of the social changes they seek, social movements can be of several types.

Political movements express demands on the state. They can move from the peaceful expression of their demands to decisive action in the form of propaganda of their views, calls for resistance to the authorities, and even uprisings. Utopian movements aim to create ideal social systems. Reform movements stand for peaceful reforms. revolutionary movements strive to establish a new social order by destroying the old social order. Conservative movements resist any change.

Social movements often arise in connection with dissatisfaction with the existing order. In the environment of movement is formed ideology, expressing a system of views, values, goals and ways to achieve them. In addition, any movement needs leader, having supporters who, united, form organization. Social movements rarely occur in stable societies, but often in unstable ones.

collective behavior -these are massive, unpredictable reactions of people to critical situations that arise objectively and suddenly. Most often, collective behavior manifests itself in the crowd. A person, getting into the crowd, becomes infected with its passions. There is a mental unification of people at the "herd" level, as a result of which a homogeneous mass is created. Such a crowd is easily influenced, it is easy to manipulate, creating an emotionally heated atmosphere.

The social behavior of an individual is externally observable by mortars, actions of individuals in a certain sequence, one way or another affecting the interests of other people, their groups, the whole society. Human behavior acquires social meaning when they are included in communication with other people. The social behavior of the individual is always reasonable and deliberate. It is influenced by a person's attitude to himself, to others, to society, predisposition and readiness for vigorous activity. All this is called social attitude. Depending on the change in the situation, the social attitude may also change.

The behavior of people that does not correspond to generally accepted values ​​and norms is called deviant (deviant) behavior. Deviant behavior can be both negative and positive. The first is manifested in the desire to disrupt the functioning of the social system, and the second - in the desire to improve it. To determine the essence of deviant behavior, it is necessary to clearly identify all its components. This is, firstly, a person committing an act, secondly, the norms (rules) that are violated, and thirdly, a group of people or the whole society reacting to behavior.

There are five types of behavior: conformism, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, rebellion. Of these, only conformism is not a deviation. All others are varieties of deviant behavior.

conformism(submission) means accepting the values ​​of a given social community, even by giving up one's own beliefs. The individual often obeys the opinion of the majority, although he may internally disagree with it. Innovation(innovation) is expressed in the acceptance of the goals of the group, but the rejection of the means to achieve them. ritualism(from the word "ritual") is expressed in the rejection of goals, but the acceptance of the means to achieve these goals. retreatism(withdrawal) is manifested in the complete denial of the values, goals and means accepted in a given society. At the same time, the individual seeks to isolate himself from society, “to withdraw into himself”. rebellion It is expressed in the complete denial of the values, goals and means proclaimed by society and an attempt to replace them with new ones, to establish a new social order.

Reasons for deviant behavior some theories explain in terms of biological, psychological and sociological factors. Biological approach indicates a person's innate predisposition to commit deviant acts, psychological- explains deviant behavior by various deviations in mental development, sociological- takes into account the influence of social and cultural factors.

The absence of deviations in the behavior of subjects contributes to the formation of a social order in society, which is a system that includes the relationship of individuals, rules of conduct that contribute to the implementation of various activities. The normal functioning of society and the establishment of social order in it contributes to social control, which ensures the orderly interaction of the elements that make up society through normative regulation, including social norms (rules) and sanctions (encouragements and punishments).

Social control is formal and informal. formal control carried out by state organizations through the methods of isolation, isolation and rehabilitation. isolation aims to eliminate the contact of the individual with society and applies to persons who have committed a crime. Isolation- this is also the termination of the individual's contacts with other people, but for a limited period, with the prospect of his return to society, for example, arrest. Rehabilitation- this is the preparation of the deviant to return to society and fulfill the necessary social roles.

Informal control characteristic of small groups. It manifests itself in both encouragement and criticism, ridicule of the deviant and even expulsion from the group. Types of informal control include social rewards, punishment, persuasion, and norm reassessment. Social rewards expressed in the approval of human behavior. Punishment reflects dissatisfaction with the behavior of the deviant and is expressed in statements, threats or physical impact. Belief- this is a speech impact on a person in order to prevent deviant behavior. Re-evaluation of norms occurs when behavior that was considered deviant can be assessed as normal.

Social control is associated with socialization, during which people learn the patterns of behavior necessary for society. Often a person does not even think about the essence of his behavior, as he implements it at the level of habit. He himself selects for himself patterns of behavior that correspond to generally accepted norms. In addition, a person included in a particular group experiences its influence and, in this regard, does not allow himself to commit deviant acts.

A type of social behavior is social conflict. It is a process of development and resolution of contradictions between people and social groups. Social conflict is a complex phenomenon that has its own characteristics in each specific case. Nevertheless, in the course of any conflict, one can distinguish three stages- pre-conflict, directly conflict and its resolution.

Pre-conflict stage can be quite lengthy. In the course of it, contradictions accumulate, emotional tension is pumped up, object of conflict those. that phenomenon, object, attitude, etc., which is equally highly valued by both conflicting parties. At this stage, it is possible to resolve the situation peacefully, without influencing the opponent. If both sides understand the inevitability of a collision, they seek to find out each other's weaknesses and develop a strategy for their actions.

At the second stage the parties go over to active hostile actions. They may be in the nature of an open confrontation, or they may contain actions hidden from the enemy, aimed at imposing a certain pattern of behavior on him.

Stage of conflict resolution associated with the cessation of hostile actions of the parties in connection with the elimination of the causes of the conflict. If the causes have not been eliminated, and the parties to the conflict have ceased active actions in relation to each other, then in this case we can only talk about stopping the conflict.

Ways to resolve conflict can be different. The conflicting parties may sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement, terms that are acceptable to both parties. If an agreement is reached by mutual concessions, then one speaks of compromise. In cases where the parties do not want to make concessions and even start a negotiation process, not wanting to show their weakness, one can resort to mediation those. participation in the resolution of the conflict of a third party not interested in the results and the object of the conflict. This method is often used in resolving political conflicts. Finally, the stronger side can use force to the weaker side and force it to admit its innocence.

There are many types of conflicts. Yes, in depending on the number of subjects allocate intrapersonal, interpersonal and social conflicts. Intrapersonal conflicts occur in the mind of a person when he needs to make a decision. The choice can be very difficult in some cases. Often a person has to choose between what needs to be done and what one wants to do. Willpower plays an important role in decision making. Interpersonal conflicts is a collision between two or more people. The objects of such conflict are very diverse. The peculiarity is that the people involved in the conflict directly interact with each other. Social conflicts occur between groups of people. This does not necessarily require direct personal contact between members of the opposing groups. Examples of social conflicts are uprisings and revolutions.

Depending on the area, in which the conflict takes place, distinguish between political, economic, social, cultural, ethnic and religious conflicts. Political conflicts arise between powerful subjects. These may be states that have certain interests in the international arena. Inside the country, these are various political forces, for example, parties, trade unions, state bodies, etc. Economic conflicts arise between subjects of economic activity regarding the distribution of resources and markets. social conflicts, as noted above, they arise between different social groups about the distribution of material and spiritual wealth and participation in the exercise of power. Cultural conflicts arise between adherents of different cultural values ​​(for example, about the direction in music, literature, art, which is unequally evaluated by the participants in the conflict). ethnic conflicts manifested in the confrontation between different ethnic groups. They can be political, economic, social, but in any case, the conflict is based on hostility towards representatives of another nation. In some cases, ethnic conflicts intersect with religious, representing a clash of different faiths over religious issues. These conflicts may be in the nature of a theological dispute, but history knows examples of forceful measures to plant the "true" faith among the "infidels".

These types of conflicts do not exhaust all approaches to their classification. We can distinguish such conflicts as war, confrontation, discussion, fight, etc. But experience convinces us that, whatever the conflict, there will always be civilized ways to resolve it peacefully.

Questions and tasks

1. What is the difference between the concepts of "behavior" and "social behavior"?

2. Who is the subject of social behavior?

    What types of social behavior are there?

    What behavior is called deviant?

    What types of behavior exist? Which of them are types of deviant behavior? Describe them.

    What are the causes of deviant behavior?

    What conditions contribute to the formation of social order in society? What role does social control play in this?

    What is social conflict? What are its stages?

    Give a classification of conflicts.

Social behavior is a property that characterizes the quality of relationships between individuals and the behavior of one particular subject in society.

Note that this behavior may vary. For example, a company has several hundred employees. Some of them work tirelessly, some just sit out their pants and get paid. The rest just come there to chat with others. Such actions of individuals fall under the principles that underlie social behavior.

Thus, all people are involved in this, only they behave differently. Based on the foregoing, it follows that social behavior is the way that members of society choose to express their desires, abilities, capabilities and attitudes.

In order to understand the reason why a person behaves in this way, it is necessary to analyze the factors that influence it. The structure of social behavior can be influenced by:

  1. Psychological and subject of social interaction. As an example, one can use the description of the characteristic qualities of many politicians and others. It is worth asking who the most outrageous and emotionally unbalanced politician is, and everyone will immediately remember Zhirinovsky. And among the scandalous, Otar Kushanashvili takes the first place.
  2. Social behavior is also influenced by personal interest in what is happening or will happen. For example, any of us actively participates in the discussion of only those issues that cause an increased subjective interest. The rest of the activity is sharply reduced.
  3. Behavior that comes down to the need to adapt to certain conditions of life or communication. For example, it is impossible to imagine that in the crowd of people who glorify some leader (Hitler, Mao Zedong), there is someone who will voice a diametrically opposite position.
  4. Also, the social behavior of the individual is also determined by the situational aspect. That is, there are a number of factors that must be taken into account by the subject in the event of any situation.
  5. There are also moral and which guides every person in life. History provides many examples of when people could not go against their own, for which they paid with their own lives (Giordano Bruno, Copernicus).
  6. Remember that the social behavior of a person largely depends on how much he is aware of the situation, owns it, knows the "rules of the game" and can use them.
  7. Behavior may be based on the goal of manipulating society. For this, lies, deceit can be used. Modern politicians serve as an excellent example of this: when conducting an election campaign, they promise total changes. And when they come to power, no one seeks to fulfill what they have said.

Social behavior is often determined, to a greater extent, by the motivation and degree of participation of the individual in a particular process or action. For example, for many, participation in the political life of the country is an accidental situation, but there are also those for whom this is their main job. As for mass social behavior, it can be dictated by the psychological and social characteristics of the crowd, when individual motivation is destroyed under the influence of the so-called mass instinct.

Social behavior has 4 levels:

  1. Human reaction to certain events.
  2. Actions that are habitual and considered part of the standard behavior.
  3. A chain of actions aimed at achieving social goals.
  4. Implementation of strategically important goals.