​Assignment : RURAL SOCIOLOGY

​Submitted by : Saman Farooq

​Submitted to : Ms Lailoma
Registration no: 1176-FSS/BSSOC/S20

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END OF RURAL SOCIETY AND THE FUTURE OF RURAL SOCIOLOGY

From the end of world war II to the early 1970s, rural sociology shifted toward
social-psychological perspectives such as the adoption-diffusion of innovations
and educational and occupational aspirations of rural youth, toward quantitative
analysis of survey data and aerial-census data,and toward the elaboration of the
rural sociology of international development and domestic applied rural
development practice.

Rural sociology confronts a continuing crisis of identity because of its failure to

develop a sociology of agriculture. Historically, despite an initial focus on
agriculture, rural sociology became deflected to the analysis of rurality. Recent
emphasis of rural sociologists on the turnaround phenomenon is symptomatic,
but fails to deal with the fact that such turnaround represents the penetration of
previously rural space by urban-based economic functions. Rural sociology has
increased its irrelevance by failing to locate itself appropriately in the
productionist oriented land grant system. It could resolve its problems, as has
agricultural economics, by providing ideological justification for protectionism. It
could also seek to develop a new constituency for its production. ​Several new
developments in the sociology of agriculture involving neopopulist and
neomarxist paradigms hold promise for a revised rural sociology.

INTRODUCTION

Rural sociology is a relatively novel branch of sociology. It originated in the

United States of America in the form of systematic science in the year 1820. It
has taken more than half a century to become established as a distinct academic
need or professional study.
Rural sociology is a field of ​sociology traditionally associated with the study of
social structure and conflict in rural areas although topical areas such as ​food
and ​agriculture or natural resource access transcend traditional rural spatial
boundaries. Rural sociology is a unique area of sociological inquiry. Its
institutional development leaves it perhaps the most independent of all
sociological subfields.
It studies rural life and development in rural life. It is a science which studies the
structure and functioning of rural society. Different sociologists and social
thinkers have defined rural sociology in different ways. As defined by ​Sanderson

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“ rural sociology is the sociology of rural life in the rural environment “. ​Bertrand
in its broadest definition, defined rural sociology as the study of human
relationship in rural environment. Rural sociology was first developed in the
United states. While other countries have developed their own approaches to
rural sociology, most have been influenced by American traditions.
Rural sociology is concerned with the characteristics, features, nature and
human ecology of a village community. It studies Rural social structure. For
example, village community, caste, class, dominant caste, jajmani system, caste
and politics, backward class etc. It studies the institutions like family, marriage,
kinship, religion, caste etc. in the rural context. In rural sociology rural social
organisations are unavoidably studied. It includes the study of rural family
pattern, marriage, rural social stratification, educational system, religion, cultural
institutions etc.

SCOPE OF RURAL SOCIOLOGY

The scope of rural sociology refers to the boundary or subject matter of this
discipline. Prof. Nelson says about the scope of rural sociology that rural
sociology is the description and analysis of progress of various groups as they
exist in rural environments. T.L. Smith also says that the field of rural sociology is
the study of pattern of association, groupings and group behaviour of the people
who mainly live on agriculture and agriculture is their means of livelihood.
It is concluded from the above opinion that the scope of rural sociology is the
study of rural societies and complexities of rural social life.
Some scopes of the Rural Sociology can be described as follows:

1. Rural Community:
To quote Sanderson, “A rural community consists of the social interaction of the
people and their institutions in the local area in which they live…….” Rural
Sociology is concerned with the study of the characteristics, special features and
ecology of the village community.
2. Rural Social Structure:
Social structure is the most important basis of social life. Rural Sociology studies
the various components of rural social structure such as village community,

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family, caste etc. It also analyses the effect of religion, customs and tradition on
rural social structure.

3. Rural Social Institutions:

Social, economic, political, educational and religious institutions in the context of
rural society constitute the subject matter of rural sociology. Rural Sociology also
analyses the sociological significance of these institutions.

4. Rural Culture:
Culture is the total way of life shared by members of a society. It can be
conceived of as a tool kit that provides us with the ideas and technology to deal
with the common problems of everyday life. Rural Sociology studies the various
aspects of the cultural life of the ruralites such as rural social customs, beliefs,
values, attitudes, drives and interests.

5. Rural Social Change:

Consequent upon the forces of industrialization, urbanization, westernization,
sanskritization and modernization, rural society is undergoing profound changes.
Rural Sociology studies the effect of these processes of social change on rural
life.

6. Rural Development Programmes:

Rural Sociology evaluates the impact of various rural development programmes
such as Community Development Programme, Integrated Rural Development
Programme etc. It also studies the effect of various social legislation measures
on the life of the ruralites.

7. Agricultural Transformation:
An important area of study for Rural Sociology is the process of diffusion and
adoption of agricultural technology among the rural farmers and modernization of
rural life as a result of improvement in the farming technology.

8. Rural Demography:

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Demography is pre-eminently concerned with the statistical study of the
size,distribution and growth of population over a specific period of time. Rural
sociology studies the causes of the growth of population and its impact on rural
development, rural to urban and rural to rural migration.

9. Rural-Urban differences:
All rural sociologists recognize that the social life of the community is divided into
two distinct segments, rural and urban. Though these segments interact among
themselves, each is sufficiently distinct from the other. Study of rural-urban
differences, therefore, constitutes an important aspect of the scope of rural
sociology.

10. Land and agriculture:

Rural Sociology studies problems and structure related to land and agriculture. It
deals with issues concerning land reforms, land ceiling and agrarian relations at
a greater length.

CHARACTERISTICS

Rural society in Pakistan as well as in several developing countries have some

distinct characteristics.Due to technological advancements in many fields
including communication,many of these distinctive characteristics are undergoing
gradual transformation . But ,still many of these characteristics are still there
significantly in many rural societies. Some of these basic characteristics are
listed below.

1. Contact with nature : Mainly owing to occupational requirements

2. Occupation : Agriculture is the fundamental occupation supported by animal

husbandry and allied activities.

3. Size of Community : Usually small scale agriculture demands a higher land to

man ratio than industries.

4. Density of population : Low and this low density brings greater intimacy among
the members.

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5. Homogeneity of population : Homogenous in terms of occupations, culture,
customs etc.

6. Social differentiation and stratification : Low degree of social differentiation and

stratification due to their homogenous nature.

7. Social mobility : Low levels of social mobility in village

8. Social interaction : Low levels of interaction (fewer contacts) due to low density
of population but rural masses have more primary contacts (informal)

9. Social control : High degree of social control. Strict punishments like ostracism
for deviation.

10. Social Solidarity : More pronounced in rural areas.

11. Leadership pattern : Usually traditional and based on known personal

qualities of the individual or some times hereditary.

12. Standard of living : Normally low

DIFFERENCE OF RURAL AND URBAN SOCIETIES

Rural society (pre-industrial ​ Urban society (industrial society)

society)
Life in the society was very simple and Life in the city is not simple but very
reflected in the way of living, dressing, complex and complicated.
food habits, shelter and manners etc.

The people in the society had The people in the city belong to
homogeneity and thus enjoyed more different castes, creeds, religions and
or less the same social status. cultures, thus do not enjoy the same
social status.

In the rural society there was very little In cities there are many occupations,
scope for occupational mobility. so occupational mobility is as well as
frequent.

Here the family played a very In the cities hold of families is not

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significant and predominant role. Its strong, and many functions which the
hold was very strong. families used to perform have been
taken away by other institutions and
associations.

In villages there is no fast change and In the cities there must be fast mobility
as such no necessity for social and adaptability to suit ever changing
adaptability. fast life.

In the rural society culture was very In the cities it is different to find pure
deep-rooted. Everyone loved culture culture.
and cultural heritage above everything
else.

In a rural society there is no division of In an urban community there is always

labour. division of labour and specialisation in
job allotment.

Rural society did not give due and In urban communities women enjoys
proper respect to the womenfolk. comparatively high social status.

In this society people loved nature and In cities, people have no time to stand
natural bounties. They were religious and gaze at the nature. They are not
minded and afraid of gods and religious minded but more
goddesses. materialistic.

There were very few chances of The cities provide both incentive and
providing employment and incentives employment to the people and thus
to the unemployed by the society. frustrated villages find solace in the
cities which respects ability and judges
their worth.

PROBLEMS OF RURAL SOCIETIES

Rural areas can be beautiful and relaxing, but they also must confront important
challenges. These problems includes

● Traditional way of thinking

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 ● Low level of education to understand developmental efforts and new
technology
● Lack of confidence and poor awareness
● Insufficient extension staff and services for agriculture
● Poor infrastructure facilities like water, electricity, transport, educational
institutions, storage facility etc.
● Unfavorable economic condition to adopt high cost technology
● No proper monitoring of programs and lack in their implementation
● Resistance to change
● Poor marketing facilities
● There are poor health facilities in rural areas

THREE OBJECTIVES
Every study has certain aims and objects. These aims and objects are in
consonance with the aims and objects of the society. No study is without aim.
This is true of rural sociology as well. One of the most important aims of the
study of Rural Sociology as we have already seen in the study of the Rural
Society or social complexities in rural life. Professor Desai has explained this aim
in a very detailed manner as reproduced below:-

The prime objective of Rural Sociology should be to make a scientific systematic

and comprehensive study of the rural social organisation of its structure function
and objective tendencies of development and on the basis of such a study of
discover the laws of its development.

The aims of the study of Rural Sociology may therefore be enumerated as

follows:

1) To study in a scientific and systematic manner, the Rural Society and its
various aspects and complexities.

2) To study the structure functions and objective tendencies of development of

the Rural Society.

3) To discover the laws of the development of the Rural Society.

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IMPACT OF FUTURE RURAL SOCIOLOGY, MY OPINION AND
CONCLUSION

Rural areas continue to face a series of challenges; many are likely to have
profound impacts on the vitality of these places over the long term. Of central
concern is whether the rural sociological enterprise, a potentially vital source of
information and guidance on such diverse issues, will be able to effectively
respond to such challenges. In order to strengthen its relevance and viability in
coming years, the rural sociological profession must embrace three important
shifts. First, it must modify the manner in which it engages in the production of
new knowledge by pursuing a more balanced portfolio of investments in
disciplinary and transdisciplinary research. Second, it must take a bold step to
build bridges to new entities whose missions,goals, and values closely align with
those of the rural sociological society. And third, it must take a more proactive
role in generating quality, scientifically sound information that is aligned with the
needs of federal and state policy communities , particularly information that can
better articulate how policies are likely to impact rural people and places.

In my opinion, rural sociology is a specialized field of sociology. It is the study of

life in a rural environment, which systematically studies rural communities to
discover their conditions and tendencies to formulate the principles of progress. It
is limited to various aspects of rural society in the study of rural social
relationships.
From all above topics, I conclude that just like urban sociology, rural sociology
also plays a wide role in this social world. Because villages are also very
important for many reasons because they are the springs to feed urban areas. It
helps us in providing technology and systematic knowledge. It develops a
relation between village industries. So we need to more focus on rural
communities to run rural as well as urban societies.

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