Social system: Meaning
- Social system is any interdependent set of cultural and structural elements that can be thought of as a unit.
- Social system is the patterned social relations and the social processes which determine the nature of social system.
Elements of social system
The main elements of social system in Loomi’s perception are:
- Belief and knowledge: Any proposition about any aspect of the universe that is accepted as true may be called a belief. A belief may be true or false. It may be verifiable or not. But the people who hold it consider it to be true. The belief that there is no God will make the social relationship of people different from the relations of those who belief in God.
- Sentiment: sentiment is the chief element articulated in the internal pattern of s social system. The sentiments may be of various kinds, intellectual, ethical, aesthetic, religious etc.
- End goal or objective: The end goal or objectives create a social system. The members of a social system expect to accomplish a particular end or objective through appropriate interaction.
- Norms: Norms are the standards for determining what is right and wrong, appropriate and inappropriate just and unjust, good and bad social relations. Every social system is possessing of its norms which the individuals are obliged to observe.
- Status- role: Status is the position which an individual has in society. In a social system each individual has a status. The element of status is found in every social system. In the family there are the statuses like, father, mother, son, and daughter etc. the status of an individual may be achieved or ascribed. Achieved status means an individual achieves by his/her efforts. Ascribed status means an individual’s gets at his/her birth.
- Rank: Rank is determined by the evaluation placed upon the individual and his/her acts in accordance with the norms and standards of the system. A political leader enjoys the society whereas an ancient time the teacher enjoyed higher rank than that of even the king.
- Power: Power refers to the capacity to control others. There may take place any conflict among the different parts of the social system. Such conflict is harmful for the social system. For e.g. If there is conflict/dispute between teacher and the students which is harmful for the efficiency of the institutions. There should exists some power with the capacity to control both the teachers and students. Such power is vested in the principal.
Thus, each social system gives power to some individuals or body of individuals to remove tension from amongst system.
- Sanction: Sanctions can be making positive or negative. The positive sanctions are the rewards which may include wages, profit, interest, privileges etc. the negative sanctions are the penalties and punishment.
- Facility: Facility means used to attain ends within the system. It is necessary that the individuals in a social system should be provided with adequate facilities to enable them to perform their roles efficiently. Facilities should not only exist, but should also be utilized.