PSEB Notes

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 12 Western Sociological Thinkers will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 12 Western Sociological Thinkers

→ During the 19th and 20th centuries, many changes came in the European society and it is said that Sociology originated to study such changes.

→ From the 17th-19th centuries, many philosophers wrote new books which gave a great contribution to the emergence of sociology. Montesquieu and Rousseau are quite important among them.

→ Auguste Comte was a French philosopher and is considered as the Father of Sociology.

→ He wrote a book ‘The Course on Positive Philosophy’ in which in 1839, he used the word ‘Sociology’. He called it a science of society.

→ Comte gave the theory of Positivism and said that social phenomenon can also be understood with scientific explanation and positivism is that method.

→ So, positivism is the systematic method of observation, experience, comparison, and historical method with which society can be scientifically studied.

→ Comte studied different societies and said that to reach the present stage, society had to cross through three stages and these stages are the Theological stage, Metaphysical stage, and Positivistic stage. This is Comte’s law of three stages.

→ Karl Marx was a German Philosopher who is known for his views given on class and class struggle.

→ The concepts of communism and socialism were also given by Karl Marx.

→ Marx was of the view that the history of society, is the history of class struggle.

→ There exist two classes in all the societies-capitalist class which owns all the means of production and labour class which is not having anything to sell except its labour.

→ There is the existence of conflict between the both to get more and this is known as class struggle.

→ Emile Durkheim is also known as one of the founding fathers of sociology.

→ He tried to establish sociology as a science. He was the first professor in the subject of sociology.

→ Durkheim gave a great contribution to the subject of sociology and some of the important concepts given by him are the concept of Social Fact, Theory of Suicide, the theory of Division of Labour, the Concept of Religion, etc.

→ Durkheim was of the view that the concept of division of labour existed in society right from ancient times.

→ The nature of society is determined due to the division of labour.

→ Max Weber is one of the important sociologists and founding fathers of sociology.

→ Like Marx, he was also a German Philosopher.

→ He gave many concepts to sociology such as the concept of social action, Verstehen, Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism, Authority and its types, Bureaucracy, etc.

→ Class: Group of people whose means of production are common.

→ Authority: It is a form of power supported by the norms of a social system and accepted as legitimate by those who participate in it.

→ Social Action: It is an act that cares about the actions and reactions of individuals. If the acting individual takes account of others’ behaviour, it is social.

→ Class Consciousness: The awareness among members of a class about their common motives.

→ Class Struggle: There exists a conflict of interests between capitalist and labour classes. This conflict of interests becomes a reason for class struggle. When class consciousness increases among the people, class struggle also increases.

→ Positivism: In positivism, it is considered that society acts according to certain rules which can be discovered.

→ Mechanical Solidarity: The sense of unity among the members of a homogeneous society is called mechanical solidarity.

→ Organic Solidarity: In many societies, people have differences among them and that’s why they depend upon each other. The unity which exists in such a society is known as organic solidarity.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 11 Social Change will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 11 Social Change

→ Change is the law of nature. There is nothing in this world that has not yet changed. Even nature changes itself from time to time.

→ When change comes in different parts of society and the change affects the structural change comes in the ways of living of the people.

→ There are many features of social change such as it is a universal process, speed of changes is different in different societies, it is community change, no prediction regarding change is possible, it is the result of many interactions, it can be planned as well as unplanned, etc.

→ There are many types of social change such as evolution, development, progress, and revolution.

→ Many a time these words are used for each other but in Sociology, they are very much different from each other.

→ The meaning of evolution is equal change internally. This is a very slow process and social institutions change from simple to complex.

→ Development is also an aspect of social change.

→ When change comes in anything in the desired direction, it is known sis development.

→ Different sociologists have given different bases of development.

→ Progress is another type of social change. It means to move towards achieving objectives.

→ Progress is the efforts made to achieve objectives which is definite and which get scope ration from social values.

→ Revolution brings a sudden and fast change in society with which old structure comes to an end and new structure comes forward.

→ Many a time people become so dissatisfied that they stand up against the system. It is known as revolution.

→ The revolution of 1789 A.D. in France was a change of such type.

→ Many factors influence the direction and speed of social change such as natural factors, beliefs, and values, social reforms, demographic factors, technological factors, educational factors, etc.

→ Diffusion: The process by which cultural traits spread from one culture to another.

→ Innovation: Introduction of new ideas, techniques, etc., and better use of existing ideas and technology.

→ Social Change: Change in the functions of social structure and social system.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 10 Social Stratification will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 10 Social Stratification

→ Inequality exists everywhere in society, Someone is black, white, poor, rich, thin, fat, literate, or illiterate. There are many other bases which we can find in our society.

→ Divison of society in different layers on different bases is known as social stratification.

→ We cannot find any society where stratification doesn’t exist.

→ It exists everywhere in ancient societies, medieval societies, and modern societies.

→ Stratification has many features such as is a universal process, is social in nature, its type is different in different societies, relations in it are based on superiority and inferiority.

→ Mainly four forms of stratification are available in our societies and these are caste, class, feudalism, and slavery.

→ Indian society is greatly influenced by the caste system.

→ A caste is an endogamous group that keeps certain restrictions on its members regarding relationships, social intercourse, etc. The caste of an individual was fixed according to his birth.

→ In modern societies, a new form of stratification has come forward and this is the class system.

→ Class is a group of people who are similar to each other on a particular basis.

→ For example, upper class, middle class, lower class, labour class, industrialist class, doctor class, etc.

→ Feudalism was one of the important aspects of medieval European society.

→ One individual was given a very large piece of land and was made feudal lord.

→ This land was transmitted to his children with which they remained rich.

→ During the 19th and 20th centuries, slavery prevailed in many parts of the world.

→ One person was purchased and sold as a slave and the owner kept unlimited rights over him.

→ G.S. Ghurye was one of the Indian sociologists who gave his views on the caste system.

→ According to him, the caste system is so complex that it is not possible to define it.

→ That’s why he gave six features of the caste system.

→ After the Indian independence, many changes came in the caste system and the changes are still going on.

→ Now caste system is declining day by day.

→ Caste restrictions no more prevail, caste privileges come to an end, constitutional provisions provide equality to all and all these factors have played a very important role in the decline of this system.

→ Many factors contributed to bringing changes in the caste system such as socio-reform movements, modern education, urbanisation, modernisation, industrialisation, development of means of transport and communication, constitutional provisions, etc.

→ Mainly three types of classes prevail in our society: Upper class, middle class, and lower class. The difference between these classes is mainly on the basis of wealth.

→ A caste is a closed group which cannot be changed in any case but a class is an open group that can be changed with an individual’s ability and hard work.

→ According to Karl Marx, in different ages, there prevailed two classes.

→ The first one is the capitalist class and the second one is labour class.

→ The conflict remained there, between them, all the time and this is known as class conflict.

→ New trends are also coming into the class system. During the last few decades, a new class has emerged and this is the middle class.

→ The upper class always exploited the lower class with the help of the middle class.

→ Varna: During ancient times, society was divided into many parts on the basis of Occupation, and each part was known as varna. There were four Varnas-Brahmin, Ksljatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra.

→ Caste: An endogamous group that keeps certain restrictions on its members regarding social intercourse.

→ Class: The economic group which can be differentiated from the other economic group on any basis.

→ Feudalism: During the medieval period, there prevailed a very powerful system in the medieval European society in which one person was made a feudal lord by giving a large piece of land. He was authorized to collect tax from the farmer.

→ Stratification: The process of dividing society into different layers on different bases is known as stratification.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 9 Social Structure will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 9 Social Structure

→ There are many basic concepts of sociology and social structure is one of them.

→ Herbert Spencer was the first Sociologist who used the word social structure.

→ After him, many other Sociologists such as Talcott Parsons, Radcliffe Brown, Maclver, etc. also wrote about it.

→ Society has many parts which are connected in. one way or the other. All these parts are interrelated.

→ The systematic form of these interconnected parts is known as social structure.

→ All these parts are abstract but they direct us in one way or the other.

→ Social structure has many features. For example, it is abstract, it has many inter-related parts, one system exists in all of its parts, it regulates our behaviour, it is universal, it expressed the exterior form of society, etc.

→ Herbert Spencer wrote a book ‘The Principles of Sociology’ in which he used the word social structure and compared it with the living body.

→ He was of the view that the way in which different parts of the human body are needed for its smooth functioning, in the same way, different parts of social structure play a very important role in its smooth functioning.

→ There are several elements of social structure and status and role are quite important among all.

→ The meaning of status is the position given to an individual while living in society.

→ One person is given many a status such as officer, father, son, President of a club, etc.

→ Status is of two types – Ascribed and Achieved.

→ Ascribed status is that which one gets automatically without any effort.

→ Achieved status is that which one gets due to his efforts and ability.

→ The role is the collection of expectations that are expected to be fulfilled by an individual.

→ Many roles are attached to each status. Only with the role, we come to know that how anyone will act while sitting on a particular status.

→ There are many features of the role such as it is learned, it is the functional aspect of status, it has a psychological base, etc.

→ Status and role are deeply related as they are the two sides of the same coin.

→ If anyone is given a status then automatically role is attached with the status.

→ Without a role, status is of no importance and without status, the role cannot be performed.

→ Social Structure: Orderly arrangement of different parts is known as social structure.

→ Role Set: When someone gets many roles.

→ Role Conflict: When an individual gets many roles and a conflict starts among them.

→ Role: The expected behaviour of an individual who holds a particular status.

→ Status: Status is the social position of an individual which he needs to obey.

→ Ascribed Status: The status which one gets on the basis of birth.

→ Achieved Status: The status which is achieved through skill and talent.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 8 Polity, Religion, Economy and Education will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 8 Polity, Religion, Economy and Education

→ There exist many institutions in our society. In social institutions, we can include marriage, family, and kinship.

→ Except for social institutions, there are many other institutions such as political, religious, economic, educational, etc.

→ Political System is a sub-system of society. It fixes such human roles which are necessary to maintain law and order in society. There is a great relationship between polity and society.

→ In Sociology, information on political institutions is used to understand many concepts such as power, leadership, authority, etc. Such political institutions help us in maintaining peace and security in society.

→ Power is the ability of individuals or groups to carry out their will even when opposed by others.

→ A definite and fixed amount of power exists in society.

→ Few groups have more power and they exercise their power over the group which is having less power.

→ Power is applied with the help of an authority. Authority is a form of power that is considered just and legitimate.

→ Those who have authority, use power because they consider it justified.

→ Different societies have different states. In a few societies, there is no concept of state and they are considered stateless societies.

→ Such states existed in ancient societies. In modern societies, authority is included in the concept of state and it is obtained from the people.

→ Max Weber gave three types of authority-traditional, legal and charismatic.

→ Father’s authority is traditional, Government’s authority is legal, and accepting any leader’s will is called charismatic authority.

→ The state is the basic institution of the political system. It has four essential elements and these are population, geographical area, sovereignty, and government.

→ There are three organs of government and these are-Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary.

→ To maintain State and government, a proper balance between these three organs is necessary.

→ The present-day political system runs with democracy. It is of two types—direct and indirect.

→ In a direct democracy, people decide on their own and in indirect democracy, people’s elected representatives make all the decisions.

→ The government in our country has adopted the decentralized system and govts, are made till local level.

→ In rural areas, Panchayat is established at the village level, Block Samiti at the block level, and Zila Parished at the district level and they are responsible for doing development in their respective areas.

→ In a democracy, political parties keep a very important place.

→ A political party is a group of people whose main objective is to attain power by contesting elections.

→ Few parties are national parties and few are regional parties.

→ Interest groups keep a very important place in a democracy.

→ They are attached to any particular group and they work to achieve the interests of their group.

→ Religion has existed in society since the time when human society started.

→ Religion is nothing but faith in super-natural power that is beyond our existence and reach.

→ Many religions exist in our country India such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism (Parsi), etc.

→ India is a multi-religious country where people of many religions live in peace and harmony with each other.

→ Every person needs money to buy food, cloth, house, health services, etc. and all these are important parts of our economy. Economic institutions take care of our income and expenditure.

→ Different societies have different economies. Few societies have collective economies, few are pastoral economies, rural economies, industrial economies, and capitalist economies. Karl Marx also gave a new economy called socialist economy.

→ The concept of division of labor is not new to our society.

→ When people start to do specific work and are unable to do all the works, it is called specialisation and division of labour.

→ The caste system and Jajmani system in India are one such type of division of labour.

→ If we observe our society, we can say that nothing in our society, is possible without education.

→ Education changes an uncivilized person into a civilized individual.

→ Education is of two types – formal and informal.

→ Formal education is that which we get in school, college, etc. and informal education is that which we get from our daily life experiences.

→ Authority: Power established by the political system in its geographical area.

→ Division of Labour: The system in which occupations are divided into different parts and every occupation is given to an individual or group.

→ Economy: System of production, distribution, and consumption.

→ Globalisation: The process of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, ideas, products, and other aspects of culture.

→ Totem: Considering any tree, plant, stone, or any other thing as sacred.

→ State Society: The society in which formal organisation of government exists.

→ Stateless society: The society in which there is no formal organisation of government.

→ Pressure groups: Such groups in a democratic system work for the interests of a particular group.

→ State: State is a group with four essential features – population, geographical area, sovereignty, and government.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 7 Marriage, Family and Kinship will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 7 Marriage, Family and Kinship

→ Every society forms a few institutions to fulfill the basic needs of its member.

→ The institution is a structure of the social system which directs the individual behaviour of a community.

→ It fulfills a few basic needs which are very much necessary for social existence.

→ There are certain features of institutions such as they fulfill particular needs.

→ They are collections of rules, they are abstract, universal, social, and permanent. They cannot be changed very easily.

→ Marriage is one such institution that exists in every society. It is one of the basic social institutions.

→ With marriage, two individuals of opposite sexes are permitted to live with each other as husband-wife.

→ They establish sexual relations, produce children and contribute to the continuation of society.

→ Many types of marriages exist in our society but monogamy and polygamy are quite famous.

→ Polygamy is further divided into two parts, polygamy, and polyandry. Polyandry type of marriage exists in tribal society and polygamy existed in our society some time ago.

→ Many rules of mate selection prevail in our society out of which endogamy and exogamy are quite common.

→ In endogamy, one needs to marry within a particular group and in exogamy, one needs to marry out of a particular group.

→ During the last few decades, many changes have come in the institution of marriage.

→ Many reasons are there behind these changes such as industrialisation, urbanisation, modern education, new laws, freedom of women, the impact of western societies, etc.

→ Family is one such universal institution that exists in almost all societies.

→ Individual life is greatly affected by family and one cannot live without one’s family.

→ Family is having many features such as it is a universal institution, it is small in size, it is both permanent and temporary, it controlling individual behaviour.

→ There are many types of family that can be divided on the basis of authority, place of living, members, etc.

→ During the last few decades, changes have also taken place in the institution of the family such as small in size, breaking up of families, change in the status of women, changes in functions, etc.

→ Kinship is a system of human relationships and many relations are included in it. Kinship can be divided into two bases—affinal and consanguinity.

→ On the basis of nearness and distance, there are three types of kins-primary, secondary and tertiary.

→ Primary relatives are father, mother, brother, sister.

→ Secondary kins are primary kins of our primary kins such as the father of father- grandfather.

→ Tertiary kins are primary kins of our secondary relatives such as the son of uncle-cousin.

→ Patriarchal: The family in which authority and control are in the hands of the father.

→ Matriarchal: The family in which authority and control are in the hands of the mother.

→ Nuclear Family: The family in which husband, wife, and their unmarried children live.

→ Joint Family: The family in which members of more than two generations live under one roof and eat in a common kitchen.

→ Endogamy: Marriage within a particular group i.e. caste.

→ Exogamy: Marriage out of a particular group, i.e. family, gotra, etc.

→ Monogamy: Marriage of one male with one female.

→ Polygamy: Marriage of one male or female with many females or males.

→ Affinal kinship: This type of kinship is made after marriage such as son-in-law.

→ Consanguineous kinship: This type of kinship is made due to blood and right after birth i.e. son, brother, sister, etc.

→ Kinship: Social relations, real or imaginative, made according to marriage or blood.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 6 Socialization will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 6 Socialization

→ When a child takes birth, he is unaware of his surroundings. Gradually, he becomes older and learns the ways to live in society. This process of learning ways of living in society is known as socialisation.

→ The process of socialization starts with the birth and goes on for the whole of one’s life.

→ The life of an individual comes to an end but this is a never-ending process.

→ If there will be no process of socialization, humans will start behaving like animals and there will be nothing called society.

→ The process of socialisation is a never-ending process. Gradually a child grows older, becomes independent and at this stage, this process becomes quite necessary.

→ At this stage, a need is required to control his behaviour. Here the advantage of socialisation is visible to us.

→ There are five stages of the socialization-infant stage, childhood stage, Adolescent stage, Adulthood stage, and old age.

→ The infant stage starts with birth and goes till one year. The childhood stage goes till 13-14 years, the adolescent stage till 17-18 years, the adulthood stage from 18-50 years, and old age start after this.

→ There are many agencies to complete the process of socialisation and these can be divided into two parts-formal and informal.

→ Family, playgroup, religion, etc. come under informal agencies. Law, legal system, political system, etc. are included informal agencies of socialisation.

→ Socialisation: A continuing process in which an individual acquires a personal identity and learns the values, norms, behaviour, and social skills appropriate to his/her social position.

→ Self: The distinct identity of an individual.

→ Play Group: A group of people, having the same age, background, and social status, with whom individual associates and who are likely to influence his beliefs and behaviour.

→ Formal means of Socialisation: Those means of socialisation, also known as institutional means, provide formal socialisation such as school, law, political system, etc.

→ Informal means of Socialisation: These means of socialisation are also known as social group agents which include individual and social institutions that socialise an individual in an informal manner.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 5 Culture will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 5 Culture

→ The thing which differentiates humans from animals is the culture that they have but animals do not.

→ If human culture is taken away from them, they will become animals. So culture and society, both are deeply related.

→ Whatever humans have achieved, from an early age till today is their culture, Culture is a learned behaviour transmitted from one generation to another.

→ An individual can only get culture at a time when he is a member of any society.

→ Culture is of two types, namely material and non-material.

→ In material culture, all the things are included which we can see or touch such as a chair, table, car, pen, home, etc.

→ In non-material culture, all such things are included which we cannot see or touch such as views, ideas, values, norms, etc.

→ Culture and traditions are deeply related. In the same way, social worries and values are also important parts of culture.

→ If they will be taken out of culture, nothing will be left in culture.

→ There are two aspects of culture-material and non-material. Changes often come in both of these aspects.

→ Change in material aspect comes very quickly but not in non-material aspect.

→ Consequently, a difference occurs among them. Material aspect moves ahead and non-material aspect lags behind. This difference is known as cultural lag.

→ The meaning of change in culture is a change in the pattern of society. This change comes due to internal and external factors.

→ Culture: Whatever man has achieved till today is his culture.

→ Material Culture: That aspect of culture which we can see or touch.

→ Non-material Culture: That aspect of culture which we can’t see or touch.

→ Cultural Lag: Due to change in both aspects of culture, the material aspect moves ahead and the non-material aspect lags behind. This difference between the two is cultural lag.

→ Norms: Established standards of behaviour shared by members of a social group.

→ Value: A principle considered worthwhile or desirable.

→ Cultural Change: That way in which society changes its patterns of culture.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 4 Social Groups will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 4 Social Groups

→ Man is a social animal. He cannot live alone. To fulfill his needs, he needs to depend upon others. So, most of his activities are centered around groups.

→ A social group is an aggregate of two or more persons who interact with each other.

→ But to become a group, this interaction must continue for a longer period of time. This interaction motivates him to relate with the group.

→ A social group has many features such as it is a collection of individuals, interactions that take place among members of a group, members are conscious about their membership, they have we-feeling among them, each group has certain rules, etc.

→ There exist many social groups in society, and many Sociologists have classified them on many bases. But the classification given by C.H. Cooley is accepted by most Sociologists.

→ According to Cooley, on the basis of physical closeness and distance, there are two types of groups-Primary groups and Secondary groups.

→ Primary groups are the groups in which members have physical proximity with each other.

→ We meet these members on a daily basis, share everything with them, and love to live with them. For example, family, playgroup, neighbourhood, etc.

→ Secondary groups are exactly opposite to primary groups. In such groups, we can take membership with our will and can leave them at any time.

→ There are no close relations among their members; for example, political parties, trade unions, etc.

→ Secondary groups have many features such as physical proximity, temporary in nature, formal relations, optional membership, etc.

→ Primary groups are of great importance as we cannot live without them. They help in the process of socialization and keep control of individual behaviour.

→ Sumner also classified groups and this are-In-group and the Out-group.

→ In-groups are the groups about which an individual is completely conscious. Out-groups are the groups with which an individual does not have we-feeling.

→ Robert Merton gave a new type of group called Reference Group. Sometimes an individual tries to control and direct his behaviour according to a specific group. That group for the individual is a reference group.

→ We-Feeling: The feeling with which we identify ourselves with the group that we are its members.

→ Primary Group: The group with which we are quite close and without which we can’t live.

→ Secondary Group: The group whose membership is taken when the need arises and can be left at any time.

→ In-Group: The group with which a person has we-feeling,

→ Out-Group: The group with which a person does not have any feeling in him.

This PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 3 Society, Community and Association will help you in revision during exams.

PSEB 11th Class Sociology Notes Chapter 3 Society, Community and Association

→ According to Aristotle, man is a social animal. He cannot live alone.

→ An individual can neither live out of society nor can he think about it. He needs to depend upon 6thers to fulfill his needs.

→ To fulfill his needs, an individual needs to make relations with others, and the web of social relations is known as society.

→ When relations are formed among two or more individuals, we can say that society is in the process of making.

→ We can find a number of societies in the whole of the world such as tribal society, rural society, industrial society, post-industrial society.

→ Different sociologists have divided societies on different bases such as Comte (intellectual development), Morgan (social development), Spencer (the degree of structural complexity), Tonnies (types of social ties), Durkheim (types of solidarity), etc.

→ Society has many features such as it is abstract, it is based on similarities and differences, co-operation and conflict both exist in it and a system of stratification is always there in it.

→ Man has a very close relation with society because he cannot live alone. To live, he needs the help of others.

→ Durkheim was of the view that society is associated with every aspect of our life.

→ Humans are also important for society because, in their absence, there can be no existence of society.

→ When a few individuals live in a group, in a particular geographical area, in an organised manner and spend the whole of their life without any particular motive, it is known as community. We-feeling always exists in the community.

→ There are certain elements of the community such as a group of people, definite geographical area, community feeling, common culture, etc.

→ Association is based on co-operation. When a few people come together, co-operate with each other to attain certain objectives and form an organisation, it is called association.

→ Aggregate: Aggregate is a collection of people in one place but has no relation with each other.

→ Co-operation: When a few people help each other to achieve a particular objective, it is called co-operation.

→ Institution: A structure or mechanism to regulate the individual behaviour in a community.

→ Law: Written rules implemented or enforced by any official agency.

→ Identity: Features of an individual or a group which tell about who are we and are meant for others.

→ We-feeling: A strong feeling with which members of a group identify and distinguish themselves from others. It shows a strong sense of unity among them.