Durkheim and Modernity Glossary: Anomie

Durkheim and Modernity

Glossary:

Anomie - the breakdown of societal norms and accompanying social bonds.

Division of Labor - the specialization of cooperative labor in specific, circumscribed tasks and roles, that is intended to increase output efficiency.

Functionalism - Concerning how various parts of society affect other parts and how these function within the system.

Mechanical Solidarity - Social cohesion, made up of similarities, based largely on rituals and routines within the society.

Organic Solidarity - Social cohesion dependent on dependency of the individuals, common in industrial societies, as division of labor increases.

Thing - Any object of knowledge which is not naturally penetrable by the understanding. It is all that which we cannot conceptualize adequately as an idea by the simple process of intellectual analysis.

Social Fact - a clearly determined group of phenomena, in society, separable, because of their distinct characteristics, from those that form the subject matter of other sciences of nature, that regulates human social interaction.

Social Norms - Societal expectations or rules that encourage or forbid certain behaviors.

Social Solidarity - the bond between all individuals within a society.

Discussion Questions:

Social forces can explain why people commit suicide. Too little or too much societal integration can lead to suicide.

As Durkheim notes, egoisitc suicide results from too little social integration. These individuals have not been bound to the values, norms, traditions, etc. Of social groups and therefore have little to no social support. These individuals tend to have a higher suicide rate as they are not connected to stable social norms.

In contrast, altruistic suicide is the result of too much integration. The direct opposite of egoistic suicide, altruistic suicide finds individuals who are so integrated into the society they belong to that they have lost the sense of their own individuality. For this reason, they become willing to sacrifice themselves, if it is in agreement with the group's interest. Cases of altruistic suicide can be found amongst cult members and the military.

Social facts are the aggregate of individual actions. Social facts (or forces) are the influences that affect the individual by society. As society is made up of individuals, these forces are created by the individual society members, and thus the aggregate of their individual actions.

Social norms are effective, because individuals decide rationally that it is in their interest to obey them.

The need to belong is a powerful motivating factor for humankind. In addition, society determines what is an acceptable course of behavior through their social norms. Therefore, a majority of individuals will make the decision to act appropriately because of their desire to be a part of that society, without question, making it very effective.

As noted, the desire to be a part of society often leads to individuals succumbing to social norms without truly questioning these norms. This does not bode well for individual autonomy.

Social norms are continuously restricting an individual's freedom and thus autonomy.