The cognitive function of sociology is an example. Object and subject of sociology. Main functions of sociology

The main groups of sociological functions

The main groups of sociological functions include:

1. Theoretical-cognitive, or epistemological function. It provides an opportunity to obtain new sociological knowledge, clarify and create concepts, theories, social ties of society, a general view of society.
2. Information function. Allows to receive sociological knowledge of the public, a wide circle of the population.
3. managerial function. The task of sociologists is to explain social processes and phenomena, to find the causes of their occurrence and ways to resolve problematic issues, to provide recommendations for social management.
4. organizational function. Organization of various social groups: in the political sphere, at work, at leisure, in military units, etc.
5. predictive function. Allows you to predict future events in social life.
6. propaganda function. Allows you to form social values, ideals, create certain social relations, form images of the heroes of society.

Specific Functions of Sociology

In addition to the main functions of sociology, some scholars distinguish a number of specific functions:

• E. Durkheim believed that sociology should give specific recommendations for the development and improvement of society.
• V.A. Yadov adds practically transformative, educational and ideological functions to the main functions. The main applied functions of sociology consist in an objective analysis of social reality.
• A.G. Zdravomyslov identifies ideological, theoretical, instrumental and critical functions.
• G.P. Davidyuk, along with the main functions, highlights the educational function of sociology.

Theoretical-cognitive function

The theoretical-cognitive function consists in the study and analysis of social reality. It is focused on the creation of new sociological knowledge, is the basis for the implementation of other functions.

The cognitive function is carried out at all levels of sociological knowledge:

• general theoretical level - hypotheses are developed, problems of social reality are formulated, methods of tools, ways of sociological research are determined, social forecasts are made;
• middle level - translation of general concepts to the empirical level, increasing knowledge about the essence, specific situations, contradictory phenomena of human activity;
• empirical level - new facts revealed in the course of sociological research increase the volume of substantiated knowledge about social reality.

predictive function

The prognostic function provides scientifically based forecasts for the further development of individual spheres and structures of society, the whole society as a whole, is the theoretical basis for creating long-term plans for their development.

Social forecasts indicate the necessary changes, show the possibilities of its implementation, and allow us to give practical recommendations for improving the efficiency of managing social processes.

Depending on the group of social factors to which practical recommendations belong, they may be of the following nature:

• objective (political system, social structure of society, working conditions, human behavior, etc.);
• subjective (goals, motives, interests, attitudes, values, public opinion, etc.).

Critical function

Thanks to the critical function, the surrounding world is evaluated from the point of view of the interests of the individual. Having objective knowledge, it is possible to identify deviations in the development of society, leading to negative social consequences.

There is a differentiated approach to reality. It is indicated that the social structure can be preserved, strengthened and developed, and what can be radically changed.

Sociology implements all the functions inherent in social science: epistemological, critical, descriptive, prognostic, practical-transformative, ideological.

Theoretical-cognitive the function of sociology is manifested in the most complete and concrete knowledge of social reality. In fulfilling this function, sociology accumulates knowledge about various aspects of social life, systematizes them, and seeks to give a holistic view of the problems of the development of modern society. The theoretical-cognitive function of sociology also includes the disclosure of the nature of people's social existence, the characteristics of their behavior and consciousness, spiritual activity, and lifestyle. Obviously, without specific knowledge about the processes taking place within individual social communities, groups or associations, it is impossible to ensure effective social management.

Critical function sociology is to study the negative phenomena in the life of society and find ways to eliminate them. Sociology shows, on the one hand, what needs to be preserved in social life, and on the other hand, what requires radical changes. Investigating the processes of social disorganization, sociology puts them a kind of social diagnosis and gives recommendations for restoring the social health of society.

Descriptive function sociology is to systematize, describe the material received by researchers in the form of various analytical notes, scientific reports, articles, books. They should reflect the real characteristics of the studied social object. Naturally, this work assumes a high level of professional ethics of the scientist, because on the basis of the materials received, practical conclusions are drawn and managerial decisions are made. These materials will serve as a reference point, a source of comparison for future generations of researchers.

predictive function sociology - making scientific forecasts for the development of social processes in all spheres of society. Such forecasts are of a long-term or current nature. They are especially important in the transitional period of the development of society. And here sociology is capable of:

determine what is the range of opportunities that open up for the participants in the events;

present alternative scenarios of likely processes associated with each of the selected solutions;

Practical-transformative function sociology is to develop practical recommendations based on empirical and theoretical research aimed at improving the efficiency of social management mechanisms. These recommendations can be used both for social planning of the life of cities, villages, individual enterprises and collectives, and for improving economic and political relations and the activities of relevant social institutions. The role of this function of sociology is constantly growing, because the complication of modern society requires a more targeted impact on social processes.

Ideological function sociology is connected with the fact that sociological theories and concepts to varying degrees express the interests of certain social groups, political parties and movements. The choice of a research topic, the development of a problem, and the interpretation of the results obtained are often determined by the sociologist's sociopolitical position and depend on his value orientations and political interests. According to a number of leading sociologists, sociological science should be ideologically neutral. Therefore, the task of a sociologist is not to replace the scientific approach with an ideological one, but to conduct an objective analysis of social phenomena and processes.

Functions of sociology: 1). cognitive, research. 2).practical. 3). predictive. 4). value-oriented. 5).managerial. 6).organizational and technological. 7).information. 8).social design. 9) ideological (controversial).

Theoretical-cognitive function, of course, consists in the fact that sociology accumulates knowledge, systematizes it, strives to compose the most complete picture of social relations and processes in the modern world. The theoretical-cognitive function of sociology includes objective knowledge about the main social problems of the development of modern society.

practical function Sociology consists in developing practical recommendations based on empirical and theoretical analysis of social phenomena and processes, for example, on strengthening incentives and increasing the efficiency of people's activities in the sphere of material production, improving economic and political relations and the activities of relevant social institutions.

predictive function. This feature plays a very important role. The results of sociological research provide concrete information necessary for the implementation of conscious social control and management of social processes in society. It is expressed in the fact that it gives scientifically based forecasts of the development of both the whole society and its individual spheres and structures, which acts as a theoretical basis for building long-term plans for their development.

managerial function. Sociology is directly related to management activities. The scientific results of sociology - recommendations, proposals, methods, evaluation of various characteristics of the subject, his practice - is the source material for the development and adoption of managerial decisions.

Organizational and technological function. It is based on the creation of social technologies that determine the order and rules of practical actions to achieve a specific result in the development of a social organization, social process or social relations. Now this is becoming especially relevant for social practice, and sociology is called upon to solve this problem.

Descriptive and informative. Sociologists carry out a systematic description and accumulation of material, on the basis of which practical conclusions are subsequently drawn, managerial decisions and legislative acts are made, and social control over social processes is carried out; Sociologists' information helps to analyze the state of the socio-psychological climate and tension in labor collectives, study groups, institutions, to prevent the emergence and explosion of social conflicts.

Social design. The task of social design includes the development of optimal models not only for the organization of various social communities, for example, a labor collective, a new enterprise, a new city, a political party or movement, but also for management to achieve the set goals. In countries with a developed civil society, most of the professionally trained sociologists are engaged in just such work.

Sociologists provide the results of their research for planning the development of various spheres of public life, thanks to which social planning is carried out in all countries of the world, regardless of social systems; it covers various sectors, ranging from the life processes of the world community, individual regions and countries, and ending with the social planning of the life of cities and villages, individual enterprises, and collectives.

ideological function. The presence of this function is due to a number of circumstances. Although the sociologist is interested in obtaining the most accurate and objective information about the phenomenon under study, the results are not always free from political evaluation. The choice of a research topic, the development of tasks, the research technique, the interpretation of the results obtained are often determined by its socio-political position and depend on its value orientations and political interests.

In addition, many of the conclusions and recommendations received to varying degrees affect the political interests of all social groups and classes. Therefore, the sociologist-researcher, like representatives of other social sciences, expresses the political interests of different social groups in society.

14. Youth as a special social group.

Sociology studies youth as a social community, features of its socialization, education, the process of social continuity and inheritance of knowledge and experience of older generations by young people, lifestyle features, the formation of life plans, value orientations, and the fulfillment of social roles. One of the first definitions of youth was given in 1968 V.T. Lisovsky: “Young people are a generation of people passing through the stage of socialization, assimilating, and at a more mature age already assimilating, educational, professional, cultural and other social functions; depending on the specific historical conditions, the age criteria for young people can range from 16 to 30 years.”

Later, a more precise definition was given Comte: Youth is a socio-demographic group, distinguished on the basis of a combination of age characteristics, characteristics of social status and due to certain socio-psychological properties that are determined by the level of socio-economic, cultural development, features of socialization in Russian society . Youth- this is a certain phase, a stage of the life cycle. Socialization- the process of personality formation, learning, assimilation of values, norms, attitudes, patterns of behavior accepted in a given society. In modern conditions, the very process of socialization of the individual has become more complicated and lengthened, and, accordingly, the criteria for its social maturity have become different (not only entry into an independent working life, but also the completion of education, obtaining a profession, real political and civil rights, material independence from elders). Young people have movable boundaries of their age, they depend on the socio-economic development of society, the level of culture, living conditions. The lower age limit is determined that from the age of 14 physical maturity begins and a person can be engaged in labor activity. The upper limit is the achievement of economic independence, professional and personal stability. The formation of the social maturity of youth occurs under the influence of many relatively independent factors - families, schools, labor collectives, the media, youth organizations and spontaneous groups. This plurality of institutions does not represent a rigid hierarchical system; each of them performs its own specific functions in the development of the individual. Under the youth subculture is understood the culture of a certain young generation, which has a common style of life, behavior, group, norms, values ​​and stereotypes.

Youth is a social age group of the population aged 14-30 years old, which is in the stage of its social formation, development of social roles, having limitations in capacity in various areas of participation in the social life of society and enjoying certain benefits for the period of its formation.

Thus, a young person can be considered as an object, as a certain phenomenon of social reality created by society at certain stages of its development. In this case, youth appears as a stratum of the population, a set of young people to whom society provides the opportunity for social development, providing them with benefits, freeing them from economic coercion to a certain extent, but limiting their capacity in various areas of full participation in the life of society.

Thus, the main features of the younger generation of Russians should be emphasized. The youth population is gradually decreasing due to deformations of the natural movement of the population. The medical and biological indicators of the health of the younger generation are deteriorating. There is a crisis of a young family. There is a deepening of deformation in the value orientations of young people. The boundaries of deviant behavior are expanding, the number of homeless children is comparable to the 1920s. The gap between generations is deepening. Two thirds of young Russians live below the poverty line, one tenth is begging. The imbalance between the level of income and the level of consumption leads to a conflict of motives in the sphere of labor and consumption. Young people are mainly integrated into the sphere of exchange and redistribution of goods and services. Based on these conclusions, the distinctive features of the younger generation in Russian society are defined in this way: young people are characterized by a particularly close relationship between the psychophysiological characteristics of the subject and the parameters of his social life; it has more specific characteristics than other age groups; youth problems have a stronger influence on social progress; reduced social status gives rise to deformations of life situations; increased sensitivity and emotionality provokes an escalation of social tension; in relation to young people, one can judge the civilization of society and the state.

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Sociology is the science of the laws of formation, functioning and development of social systems. The social system is a holistic formation, the main elements of which are people, as well as their stable connections, interactions and relationships. Social systems are formed on the basis of the joint activity of people.

The subject of sociology is a system of essential properties and laws that characterize the existence of the object of sociology, its internal certainty, i.e., the mode of existence and the mechanism for the manifestation and functioning of social phenomena, social processes and relations.

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1. Microsociology and macrosociology. Microsociology studies the behavior, communication of people in everyday life, their motives, actions, norms of behavior. Macrosociology studies the interconnections of various parts of society, their interaction. At the macrosociological level, the focus is on the economic and political systems of social organization, religions, parties, classes, family types, etc.

2. Theoretical and applied sociology. Theoretical sociology defines the boundaries, goals, methods and functions of sociological knowledge. Applied sociology studies the real processes of social development and suggests ways of influencing social reality. Applied sociology is engaged in forecasting, designing, forming social policy, developing methods of social management.

There are three levels of sociological theories: general sociological theories, theories of the middle level and special theories. General sociological theories explore the general patterns of social development. Sociological theories of the middle level, in terms of their general scope, occupy an intermediate position between general sociological and special theories; in the theories of the middle level, proper theoretical knowledge is combined with empirical knowledge. Special sociological theories consider separate social spheres, communities or processes as relatively independent systems with general and specific connections, universal and particular characteristics, general and special conditions of origin, functioning and development.

Functions of sociological science:
cognitive function. Sociology studies and explains the patterns of social development at various levels of the social system. The implementation of the cognitive function includes the development of the theory and methods of sociological research, in particular methods for collecting and processing sociological information.

predictive function. On the basis of sociological research, short-, medium- and long-term forecasts can be built that determine the prospects for the development of social structures, changes in the demographic situation, living standards, the intensity of urbanization, the outcome of election campaigns, etc.

Function of social design. The task of social design includes the development of optimal models for the organization of various social communities and models of social management. In countries with a developed civil society, most of the professionally trained sociologists are engaged in just such work.

Socio-technological function. A typical example of the implementation of this function in practice is the creation of social development services at enterprises, in large organizations where professional sociologists work. Such services are engaged in determining potential staff turnover, studying the socio-psychological situation in teams, managing social conflicts, etc.

managerial function. Sociology, especially applied sociology, is directly related to management activities. For example, it makes no sense to start any change in the mode of work of the labor collective without analyzing the undesirable social consequences.

ideological function. Like any other science of society, sociology performs a certain ideological function. Forming people's ideas about the state of society, it ultimately affects society. From the abuse of this influence, the researcher is guaranteed the depth of scientific analysis, a strictly scientific approach to the problems studied, and tolerance for different points of view.

There are many branches of sociology, and their number continues to grow. Recently, such branches have emerged as the sociology of civil society, the sociology of the market and market relations, the sociology of public opinion, the sociology of international relations, political sociology, economic sociology, environmental sociology, etc.
Sociology is increasingly intertwined with various social sciences. Ethnosociology is affirmed, socio-economic, socio-political, historical and sociological studies, etc. appear. Methods, tools of sociology are adopted by other social sciences: economics, law, demography.

Sociology implements all the functions inherent in social science: epistemological, critical, descriptive, prognostic, practical-transformative, ideological.

The epistemological function of sociology is manifested in the most complete and concrete knowledge of social reality. In fulfilling this function, sociology accumulates knowledge about various aspects of social life, systematizes them, and seeks to give a holistic view of the problems of the development of modern society. The theoretical-cognitive function of sociology also includes the disclosure of the nature of people's social existence, the characteristics of their behavior and consciousness, spiritual activity, and lifestyle. Obviously, without specific knowledge about the processes taking place within individual social communities, groups or associations, it is impossible to ensure effective social management.

The critical function of sociology is to study the negative phenomena in the life of society and find ways to eliminate them. Sociology shows, on the one hand, what needs to be preserved in social life, and on the other hand, what requires radical changes. Investigating the processes of social disorganization, sociology puts them a kind of social diagnosis and gives recommendations for restoring the social health of society.

The descriptive function of sociology is to systematize, describe the material received by researchers in the form of various analytical notes, scientific reports, articles, books. They should reflect the real characteristics of the studied social object. Naturally, this work assumes a high level of professional ethics of the scientist, because on the basis of the materials received, practical conclusions are drawn and managerial decisions are made. These materials will serve as a reference point, a source of comparison for future generations of researchers.

The prognostic function of sociology is the compilation of scientific forecasts for the development of social processes in all spheres of society. Such forecasts are of a long-term or current nature. They are especially important in the transitional period of the development of society. And here sociology is capable of:

determine what is the range of opportunities that open up for the participants in the events;

present alternative scenarios of likely processes associated with each of the selected solutions;

The practical and transformative function of sociology is to develop practical recommendations on the basis of empirical and theoretical research aimed at improving the effectiveness of social control mechanisms. These recommendations can be used both for social planning of the life of cities, villages, individual enterprises and collectives, and for improving economic and political relations and the activities of relevant social institutions. The role of this function of sociology is constantly growing, because the complication of modern society requires a more targeted impact on social processes.

The ideological function of sociology is related to the fact that sociological theories and concepts express the interests of certain social groups, political parties and movements to one degree or another. The choice of a research topic, the development of a problem, and the interpretation of the results obtained are often determined by the sociologist's sociopolitical position and depend on his value orientations and political interests. According to a number of leading sociologists, sociological science should be ideologically neutral. Therefore, the task of a sociologist is not to replace the scientific approach with an ideological one, but to conduct an objective analysis of social phenomena and processes.