Page 100 - DSOC401_SOCIOLOGICAL_THOUGHT_ENGLISH

Sociological Thought

notes 15. There is no discrimination in mechanical society, while in organic society, sufficient
discrimination is found which gives birth to specification and expertise of job.
16. Firmness of mechanical societies is based on ethics, people do their jobs by being motivated
by the feeling of meeting their responsibility, whereas in organic society, firmness is based
on compromise or contract. Following the contract is the responsibility.
17. In societies with mechanical solidarity, lack of division of labour and specialization is found
while in organic society there is abundance of both these .
Durkheim’s opinion is that organic solidarity gives birth to contractual relations. In division of labour
people do different kinds of jobs. On basis of contract only they support each other and receive
services.
Durkheim has related social evolution also with division of labour and social solidarity. Initially society
was dependent on mechanical solidarity in which there was no division of labour or specialization,
repressive laws were popular, group consciousness was strong, there was pre-dominance of group
uniformity. Slowly there was an increase in the number and requirements of members, so, division
of labour and specialization thrived, individual differences increased, restitutive laws were made,
decline of collectiveness and rise of individualism happened, variation took place of uniformity. In
such societies, organic solidarity is found. In this manner during the evolution of society impact of
mechanical solidarity and religions goes on decreasing subsequently and there is an increase in the
complexity of social organization.

Notes Durkheim also does not accept this that there is an increase in human comfort or
desire of increasing the comforts gives birth to division of labour. It is a social fact,
analyzing which is the job of psychology and not sociology.

causes of division of labour

Durkheim in second part of his book, “division of labour in the society” has described the causes,
conditions and results of division of labour. Since division of labour is a social fact, hence Durkheim
has also searched for its causes also in conditions and requirements of social life. Durkheim has
considered two factors of division of labour- primary and secondary. In primary factors he considers
population increase and its causes. In secondary factors he includes (i) changed condition of normal
consciousness (ii) “impact of reducing paternalism”. Here we will mention all these factors of division
of labour.
1. Increase in size and density of population: Durkheim considers increase in size and density
of population as primary factor of division of labour. He has written, “division of labour
varies in direct proportion with the complexity and density of societies, and if during social
development it increases constantly, then its cause is that societies are regularly becoming
more dense and normally more complex ”
population increase happens in two form: (i) increase in size of population and (ii) increase
in density of population. With increase in population, pieced societies slowly begin to extinct
and their place is taken by mixed societies. Collection of population starts happening in
special centers. Population density is also of two types.
(i) Geographical density, in which population starts focusing at one geographical place
itself (ii) ethical density, which is the result of geographical density only. Through it, here

94 LoVeLY professionaL uniVersitY