Social problems

Social problems change with the passage of time. Let us highlight some of the eminent thinkers
who have put forth in defining social problems but it is difficult to arrive at a commonly
accepted definition.

Social problems are conditions or issues within a society that negatively impact individuals,
groups, or communities, and are often perceived as requiring collective action or societal change
to address.

1. According to Fuller and Myers, a social problem is “a condition which is defined by a

considerable number of persons as a deviation from some social norms which they
cherish”.

2. According to Merton and Nisbet define social problem as “a way of behaviour that is
regarded by a substantial part of society as being in violation of one or more generally
accepted or approved norms”.

3. According to Carr, “a social problem exists whenever we become conscious of a

difficulty, a gap between our preference and the reality”.

4. According to Goddard, “Poverty is insufficient supply of those things which are

requisite for an individual to maintain himself and those dependent upon him in his health
and vigour”.

5. Nature of social problems

6. The social problem is connected to the majority of the members of society. According to
Bernad, the repressive and tense condition consequent of social problems may be
involving three types of elements:
(i) Tension factors which challenge some values of society,
(ii) Social values which are being challenged and
(iii) intense reaction of individuals and groups to challenge.
7. The following characteristics exhibit the nature of social problems:
8. (i) Disintegrative: Social problems, directly or indirectly disintegrate the social
system. Social problems cause dissatisfaction, suffering and misery. It seriously affects
the values of the society. It is always disintegrating and disorganizing. It is pathological.
It is harmful for society.
9. (ii) Multiple Causes: The social problems have no single or simple cause. Each
problem has a complex history and is usually not due to one but to many causes. War,
poverty, unemployment or crimes do not offer a single or simple explanation of their
occurrence. Sometimes one problem is so interwoven with other problems that it cannot
be solved apart from them.
10. (iii) Inter-Connected: Social problems are inter-connected due to which these
become serious. For example, unemployment, poverty and crime are inter-connected.
11. (iv) Many Remedies: Hence the solution of the complex social problem requires
various multi-sided remedies.
12. (v) Relative Concept: Social problem is a relative concept. What we call a social
problem in our society may not be a problem in other societies. Similarly, a social
problem today may not be a problem tomorrow.
13. (vi) Functional Value: Social problem, though disintegrative, has functional value
since its cure leads to social problem and social development.
14. Significance of social problem
15. (i) Study of social problems is a part of the science of sociology: Sociology is a
social science which claims to study the entire social phenomena. It is the only social
science which throws light on the different facets of social life. Social problems
constitute an inseparable part of society or social life. It is therefore mandatory for
sociology to make a scientific study of social problems. Thus, sociology follows its own
ways and means of studying social problems such as poverty, unemployment, over-
population, crime, juvenile delinquency, family disorganization, corruption, illiteracy,
communal riots, terrorism, extremism, violence against women, and so on.
16. (ii) Study of social problems as the historical responsibility of sociology: Study of
social problems is very much associated with the origin and emergence of sociology. In
fact, the serious social problem such as poverty, unemployment, exploitation of
labourers, women and children, child labour, slums, uncontrolled migration towards city,
 urban crowding, lack of basic amenities in cities, increasing crime rate etc., that cropped
up due to the outbreak of Industrial Revolution, disturbed the minds of social thinkers
such as Auguste Comte, Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, and other. These thinkers later on
strongly advocated the need to establish a separate science of society. Comte especially
believed that such a science would be able to find solutions to many of the social
problems of the day. Thus, historically also sociology has an obligation to study social
problems for which purpose it was originally established.
17. (iii) Social pathology as a specialized branch to study social problems: Sociology
in its attempts to study social problems systematically, scientifically, and in their entirety
established a new branch known as “Social Pathology.” It was Ginsberg who strongly
recommended the need for establishing a separate branch of sociology and called it
“Social Pathology”. According to Durkheim, the task of social pathology is to study the
abnormal or pathological conditions of society. Durkheim who founded two other
branches of sociology namely: “sociology of crime” and “sociology of morals”,
expressed the view that the incidences of suicide are nothing but the social consequences
of the pathological conditions of society.
18. (iv) Study of problems is absolutely necessary for finding solutions: A
pathological society is like an individual with ill health. No doctor will administer
treatment without examining the disease of the patient. This is equally true to society.
Unless the social problems are properly studied, their causes are traced out, their nature is
known, it is not possible to deal effectively with them and to find befitting solutions to
them. Thus, study of social problems assumes importance in sociology. Sociologists also
consider it as their social responsibility to study these problems and recommend
appropriate solutions for them.
19. (v) The very existence of social problems indicates the internal deficiency of the
society on the one hand, and the failure of its social policies, on the other: Thus, if a
society is suffering from various social problems, on that basis it can be said that it has
some serious internal deficiencies which need immediate correction or repair. In the
Indian context, the nation has been suffering from a series of problems such as over
population, poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, violence against women, corruption etc.,
This state of affairs reflect that many of the socio-economic plans, programmes, and
 policies of India have failed to bring about the expected results. It also alerts the
administration to find out the mistakes and to take proper action to save the Indian
society from a social collapse.
20. (vi) Social problems indicate that cultural values are changing and getting
violated or eroded: Cultural values normally decide or interpret what is good and what
is bad, what is desirable and what is undesirable, what is sublime and what is ugly and so
on. It is a sociological fact of general observation that whenever cultural values are
continuously violated or eroded, social problems of some kind or the other, will crop up.
This is true in the case of Indian society also.
21. (vii) Social problems demand quick relief, if progress and development are to be
achieved: Desire for progress is found in all societies. If this desire is to be materialized,
the problems that are haunting the society are to be tackled efficiently and immediately.
Progress and development of India become meaningful only when poverty,
unemployment, overpopulation, corruption, illiteracy and other problems are contained
and all the people are provided with the basic necessities of life. Sociological studies
have been of great help to those planners and administrators who are generally interested
in the progress and prosperity of India.
22. Causes of social problems
23. Social problems create disharmony and maladjustment but still the problems exist. What
are the main causes, which have been posed by our sociologists. So far the problem has
found no solution and every attempt made in this regard has failed. The main reason for
this is that the sociologists cannot pinpoint a single cause responsible for creating such a
problem. Let highlight some of the main causes of social problems in India-
24. (i) Social change leads to social problems: All social changes do not cause
problems. Those social changes which are ordinary in nature and do not cause any
problems of adjustments for the people to carry on with their day-to-day activities rarely
trigger social problems. But when problems of adjustment are created by social change,
social problems may creep in.
25. For examples, attempts by the government to introduce educational change through a
new educational policy which is basically defective, may lead to problems such as
 student unrest and educated unemployment. A sudden military revolt may push a nation
towards political instability and social insecurity.
26. (ii) Cultural lag causing social problems: W. F. Ogburn who introduced the
concept of ‘cultural lag’ states that changes are quick to take place in the material culture.
These, in turn, stimulate changes in the non-material culture. But the non-material culture
may be slow to respond giving rise to a gap or a lag between the material and non-
material cultures. This lag is called the ‘cultural lag’. This lag or cultural lag may lead to
problems of adjustment and also to social problems.
27. For example, the process of deforestation is taking place faster to cater to the needs of the
growing paper industry, house construction,, making furniture, etc. (material culture). But
the art of conservation of forest (non-material culture) does not keep pace with these
industrial developments. The result is the problem of the environmental population.
28. (iii) Natural disasters: Nature has been bountiful to man no doubt. But man often
becomes a victim of its wrath. Floods, famines, cyclones, earthquakes, volcanic
eruptions, tsunami, outburst of contagious diseases, etc. represent the furious faces of
nature. Almost every year, lakhs of people in the world become the victims of these
extremes of nature. Man’s attempts to control nature and its forces have not been
complete and can never become so. Somewhere at some time some people or the other
will have to pay a great price in the form of facing the wrath of nature.
29. For example, Bhuj of Gujarat in 2000, and a terrific cyclone that proved to be disastrous
in Orissa in 1999, the gigantic “Tsunami” waves of 26-12-2004 causing the death of
more than 2.5 lakh people and damaging the property worth thousands of crores of rupees
in India, Srilanka, Maldives, Indonesia, Africa. The flood havocs at Uttarakhand in 2013,
and Jammu and Kashmir in 2014, etc. Natural calamities like these not only disturb the
normal course of social life of the people but also create serious social problems.
30. (iv) Political and social dangers: Nature is not the only source causing danger to
man’s life; man himself creates conditions that often prove to be not only harmful but
even dangerous. Like political revolution, revolts, communal riots, racial conflicts,
terrorism, ethnic clashes, mass movements, military rebellion, arson and loots, bomb
explosions, etc., disturb even the society which has a well-established organization.
31. For example, the Godra incident at Gujarat that triggered after the burning alive of 58
persons (Ram Sevakas) in a railway compartment in the year 2002.
32. (v) Biological causes: Serious ups-and-downs in populations, population explosion,
great imbalance in the composition of the population, the spread of diseases, lack of
supply of nutritious food and such other biological factors disturb the social balance in
the society.
33. (vi) Psychological causes: Man’s mental tendencies, temperament, his own inherited
qualities influence his behaviour and activities. Sometimes, these aspects of man may
disturb him in making adjustments with the changing times. Mental qualities such as
instincts, imitation, suggestibility, hatredness, prejudice, anger, jealousy,
competitiveness, aggressiveness, hysterical nature, etc., do have their own positive and
negative impact on human behaviour and activities. These activities ultimately decide
how efficiently or inefficiently they face social challenges or cope with the disturbing
social conditions.
34. (vii) Technological inventions: Technology has its own limitations. It has brought
both good and bad results for man. As Ogburn stated, technology widens the gap
between the material and non-material parts of culture. Men are becoming more
materialistic and less traditional. Men are devoted more to quantity than to quality, to
measurement than to appreciation. Human beings by the use of machines have become
less human, more passive and more mechanical. There has been a movement towards
individualism and hedonism (pleasure – seekers) which has its own adverse effects on
society.
35. For example, due to technological advancement cities have given encouragement to
social problems such as slums, crimes, prostitution, environmental pollution, gambling,
drug addiction, etc.
36. (viii) Radical changes in social values: Social values play a vital role in
maintaining social equilibrium, but these values themselves are subject to change. There
is a close affinity between social values and social relationships. Hence, when social
values change social relationships also get changed. Younger generation is in a better
position to adjust itself with the changing values, whereas the older generation finds it
difficult to do so. This situation often leads to a gap between the generations. This
 ‘generation gap’ gives rise to clashes and conflicts between the parents and children,
students and teachers, and the old and the new.
37. (ix) Laxity of social control: Social organization is possible because of the successful
functioning of social control. But rigidity and failure on the part of the means of social
control to adjust themselves to the changing times make them to become less effective.
Thus, folkways, mores, customs, religion, law, values and such other means of social
control have become weak. A reduction in the effectiveness of the means of social
control naturally leads to an increase in the instances of crimes, violence, exploitation,
terrorism, cheating, sex crimes, etc.
38. Characteristics of social problems
39. Weinberg has mentioned six main characteristics of social problems which may be
briefly examined here.
40. (i) Social problems arise by being collectively defined as objectionable by many
members of the community. Thus, adverse conditions not defined by the community as
reprehensible are not considered as social problems.
41. (ii) Social problems change when the concerned behavioural patterns are interpreted
differently.
42. (iii) Mass media like newspapers, television, radio, magazines, movies, play an
important role in creating awareness about the scope and urgency of social problems.
43. (iv) Social problems have to be viewed in the context of society’s values and
institutions.
44. (v) Social problems need to be analyzed in terms of the influences upon them by
group processes and social relationships.
45. (vi) Since social problems vary historically, contemporary social problems are the
society’s concern, that is, the problem of refugee settlement in India in 1947-48 was
different from the problem of settling refugees from Assam in 1968, or the Tamils from
Sri Lanka in 1988-89, or the Indians from Kuwait and Iraq in September 1990.
46. Conclusion
47. With an introduction to the social problems and then attempts to define what is a social
problem. Based on it, the characteristics of social problems have been deduced and social
problems in the Indian context have been examined. Then an attempt has been made to
classify social problems on the basis of causative and systemic factors. Social problems
can be due to social, cultural, economic, political, legal, and ecological factors. Systemic
factors leading to social problems can be due to social disorganization or due to the
deviant behaviour of the individual. We have also learnt about the approaches to study
social problems. Finally, some light has been thrown on the societal response to the social
problems.