Emily Durkheim

Review Sheet

Week 7, Chapter 4: Emile Durkheim (1885-1917)

Distinguishing Sociology from other disciplines

· Empirical research

· The study of social facts

Social Facts

· Social Facts:

· “the social structures and cultural norms and values that are external to, and coercive of, actors” (p.184)

· Can be treated as things that can be studied empirically

· Cannot be reduced to individuals

· Can be explained by other social facts

· Material and nonmaterial social facts

Material Social Facts

· Relatively easy to understand because directly observable

· E.g., architecture, forms of technology, legal codes

Nonmaterial Social Facts

· Durkheim’s interests lie here

· Can think about these things as norms and values, or culture

· Identified 4 types of nonmaterial social facts:

· 1) morality

· 2) collective conscience

· 3) collective representations

· 4) social currents

· Overall, Durkheim’s main argument regarding social facts is that they resulted in a new level of reality that exceeded any of the individuals who contributed to the reality; in other words, the complexity and intensity of interactions resulted in something above and beyond just the sum of the parts – could not be explained in terms of the individual actors.

The Division of Labor

· Starts with the idea of solidarity (which Durkheim did not do all that good job of explaining), but basically referred to solidarity as:

· A quality of a society that is used to explain why that society lasts and stays together

· For Durkheim, maintaining solidarity in society as the world progresses is problematic unless there is something to tie the interests of individuals together, and this shapes the foundation for his work on the division of labor, including the progression of society from one based on mechanical solidarity to organic solidarity.

· So, the division of labor thought to provide the basis of social solidarity

Progression of Society from one based on Mechanical Solidarity to one based on Organic Solidarity

· Mechanical Solidarity

· Characteristic of primitive societies

· Society is unified by similarities across members; all people are generalists, engaging in similar activities and shared responsibilities

· Have stronger collective conscience than modern societies; so society held together by collective understandings, beliefs, and values

· Organic Solidarity

· Characteristic of modern societies

· Society is unified by differences across persons; members have different tasks and responsibilities and rely on/need one another

· Society held together by division of labor, where need each others to meet needs; still have collective conscience but not as powerful as that in primitive societies, so room for more individual differences

Law as tied to type of society: Repressive vs. Restitutive Law

· Laws are used to protect social solidarity

· Society based on Mechanical Solidarity

· Repressive Law

· Belief in common morality

· Any offense typically significant for most individuals; emotionally connected

· Severe forms of punishment

· Society based on Organic Solidarity

· Restitutive Law

· Weak common morality

· Not emotionally connected

· Offenders made to make restitution to those harmed

3 Ways in which the move to modern society could result in pathology:

· *Important to note: sees most modern societies as “normal”, so these are potential exceptions

· 1. the anomic division of labor

· When society lacks any regulation and instead reinforces individuality, no restraint placed on individuals telling them what they should and should not do

· Leaves people not knowing what is proper or acceptable behavior

· Typically, not enough social contact among, especially among parties in a given social relationship

· 2. the forced division of labor

· Occurs when outdated norms and expectations force individuals, groups, and classes into positions for which they are ill suited

· Typically, this happens when traditions, economic power, or status override talents and qualifications for placement into specific jobs

· 3. the poorly coordinated division of labor

· Occurs when interdependence of people is lacking

· Typical when specialization results in isolation rather than interdependence

Assignment

· Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx), 12 point font, 1 inch margins, double-spaced, 1 page

· Think about the potential pathologies that can result from modernization as addressed by Durkheim. Using the example of telecommuting, or working from home, which is an ever-growing sector of employment, address what you think Durkheim would say about working from home. In doing so, play both sides of the coin. In what ways would this form of employment help contribute to social solidarity and in what ways might it be pathological for society?