Indian Sociological Perspectives
Indian Vidyashastra Basic Text Perspective
Indology is that perspective in which the method of historical and comparative study of Indian society on the basis of its original audience. Therefore, in the study of Indian social institutions, Bharati Vidyashastras use sources such as ancient history, epics, religious handwritten literature, etc. In which the main text related to Bade, Old Manusmriti, Ramayana, Mahabharata etc. The study method of Indian society through these ancient high literature is the subject of Indian science and text. The sources of Indology are used in the investigation of various aspects of Indian culture and society. Indian School of Education, Text and Linguistic Studies. It is a way of understanding Indian culture.
Govind Sadashiv Ghurye has used the Bharat Vidyashastra (Indology) perspective in his studies. His studies called Indian Sadhus (1964), Religious Consciousness (1966) and Gong Ek Charan (1972) as Institutions in Brahmanical Indian mythology and several religious texts have been used. It is undeniable that Ghurye had great fascination for Bharat Vidyashastra Pirpresya. Apart from these, many Indian sociologists have used the Indo-Vidyashastra perspective as an important method of their study. Chief among them S.V.Ketkar, B. Ann, Seal, BK, Sarkar, Louis Euomo, KS. Kapadia, P.N. Lord Iravati etc.
subordinate perspective
This peer pressure has been mainly influential in South Asia and India. With this perspective, studies of women and other oppressed classes and castes are being done nowadays.
These methods, approaches or perspectives are generally used in the study of large or large societies. In addition to these traditional methods, recently the symbolic interactionist method is also gaining popularity in Europe and America. There is a lack of studies done by this method in our country.
Historical Perspective
Historical method looks at the study of social institutions, family, marriage, sexuality etc. from a historical point of view. The method of research in which historical documents and other written or archaeological sources are used as the raw material of research. This is called the historical method. This method is influenced on the one hand by the biological theory of evolution and on the other by the philosophy of history. In this method, generalizations are deposited by doing theoretical and comparative analysis on the basis of aggregated material. The basic source of historical past is the depth of history. In sociological studies, history is used as a discipline in two ways. One type of this perspective is non-Marxist historical studies and the other type is Marxist historical studies. The non-Marxist historical perspective actually explains the evolution of society through the eras, whereas the Marxist perspective deals with the concepts of production relations, forces of production, alienated class struggle, historical materialism, etc., used by Marx. Our early sociology was heavily influenced by the history of philosophy. After this they were influenced by the development of biological theory. In fact, the historical method includes the evolution and history of man from the beginning of man to the present time in his environment.
Historical perspective has been used by many scholars to understand unique events and situations in sociological and anthropological studies. In this, the study of events or situations is done by finding out their particular initial conditions. According to Bottomore, the purpose of historical interpretation (which is the main objective of historical perspective) is to describe the initial conditions that give rise to a particular event. According to them scientific explanation in social sciences (of which sociology is one) is incomplete without historical explanation. In the historical perspective, generally the data collected from historical material or secondary documents are used, but the researcher can check their authenticity by the primary data. Usually only studies related to origin and development are done by historical perspective. Because of the study of unique events, it is not very helpful in generalization. In Sociology Auguste Comte, Herbert Spencer, L. T. Hobhouse, Karl Marx, Max Weber, C. Wright Mills (C. Wright Mills) Scholars like , and Raymond Aron have used it in their studies while Radcliffe-Brown has used it in anthropology.
(2) Comparative Perspective
The comparative perspective has long been considered the best perspective of sociology and anthropology. Durkheim is the first sociologist to systematically use this perspective in his study of sShe goes . After comparison, an attempt is made to understand the events and situations on the basis of the differences and similarities that are seen. According to Duncan Mitchell, comparative perspective is the method by which different societies or different groups of the same society can be compared to tell whether they have similarities or not, and if so why? Emile Durkheim and Max Weber are considered to be the major sociologists who used the comparative perspective. Although this perspective is helpful in the formulation of hypotheses, analytical studies and generalizations, yet many precautions have to be taken in its use. According to Durkheim, through this we can only compare different units of the same society, societies of the same level (development) and events of the same type in different societies.
( 3 ) Structural – Functional Perspective
This theory is based on the fundamental question of how an institution or belief is intertwined with other institutions or beliefs and to some extent contribute to the maintenance of the whole or any part of the socio-cultural state, nowadays this approach is structural-functionalism. is known as. Merton and Parsons are the main proponents of this approach in sociology. The interest of a structuralist is to know what is the relationship between its parts in a system, how they coordinate with each other. “Structuralism” is a method used most specifically in anthropology by the French anthropologist Claude Lévi Strauss. Functionalism is a theory, a perspective or an approach based on topical analogy that emphasizes the study of practices or functions of social institutions.
In the context of India, the method of structure has been used by the French sociologist Louis Dumount in his book Homo-Hierarchicus, 1970. He studied the Indian caste system by this method. In this, Iomum has used concepts such as ideology, conflict and comparison. This book, it must be said, has been very well known for its use of the structural method. In this Iumon studied the caste system on the basis of double inequalities like sacred and profane, non-equality and equality etc. On this he has presented a structural approach to the theory of stratification.
Durkheim Radcliffe Bown and Mezinoski established functional mainstreaming as an approach in sociology. Telkat Parsons and Robert Mutton did the work of strengthening the functionalist-Pirpretya. Parsons used this functionalism perspective instead of structural functionalism as an approach. He has put the functionalist perspective approach through the theory of material system. According to him, the system is that which is continuous, in which there is unity and integration among its various parts. Parsons says that the work of bringing cohesion in any system is done by the values and patterns of the situation. This system should be seen in its totality. In our country too, the rural studies conducted in the fifth decade of the 20th century by Vijokinath Madan say that all of them are functionalist from the point of view of approach. We have almost all sociologists here except Akshay Desai, Ramakrishna Mukherjee, Kathleen Gough etc.
In simple words, it can be said that this perspective is a method of analyzing the whole unit in a scientific manner on the basis of its structure and function. Its purpose is to find out the parts or parts that make up the unit and the location, position and functional relationships of these parts. With this perspective in sociology the names of scholars such as Spencer, Durkheim, (Merton), Parsons (Farsons) and Levy, and in anthropology Radcliffe-Brown, Malinowski, The names of scholars like Nadel, Fortes and Firth etc. are associated. merton
Conflict Perspective
Karl Marx is given the most prominent place among the supporters of the conflict perspective. They are. For Marx, the struggle for class interests and power is the basis of social and historical actions, the means of production, and the history of class struggle in all societies is the fundamental determinant. His theory of class struggle gives important place to materialism.
The tensions and conflicts found in the society are analyzed through the conflict perspective, its supporters draw our attention to the fact that modern society is beset by tension and conflict and there is no general agreement in social life but in disagreement, competition and selfishness. Conflict is becoming more prominent. According to Dahrendorf, the characteristic of the conflict perspective is that its proponents recognize that every society is always subject to the processes of change and that social change is universal. At the same time, every society always exhibits differences and conflicts and every element of society is its disintegration and all-pervading.
Marxist sociology, society as
The position is opposed to the plaintiff’s analysis. Rather than harmony and balance, the process of struggle is its philosophical basis.
, The interest of Marxist sociologists is mainly in the research and explanation of social phenomena, the role of economic factors, inter-class relations and inter-group conflict. The materialistic dimension of Marxist sociology gives shelter to economic determinism. According to this it is believed that the economic institutions of any society determine the content of other social institutions and culture. Marxist perspective as an approach has contributed a lot to sociological analysis. Among the promoters of this perspective are sociologists like Kohne, User etc. In our country also some sociologists have successfully used Marxist perspective. a R. Desai Denian Thurner, Charles Wettelheim, Keelin Gough and Radhakrishna Mukherjee have applied Marxist perspective to the study of many societies.
In this context, Marx has studied many Indian sociologists, historians and others to understand the reality of Indian society. Chief among them M.N.N. Dutta, S.A. Dange, DD Kosambi, AR Desai, DP Mookerjee, PC Joshi, RS Sharma, Irfan Habib, DP Dhyepodhyay etc. dp Mukherjee, A.R. Desai, and Radhakrishna Mukherjee etc. Early sociologists have studied the dialectical historical perspective of Indian society.
Conflict divides the society into different classes and these can be explained only in the context of conflict situation. The names of Simmel, Koser, Marx, Dahrendorf, Mitchell and Oppenheimer are associated with the conflict perspective in sociology. Although the conflict perspective has been used primarily to study the entire social system, especially the political system, it is also helpful in understanding other situations of conflict. Through this we can also study a variety of other problems related to the classification of basic conflict situations, socialization and education, revolutionary and treaty situations, ideals and systems of power. ,
Behavioural and Interactional Perspective
, Among those who studied from this perspective, the names of Weber, Pareto, Mead, Blumer, Goffman and Parsons are particularly noteworthy. It is helpful in analyzing the behavior of individuals and social groups. It is helpful in developing research and theory by taking subject-references from social psychology, sociology and cultural anthropology.
This perspective emphasizes the study of the behavior of individuals (including political behavior) The practical or behavioral perspective establishes the concept of human behavior whether they belong to the ruling class or the ruling class. It also compares the behavior of individuals
and it lays emphasis on empirical and scientific studies.
The names of scholars like Almond, Dahl, Easton and Lasswell are mentioned in this perspective as four main features of the behavioral perspective.
Statistical Perspective
Under statistical perspective, numerical facts are collected, classified and tabulated for interpretation, description and comparison of a phenomenon. Statistical perspective is more useful in quantitative studies. The data obtained from this is analyzed more accurately and scientifically. According to Lovitt, numerical facts are collected, classified and tabulated for interpretation, description and comparison of any phenomenon under statistical perspective.
Ethnomethodology
This perspective emphasizes on studying those aspects of human behavior which are related to the daily activities and behavior of the person. It mainly consists of normal activities of daily life,
Special importance is given to the study of The assumptions of the functional perspective have begun to be challenged.
Regional Sociology ( Ethno – Sociology )
This approach is a new perspective which is based on the assumption that the concepts, perspectives and theories given in the context of developed countries are inappropriate and meaningless in the study of other societies (especially developing societies), hence in the context of a particular society. Constructed principles are the most important in understanding social reality.
Inductive and Deductive Perspectives
Induction and deduction are two fundamental methods of perspective science which are used in sociology. These can be understood as follows
Arrival Perspective –
It is the perspective in which the researcher analyzes the general facts on the basis of some specific facts.
represents, that is, an attempt is made to move from the specific to the general.
According to P.V.Young, “A process of reasoning the whole class (or group) of facts from a particular fact, general facts from real facts, and universal examples from individual examples.” Is . “This can be understood by the following example, Rama is mortal, Rama is a human being, therefore man is mortal. In the advent perspective, because on the basis of daily observations and experiences or the sequence of events of the past, social rules are rendered, Therefore, many scholars also know this perspective as Empirical perspective or Historical perspective. But it is more appropriate to name it as Advent perspective. This perspective is more in the study of only those events and situations. It is appropriate in which there is a sufficient degree of resemblance or similarity because it generalizes about the whole category on the basis of information about some units.
(b) Incorporation Perspective –
In this we move from the general to the specific. According to P.V. Young, ‘
There is a process of extracting their essential characteristics from general to specific, universal to personal and some premises on the basis of logic. By this perspective, the researcher approves the specific facts which he finds out on the basis of the prevailing general rules regarding social phenomenon or facts. This can be understood by the following example: Man is mortal, Ram is a human being, therefore Ram is mortal. Induction and deductive perspective, both complement each other and general conclusions are drawn on the basis of these in social studies and research.
Experimental Perspective
In this approach, under certain principles or conditions, the study-object is put forward and studied. The experimental perspective is also used in the social sciences. This has not become a more general perspective because it is not possible to control social events. Also, the subject matter of the social sciences cannot be confined within the boundaries of the laboratory.
In laboratory perspective, the study material is divided into two groups-
(i) Control group and
(ii) Experimental group. The control group is kept as it is and compared with the experimental group in which the change is made. According to Chapin, the concept of experimental design in sociological research refers to the systematic study of human relationships by observation under conditions of control.
In sociological research, the experimental perspective is mainly used in three ways.
(i) post-test only,
( ii ) pre – post test and
(iii) Post-facto or post-facto fact test.
Formal Perspective
It lays emphasis on the study of social forms. Simmel argued that sociology is a novel method. It is a new way of observing facts which other social sciences also consider. Van Wiese tried to explain this perspective and build a general sociology, while G. C. Homans (G. C. Homans) tried to study the early forms of social behavior. In short, this perspective emphasizes the study of smaller forms of interactions. This perspective also provides us with a proper method for the study of human society. It is also more helpful in scientific generalizations than other perspectives.
Systemic Perspective
, Social order is related to the co-ordination, balance or cohesion found in different parts of the society which to some extent is found in every society. This perspective was first used in anthropology and later it was adopted in sociology, psychology, political science and political sociology. In anthropology and sociology the names Durkheim , Radcliffe Brown , Malinowski , Merton and Parsons are associated with this perspective , while in political science Easton , Amond The names of (Almond) and Kaplan are associated with this perspective.
The development of systematic perspective is the result of increasing cooperation in various social sciences after the Second World War. The word ‘arrangement’ refers to the various parts of an object or a whole and the interrelationships found in them. The meaning of the system is the integrated whole or totality, that is, such a totality whose parts are interconnected and maintain coordination in that totality while doing their work properly.
It emphasizes on balance, that is, its proponents accept that there are automatic mechanisms within the system which maintain balance in work and adaptation to the environment.
Exchangeist Perspective ( ( Exchange
Perspective)
The main assumption of the Sais perspective is that individuals always try to obtain some advantage by exchange which is governed by taking into account the cost and benefit (physical or non-material). The names of James Frazer, Malinowski, Marcel Mauss and Levi-Strauss are associated with this approach.
Evolutionary Perspective
This perspective has been adopted by most of the early sociologists. It is more helpful in the study of the processes of change (especially differentiation, specialization and integration etc.) by which societies take their forms from simple to complex. It has been used in various forms. Morgan , Comte , Marx and Engels , Spencer , Durkheim , Spengler , Toynbee , Sorokin , Parsons and E Parsons (Eisenstedt) have adopted this perspective.
Philosophical perspective –
His studies are based on the philosophical approach and give importance to Indian history and traditional Indian thought. have shown interest.
Synthesis of Indological and field views –
This perspective emphasizes on understanding the Indian society on the basis of Indian scriptures and legal historical documents as well as on field-based studies. Therefore, this perspective is considered more useful in understanding the reality through structural-functional perspective by removing the flaws of Indological perspective for the analysis of Indian society. Its supporters try to harmonize both what is written in the scriptures and what is present in reality. Prof. (Mrs.) Irawati Karve and Prof. A. M. Shah (A. M. Shah) have given their support to this perspective and have also studied Indian society through it.
Civilization perspective –
Civilization of any society is its mirror. The study of civilization is possible on the basis of concrete parameters. This study is considered superior in the study of all types of societies ranging from tribal societies to industrial societies. Another perspective adopted in the study of Indian society considers civilization as the basis of analysis. Civilization is the physical aspect of culture which includes all man-made things. Among Indian scholars, Prof. N. K. Bose and Prof. Surjit Sinha have supported this perspective.
Subaltern perspective –
This perspective, in the study of any society, pays special attention to those classes who are backward due to being deprived of various types of facilities due to inherent defects in the socio-cultural system. Not only this, it also emphasizes on their upliftment by highlighting the deprivations of these classes. In the analysis of Indian society, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar (B. R. Ambedkar) and David Hardiman (David Hardiman) have given their support to this perspective and have described it as useful in understanding Indian society. All the above perspectives, though developed independently, are not mutually exclusive. Although Western sociology has had a great influence on Indian sociology, this perspective has been rarely adopted in most studies.