State and Society

Relations
Prepared by: Ms. Mel
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Introduction

Decolonization has greatly impacted the political, economic, and socio-cultural landscape
of countries, especially of the former colonies (third world), which in turn has also affected
state-society relations. Some were able to establish a strong state but others did not.
The lesson at hand will enlighten you on state-society relations, particularly on how the
same evolved in the era where many countries ( especially third world)are supposed to be
free from the bondage of colonization and how their respective state organizations were and
are able to shape their societies.
Transformation of Societies and the United
Nations
• It has been said that “plans for social changes and the role of the state in
effecting those changes are no longer governed by hopes and beliefs
widely shared around the world; they are also the written norms of
legitimate bodies” (Migdal, 1988 p. 12)
How the United Nations has carefully considered the
socio-economic progress of third world countries
• The promotion of social and economic progress through the development
goals.
• The passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
• Specifying the international norms for the states with respect to socio-
economic development goals.
• The United Nations stressing the role of the states in advancing national
economic growth.
• Ensuring a higher standard of living through the state-initiated programs.
 United Nations

- respects the status

quo by making the
state a political form
Elaborating
of a limited period of
comprehensive plans for
all human history
undermining the status
inviolable
quo through economic
and social programs
- States as the building
promoted by states
blocks of the UN while
UN will protect them
from aggression
Role of the State
What should a state do with respect to the society?

• They should provide the so called” set of rules of the game composed of
constitutional principles, laws, regulations, and the like that state leaders
are willing to enforce through coercive means at their disposal (ibid p.14).
• There are also rules that encompass everything.
State Dominance
State’s Pervasiveness

• State’s presence and authority and the rules that it imposes in the lives of people
• According to Galbraith, “[T]here is first of all the large and pervasive apparatus of the
modern state. In the non-socialist countries it can be a little larger or a trifle smaller as
conservatives or liberals, social democrats or democrat socialists will it; but as all
practical people must agree, it will continue to be very large” (Galbraith, 1983 cited by
Migdal).
State’s Pervasiveness

• State organizations have ruled across large territories and population. (as
more states rose).
• Nevertheless, it must be noted that “the goal of universal rules- common
law, and broadly accepted norms- is not totally a novelty of the modern
era”.
Charles Tilly on how the state has imposed itself in
people’s lives
• According to Migdal (1988), Tilly “calculated the amount of time a
hypothetical average Frenchman spent working to generate revenue for the
state (through tax payments); in 1600, he estimated 50 hours of work per
year, in 1966, 650 hours- a thirteenfold increase”.
• Note that other countries outside Europe looked up to the
accomplishments of European states.
State’s Pervasiveness

• By the Mid 20th century, political leaders had adopted the end of creating
a state organization in a given territory, through which they could make a
set of rules that govern the lives of people and could authorize other
organization to make some of these rules.
• The active participation and guidance of the state is required in poor
nations.
John P. Lewis on the role of the government
Attributes of Stateness

1. Leaders aim to hold a monopoly over the principal means of

coercion in their societies by maintaining firm control over
standing armies and police forces while eliminating non-state
forces.
Attributes of Stateness

2. Through state autonomy from domestic and outside forces state officials
have sought to act upon their own preferences, making decisions to reshape,
ignore, or circumvent the preferences of even the strongest actors.
Attributes of Stateness

• 3. State leaders have aimed for significant differentiations of its

components; thus numerous agencies can take on the specialized complex
task of governing the details of people’s lives.
Attribute of Stateness

• 4. State-builders have sought this components to be explicitly coordinated

allowing a coherence of the parts of the state and shared purposes by those
working in various agencies.
Ideal type Definition of State by Migdal

“State is an organization, composed of numerous agencies led and coordinated by the state’s
leadership (executive authority) that has the ability or authority to make and implement the
binding rules for all the people as well as the parameters of rule-making for other social
organizations in a given territory using force if necessary to have its way.”
Ponder on these…..

Why has it been so significant for state organizations since the 16 th century to seek
predominance, to make or authorize rules, and to move up the scale of state attributes?
Why are state leaders so determined to changing the rules or to adhere to the so-called
“modernization?”
What are considered as threats to the existence of states and their leaders
First Modern States Applied the Triad Below

Tax collecting
Mechanism
y Co
r m ur
A ts
Social Control by the State

“Involves the successful subordination of people’s own

inclinations of social behavior or behavior sought by other social
organizations in favor of the behavior prescribed by the state”
Think about this…

• What is the relationship between the role and effectiveness of

the state domestically and its place in the world of states
(international community)?
Factors that affect the capacity of a state to dictate the
rules of society
• Organizational capabilities its leaders
• Population
• Potential material and human resources available
• Larger international configuration at the moment
How is the strength of the state exemplified?

• Ability to mobilize society’s population (Krasner cited by Migdal)

• Mobilization, accordingly, “involves channeling people on specialized organizational
frameworks that enable state builders to build stronger armies, collect more taxes, and
complete any other number of complicated tasks.”
Indicators of Social Control

• Compliance
• Participation
• Legitimation
Other important things to take note of

• The significance of rewards, sanctions, and symbols in attaining social

control
• States and web-like societies
• States and the strongmen struggle for social control.