Social action according to M. Weber

11.10.2019

The theory of social action by M. Weber

According to M. Weber, the science of sociology deals with social actions. She interprets and understands these actions through explanations.

It turns out that social actions are the subject of study, and interpretation, understanding is the method by which phenomena are causally explained.

Thus, understanding is a means of explanation.

The concept of meaning explains the sociological concept of action, i.e. sociology must study the rational behavior of the individual. At the same time, the individual realizes the meaning and purpose of his actions without emotions and passions.

Goal-rational behavior, in which the choice of goal is free and conscious, for example, a business meeting, the purchase of goods. This behavior will be free, because there is no coercion from the crowd.
At the heart of value-rational behavior is a conscious orientation, faith in moral or religious ideals that stand above calculations, considerations of profit, momentary impulses. Business success fades into the background here and a person may not be interested in the opinions of others. A person measures his actions with higher values, such as the salvation of the soul or a sense of duty.
The behavior is traditional, which cannot be called conscious, because it is based on a blunted reaction to stimuli and proceeds according to the accepted pattern. Irritants can be various prohibitions, taboos, norms and rules, customs and traditions that are passed from one generation to another, for example, hospitality that takes place among all peoples. As a result, there is no need to invent anything, because the individual behaves this way and not otherwise, out of habit, automatically.
Reactive or as it is also called affective behavior that comes from within and a person can act unconsciously. This short-term emotional state is not guided by the behavior of other people, as well as by the conscious choice of a goal.

Affective forms of behavior include confusion before some event, enthusiasm, irritation, depression. These four types, as M. Weber himself notes, can be considered the most characteristic, but far from exhaustive, of the whole variety of types of human behavior.

Value-rational behavior according to M. Weber

According to M. Weber, value-rational behavior is an ideal type of social action. The reason is that this type is based on such actions performed by people, which are based on the belief in their self-sufficient value.

The goal here is the action itself. Value-rational action is subject to certain requirements. It is the duty of the individual to follow these requirements. Actions in accordance with these requirements mean value-rational actions even if rational calculation has a high probability of adverse consequences of the act itself for the individual personally.

Example 1

For example, the captain is the last to leave a sinking ship, despite the fact that his life is in danger.

These actions have a conscious focus, and if they are correlated with ideas of duty, dignity, then this will be a certain rationality, meaningfulness.

The intentionality of such behavior speaks of a large degree of its rationality and distinguishes it from affective behavior. The “value-based rationality” of an action absolutizes the value to which the individual is oriented, because it carries something irrational in itself.

M. Weber believes that only the person who acts in accordance with his convictions can act purely value-rationally. In this case, he will fulfill what the law requires of him, the religious prescription, the importance of something.

The purpose of the action and the action itself in the value-rational case coincide, and side effects are not taken into account.

Remark 1

Thus, it turns out that the goal-rational action and the value-rational action differ from each other as truth and truth. Truth is what actually exists, regardless of the beliefs of a particular society. Truth means comparing what you observe with what is generally accepted in a given society.

Types of social action M. Weber

The correct type, where ends and means are strictly rational, because they are objectively adequate to each other.
In the second type, the means to achieve the end, as it seems to the subject, will be adequate, although they may not be so.
Approximate action without a specific goal and means.
An action determined by specific circumstances, without a precise goal.
An action that has a number of obscure elements, therefore only partially understandable.
Action that is inexplicable from the point of view of a rational position, caused by incomprehensible psychological or physical factors.

This classification arranges all types of social action in descending order of their rationality and comprehensibility.

Not all types of action, including the external type, are social in the accepted sense. If an external action is directed at the behavior of things, then it cannot be social.

It becomes social only when it is focused on the behavior of others, for example, a prayer read alone will not be social in nature.

Not all types of human relationships are social in nature. Social action will not be identical to the same behavior of people, for example, when it rains. People open umbrellas not because they are guided by the actions of others, but in order to protect themselves from the rain.

Nor will it be identical to that which is influenced by the behavior of others. The behavior of the crowd has a huge impact on a person and is defined as behavior due to mass character.

M. Weber set himself the task of showing how such social facts - relationships, order, connections - should be defined as special forms of social action, but the desire was not actually realized.

Remark 2

The most important idea of M. Weber was that social action leads to a social fact. M. Weber considers only the goal as the determinant of action, and does not pay due attention to the circumstances that make this action possible. He does not indicate among which alternatives the choice is made and does not have judgments about what goals of action the actor has in this or that situation. It also does not say what options the subject has when moving towards the goal and what type of selection he makes.

The theory of social action by M. Weber

According to M. Weber, the science of sociology deals with social actions. She interprets and understands these actions through explanations.

It turns out that social actions are the subject of study, and interpretation, understanding is the method by which phenomena are causally explained.

Thus, understanding is a means of explanation.

Goal-rational behavior, in which the choice of goal is free and conscious, for example, a business meeting, the purchase of goods. This behavior will be free, because there is no coercion from the crowd.
At the heart of value-rational behavior is a conscious orientation, faith in moral or religious ideals that stand above calculations, considerations of profit, momentary impulses. Business success fades into the background here and a person may not be interested in the opinions of others. A person measures his actions with higher values, such as the salvation of the soul or a sense of duty.
The behavior is traditional, which cannot be called conscious, because it is based on a blunted reaction to stimuli and proceeds according to the accepted pattern. Irritants can be various prohibitions, taboos, norms and rules, customs and traditions that are passed from one generation to another, for example, hospitality that takes place among all peoples. As a result, there is no need to invent anything, because the individual behaves this way and not otherwise, out of habit, automatically.
Reactive or as it is also called affective behavior that comes from within and a person can act unconsciously. This short-term emotional state is not guided by the behavior of other people, as well as by the conscious choice of a goal.

Value-rational behavior according to M. Weber

Example 1

For example, the captain is the last to leave a sinking ship, despite the fact that his life is in danger.

These actions have a conscious focus, and if they are correlated with ideas of duty, dignity, then this will be a certain rationality, meaningfulness.

The purpose of the action and the action itself in the value-rational case coincide, and side effects are not taken into account.

Remark 1

Types of social action M. Weber

The correct type, where ends and means are strictly rational, because they are objectively adequate to each other.
In the second type, the means to achieve the end, as it seems to the subject, will be adequate, although they may not be so.
Approximate action without a specific goal and means.
An action determined by specific circumstances, without a precise goal.
An action that has a number of obscure elements, therefore only partially understandable.
Action that is inexplicable from the point of view of a rational position, caused by incomprehensible psychological or physical factors.

This classification arranges all types of social action in descending order of their rationality and comprehensibility.

Not all types of action, including the external type, are social in the accepted sense. If an external action is directed at the behavior of things, then it cannot be social.

It becomes social only when it is focused on the behavior of others, for example, a prayer read alone will not be social in nature.

Nor will it be identical to that which is influenced by the behavior of others. The behavior of the crowd has a huge impact on a person and is defined as behavior due to mass character.

M. Weber set himself the task of showing how such social facts - relationships, order, connections - should be defined as special forms of social action, but the desire was not actually realized.

Remark 2

One of the central points of Weber's theory is the allocation of an elementary particle of the individual's behavior in society - social action, which is the cause and effect of a system of complex relationships between people. “Social action”, according to Weber, is an ideal type, where “action” is the action of a person who associates subjective meaning (rationality) with him, and “social” is an action that, according to the meaning assumed by its subject, correlates with the action of other persons and is oriented on them. The scientist distinguishes four types of social action:

§ purposeful rational- the use of certain expected behavior of other people to achieve goals;

§ value-rational - understanding of behavior, action as actually value-significant, based on the norms of morality, religion;

§ affective - especially emotional, sensual;

§ traditional- based on the force of habit, the accepted norm. In a strict sense, affective and traditional actions are not social.

Society itself, according to Weber, is a collection of acting individuals, each of which seeks to achieve its own goals. Meaningful behavior resulting in the achievement of individual goals leads to the fact that a person acts as a social being, in association with others, thus ensuring significant progress in interaction with the environment.

Scheme 1. Types of social action according to M. Weber

Weber deliberately arranged the four types of social action he described in order of increasing rationality. This order, on the one hand, serves as a kind of methodological device for explaining the different nature of the subjective motivation of an individual or group, without which it is generally impossible to talk about action oriented towards others; he calls motivation "expectation", without it the action cannot be considered as social. On the other hand, and Weber was convinced of this, the rationalization of social action is at the same time a tendency of the historical process. And although this process is not without difficulties, all sorts of obstacles and deviations, the European history of the last centuries. the involvement of other, non-European civilizations on the path of industrialization is evidenced, according to Weber. that rationalization is a world-historical process. "One of the essential components of the 'rationalization' of action is the replacement of an internal adherence to habitual mores and customs by a planned adaptation to considerations of interest."

Rationalization, also according to Weber, is a form of development, or social progress, which is carried out within a certain picture of the world, which are different in history.

Weber distinguishes three most general types, three ways of relating to the world, which contain the corresponding attitudes or vectors (orientations) of people's life, their social action.

The first of them is associated with Confucianism and Taoist religious and philosophical views, which have become widespread in China; the second - with Hindu and Buddhist, widespread in India; the third - with Judaic and Christian, which arose in the Middle East and spread in Europe and America. Weber defines the first type as adaptation to the world, the second - as an escape from the world, the third - as mastery of the world. These different types of attitude and way of life set the direction for subsequent rationalization, that is, different ways of moving along the path of social progress.

A very important aspect in Weber's work is the study of basic relations in social associations. First of all, this concerns the analysis of power relations, as well as the nature and structure of organizations, where these relations are manifested most clearly.

From the application of the concept of "social action" to the political sphere, Weber deduces three pure types of legitimate (recognized) domination:

§ legal, - in which both the ruled and the rulers are subject not to any person, but to the law;

§ traditional- due primarily to the habits and customs of a given society;

§ charismatic- based on the extraordinary abilities of the leader's personality.

Sociology, according to Weber, should be based on scientific judgments, as free as possible from all sorts of personal predilections of the scientist, from political, economic, ideological influences.

10. K. Marx, F. Engels. materialistic understanding of history.

K. Marx (1818–1883) criticized the anthropological materialism of Feuerbach for his abstract approach to understanding man. In "Theses on Feuerbach" he emphasized that "the essence of man is not an abstract inherent in a separate individual. In its reality, it is the totality of all social relations. Of course, the idea that "a person is shaped by circumstances" is not new; Marx's detailed analysis of these circumstances turned out to be new. From the whole variety of social relations, Marx singles out material, production relations, that is, those relations that develop between people in the process of producing material goods, as the main determining ones. Marx comes to the conclusion that it is labor, material production that forms the basis of human existence, the history of people.

This is how the most important, central idea of Marxist philosophy is born - materialistic understanding of history. In a concise form, the essence of the materialist understanding of history is outlined by Marx in his work “On the Critique of Political Economy” (1859): “The totality of production relations constitutes the economic structure of society, the real basis on which the legal and political superstructure rises and to which certain forms of social consciousness correspond. The mode of production of material life determines the social, political and spiritual processes of life in general. It is not the consciousness of people that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being determines their consciousness.

Based on a materialistic understanding of history, Marx establishes a certain recurrence in the history of various countries, in the organization of their social life. He identifies several basic historical forms of organization of society (or formations). Differences between formations are based on differences in the type of organization of material production. As a result, the history of mankind is presented in the form of development from the primitive system, through the slave-owning and feudal system to the capitalist, and from it, with necessity, to the communist social formation.

Here Marx comes to the second most important idea of his philosophy - the understanding of history as a regular, natural-historical process. He comes to the conclusion that there are not only objective laws of the development of nature, but also of society. Based on this conclusion, Marx and his colleague F. Engels in the "Manifesto of the Communist Party" proclaimed the inevitability of the fall of capitalism and the transition to a communist society.

Marx was fascinated by the ideas of communism while still a young man. They expressed the dream of a humane and just social order. In the proletariat, Marx saw a special class whose vocation is the destruction of an exploitative society, with its inherent alienation of man. Marx believed that the basis of all human alienation is economic alienation, or alienated labor (that is, forced labor). Neither the source material nor the products of such labor belong to the worker—they are alien to him. The prospects for human development lie in the destruction of alienated labor, which means private property. Marx came to the conclusion that only after the destruction of private property, labor should become a means of self-development of a person, become a need for him. A comprehensively developed person living in harmony with nature - these are some of the features of the communist ideal drawn by Marx.

It is easy to see that Marxism, like all classical philosophy, was characterized by a belief in the power of the human mind, capable of creating a perfect society. The idea of social progress is filled here with a new meaning: each of the formations is considered as a stage of historical progress, the apex of which is communism.

The fate of Marxist philosophy turned out to be unique: the arguments of its supporters are comparable in strength to the arguments of its opponents. As for the idea of a materialistic understanding of history, according to Karl Popper, one of the most intransigent critics of Marx, it contains common sense and it retains its significance today. “Marx taught us that,” Popper notes, “that the development of ideas cannot be fully understood if we do not take into account the conditions of their occurrence and the economic situation of their creators.” At the same time, Popper believes that Marx's economic determinism (that is, his insistence on economic prerequisites as the last foundation for social development) is erroneous. “Experience shows,” he writes, “that under certain circumstances the influence of ideas can outweigh the influence of economic factors. And it is impossible to correctly understand the nature of economic development without taking into account the development of scientific, religious and other ideas.

But the materialistic understanding of history by no means denies the role of ideas in the life of society. It only asks to go further: where do the ideas themselves come from?

11. Features of the formation and development of Russian sociology. Main schools and trends: L. Mechnikov, N. Mikhailovsky, P. Lavrov, N. Ya. Danilevsky.

In Russia, sociology began to gain its positions from the 60s. XIX century, when the scientific community and the reading public were able to get acquainted with the translations of books and articles by O. Comte. Being influenced by various currents of Western sociology, domestic sociologists create their own original concepts that reflect the uniqueness of Russian society. In the development of sociological thought in pre-revolutionary Russia, 5 stages can be distinguished:

From the beginning of the 1860s. before 1890;

Since the 1890s until the beginning of the 20th century:

Since the beginning of the XX century. until 1917;

Renaissance 1950-60s;

From 1980-1990s.

1 The first stage in the development of sociology (1860s - 1890) is associated primarily with the work of prominent populist ideologists P.L. Lavrova and N.K. Mikhailovsky. The direction they developed was called the “ethical-subjective school”. These thinkers believed that an objective study of social phenomena should be combined with their subjective assessment based on the principles of ethics and social justice.

In his opinion, the leading force, "the main organ of progress is a personality, characterized by a critical consciousness to change frozen social forms." According to Lavrov, the historical process has a direction and is measured by the degree of development of social solidarity.

He distinguishes three types of solidarity:

Based on habit;

Based on the similarity of affects and interests;

Conscious solidarity based on the unity of people's beliefs.

From this he concludes that only those groups and peoples can be recognized as historical, among which conscious solidarity has appeared.

N.K. Mikhailovsky held similar views. According to Mikhailovsky, the main task of sociology as a science should be not so much in the search and discovery of objective laws, but in revealing the human, humanistic content of social progress and relating it to the needs of the human person.

He calls the subjective method such a way of satisfying a cognitive need, when the sociologist-observer puts himself in the position of the observed. According to him, the individual and society complement each other, since any suppression of the individual harms society, and the suppression of the public harms the individual.

Thus, as the leading force of social progress, Lavrov and Mikhailovsky considered a “critically thinking person”, who, in their opinion, acted as the creator of history and at the same time as the bearer of a moral ideal. They saw the essence of progress in the growth of social solidarity and consciousness of the individual.

Along with subjective sociology, positivism plays a prominent role in the sociological thought of Russia of that period. The positivist approach was most fully developed in the scientific work of M.M. Kovalevsky - a famous historian, ethnographer and sociologist. He was one of the first to apply the comparative historical method in sociology, with the help of which he studied the genesis of the peoples of different countries and eras. Kovalevsky called the analysis of social phenomena on the basis of their origin "genetic sociology", and from these positions he considered, in particular, the origin of the family, property, and the state.

Based on the principles of "sociological pluralism", he developed a theory of social progress, which is sometimes called the core of his sociology. Kovalevsky saw the main content of social progress in "expanding the sphere of human solidarity."

In line with positivism, a “naturalistic” school developed, within which several currents and directions of sociological thought arose. Among them is the concept of geographical determinism, developed by a prominent geographer and sociologist L.I. Mechnikov. He explained the uneven social development by the influence of geographical conditions, mainly water resources and communications. At the same time, the decisive role in the development of society was assigned to the influence of the hydrological factor (rivers, seas, oceans). Theory of L.I. Mechnikov contained valuable ideas explaining the mechanisms of interaction between nature and society.

The most prominent representatives of the psychological trend in Russian sociology were E.V. De Roberti and N.I. Kareev.

E.V. De Roberti understands sociology as a theoretical generalizing science, the main task of which is “the discovery of the laws governing the emergence, formation and gradual development of the highest superorganic or spiritual form of world energy.

According to De Roberti, there are four groups of social facts that ultimately determine the behavior of individuals in society and the specifics of their psychological interaction: knowledge, religious faith, aesthetic feelings and practical, technical actions of people.

A great contribution to the justification of the role of mental factors in the development of society was made by N.I. Kareev. He considered the spiritual interaction of people as the determining factor of social life as the subject of sociology. Kareev noted that in the activities and behavior of people, and therefore in their entire social life, an important role is played by the intellectual, emotional and volitional aspects of their spiritual being. In his opinion, the mental life of a person follows from his "mental nature" and is determined by it. Like De Roberti, Kareev attached great importance to the "collective psychology" underlying the development of spiritual culture.

Simultaneously with the so-called academic sociology in Russia, ideological and political sociology received great development.

Religious social philosophy (Christian humanism) is associated with the names of such Russian thinkers as A. Khomyakov, K. Leontiev, Vl. Solovyov, N. Berdyaev and others. The emergence of this trend was caused primarily by the growth in the late XIX - early XX centuries. crisis phenomena in all spheres of public life, as well as the growing activity of the masses and the confusion of the intelligentsia.

Vladimir Solovyov and Nikolai Berdyaev were deeply aware that the only true sociology can be that which, in its essence, is the ideology of the national spirit. They believed that sociology should develop such important integral concepts that unite society as “national idea”, “social ideal”, “radical interest” and other concepts related to the category of the so-called value orientation, both global and national scale.

The sociology of Marxism in Russia was represented by two main theories: orthodox Marxism (G.V. Plekhanov and V.I. Lenin) and the so-called “legal Marxism” (P.B. Struve, M. Tugan-Baranovsky and others).

Legal Marxism is a theoretical and ideological direction of social thought that recognized the truth of the economic teachings of K. Marx about the nature and historical inevitability of capitalism. The most prominent representatives of this trend were P.B. Struve and M. Tugan-Baranovsky.

According to P. Struve, the economic prosperity of Russia in the future will become possible on the basis of the capitalist path of development. He considered a necessary condition for this to be the successful implementation of social reforms and the creation of opportunities for the free development of individuals. Struve assigned an important role to the activities of the bourgeois state - the "organization of order", capable of organizing the economic and political life of society and preventing social conflicts.

M. Tugan-Baranovsky, as well as P.B. Struve, preferred civilized capitalism to socialism. Being a major economist and sociologist, he expressed the ideas:

Partial and cooperative entrepreneurship;

Connections of large and small production;

Public self-government in public organizations, communities;

Distribution according to work: "from each according to his ability, each ability according to his work."

Tugan-Baranovsky attached great importance to free agricultural cooperation, through which the peasants could come to large-scale and efficient production.

The main meaning of the Marxist theory lies in the disclosure of the laws and essence of the transition from private to public property.

Anarchism (from the Greek. anarchia - anarchy, anarchy) is a socio-political movement that denies the need for state and other power and preaches unlimited freedom of the individual. non-recognition of universally recognized laws and order. The most prominent representatives of anarchism in Russia were the Russian revolutionaries M.A. Bakunin and P.A. Kropotkin.

Anarchism in the 19th century divided into two streams:

1 anarchism-individualism, of which Bakunin was a representative,

2 anarchism-collectivism. Kropotkin represented the second trend, developing it into anarchism-communism.

The essence of anarchism, as Bakunin believed, can be expressed in the words: "leave things to their natural course." Hence one of the central ideas of anarchism is the idea of individual freedom as its natural state, which should not be violated by any state institutions. The state, according to Bakunin, is always the power of a minority, a force opposed to the people.

Like Bakunin, Kropotkin sharply opposed "state socialism", believing that the working people themselves are in a position to "develop a system based on their personal and collective freedom." This free "anarchist communism", in his opinion, should be a society of equal people, based on self-government and consisting of many unions organized for all kinds of production: agricultural, industrial, intellectual, artistic, etc.

A prominent representative of the historical school (trend) of Russian sociology was N.Ya. Danilevsky (1822-1885). In his most famous work, Europe and Russia, he singled out and analyzed the main "cultural-historical types", or civilizations. According to his theory, every society, every nation in its development goes through cyclical stages - birth, youth, decrepitude and death. Danilevsky's civilizational approach served as a methodological basis for the search for a special historical path for Russia, a justification for its originality and the possibility for it not to repeat the stages of development of Western countries.

Danilevsky's ideas had a strong influence on P.A. Sorokina, F.M. Dostoevsky, L.N. Tolstoy. Their echoes are heard in the ideas of L.H. Gumilyov and many other authors.

2 At the second stage (the 1890s - the beginning of the 20th century), the process of institutionalization of Russian sociology begins, which penetrates the academic environment and finds more and more support in scientific and public circles.

During this period, new trends in sociology emerged, the most influential of which was the sociological school of law. Representatives of this school are well-known jurists and sociologists N.Zh. Korkunov, S.A. Muromtsev, P.I. Novgorodtsev and others - sharply criticized positivism and sought to give a normative, moral and legal justification for social life. The merit of these investigators was that they were able to develop in depth a number of methodological problems of sociological knowledge.

By the end of the second stage, Russian sociology entered the international arena. At the same time, there have been shifts in the process of institutionalization of domestic sociology. Thanks to the efforts of M.M. Kovalevsky in 1908, the first department of sociology in Russia was opened at the private Psychoneurological Institute in St. Petersburg.

3 The third stage (the beginning of the 20th century - 1917) of the development of Russian sociology is characterized by an orientation towards neopositivism, the most famous representatives of which were K.M. Takhtarev and P.A. Sorokin.

Among Russian sociologists K.M. Takhtarev was one of the first to draw attention to the need to use empirical methods in sociology - observation, experiment and socio-statistical measurement, since sociology cannot become an exact and objective science without mathematics.

Scientific and organizational activity of P.A. Sorokin contributed to the acceleration of the process of institutionalization of sociological science. With his active participation, the first sociological society in the country was created, and a degree in sociology was established. In 1920, the first sociological faculty in the country was opened at Petrograd University, headed by P.A. Sorokin.

Pitirim Sorokin is a prominent scientist and public figure who made a huge contribution to the development of national and world sociology. P. Sorokin distinguishes between theoretical and practical sociology. Theoretical sociology, in his opinion, only observes, analyzes and builds conceptual models, while practical sociology should be an applied discipline.

Sections of sociological knowledge, according to P. Sorokin, are:

Social analytics, which studies the structure (structure) of a social phenomenon and its main forms;

Social mechanics (or social physiology), which describes the processes of interaction of social aggregates (people, groups, social institutions);

Social genetics, which studies the development of social life, its individual aspects and institutions.

P. Sorokin considered interaction to be the primary unit of sociological analysis. Developing the idea of understanding society as a special social space that does not coincide with territorial, physical, etc., P. Sorokin created two interrelated concepts: social stratification (social stratification) and social revolution.

According to the first theory, the whole society is divided into different layers - strata, which differ from each other in terms of income, types of activity, political views, cultural orientations, etc. Sorokin classified the main forms of social stratification as economic, political, and professional. The internal dynamics of stratification systems is expressed in the processes of social mobility - the movement of people through the positions of social space.

P. Sorokin was opposed to any social upheavals, including revolutions, and advocated a normal, evolutionary path of development. He believed that the problems arising in society should be solved on the basis of reasonable management.

Taking as a classification criterion general philosophical ideas about the dual nature of man, in which the concepts of “material” and “ideal”, “sublime” and “earthly”, P. Sorokin singled out three types of cultural supersystems: sensual, ideational and idealistic (or integral).

Thus, sociology in pre-revolutionary Russia developed as part of global sociological thought. Feeling the influence of various currents of Western sociology, at the same time she was able to put forward many of her own theories and concepts that reflected the uniqueness of the development of Russian society.

4 Fourth stage. The revival of Russian sociology began only in the late 1950s and early 1960s. in connection with the liberalization of the political regime. In the 1960s sociology restores its social status. In 1962, the Soviet Sociological Association was established, and in 1968, the Institute for Concrete Social Research of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (now the Institute of Sociology). Faculties and departments are being opened at the country's universities. Since 1974, the specialized journal Sociological Research began to be published.

During this period, large-scale sociological studies were carried out to study the influence of scientific and technological progress on the social and professional structure of workers, their attitude to work. So-called "social planning", the drawing up of a plan for the social and economic development of industrial enterprises, collective farms and state farms, and even some cities, has become widespread. In the course of these studies, rich factual material was accumulated, methods of sociological research were worked out, and skills were acquired in conducting sociological research.

So, in the post-war period, there was a partial institutionalization of sociology in the USSR, but it did not become widespread in society, and the development of this science continued to be held back by party organs.

5 Fifth stage. The current stage of the rapid development of Russian sociology began in the mid-1980s. At the stage of sociology comes out of the tutelage of the CPSU and historical materialism, becomes an independent science and academic discipline taught in most universities in Russia since 1989/1990.

The subsequent intensive development of sociology is associated with the fundamental changes that have taken place in the life of the country since the mid-1980s. In 1987, the All-Union Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM) was created, as well as a number of independent sociological services. Surveys of the population on a variety of issues, the practical use of sociological information have become quite common. Sociology found its second birth, began to be taught in higher and secondary specialized educational institutions of the country as a general educational discipline.

In 1988, a resolution of the CPSU Central Committee was adopted, for the first time recognizing the need for higher sociological education in the country. June 6, 1989 can be considered the birthday of the sociological faculty of Moscow State University, which turned out to be the first sociological faculty of the USSR after a long break. The dean of the faculty was its organizer and head of the department of sociology, Professor V. Dobrenkov.

Sociological faculties of universities are successfully functioning in many large cities. In recent years, dozens of textbooks and manuals have been published on general and sectoral sociological disciplines.

The development of sociological science in Russia in the second half of the 20th century is due to a number of features:

The slow folding of the social prerequisites of capitalism and the institutions of civil society. The bipolar structure of Russian society (“bottom-top”), with the virtual absence of a middle class, stimulated a high degree of violence, a special punitive role of the state in the integration of society. Collective (community) forms of social community have led to the underdevelopment of individual consciousness, the priority of public interest over personal;

Orthodoxy acted as an integrating principle;

Significant influence of ideology. Extremes prevailed in the public consciousness of Russian society - conservatism and radicalism. The first was associated with Slavophilism, with the search for a special path for the development of Russia. Radicalism insisted on revolutionary methods of transforming society (starting with the Decembrists and ending with Bolshevism).

Conclusion

Thus, the development of sociology as a science in our country has come a long way. At each stage of historical transformations, sociology opened the way for new directions that determined its forward movement.

Among the leading problems for sociology at the present stage of development are: the social position of a person in society and a group, social structure, participation in management, "human relations", public opinion, sociocultural and international processes, environmental problems and other issues related to a particular historical and socio-economic situation in the context of the country's transition to market relations.

The origin and development of Russian scientific sociology was due to numerous reasons and factors. By the middle of the 19th century, when Russian sociology, based on the prevailing opinion, began its formation, Western sociological thought had already found its embodiment in the works of O. Comte, Saint-Simon, G. Spencer and other social scientists of that time. Undoubtedly, the sociological views of Western schools and their representatives had a certain influence on the process of the emergence of sociology in Russia.

Sociological thought in Russia is developing as part of global sociological science. Being influenced by various currents of Western sociology, she at the same time puts forward original theories that reflect the uniqueness of the development of Russian society.

Modern Russian sociology is the sociology of liberalism, a social system based on the economic freedom of the individual and on the priority of civil society over the state.

12. P. Sorokin in the history of Russian and world sociology.

Pitirim Aleksandrovich Sorokin(1889-1968) - one of the most prominent classics of sociology, who had a great influence on its development in the 20th century. Sometimes P. Sorokin is called not a Russian sociologist, but an American one. Indeed, chronologically, the "Russian" period of his activity is strictly limited to 1922 - the year of his expulsion from Russia. However, the formation of Sorokin's sociological views, as well as his political position, took place precisely in his homeland, in the conditions of wars, revolutions, the struggle of political parties and scientific schools. In the main work of the "Russian" period - the two-volume "System of Sociology" (1920) - he formulates the basic principles of the theory of social stratification and social mobility (he introduced these terms into scientific circulation), structures theoretical sociology, highlighting in it social analytics, social mechanics and social genetics.

Sorokin considers social behavior, social interaction of individuals, which he considers as a generic model of both a social group and society as a whole, to be the basis of sociological analysis. He subdivides social groups into organized and unorganized, paying special attention to the analysis of the hierarchical structure of an organized social group. Within the groups there are strata (layers) distinguished by economic, political and professional characteristics. Sorokin argued that a society without stratification and inequality is a myth. The forms and proportions of the stratification may change, but its essence is constant. Stratification is an invariable characteristic of any organized society and exists in a non-democratic society and in a society with a "thriving democracy".

Sorokin speaks of the presence in society of social mobility of two types - vertical and horizontal. Social mobility means a transition from one social position to another, a kind of “elevator” for moving both within a social group and between groups. Social stratification and mobility in society are predetermined by the fact that people are not equal in their physical strength, mental abilities, inclinations, tastes, etc.; moreover, by the very fact of their joint activity. Joint activity necessarily requires organization, and organization is unthinkable without leaders and subordinates. Since society is always stratified, it is characterized by inequality, but this inequality must be reasonable.

Society should strive for a state in which a person can develop his abilities, and science and the intuition of the masses, and not revolution, can help society in this. In The Sociology of the Revolution (1925), Sorokin calls the revolution a "great tragedy" and defines it as "a death machine deliberately destroying on both sides the most healthy and able-bodied, the most outstanding, gifted, strong-willed and mentally qualified elements of the population." The revolution is accompanied by violence and cruelty, the reduction of freedom, and not its increment. It deforms the social structure of society and worsens the economic and cultural position of the working class. The only way to improve and reconstruct social life can only be reforms carried out by legal and constitutional means. Every reform must be preceded by a scientific study of concrete social conditions, and every reform must be "tested" beforehand on a small social scale.

The theoretical heritage of Sorokin and his contribution to the development of domestic and world sociology can hardly be overestimated, he is so rich in deeply meaningful, theoretically and methodologically supported knowledge of social reality and trends in the future development of society.

Sociology P. Sorokin

Pitirim Sorokin(1889-1968) created a sociological theory, which was called "integral". It viewed society as a socio-cultural system. He singled out four sections in sociology: the doctrine of society, social mechanics (the definition of the statistical laws of society), social genetics (the origin and development of society), and social policy (a private sociological science).

An element of society is the interaction of individuals. It is divided into template and non-template, one-sided and two-sided, antagonistic and non-antagonistic. Society is the process and result of social interaction (the interaction of many individuals). Its result is their adaptation to the environment. In the process of such adaptation, the social order of society arises, the main trend in the development of which is social equality.

The development of human society occurs through evolution and revolution. Social evolution represents a gradual and progressive development based on knowledge of society, reforms, cooperation of people, striving for social equality. Social revolution - rapid, deep progressive or regressive development of society, based on the violence of one class over another. It changes the nature of social equality.

Based on the experience of personal participation in two Russian revolutions of 1917, P. Sorokin highlights their main causes: the suppression of the basic needs of the majority of the population by the existing social system, the inefficiency of this social system, the weakness of the forces for protecting public law and order. The social revolution is going through stages revolutionary explosion when basic needs find their way out and destroy the country, and counterrevolutions when curbing those needs.

Pitirim Sorokin developed the theory social stratification, the division of society into many social strata (strata) depending on wealth, power, education, etc.

He also has priority in the discovery of the theory of social mobility, movement from one social stratum to another.

The theory of social action M. Weber.

Performed:

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..3

1. Biography of M. Weber…………………………………………………………..4

2. The main provisions of the theory of social action………………………7

2.1 Social action……………………………………………………..7

3. Theory of social action…………………………………………………..17

3.1 Purposeful rational behavior…………………………………………..18

3.2 Value-rational behavior…………………………………..22

3.3 Affective behavior………………………………………………..23

3.4 Traditional behavior……………………………………………….24

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….28

References………………………………………………………………..29

Introduction

Relevance of the topic. The theory of social action is the "core" of M. Weber's sociology, management, political science, sociology of management and other sciences, and therefore its importance for professional training is very great, because. he created one of the most fundamental concepts of sociological science for all the time of its existence - the theory of social action as a tool for explaining the behavior of various types of people.

The interaction of a person as a person with the world around him is carried out in a system of objective relations that develop between people in their social life and, above all, in production activities. Objective relations and connections (relations of dependence, subordination, cooperation, mutual assistance, etc.) inevitably and naturally arise in any real group. Interaction and relationships are formed on the basis of human actions and behavior.

The study of the theory of social action by Max Weber, one of the main concepts of sociology, makes it possible in practice to find out the reasons for the interaction of various forces in society, human behavior, to comprehend the factors that make people act this way and not otherwise.

The purpose of this course work– study of the theory of social action by M. Weber.

Objectives of the course work:

1. Expand the definition of social action.

2. Designate the classification of social actions proposed by M. Weber.

1. Biography of M. Weber

M. Weber (1864-1920) belongs to those universally educated minds, which, unfortunately, are becoming less and less as the differentiation of the social sciences grows. Weber was the largest specialist in the field of political economy, law, sociology, and philosophy. He acted as a historian of the economy, political institutions and political theories, religion and science, and, most importantly, as a logician and methodologist who developed the principles of knowledge of the social sciences.

Max Weber was born on April 21, 1864 in Erfurt, Germany. In 1882 he graduated from the classical gymnasium in Berlin and entered the University of Heidelberg. In 1889 defended his thesis. He worked as a professor at the universities of Berlin, Freiburg, Heidelberg, and Munich.

In 1904 Weber becomes editor of the German sociological journal "Archive for Social Science and Social Policy". His most important works are published here, including the programmatic study "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism" (1905). This study begins a series of publications by Weber on the sociology of religion, which he pursued until his death. At the same time, he dealt with the problems of logic and methodology of the social sciences. From 1916 to 1919 he published one of his main works - "Economic Ethics of World Religions". Of Weber's last speeches, the reports "Politics as a Profession" (1919) and "Science as a Profession" should be noted.

M. Weber was influenced by a number of thinkers who determined in many respects both his methodological principles and his worldview. In methodological terms, in the field of the theory of knowledge, he was greatly influenced by the ideas of neo-Kantianism, and above all by G. Rickert.

By his own admission, Weber, the works of K. Marx, which prompted him to study the problems of the emergence and development of capitalism, were of great importance in shaping his thinking. In general, he attributed Marx to those thinkers who most strongly influenced the socio-historical thought of the 19th-20th centuries.

As for the general philosophical, ideological plan, Weber experienced two different, and in many respects mutually exclusive influences: on the one hand, the philosophy of I. Kant, especially in his youth; on the other hand, almost in the same period, he was under the influence and was a great admirer of N. Machiavelli, T. Hobbes and f. Nietzsche.

To understand the meaning of his views and actions, it should be noted that Kant attracted Weber, first of all, with his ethical pathos. He remained faithful to Kant's moral requirement of honesty and conscientiousness in scientific research until the end of his life.

Hobbes and especially Machiavelli made a strong impression on him with their political realism. As the researchers note, it was the attraction to these two mutually exclusive poles "(on the one hand, Kant's ethical idealism with its pathos of "truth", on the other hand, political realism with its installation of "sobriety and strength") determined the peculiar duality of M. Weber's worldview.

The first works of M. Weber - "On the history of trading societies in the Middle Ages" (1889), "Roman agrarian history and its significance for public and private law" (1891) - immediately put him in a number of prominent scientists. In them, he analyzed the relationship of state-legal formations with the economic structure of society. In these works, especially in Roman Agrarian History, the general contours of an "empirical sociology" (Weber's expression) were outlined, which was most closely associated with history. In accordance with the requirements of the historical school that dominated German political economy, he considered the evolution of ancient agriculture in connection with social and political development, and did not miss the analysis of the forms of family life, way of life, customs, religious cults.

A trip to the United States in 1904, where he was invited to give a course of lectures, had a great influence on his formation as a sociologist. In 1904, Weber became the editor of the German sociological journal "Archive of Social Science and Social Policy". Here his most important works are published, including the programmatic study "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism" (1905). This study begins a series of publications by Weber on the sociology of religion, which he pursued until his death. At the same time, he dealt with the problems of logic and methodology of the social sciences. From 1916 to 1919 he published one of his main works - "Economic Ethics of World Religions". Of Weber's last speeches, the reports "Politics as a Profession" (1919) and "Science as a Profession" should be noted. They found their expression of Weber's mentality after the First World War. They were quite pessimistic - pessimistic, in relation to the future of industrial civilization, as well as the prospects for the implementation of socialism in Russia. He did not have any special expectations from him. He was convinced that if what is called socialism is realized, then it will only be a system of bureaucratization of society carried to the end.

Weber died in 1920, not having had time to carry out all his plans. His fundamental work "Economy and Society" (1921) was published posthumously, summarizing the results of his sociological research.

2. Basic provisions of the theory of social action

The theory of action has a stable conceptual base in sociology, the formation of which was influenced by various directions of thinking. In order to supplement or expand this theoretical foundation in order to further improve the theory, it is necessary to proceed from the current level of its development, as well as from the contributions of the classics, which today are beginning to take shape in a new way. All this is necessary in order for it to be effective and not lose relevance for the future. Regarding the contribution of M. Weber to the formation of the theory of action among sociologists today there is a complete mutual understanding. There is no doubt that the justification he undertook for sociology as a science of social action represented a radical turn against the positivism and historicism that prevailed in the social sciences at the beginning of the 20th century. However, much ambiguity and inconsistency exists over the interpretation of his views.

2.1 Social action

Weber defines action (regardless of whether it manifests itself externally, for example, in the form of aggression, or is hidden inside the subjective world of the personality, like suffering) as such behavior with which the acting individual or individuals associate a subjectively assumed meaning. only if, according to the meaning assumed by the actor or actors, it correlates with the action of other people and focuses on it. "And he declares the explanation of social action to be the central task. In its qualitative originality, it differs from reactive behavior, because in its it is based on subjective meaning. It is a preconceived plan or project of action. As social, it differs from reactive behavior in that this meaning is related to the action of another. Sociology, therefore, must devote itself to the study of the facts of social action.

This is how Weber defines social action. "Action" should be called human behavior (it makes no difference whether external or internal action, non-action and or undergoing), if and insofar as the agent or agents associate with it some subjective meaning. “But a “social action” should be called one that, in its meaning, implied by the actor or actors, is related to the behavior of others and is thus oriented in its course.” Based on this, "an action cannot be considered social if it is purely imitative, when the individual acts like an atom of the crowd, or when he is guided by some natural phenomenon."

INSTITUTE OF MARKET ECONOMY, SOCIAL POLICY AND LAW

Department of General Humanitarian and Socio-Economic Disciplines

CONTROL TASK

in the discipline "SOCIOLOGY"

“Sociology of M. Weber. The concept of social action»

Course 3 Semester 5

Kalinicheva Ekaterina Gennadievna

Teacher

Bulanova Margarita Vernerovna

Moscow 2007

Plan

Introduction

1. Basic principles of the methodology of sociological science M. Weber

2. Social action as a subject of sociology

3. Weber's theory of rationalization in sociological interpretations of politics and religion

Conclusion

Bibliography

The purpose of this work is to study the concept and theory of one of the most influential theorists of sociology, Max Weber.

M. Weber (1864-1920) - German sociologist, founder of "understanding" sociology and the theory of social action, who applied its principles to economic history, to the study of political power, religion, and law.

The main idea of Weberian sociology is to substantiate the possibility of the most rational behavior that manifests itself in all spheres of human relationships. This idea of Weber found further development in various sociological schools of the West, which resulted in the 70s. in a kind of "Weberian renaissance".

The formation of the concept of historical sociology, to which M. Weber advanced throughout his entire career, was due to the rather high level of development of contemporary historical science, its accumulation of a large amount of empirical data on social phenomena in many societies of the world. It was precisely the keen interest in the analysis of these data that helped Weber to determine his main task - to combine the general and the specific, to develop a methodology and conceptual apparatus with which one could streamline the chaotic scatter of social facts.

Therefore, the study of the theory of social action by Max Weber, one of the main concepts of sociology, makes it possible in practice to find out the reasons for the interaction of various forces in society, human behavior, to comprehend the factors that make people act this way and not otherwise.

1. Basic principles of the methodology of sociological science M. Weber

The methodological principles of Weberian sociology are closely connected with other theoretical systems characteristic of the social sciences of the last century - the positivism of Comte and Durkheim, the sociology of Marxism.

Let us especially note the influence of the Baden school of neo-Kantianism, primarily the views of one of its founders, G. Rickert, according to which the relationship between being and consciousness is built on the basis of a certain relationship of the subject to value. Like Rickert, Weber limits the relationship to value and evaluation, which implies that science should be free from subjective value judgments. But this does not mean that the scientist should give up his own predilections; they just shouldn't interfere with scientific developments.

Unlike Rickert, who considered values and their hierarchy as something supra-historical, Weber believes that value is determined by the nature of the historical epoch, which determines the general line of progress of human civilization. In other words, values, according to Weber, express the general attitudes of their time and, therefore, are historical, relative. In Weber's concept, they are refracted in a peculiar way in categories of an ideal type, which constitute the quintessence of his methodology of the social sciences and are used as a tool for understanding the phenomena of human society and the behavior of its members.

So, according to Weber, the sociologist must correlate the analyzed material with economic, aesthetic, moral values, based on what served as values for the people who are the object of study. In order to understand the real causal relationships of phenomena in society and give a meaningful interpretation of human behavior, it is necessary to construct the invalid - ideal-typical constructions extracted from empirical reality, which express what is characteristic of many social phenomena. At the same time, Weber considers ideal type not as the goal of knowledge, but as a means to reveal the "general rules of events".

How to use it? It is clear that in real life, various conditions lead to the fact that a social phenomenon will always have a deviation from the ideal type. According to Weber, the ideal type as a methodological tool makes it possible, firstly, to construct a phenomenon or human action as if it took place under ideal conditions; and, secondly, to consider this phenomenon or action independently of local conditions.

It is assumed that if ideal conditions are met, then in any country the action will be performed in this way. That is, the mental formation of an unreal, ideal-typical - a technique that allows you to understand how this or that historical event really proceeded. And one more thing: the ideal type, according to Weber, allows us to interpret history and sociology as two areas of scientific interest, and not as two different disciplines.

M. Weber's theory of social action (p. 1 of 5)

This is an original point of view based on which, according to the scientist, in order to identify historical causality, it is necessary first of all to build an ideal-typical construction of a historical event, and then compare the unreal, mental course of events with their real development. Through the construction of an ideal-typical, the researcher ceases to be a simple extra of historical facts and gains the opportunity to understand how strong the influence of general circumstances was, what is the role of the impact of chance or personality at a given moment in history.

Of his methodological constructions, the concept is important understanding. He used this concept, borrowed from hermeneutics, as a method not only of interpreting the meaning and structure of author's texts, but as revealing the essence of all social reality, all human history. Arguing with the intuitionist interpretation understanding, Weber argued the rationalistic nature of this operation: rather, a systematic and accurate study, rather than simply "experiencing" a text or a social phenomenon.

The inconsistency of this Weberian concept led to the multidirectional influence of Weber: among his interpreters there are supporters of both a narrower, culturological (symbolic interactionism) and a broader, global sociological (structural functionalism) interpretation of the term "understanding".

Also in the works of Weber, the phenomena of bureaucracy and the overwhelming progressive bureaucratization (“rationalization”) of society are brilliantly studied. "Rationality" is another important category introduced by Weber into scientific terminology.

2. Social action as a subject of sociology

Sociology, according to Weber, is "understanding" because it studies the behavior of a person who puts a certain meaning into his actions. Human action takes shape social action, if there are two moments in it: the subjective motivation of the individual and the orientation to the other (others). Understanding motivation, “subjectively implied meaning” and referring it to the behavior of other people are the necessary moments of sociological research proper, Weber notes, citing the example of a man chopping wood to illustrate his considerations. So, one can consider cutting firewood only as a physical fact - the observer understands not the cutter, but the fact that firewood is being cut. You can consider the cutter as a living being with consciousness, interpreting his movements. Finally, such a variant is also possible, when the meaning of the action subjectively experienced by the individual becomes the center of attention, i.e. questions are asked: “Is this person acting according to the developed plan? What is this plan? What are his motives?

It is this type of "understanding", based on the postulate of the existence of an individual together with other individuals in a system of specific coordinates of values, that serves as the basis for real social interactions in the life world. Social action, writes Weber, is considered to be an action whose subjective meaning relates to the behavior of other people. Based on this, an action cannot be considered social if it is purely imitative, when an individual acts like an atom of a crowd, or when he is oriented towards some natural phenomenon (for example, an action is not social when a lot of people open umbrellas during rain ).

And one more important remark that Weber makes: when using the concepts of "state", "community", "family", etc., we must not forget that these institutions are not really subjects of social action. Therefore, one cannot understand the "action" of a people or a state, although it is quite possible to understand the action of their constituent individuals. “Concepts such as “state”, “community”, “feudalism”, etc., - he writes, - in the sociological understanding mean ... categories of certain types of joint activities of people, and the task of sociology is to reduce them to "understandable" behavior ... of individuals participating in this activity.

"Understanding" can never be complete and always approximate. It is approximately even in situations of direct interaction between people. But the sociologist seeks to understand the social life of its participants when they are distant, and not only in space but also in time: he analyzes the world of his predecessors on the basis of the empirical data he has.

He deals not only with material, but also with ideal objects and tries to understand the subjective meanings that existed in the minds of people, their attitude to certain values. A complex and at the same time a single social process is formed only in the course of representing the coordinated interaction of people. To what extent is such consistency possible given the relative understanding of each other by individuals? How is sociology as a science able to "understand" the degree of approximation in a particular interaction of people? And if a person is not aware of his own actions (due to health reasons, as a result of manipulation of his mind by the media, or being influenced by protest passions), can a sociologist understand such an individual?

The concept of "social action" is one of the central concepts in sociology. The significance of social action is due to the fact that it is the simplest unit, the simplest element of any kind of social activity of people. Indeed, even such social processes as social movements, major social conflicts, the mobility of social strata, consist of individual actions of individuals interconnected in complex chains and systems.

The essence of social action. For the first time in sociology, the concept of "social action" was introduced and scientifically substantiated by Max Weber. He called social action "the action of a person (regardless of whether it is external or internal, whether it comes down to non-intervention or patient acceptance), which, according to the meaning assumed by the actor or actors, correlates with the action of other people or focuses on him"

Any social action is preceded by social contacts, but in contrast to them, social action is a rather complex phenomenon.

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The concept of "social action" was introduced by M. Weber, who laid the foundations for the theory of social action. T. Parsons then continued the development of this theory. He created and substantiated the theory of the so-called unified social action.

A social action is an action that is directed towards another and is associated with the expectation of a response (an action that makes sense). At the same time, social action, including non-intervention or patient acceptance, can be focused on the past, present or expected behavior of others. It can be revenge for past wrongs, protection from danger in the present, or measures to protect against imminent danger in the future. "Others" can be individuals, acquaintances, or an indefinite set of total strangers. At the same time, not all intentional actions of a person are social, just as not all actions directed at another can be considered social.

single action in Parsons' systemic functionalism is

the simplest elementary system of action, which serves as a starting point

point for constructing an analytical theory of human

Actions applicable to systems of any degree of complexity.

Action elements are:

1. sector of action;

2. purpose of action

3. Situation elements:

a) uncontrolled (conditions of the situation, norms, values, ideas, rules

b) controlled (means, methods, tactics to achieve the goal).

In any action there is an opposition between the agent and the situation.

The situation always limits the effect of the factor. The choice of goal and means of achievement depend on the active conditions.

The emphasis on the situation requires understanding the relationship between two elements uncontrolled by the factor: external conditions and cultural norms. This is one of the main intrigues of the sociological understanding of social life. In any action, it is necessary to distinguish between its intention, course and result.

Thus, T. Parsons introduced into the interpretation of the concept of "social action" two moments that determine it and make it understand social action as an element of a wider and more comprehensive system - the system of human action in general. At the same time, the understanding of action became more and more close to the understanding of human behavior.

Not all human actions are social. That is, the achievement of not every goal involves orientation to the other (others). Example: a scientist is a naturalist. Further. Not every impact on another is a social action (imaginary social actions). Example: car, spray, driver, pedestrian. Another example: rain, people, umbrellas (massively homogeneous actions). Or as an example: panic in the auditorium caused by a fire. The action of imitation, infection with a general mood, suggestion is also not social (they are not the subject of sociology, but psychology).

A.G. Efen0diev believes that social actions are not single, discrete. It seems that this is not entirely true.

Now about the types of social actions.

M. Weber identifies four ideal-typical types of actions: goal-rational, value-rational, affective and traditional actions.

Purposeful action - an action that is characterized by the unambiguity and clarity of the acting subject's awareness of his goal, socially correlated with clearly meaningful means, adequate, from his point of view, to achieve the goal. The rationality of the goal is verified in two ways:

1.as in terms of the rationality of its own content

2. so and from the point of view of the expediency of the chosen means.

Valuable-rational action- an action based on faith in the unconditional value (aesthetic, religious or any other) of this action itself, taken in its value certainty as something self-sufficient and independent of its possible results. It is always subject to certain "commandments" and "requirements", in the obedience of which the acting individual sees his duty.

action affective- an action, the main characteristic of which is the determining emotional state of the acting subject: (love passion or hatred that captured him, anger or enthusiasm, horror or a surge of courage).

Its meaning is not in achieving any “external goal”, but in the certainty (in this case, something emotional) of this action itself, its character, which animates its “passion” (affect).

The main thing in such an action is the desire for immediate (or as fast as possible) satisfaction of the passion that owns the individual: revenge, lust, desire, anger and tension (which leaves no room for socio-cultural creativity.

The action is traditional- an action based on habit, which in this connection has received an almost automatic character; minimally mediated by the comprehension of the goal. It is only an automatic reaction to the habitual irritation.

Like the affective, it is "on the border" (and often outside) of what can be called "meaningfully" oriented action. Contrasted with purposeful rational action, M. Weber nevertheless assigns (in comparison with affective action) a more positive significance to this type of action. According to Weber, the first two types are actually social actions, since the social is associated with rational activity. In Pareto allocates the same not a boolean action. He sees it as a kind of social action. This action is due to irrational mental attitudes, emotional aspirations, instincts, and not rational considerations, although it is constantly covered by them. Caused by a special logic of feelings, such an action constitutes the bulk of all human actions and, according to Pareto, plays a decisive role in the history of social life. Weber believes that the most typical society in which purposeful rational actions take place is a bourgeois society.

2.2 Social connection and social interaction.

If “social action is the initial category of the conceptual-categorical system of sociology, then “social” connection and such a variety of it as “social interaction” is the central category of sociology. It is social ties and especially social interactions that form the basis of society as a way of people's life.

What is a social connection?

56. The concept of social action and its types according to m. Weber.

Social connection is the dependence of an individual, realization through social action as an action directed at another individual and associated with the expectation of a response. It is a connection between individuals and groups of individuals pursuing certain social goals in certain specific conditions of place and time. The starting point for its occurrence, we emphasize once again, is the dependence of individuals on each other in the process of satisfying their various needs. Social connection, according to the Russian Sociological Encyclopedia, is the actions of individuals and groups of individuals pursuing certain social goals in specific conditions of place and time. Social connection has a pronounced relationship between two or more social phenomena and the signs of these phenomena. The starting point, when a social connection arises, is the interaction of individuals or their groups to satisfy certain needs:

Social communication includes as its mandatory components: (1) the subject of communication (an individual or a group of individuals); (2) the subject of the connection (that about which the connection is established); (3) the rules by which communication is carried out (formal and informal).

There are different types of social communication: direct and indirect, formal and informal, contact and interaction. Particularly important

the last two types of connection are important.

social contact- this is a connection, often accidental, not having significant significance for people's lives.

social interaction on the other hand, these are systematic regular actions of partners directed at each other, with the goal of causing the expected response. An important characteristic of social interaction is the essence of communication, the conjugation of mutual actions of partners - this is any behavior of individuals, groups of individuals, the whole society, both at the moment and in the future. The concept expresses the nature and content of relations between people and social groups as constant carriers of qualitatively different types of activities, i.e. relations that differ in social positions (statuses) and roles (functions). It has both an objective and a subjective side. “Social interaction is any behavior of an individual, a group of individuals, society as a whole, both at the moment and in the future. The concept (category) expresses the nature and content of relations between people and social groups as constant carriers of qualitatively different types of activities, i.e. relations that differ in social positions (statuses) and roles (functions). It has both objective and subjective sides.

There are three types of social interactions. These are social relations (a system of interactions, say, economic, political, etc.), social institutions (family, education, etc.), social communities (sets of individuals who are in regular and regulated relationships). Sometimes they also talk about forms of interaction, meaning that the basis for their selection is a way of coordinating how to achieve one's goal. These include: (1) cooperation - cooperation based on the division of labor; (2) competition - individual or group struggle for the possession of values; (3) conflict - a covert or open clash of competing parties (even war).

Interactions are further subdivided into direct and indirect (by the way, as well as connections).

Social connection, including interaction, can be thought of as an exchange of material, moral, emotional, etc. services. This is how the social connection was interpreted, for example, by G. Simmel and T. Parsons, as well as by D. Mead, a representative of symbolic interactionism. He already emphasized that any sustainable interaction is possible only on the basis of mutual recognition by partners of common criteria, values, norms, and symbols.

The most important principle of interaction as a social exchange is the principle according to which all participants in the exchange expect to receive rewards in exchange for costs. Compensation for benefits in order to receive (receive) them again is a “trigger mechanism” of social interaction (according to Dlau - “social attraction”), the exchange is carried out on the basis of an agreement and has two forms:

a) diffuse (non-rigid) exchange;

b) contractual exchange.

It should be borne in mind, however, that the bulk of the exchange between people in society is carried out on credit, based on risk, the expectation of reciprocity, based on trust. In this regard, diffuse social exchange, which implies voluntariness, trust in a partner, is the fundamental basis of everyday life.

One can speak of levels of exchange, exchange between individuals and exchange between groups of individuals.

Principles of regulation of social interactions,

1. The principle of personal expediency (the principle of "minimax");

2. The principle of mutual effectiveness of interaction

3. The principle of mutual recognition of exchange criteria as justified (legitimate) - the principle of a single criterion.

4. The principle of social differentiation (asymmetric exchange

people are different in terms of their social capital). People with less capital demand a certain advantage over the rich (compensation, equal chances, etc.)

5. The principle of balance in the system of social interactions.

This is the resulting principle.

George Homans called the following principles (rules) of exchange:

(1) The higher a given type of action interacts, the more likely it is, that action will be repeated, and vice versa;

(2) If the rewards for a particular type of action are conditional, then the person is more likely to pursue them;

(3) If the reward is large, then the person is willing to overcome any obstacles in order to receive it.

K. Marx wrote that 5% will not inspire a businessman, but 300% will force him to commit any crime.

(4) when a person's needs are close to saturation, he makes less and less effort to satisfy them.

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§ purposeful rational- the use of certain expected behavior of other people to achieve goals;

§ value-rational - understanding of behavior, action as actually value-significant, based on the norms of morality, religion;

§ affective - especially emotional, sensual;

§ traditional- based on the force of habit, the accepted norm. In a strict sense, affective and traditional actions are not social.

3.2 Special types of social action according to M. Weber

Types of social action according to M. Weber

Rationalization, also according to Weber, is a form of development, or social progress, which is carried out within a certain picture of the world, which are different in history.

Weber distinguishes three most general types, three ways of relating to the world, which contain the corresponding attitudes or vectors (orientations) of people's life, their social action.

From the application of the concept of "social action" to the political sphere, Weber deduces three pure types of legitimate (recognized) domination:

§ legal, - in which both the ruled and the rulers are subject not to any person, but to the law;

§ traditional- due primarily to the habits and customs of a given society;

§ charismatic- based on the extraordinary abilities of the leader's personality.

The concept of social action is the core of M. Weber's work. He develops a fundamentally different approach to the study of social processes, which consists in understanding the "mechanics" of people's behavior. In this regard, he substantiates the concept of social action.

According to M. Weber, social action (inaction, neutrality) is an action that has a subjective "meaning" regardless of the degree of its expression. Social action is the behavior of a person who, according to the subjectively assumed meaning (goals, intentions, ideas about something) of the acting person, is correlated with the behavior of other people and, based on this meaning, can be clearly explained. In other words, social is such an action, “which, in accordance with its subjective meaning, includes in the acting person attitudes about how others will act and is oriented in their direction.” This means that social action involves the conscious orientation of the subject to the partner's response and the "expectation" of a certain behavior, although it may not follow.

In everyday life, each person, performing a certain action, expects a response from those with whom this action is associated.

Thus, two features are inherent in social action: 1) the presence of the subjective meaning of the actor and 2) orientation towards the response of the other (others). The absence of any of them means non-social action. M. Weber writes: “If on the street a lot of people open their umbrellas at the same time when it starts to rain, then (as a rule) the action of one is focused on the action of the other, and the action of all is equally caused by the need for protection from the rain.” Another example of a non-social action given by M. Weber is as follows: an accidental collision between two cyclists. Such an action would be social if one of them intended to ram the other, assuming a response from the other cyclist. In the first example, the second feature is missing, in the second, both features are missing.

In accordance with the indicated signs, M. Weber distinguishes the types of social actions.

traditional social action. Based on a long habit of people, custom, tradition.

Affective social action. Based on emotions and not always realized.

Value-rational action. Based on faith in ideals, values, fidelity to "commandments", duty, etc. M. Weber writes: “A purely value-rational person acts who, regardless of the foreseeable consequences, acts in accordance with his convictions and does what, as it seems to him, duty, dignity, beauty, religious prescriptions, reverence requires him to do. or the importance of some “case” is a value-rational action ... there is always an action in accordance with the “commandments” or “requirements” that the acting subject considers to be imposed on himself. Thus, this type of social action is associated with morality, religion, and law.

Purposeful action. Based on striving for the goal, the choice of means, accounting for the results of activities. M. Weber characterizes it as follows: “The one who orients actions in accordance with the goal, means and side desires and at the same time rationally weighs both means in relation to the goal, as goals in relation to side desires, and, finally, and different possible targets in relation to each other. This type of action is not associated with any particular field of activity and therefore is considered by M. Weber to be the most developed. Understanding in its purest form takes place where we have a purposeful rational action.

The above understanding of social action has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages include the disclosure of the mechanism of human activity, the definition of the driving forces of human behavior (ideals, goals, values, desires, needs, etc.). The disadvantages are no less significant:

1) The concept of social action does not take into account random, but sometimes very significant phenomena. They are either natural (natural disasters) or social (economic crises, wars, revolutions, etc.). Random for a given society, for a given subject, they do not carry any subjective meaning and, moreover, the expectation of a reciprocal move. However, history would have a very mystical character if chance did not play any role in it.

2) The concept of social action explains only the direct actions of people, leaving out of sight of the sociologist the consequences of the second, third and other generations. After all, they do not contain the subjective meaning of the actor and there is no expectation of a reciprocal move. M. Weber underestimates the objective significance of the subjective meaning of people's behavior. Science can hardly afford such a luxury. In studying only the direct, M. Weber involuntarily approaches the positivism of Comte, who also insisted on the study of directly sensually perceived phenomena.

3 Rationalization of public life

Weber's main idea is the idea of economic rationality, which has found consistent expression in contemporary capitalist society with its rational religion (Protestantism), rational law and government (rational bureaucracy), rational monetary circulation, etc. The focus of Weberian analysis is the relationship between religious beliefs, the status and structure of social groups. The idea of rationality received a sociological development in his concept of rational bureaucracy as the highest embodiment of capitalist rationality. Features of Weber's method in the combination of sociological, constructive thinking with specific historical reality, which allows us to define his sociology as "empirical".

M. Weber did not accidentally arrange the four types of social actions he described in order of increasing rationality, although the first two types do not quite correspond to the criteria of social action. This order, in his opinion, expresses the trend of the historical process. History proceeds with some "hindrances" and "deviations", but still rationalization is a world-historical process. It is expressed, first of all, in the replacement of internal adherence to habitual mores and customs by a systematic adaptation to considerations of interest.

Rationalization covered all spheres of public life: economics, management, politics, law, science, life and leisure of people. All this is accompanied by a colossal strengthening of the role of science, which is a pure type of rationality. Rationalization is the result of a combination of a number of historical factors that predetermined the development of Europe over the past 300-400 years. In a certain period in a certain territory, several phenomena intersected that carried a rational beginning:

ancient science, especially mathematics, subsequently associated with technology;

Roman law, which was not known to the previous types of society and which was developed in the Middle Ages;

a way of doing business imbued with the "spirit of capitalism", that is, arising due to the separation of labor power from the means of production and giving rise to "abstract" labor accessible to quantitative measurement.

Weber viewed personality as the basis of sociological analysis. He believed that such complex concepts as capitalism, religion and the state can only be comprehended on the basis of an analysis of the behavior of individuals. By obtaining reliable knowledge about the behavior of an individual in a social context, the researcher can better understand the social behavior of various human communities. While studying religion, Weber identified the relationship between social organization and religious values. According to Weber, religious values can be a powerful force influencing social change. Thus, in The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber described how faith led the Calvinists to a life of work and frugality; both of these qualities contributed to the development of modern capitalism (capitalism, according to Weber, is the most rational type of management). In political sociology, Weber paid attention to the conflict of interests of various factions of the ruling class; the main conflict in the political life of the modern state, according to Weber, is in the struggle between political parties and the bureaucracy.

This is how M. Weber explains why, with a number of similarities between the West and the East, fundamentally different societies have developed. He calls all societies outside Western Europe traditional, since they lack the most important feature: the formal-rational principle.

Looking from the 18th century, a formally rational society would be considered the embodiment of social progress. It embodied much that the thinkers of the Enlightenment dreamed about. Indeed, in a historically short time, some two centuries, the life of society has changed beyond recognition. The way of life and leisure of people has changed, the feelings, thoughts, assessments of people of everything around them have changed. The positive significance of the triumphal procession of rationality across the planet is obvious.

But in the 20th century, the shortcomings of rationality also became noticeable. If in the past money was a means of obtaining education necessary for personal development and a good job, then in the present education becomes a means of making money. Getting money becomes one of the sports, henceforth it is a means for a different goal - prestige. Thus, the development of the personality fades into the background, and something external comes to the fore - prestige. Education has become a decorative attribute.

In other areas of public life, rationalization also began to show its disadvantages. Why walk when you have a car? Why sing "for yourself" when there is a tape recorder? The goals here are not the contemplation of the surroundings, but movement in space, not the self-expression of the soul, but the consciousness that my tape recorder and the music heard from it are “on the level”, moreover, at the level of decibels. Formal rationalization impoverishes human existence, although it advances it far in terms of expediency. And expedient benefit, abundance, comfort. Other inappropriate aspects of life are considered indicators of backwardness.

The substance of rationality is reason, not reason. Moreover, reason in rationality often contradicts reason and does not fit well with humanism. The nature of rationality lies not only in rationality, but also in what is poorly consistent with the meaning of human life. The meaning of life common to all people lies in the satisfaction with their existence, which they call happiness. Satisfaction with life does not depend on the content of activity and even on its social assessment, in satisfaction it is the limit of human activity. Rationalization eliminates this limit, it offers a person more and more new desires. One satisfied desire gives rise to another, and so on ad infinitum. The more money you have, the more you want to have. F. Bacon's motto "Knowledge is power" is replaced by the motto "Time is money". The more power you have, the more you want to have it and demonstrate it in every possible way (“Absolute power absolutely corrupts”). Satiated people languish in search of "sharp" sensations. Some pay for intimidation, others for physical torture, others seek oblivion in Eastern religions, and so on.

People also realized the danger of rationalizing life in the 20th century. Two world wars and dozens of local wars, the threat of an ecological crisis on a planetary scale gave rise to a movement of anti-scientism, whose supporters blame science for giving people sophisticated means of extermination. The study of "backward" peoples, especially those at the stage of development of the Stone Age, has gained great popularity. Tourism is developing, providing an opportunity to get acquainted with the culture of "traditional" societies.