Social mobility in different types of societies. Social mobility causes and types

scientific definition

social mobility - change by an individual or group of the place occupied in the social structure (social position), moving from one social stratum (class, group) to another (vertical mobility) or within the same social stratum (horizontal mobility). Sharply limited in a caste and estate society, social mobility increases significantly in an industrial society.

Horizontal mobility

Horizontal mobility- the transition of an individual from one social group to another, located on the same level (example: moving from an Orthodox to a Catholic religious group, from one citizenship to another). Distinguish between individual mobility - the movement of one person independently of others, and group mobility - the movement occurs collectively. In addition, geographical mobility is distinguished - moving from one place to another while maintaining the same status (example: international and interregional tourism, moving from city to village and back). As a kind of geographical mobility, the concept of migration is distinguished - moving from one place to another with a change in status (example: a person moved to a city for a permanent place of residence and changed his profession). And it is similar to castes.

Vertical mobility

Vertical mobility- moving a person up or down the corporate ladder.

• Upward mobility- social uplift, upward movement (For example: promotion).
• Downward mobility- social descent, downward movement (For example: demotion).

social lift

social lift- a concept similar to vertical mobility, but more often used in the modern context of discussing the theory of elites as one of the means of rotation of the ruling elite.

Generational mobility

Intergenerational mobility - a comparative change in social status among different generations (example: the son of a worker becomes president).

Intragenerational mobility (social career) - a change in status within one generation (example: a turner becomes an engineer, then a shop manager, then a factory director). Vertical and horizontal mobility are influenced by gender, age, birth rate, death rate, population density. In general, men and young people are more mobile than women and the elderly. Overpopulated countries are more likely to experience the consequences of emigration (relocation from one country to another for economic, political, personal reasons) than immigration (moving to a region for permanent or temporary residence of citizens from another region). Where the birth rate is high, the population is younger and therefore more mobile, and vice versa.

Literature

• social mobility- article from the Newest Philosophical Dictionary
• Sorokin R. A. Social and cultural mobility. - N. Y. - L., 1927.
• Glass D.V. Social mobility in Britain. - L., 1967.

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See what "Social mobility" is in other dictionaries:

social mobility- (social mobility) Movement from one class (class) or, more often, from a group with a certain status to another class, to another group. Social mobility both between generations and within professional activity individuals is … Political science. Dictionary.

SOCIAL MOBILITY- change by an individual or group of a social position, a place occupied in the social structure. S. m. is connected both with the operation of the laws of societies. development, class struggle, causing the growth of some classes and groups and a decrease ... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia

SOCIAL MOBILITY- SOCIAL mobility, change by an individual or group of the place occupied in the social structure, movement from one social stratum (class, group) to another (vertical mobility) or within the same social stratum ... ... Modern Encyclopedia

SOCIAL MOBILITY- change by an individual or group of the place occupied in the social structure, moving from one social stratum (class, group) to another (vertical mobility) or within the same social stratum (horizontal mobility). ... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

social mobility- SOCIAL MOBILITY, change by an individual or group of the place occupied in the social structure, movement from one social stratum (class, group) to another (vertical mobility) or within the same social stratum ... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

SOCIAL MOBILITY- a concept by which social movements of people are indicated in the direction of social positions, characterized by a higher (social ascent) or lower (social degradation) level of income, prestige and degree ... ... The latest philosophical dictionary

SOCIAL MOBILITY- see SOCIAL MOBILITY. Antinazi. Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2009 ... Encyclopedia of Sociology

SOCIAL MOBILITY- SOCIAL MOBILITY, a term used (along with the concepts of social displacement and social mobility) in sociology, demography and economics. sciences to denote the transitions of individuals from one class, social group and stratum to another, ... ... Demographic Encyclopedic Dictionary

SOCIAL MOBILITY- (vertical mobility) See: labor overflow (mobility of labor). Business. Dictionary. Moscow: INFRA M, Ves Mir Publishing House. Graham Bets, Barry Brindley, S. Williams et al. Osadchaya I.M.. 1998 ... Glossary of business terms

social mobility- personal quality acquired in the process learning activities and expressed in the ability to quickly master new realities in various spheres of life, find adequate ways to resolve unforeseen problems and fulfill ... ... Official terminology

Books

• Sport and social mobility. Crossing borders, Spaay Ramon. Great athletes, Olympic champions, famous football players, hockey players or racers are known all over the world. Undoubtedly, the sport that became their profession made them famous and rich. BUT…

The inviolability of the hierarchical structure of society does not mean the absence of any movement within it. At various stages, a sharp increase in one and a reduction in another layer is possible, which cannot be explained by natural population growth - there is a vertical migration of individual individuals. We will consider these vertical movements, while maintaining the statistic structure itself, as social mobility (let us make a reservation that the very concept of “social mobility” is much broader and also includes the horizontal movement of individuals and groups).

social mobility- the totality of social movements of people, i.e. changing their social status while maintaining the stratification structure of society.

For the first time, the general principles of social mobility were formulated by P. Sorokin, who believed that there is hardly a society whose strata would be absolutely esoteric, i.e. allowing no traffic to cross its borders. However, history did not know a single country in which vertical mobility would be absolutely free, and the transition from one layer to another was carried out without any resistance: “If mobility were absolutely free, then in the society that would result, there would be no it would be social strata. It would be like a building without a ceiling, a floor that separates one floor from another. But all societies are stratified. This means that a kind of “sieve” functions inside them, sifting through individuals, allowing some to rise to the top, leaving others in the lower layers, vice versa.

The movement of people in the hierarchy of society is carried out through different channels. The most important of these are the following social institutions: army, church, education, political, economic and professional organizations. Each of them had a different meaning in different societies and in different periods of history. For example, in ancient Rome there are great opportunities to achieve high social position provided by the army. Of the 92 Roman emperors, 36 achieved social heights (starting from the lowest strata) through military service; out of 65 Byzantine emperors 12. The church also moved a large number of ordinary people to the top of the social ladder. Of the 144 popes, 28 were of low birth, 27 were from the middle classes (not to mention cardinals, bishops, abbots). At the same time, the church overthrew a large number of kings, dukes, princes.

The role of the "sieve" is performed not only social institutions, regulating vertical movements, as well as the subculture, the way of life of each layer, allowing each nominee to be tested “for strength”, compliance with the norms, principles of the stratum to which he moves. P. Sorokin points out that the education system provides not only the socialization of the individual, its training, but also acts as a kind of social elevator that allows the most capable and gifted to rise to the highest "floors" of the social hierarchy. Political parties and organizations form the political elite, the institution of property and inheritance strengthens the class of owners, the institution of marriage makes it possible to move even in the absence of outstanding intellectual abilities.

However, the use of the driving force of any social institution to rise to the top is not always sufficient. In order to gain a foothold in a new stratum, it is necessary to accept its way of life, organically fit into its socio-cultural environment, shape your behavior in accordance with accepted norms and rules - this process is rather painful, as a person is often forced to give up old habits, reconsider his value system. Adaptation to a new socio-cultural environment requires high psychological stress, which is fraught with nervous breakdowns, the development of an inferiority complex, etc. A person may turn out to be an outcast in the social stratum where he aspired or in which he ended up by the will of fate, if we are talking about downward movement.

If social institutions, in the figurative expression of P. Sorokin, can be considered as "social elevators", then the socio-cultural shell that envelops each stratum plays the role of a filter that exercises a kind of selective control. The filter may not let in an individual striving upward, and then, having escaped from the bottom, he will be doomed to be a stranger in the stratum. Having risen to a higher level, he, as it were, remains behind the door leading to the stratum itself.

A similar picture can develop when moving down. Having lost the right, secured, for example, by capital, to be in the upper strata, the individual descends to a lower level, but is unable to “open the door” to a new sociocultural world for him. Being unable to adapt to a subculture alien to him, he becomes a marginal person, experiencing serious psychological stress.

In society, there is a constant movement of individuals and social groups. During a period of qualitative renewal of society, a radical change in socio-economic and political relations, social movements are especially intense. Wars, revolutions, global reforms reshaped the social structure of society: the ruling social strata, new social groups, differing from others in place in the system of socio-economic relations: entrepreneurs, bankers, tenants, farmers.

From the above, we can distinguish such types of mobility as:

Vertical mobility implies a movement from one stratum (estate, class, caste) to another. Depending on the direction, vertical mobility can be upward or downward.

Horizontal mobility - movement within the same social level. For example: moving from a Catholic to an Orthodox religious group, changing one citizenship to another, moving from one family (parental) to another (own, or as a result of a divorce, creating new family). Such movements occur without a significant change in social position. But there may be exceptions.

Geographic mobility a kind of horizontal mobility. It involves moving from one place to another while maintaining the same status. For example, international tourism. If, when changing the place of residence, it changes social status, then mobility becomes migration. Example: if a villager came to the city to visit relatives, then this is geographic mobility. If you come to the city for permanent residence, find a job, change your profession, then this is migration.

Individual mobility. In a steadily developing society, vertical movements are not of a group, but of an individual nature, i.e. it is not economic, political and professional groups that rise and fall along the steps of the social hierarchy, but their individual representatives. This does not mean that these movements cannot be massive - on the contrary, in modern society, the watershed between the strata is overcome relatively easily by many. The fact is that an individual, in case of success, will change, as a rule, not only his position in the vertical hierarchy, but also his social and professional group.

group mobility .Movement happens collectively. Group mobility introduces major changes in the stratification structure, often affects the ratio of the main social strata and, as a rule, is associated with the emergence of new groups whose status no longer corresponds to the existing hierarchy system. By the middle of the twentieth century. such a group, for example, became managers, managers large enterprises.

Vertical group movements are especially intense during times of economic restructuring. The emergence of new prestigious, highly paid professional groups promotes mass movement up the hierarchical ladder. The fall in the social status of the profession, the disappearance of some professions provoke not only a downward movement, but also the emergence of marginal strata that unite people who are losing their usual position in society, losing the achieved level of consumption. There is an erosion of socio-cultural values ​​and norms that previously united people and predetermined their stable place in the social hierarchy.

Sorokin identified several main causes of group mobility: social revolutions, civil wars, change of political regimes as a result of revolutions, military coups, reforms, replacement of the old constitution with a new one, peasant uprisings, interstate wars, internecine struggle of aristocratic families.

Economic crises, accompanied by a decline in the material well-being of the broad masses, an increase in unemployment, a sharp increase in the income gap, become the root cause of the numerical growth of the most disadvantaged part of the population, which always forms the base of the pyramid of the social hierarchy. Under such conditions, the downward movement covers not only individuals, but entire groups, and can be temporary or acquire a sustainable character. In the first case, the social group returns to its usual place as it overcomes economic difficulties; in the second case, the group changes its social status and enters a difficult period of adaptation to a new place in the hierarchical pyramid.

So, group movements along the vertical are connected, firstly, with deep, serious changes in the socio-economic structure of society, causing the emergence of new classes, social groups; secondly, with a change in ideological guidelines, value systems, political priorities - in this case, there is an upward movement of those political forces that were able to catch changes in the mindset, orientations and ideals of the population, there is a painful but inevitable change in the political elite; thirdly, with the imbalance of the mechanisms that ensure the reproduction of the stratification structure of society. The mechanisms of institutionalization and legitimation cease to function in full due to the radical changes taking place in society, the growth of conflict and social uncertainty.

The processes of social mobility are important indicators of the effectiveness of various types of social arrangements. Societies in which there are conditions for vertical mobility (transition from lower to higher strata, groups, classes), where there are ample opportunities for territorial, including across the borders of the country, mobility, are called open. Types of societies in which such movements are difficult or practically impossible are called closed. They are characterized by caste, clan, hyperpoliticization. Open paths for vertical mobility are an important condition for development modern society. Otherwise, prerequisites for social tension and conflicts arise.

Intergenerational mobility . Assumes that children achieve a higher social position or fall to a lower level than their parents. For example, the son of a worker becomes an engineer.

Intragenerational mobility . It assumes that the same individual changes social positions several times throughout his life. This is called a social career. For example, a turner becomes an engineer, then a shop manager, a plant director, and a minister of the machine-building industry. Moving from the sphere of physical labor to the sphere of mental.

On other grounds, mobility may be classified into spontaneous or organized.

Examples of spontaneous mobility can be movements for the purpose of earning income from residents of the near abroad to large cities of neighboring states.

Organized mobility - the movement of a person or group vertically or horizontally is controlled by the state.

Organized mobility can be carried out: a) with the consent of the people themselves; b) without consent (involuntary) mobility. For example, deportation, repatriation, dispossession, repression, etc.

It should be distinguished from organized mobility structural mobility. It is caused by changes in the structure National economy and occurs beyond the will and consciousness of individual individuals. The disappearance or reduction of industries or professions leads to the displacement of large masses of people.

The degree of mobility in a society is determined by two factors: the range of mobility in a society and the conditions that allow people to move.

The range of mobility depends on how many different statuses exist in it. The more statuses, the more opportunity a person has to move from one status to another.

The industrial society has expanded the range of mobility. It is characterized by a much greater number of different statuses. The first decisive factor in social mobility is the level of economic development. During periods of economic depression, the number of high-status positions decreases, while low-status positions expand, so downward mobility dominates. It intensifies in those periods when people lose their jobs and at the same time new layers enter the labor market. On the contrary, during periods of active economic development, many new high-status positions appear. The increased demand for workers to occupy them is the main cause of upward mobility.

Thus, social mobility determines the dynamics of development social structure society, contributes to the creation of a balanced hierarchical pyramid.

Literature

1. Wojciech Zaborowski Evolution of social structure: a generational perspective // ​​Sociology: theory, methods, marketing. - 2005. - No. 1. - P.8-35.

2. Volkov Yu.G. Sociology. / Under the general editorship. V.I. Dobrenkov. R-n-D: "Phoenix", 2005.

3. Giddens E. Social stratification // Socis. - 1992. - No. 9. – pp. 117 – 127.

4. Gidens E. Sociology. / Per. from English V. Shovkun, A. Oliynik. Kiev: Foundations, 1999.

5. Dobrenkov V.I., Kravchenko A.I. Sociology: Textbook. - M.: INFRA - M, 2005.

6. Kravchenko A.I. General sociology. - M., 2001.

7. Lukashevich M.P., Tulenkov M.V. Sociology. Kiyik: Caravela, 2005.

8. General sociology: Tutorial/ Under the general editorship. A.G. Efendiev. - M., 2002. - 654 p.

9. Pavlichenko P.P., Litvinenko D.A. Sociology. Kiev: Libra, 2002.

10. Radugin A.A. Radugin K.A. Sociology. Lecture course. - M., 2001.

11. Sorokin.P. Human. Civilization. Society. - M., 1992.

12. Sociology: A handbook for students of the highest initial pledges / As ed. V.G.Gorodyanenko - K., 2002. - 560 p.

13. Yakuba E.A. Sociology. Textbook A guide for students, Kharkov, 1996. - 192 pages.

14. Kharcheva V. Fundamentals of sociology. - M: Logos, 2001. - 302 pages

15. See Questions of Philosophy. - 2005. - No. 5

II. The concept of social mobility. Intragenerational and intergenerational mobility.

social mobility is a set of social movements of people within the framework of the stratification of society, i.e. a change in their social position, status. People move up and down the social hierarchy, sometimes in groups, less often in entire strata and classes.

According to the fluctuation theory of Pitirim Alexandrovich Sorokin (1889 - 1968), social mobility- this is the movement of individuals within the social space, which represents a certain universe, consisting of the population of the earth.

P. Sorokin distinguishes three forms of social stratification: economic, political and professional.

social stratification- this is the differentiation of a given set of people (population) into classes in a hierarchical rank. Its basis is the uneven distribution of rights and privileges, responsibilities and duties, power and influence. The totality of groups included in the social universe, as well as the totality of relations within each of them, constitute a system of social coordinates that makes it possible to determine the social position of any individual. Like geometric space, social space has several axes of measurement, the main ones being vertical and horizontal.

Horizontal mobility- the transition from one social group to another, located at the same level of stratification.

Vertical mobility- the transition from one stratum to another, located on different levels hierarchy. There are two types of such mobility: ascending- moving up the social ladder and descending- move down.

Main characteristics of social mobility

1. Social mobility is measured using two main indicators:

Mobility distance- this is the number of steps that individuals managed to climb or had to go down.

The normal distance is considered to be moving one or two steps up or down. Most social transitions happen this way.

Abnormal distance - an unexpected rise to the top of the social ladder or fall to its bottom.

Scope of mobility- this is the number of individuals who have moved up the social ladder in a vertical direction in a certain period of time. If the volume is calculated by the number of moved individuals, then it is called absolute and if the ratio of this number to the entire population, then relative and is indicated as a percentage. The total volume or scale of mobility, determines the number of movements over all strata together, and differentiated- by individual strata, layers, classes. For example, in an industrial society, 2/3 of the population is mobile - this fact refers to the total volume, and 37% of the children of workers who have become employees, to the differentiated volume.

The scale of social mobility is also defined as the percentage of those who have changed, in comparison with their fathers, their social status.

2. The change in mobility for individual layers is also described by two indicators:

The first one is to exit mobility coefficient from the social stratum. It shows, for example, how many sons of skilled workers became intellectuals or peasants.

Second entry mobility factor into the social stratum, it indicates from which strata this or that stratum is replenished. It reveals the social origin of people.

3. Mobility assessment criteria

When studying social mobility, sociologists pay attention to the following points:

Number and size of classes and status groups;

The amount of mobility of individuals and families from one group to another;

The degree of differentiation of social strata by types of behavior (lifestyle) and the level of class consciousness;

The type or amount of property owned by a person, occupation, as well as the values ​​that determine one or another status;

Distribution of power between classes and status groups.

Of the listed criteria, two are especially important: the amount (or amount) of mobility and the differentiation of status groups. They are used to distinguish one type of stratification from another.

4. Classification of social mobility

There are main and non-main types, types, forms of mobility.

Main species characterize all or most societies in any historical epoch. Of course, the intensity or volume of mobility is not the same everywhere. Non-main types of mobility are inherent in some types of society and are not inherent in others.

Social mobility can be classified according to different criteria. So, for example, one distinguishes individual mobility when moving down, up or horizontally occurs for each person independently of others, and group mobility, when movements occur collectively, for example, after a social revolution old class cedes its dominant positions to a new class. Group mobility occurs there and then, where and when it rises or falls public importance whole class, estate, caste, rank, category. Mobile individuals begin socialization in one class and end in another.

In addition to them, sometimes they distinguish organized mobility , when the movement of a person or entire groups up, down or horizontally is controlled by the state: a) with the consent of the people themselves, b) without their consent. Voluntary organized mobility should include the so-called socialist organization set, public appeals for Komsomol construction projects, etc. Involuntary organized mobility includes repatriation(resettlement) of small peoples and dispossession during the years of Stalinism.

It is necessary to distinguish from organized mobility structural mobility. It is caused by changes in the structure of the national economy and occurs against the will and consciousness of individual individuals. For example, the disappearance or reduction of industries or professions leads to the displacement of large masses of people.

There are two main kind social mobility intergenerational and intragenerational and two main type- vertical and horizontal. They, in turn, fall into subspecies and subtypes that are closely related to each other.

Intergenerational and intragenerational mobility

Generation is a concept denoting different aspects of kinship and age structures historical development society. The theory of age stratification of society allows us to consider society as a set age groups and thus reflect age-related differences in abilities, roles, rights and privileges. Mobility practically does not occur in the demographic sphere: moving from one age to another does not belong to the phenomenon of intergenerational mobility.

Intergenerational mobility implies that children reach a higher social position or fall to a lower level than their parents. Intergenerational mobility is a change in the position of sons relative to their fathers. For example, the son of a plumber becomes president of a corporation, or vice versa. Intergenerational mobility is the most important form of social mobility. Its scale tells the extent to which, in a given society, inequality passes from one generation to the next.

If intergenerational mobility is low, then this means that inequality has taken root in this society, and a person’s chances to change his fate do not depend on himself, but are predetermined by birth. In the case of significant intergenerational mobility, people achieve a new status through their own efforts, regardless of the circumstances that accompanied their birth.

Intragenerational mobility takes place where the same individual, beyond comparison with the father, changes social positions several times throughout his life. Otherwise it is called social career. Example: a turner becomes an engineer, and then a shop manager, plant director, minister of the engineering industry.

The first type of mobility refers to long-term, and the second - to short-term processes. In the first case, sociologists are more interested in interclass mobility, and in the second, the movement from the sphere of physical labor to the sphere of mental labor.

II. Horizontal mobility.

Migration, emigration, immigration.

Horizontal mobility implies the transition of an individual from one social group to another, located at the same level. An example is the movement from an Orthodox to a Catholic religious group, from one citizenship to another, from one family (parental) to another (one's own, newly formed), from one profession to another. Such movements occur without a noticeable change in social position in the vertical direction. Horizontal mobility implies a change by a person during his life from one status to another, which are approximately equivalent.

A form of horizontal mobility is geographical mobility. It does not imply a change in status or group, but a movement from one place to another while maintaining the same status. An example is international and interregional tourism, moving from a city to a village and back, moving from one enterprise to another. If a change of status is added to a change of place, then geographic mobility becomes migration. If a villager comes to the city to visit relatives, then this is geographic mobility. If he moved to the city for permanent residence and found a job here, then this is migration. He changed his profession.

Migration are territorial movements. They are seasonal, i.e. depending on the season (tourism, treatment, study, agricultural work), and pendulum- regular movement from this point and return to it. Essentially, both types of migration are temporary and return. Migration is the movement of people within one country.

SOCIAL MOBILITY- change by an individual, group or class of their social position, occupied in the social structure.

Social mobility differs from demographic mobility, migration processes. Including as particular moments people change their occupations, level of education, culture, social mobility is not limited to only one of them.

There are two principal types of social mobility,

• Horizontal.
• Vertical.

Horizontal social mobility or displacement refers to the transition of an individual or social object from one social group to another located on the same level. Examples of such social mobility are the movement of individuals from a Baptist to a Methodist religious group, from one citizenship to another, from one family (as husband or wife) to another as a result of divorce and remarriage, from one factory to another within the same employment status. .

Vertical social mobility refers to relationships that include the transition of an individual (or social object) from one social stratum to another. According to the direction of transition, there are two types of vertical social mobility: ascent and descent, or social ascent and social decline.

The acceleration of the development of society and the growing social difference lead to the emergence of qualitatively new positions, cause a significant increase in social movements, frequency and speed.

Social mobility finds expression in a change in a person's position in the hierarchy of social groups, in his relation to the means of production, in societies. division of labor throughout the system of production. relations. Social mobility is associated with the acquisition or loss of property, appointment to a certain position, mastery of the relevant profession, education, even marriage, etc. When analyzing the channels of social mobility, it is important to divide them into main and secondary, mass and single, typical and random.

Every social movement between social strata and groups means mobility up or down within the social structure.

Social mobility is expressed both in changes in the positions of one generation and in the positions of two and three generations. Changing the positions of children in relation to the positions of fathers is evidence of social mobility Social stability manifests itself while maintaining a certain position of generations.

An important place in the study of the social structure is occupied by the issues of social mobility of the population, that is, the transition of a person from one class to another, from one intraclass group to another, social movements between generations. Social movements are massive and become more intense as society develops. Sociologists study the nature of social movements, their direction, intensity; movement between classes, generations, cities and regions.

They can be positive and negative, encouraged or, conversely, restrained.

In our country, for decades, social origin was put in the forefront in characterization, biography, and people with worker-peasant roots received an advantage. For example, young people from intelligent families, in order to enter a university, initially went to work for a year or two, get seniority, change their social status. Thus, having received a new social status of a worker, they were, as it were, cleansed of their "flawed" social origin. In addition, applicants with seniority received benefits upon admission, were enrolled in the most prestigious specialties.

Also, the more developed a society, the more dynamic it is, the more the principles of real status, real merit work in its system. Society is interested in this.

And today we will consider the following questions:

• characterize the types, types and main channels of mobility;
• consider the main indicators of social mobility.

Social mobility: concepts, types, types, main channels

People are in constant motion, and society is in development. This also means the continuous variability of the social structure. The totality of social movements in society, i.e., changes in their status, is called social mobility. This topic has interested humanity for a long time.

The unexpected rise of a man or his sudden fall is a favorite subject. folk tales: a cunning and wise beggar suddenly becomes a rich man, a poor prince becomes a king, and a hardworking Cinderella marries a prince, thereby increasing her status and prestige.

However, human history is made up not only of individual destinies, but of the movements of large social groups. The landed aristocracy is being replaced by the financial bourgeoisie, representatives of low-skilled professions are ousting modern production representatives of the so-called "white collars" - engineers, programmers, operators of robotic systems. Wars and revolutions reshaped the social structure of society, raising some to the social top of the pyramid and lowering others. Similar changes took place in Russian society after the October Revolution of 1917. They are still happening today, when the business elite is replacing the party elite.

In general, there are two main types of social mobility- intergenerational (or intergenerational) and within generational (intragenerational) and two main types- vertical and horizontal. They, in turn, fall into subspecies and subtypes that are closely related to each other.

Intergenerational mobility describes an increase or, conversely, a decrease in the social status of representatives of subsequent generations in comparison with the status of the current one; assuming that children achieve a higher social position or fall to a lower rung than their parents.

For example: the son of a miner becomes an engineer - upward intergenerational mobility, and the son of a professor works as a plumber - downward.

Intragenerational mobility refers to a situation where the same individual, beyond comparison with the father, changes his social positions several times throughout his life. In another way, this process is called a social career.

Example: a turner becomes an engineer, then a shop manager, a factory director, and finally a minister of the engineering industry.

The first type of mobility refers to long-term, and the second - to short-term social processes.

Vertical mobility implies a movement from one stratum (as well as estate, class, caste) to another. Depending on the direction of movement, upward mobility is distinguished - social ascent, upward movement and downward mobility - social descent, downward movement.

For example: Promotion is a typical example of upward mobility, dismissal, demolition or dismissal due to staff reduction is an example of downward mobility.

Horizontal mobility implies the transition of an individual from one social group to another, located at the same level. An example is the movement from an Orthodox to a Catholic religious group, from one citizenship to another, from one family (parental) to another (one's own, newly formed), from one profession to another. Such movements occur without a noticeable change in social position in the vertical direction.

A variation of horizontal mobility is geographical mobility. It does not imply a change in status or group, but a movement from one place to another while maintaining the same status. An example is international and interregional tourism, moving from a city to a village and back, moving from one enterprise to another. Or. For example, the transition from one company to another, while retaining the status (accountant).

If a change of status is added to a change of place, then geographic mobility turns into migration. If a villager comes to the city to visit relatives, then this is geographic mobility. If he moved to the city for permanent residence and found a job here, then this is migration.

On the nature of vertical and horizontal mobility influenced by sex, age, birth rate, death rate, population density. Men and young people are generally more mobile than women and older people. Overpopulated countries are more likely to experience the effects of emigration than immigration. Where the birth rate is high, the population is younger and therefore more mobile, and vice versa. For young people, professional mobility is more typical, for adults - economic mobility, for the elderly - political mobility.

The birth rate is also unevenly distributed across classes. The lower classes tend to have more children, the higher classes have fewer. There is a pattern: the higher a person climbs the social ladder, the fewer children he has. Even if every son of a rich man follows in the footsteps of his father, voids are still formed on the upper steps of the social pyramid, which are filled by people from the lower classes. In no classroom do people plan ahead for the exact number of children needed to house their parents. The number of vacancies and the number of applicants for the occupation of certain social positions in different classes is different.

Interesting fact: Professionals (doctors, lawyers, etc.) and skilled employees do not have enough children of their own to fill their jobs in the next generation. By contrast, in the United States, farmers and farm workers have one and a half times as many children as they need for self-replacement.

High and low birth rates in different classes have the same effect on vertical mobility as population density in different countries has on horizontal mobility.

Also distinguish individual and group mobility.

Individual mobility- the movement of a particular person up the social ladder, down, up or horizontally, regardless of other people.

group mobility- movement on the social ladder down, up or horizontally of a particular group of people; for example, when, after a social revolution, the old class cedes its dominant positions to the new.

Individual mobility and group mobility are connected in a certain way with assigned and achieved status. Individual mobility is more consistent with the status achieved, and group mobility with the assigned status. Individual mobility occurs where and when the social significance of an entire class, estate, caste, rank, or category rises or falls.

An interesting fact: the October Revolution led to the rise of the Bolsheviks, who had not previously had a recognized high position. In ancient Greece, most people were freed from slavery and climbed the social ladder, and many of their masters went down after the adoption of the constitution. The transition from a hereditary aristocracy to a plutocracy (an aristocracy based on the principles of wealth) had the same consequences. In 212, almost the entire population of the Roman Empire received the status of Roman citizenship. Thanks to this, huge masses of people, who were previously considered inferior, have increased their social status. The invasion of the barbarians disrupted the social stratification of the Roman Empire: one by one, the old aristocratic families disappeared, and they were replaced by new ones. Foreigners founded new dynasties and new nobility.

These are the main types, types and forms of social mobility. In addition to them, sometimes they distinguish organized mobility when the movement of a person or entire groups up, down or horizontally is controlled by the state - with or without the consent of the people themselves. Voluntary organized mobility should include the so-called socialist organizational recruitment, public calls for Komsomol construction projects, etc. Involuntary social mobility includes the resettlement of small peoples and dispossession during the years of Stalinism.

It is necessary to distinguish from organized mobility structural mobility. It is caused by changes in the structure of the national economy and occurs against the will and consciousness of individual individuals. For example, the disappearance or reduction of industries or professions leads to the displacement of large masses of people.

So, for example, we can consider the conditions for raising social status in two subspaces - political and professional. Any career ascent of a state official will be reflected on the scale of the axis "rank in the state hierarchy"; one can also increase one's political weight by raising one's rank in the party hierarchy. If he belongs to the number of functionaries or activists of the party that became the ruling party as a result of parliamentary elections, then such an official has a much better chance of getting a leadership position in the state or municipal government. And, of course, the professional status of a person will increase with a diploma of higher education or with the defense of a dissertation for an accounting degree.

Channels of social mobility

The accessibility of pathways for social mobility depends both on the individual and on the structure of the society in which he lives. Individual ability matters little if society allocates rewards based on prescribed roles. On the other hand, an open society does little to help the individual who is not prepared to fight for promotion to higher statuses. In some societies, young people's ambitions are one or two possible channels of mobility open to them. At the same time, in other societies, youth can take a hundred ways to achieve higher status. Some ways to achieve a higher status may be closed due to ethnic or social-class discrimination, others due to the fact that an individual, due to individual features simply unable to use their talents.

However, in order to completely change social status, an individual often has the problem of entering a new subculture of a group with a higher status, as well as the related problem of interacting with representatives of a new social environment. To overcome the cultural barrier and the barrier of communication, there are several ways that, in one way or another, individuals resort to in the process of social mobility.

• lifestyle change. It is not enough just to earn and spend big money in the case when the individual has caught up in income with representatives of a higher social stratum. To assimilate a new status level, he needs to accept a new material standard corresponding to this level. Arranging an apartment, buying books, a TV set, a car, etc. - everything must correspond to a new, higher status. Material everyday culture is, perhaps, not very noticeable, but a very significant way of familiarizing with a higher status level. But the material way of life is only one of the moments of familiarization with a new status, and in itself, without changing other components of culture, means little.
• development of typical status behavior. A person oriented towards vertical mobility will not be accepted into a higher social class stratum until he has assimilated the patterns of behavior of this stratum to such an extent that he can follow them without any effort. A graduate student, gradually becoming a professor, or a performer, turning into a director, must change his behavior in order to be accepted in a new environment for himself. Clothing patterns, verbal expressions, leisure activities, manner of communication - everything is being revised and should become habitual and the only possible type of behavior. Children are often specially prepared for high-class behavior by teaching them music, dance, and good manners. True, not all aspects of the subculture of a social stratum or group can be mastered as a result of deliberate training and conscious imitation, but such efforts can accelerate the process of acceptance by an individual of a subculture of a higher social stratum.
• change in the social environment. This method is based on establishing contacts with individuals and associations (social groups, social circles) of the status stratum in which the mobile individual is socialized. The ideal condition for entering a new layer is the situation when the individual is completely surrounded by representatives of the layer where he seeks to get. In this case, the subculture is mastered very quickly. However, the positive aspect of relationships is always the fact that a new acquaintance (individuals, associations) can create a favorable public opinion in favor of the newbie.
• marriage to a higher status stratum. At all times, such a marriage has served as the best means of overcoming the barriers that stand in the way of social mobility. First, it can greatly contribute to the manifestation of talents if it gives material well-being. Secondly, it provides the individual with the opportunity to quickly rise, often bypassing several status levels (everyone, of course, remembers Cinderella's rapid vertical mobility to the highest strata of society). Thirdly, marriage to a representative or representative of a higher status largely resolves the problems of the social environment and the rapid assimilation of culture samples of a higher status layer. This kind of marriage allowed people to overcome the most difficult social barriers in a caste society, as well as penetrate into the elite strata. But such a marriage can be useful only if the individual of a lower status stratum is prepared for the rapid assimilation of new patterns of behavior and lifestyle of a new social environment for him. If he cannot quickly assimilate new cultural statuses and standards, then this marriage will not give anything, since representatives of the highest status layer will not consider the individual "their own".

Main indicators of social mobility

To quantify mobility processes, indicators of the speed and intensity of social mobility are usually used. Under speed or the universality of mobility is understood as "the vertical social distance or the number of strata - economic, professional or political, that an individual passes in his movement up or down in a certain period of time."

For example, within three years after graduating from the institute and starting work in the specialty, a certain individual manages to take the position of head of a department, and his colleague, who graduated from the institute with him, manages to take the position of senior engineer. It is obvious that the speed of mobility is higher for the first individual, since during the indicated period of time he has overcome more status levels. On the other hand, if an individual, as a result of circumstances or personal weakness, slides from a high social position to the bottom of society, then they say that he high speed social mobility, but directed down the status hierarchy.

Under intensity of mobility refers to the number of individuals who change social positions in a vertical or horizontal direction over a certain period of time. The number of such individuals in any social community gives the absolute intensity of mobility, and their share in the total number of this social community shows relative mobility. For example, if we take into account the number of individuals under 30 who are divorced and moved to other families, then here is the absolute intensity of horizontal mobility in this age category. If we consider the ratio of the number of people who moved to other families to the number of all individuals under the age of 30, then this is relative social mobility in a horizontal direction.

Often there is a need to consider the process of mobility from the point of view of the relationship between its speed and intensity. In this case, the aggregate mobility index for the social community is used. In this way, for example, one society can be compared with another in order to find out in which of them or in which period mobility is higher in all indicators. Such an index can be calculated separately for the economic, professional or political field of activity.

Conclusion

Thus, the analysis of the hierarchical structure of society shows that it is not frozen, it constantly fluctuates and moves both horizontally and vertically. When we talk about a social group or individual changing their social position, we are dealing with social mobility. It can be horizontal (in this case, the concept of social displacement is used), if there is a transition to other professional or other groups, but equal in status. Vertical (upward) mobility means the transition of an individual or group to a higher social position with greater prestige, income, power. Downward mobility is also possible, involving movement to lower hierarchical positions.

During periods of revolutions and social cataclysms, there is a radical change in the social structure, a radical replacement of the upper stratum with the overthrow of the former elite, the emergence of new classes and social groups, and mass group mobility.

In stable periods, social mobility increases during periods of economic restructuring. At the same time, it is important social elevator”, which provides vertical mobility, is education, the role of which increases in the transition from an industrial society to an information society.

Social mobility is a fairly reliable indicator of the level of “openness” or “closedness” of a society. A striking example of a "closed" society is the caste system in India. A high degree of closeness is characteristic of a feudal society. On the contrary, bourgeois-democratic societies, being open, are characterized by a high level of social mobility.

However, it should be noted that here, too, vertical social mobility is not absolutely free, and the transition from one social stratum to another, a higher one, is not carried out without resistance.

Social mobility puts the individual in the conditions of the need for adaptation in a new socio-cultural environment. This process can be very difficult. A person who has lost the socio-cultural world familiar to him, but who has not been able to accept the norms and values ​​of the new group, finds himself, as it were, on the verge of two cultures, becomes marginalized. This is also characteristic of migrants, both ethnic and territorial. In such conditions, a person experiences discomfort, stress. Mass marginality breeds serious social problems. It, as a rule, distinguishes societies that are at sharp turning points in history. This is the period Russia is going through at the present time.

Society does not remain unshakable. In society, there is a slow or rapid increase in the number of one and a decrease in the number of another social stratum, as well as an increase or decrease in their status. The relative stability of social strata does not rule out vertical migration of individuals. According to P. Sorokin, social mobility is understood as the transition of an individual, a social community, a value from one social status to another."

social mobility is the transition of a person from one social group to another.

Horizontal mobility is distinguished when a person moves to a group located at the same hierarchical level as the previous one, and vertical when a person moves to a higher (upward mobility) or lower (downward mobility) rung in the social hierarchy.

Examples of Horizontal Mobility: moving from one city to another, changing religion, moving from one family to another after the breakdown of marriage, changing citizenship, moving from one political party to another, changing jobs when transferring to an approximately equivalent position.

Examples of vertical mobility: change from a low-paid job to a highly paid one, the transformation of an unskilled worker into a skilled one, the election of a politician as the president of the country (these examples demonstrate upward vertical mobility), the demotion of an officer to a private, the ruin of an entrepreneur, the transfer of a shop manager to the position of a foreman (downward vertical mobility).

Societies where social mobility is high are called open, and societies with low social mobility closed. In the most closed societies (say, in a caste system), upward upward mobility is practically impossible. In less closed (for example, in class society) there are opportunities to move the most ambitious or successful people to higher levels of the social ladder.

Traditionally, the institutions that contributed to the promotion of people from the "low" classes were the army and the church, where any private or priest, with the appropriate abilities, could reach the highest social position - become a general or church hierarch. Another way to rise higher in the social hierarchy was profitable marriage and marriage.

In an open society, the main mechanism for raising social status is the institution of education. Even a member of the lowest social strata can expect to achieve a high position, but on the condition that he receives a good education at a prestigious university, demonstrating high academic performance, dedication and high intellectual abilities.

Individual and group social mobility

At individual social mobility, it is possible to change the social status and role of an individual within social stratification. For example, in post-Soviet Russia, a former ordinary engineer becomes an "oligarch", and the president turns into a wealthy pensioner. At group social mobility changes the social status of some social community. For example, in post-Soviet Russia, a significant part of teachers, engineers, scientists became "shuttles". Social mobility also implies the possibility of changing the social status of values. For example, during the transition to post-Soviet relations, the values ​​of liberalism (freedom, enterprise, democracy, etc.) have risen in our country, while the values ​​of socialism (equality, diligence, centralism, etc.) have fallen.

Horizontal and vertical social mobility

Social mobility can be vertical and horizontal. At horizontal mobility is the social movement of individuals and occurs in other, but equal in status social communities. These can be considered as moving from state structures to private ones, moving from one enterprise to another, etc. Varieties of horizontal mobility are: territorial (migration, tourism, relocation from village to city), professional (change of profession), religious (change of religion) , political (transition from one political party to another).

At vertical mobility is happening ascending and descending movement of people. An example of such mobility is the reduction of workers from the "hegemon" in the USSR to simple class in today's Russia and, conversely, the rise of speculators into the middle and upper class. Vertical social movements are associated, firstly, with profound changes in the socio-economic structure of society, the emergence of new classes, social groups striving to win a higher social status, and secondly, with a change in ideological guidelines, value systems and norms. , political priorities. In this case, there is an upward movement of those political forces that were able to catch changes in the mindsets, orientations and ideals of the population.

To quantify social mobility, indicators of its speed are used. Under speed social mobility refers to the vertical social distance and the number of strata (economic, professional, political, etc.) that individuals go through in their movement up or down in a certain period of time. For example, a young specialist after graduation can take the positions of a senior engineer or head of a department for several years, etc.

Intensity social mobility is characterized by the number of individuals changing social positions in the vertical or horizontal position for a certain period of time. The number of such individuals gives absolute intensity of social mobility. For example, during the years of reforms in post-Soviet Russia (1992-1998), up to one-third of the “Soviet intelligentsia”, who made up the middle class of Soviet Russia, became “shuttle traders.

Aggregate index social mobility includes its speed and intensity. In this way one can compare one society with another in order to find out (1) in which of them or (2) in what period social mobility is higher or lower in all indicators. Such an index can be calculated separately for economic, professional, political and other social mobility. Social mobility is an important characteristic of the dynamic development of society. Those societies where the total index of social mobility is higher develop much more dynamically, especially if this index belongs to the ruling strata.

Social (group) mobility is associated with the emergence of new social groups and affects the ratio of the main ones, whose no longer correspond to the established hierarchy. By the middle of the 20th century, for example, managers (managers) of large enterprises became such a group. On the basis of this fact in Western sociology, the concept of the "revolution of managers" (J. Bernheim) has developed. According to her, the administrative stratum begins to play a decisive role not only in the economy, but also in social life, supplementing and displacing the class of owners of the means of production (capitalists).

Social movements along the vertical are intensively going on during the restructuring of the economy. The emergence of new prestigious, highly paid professional groups contributes to mass movement up the ladder of social status. The fall of the social status of the profession, the disappearance of some of them provoke not only a downward movement, but also the emergence of marginal strata, losing their usual position in society, losing the achieved level of consumption. There is an erosion of values ​​and norms that previously united them and determined their stable place in the social hierarchy.

Outcasts - these are social groups that have lost their former social status, deprived of the opportunity to engage in their usual activities, and found themselves unable to adapt to the new sociocultural (value and normative) environment. Their former values ​​and norms did not succumb to the displacement of new norms and values. The efforts of marginals to adapt to new conditions give rise to psychological stress. The behavior of such people is characterized by extremes: they are either passive or aggressive, and also easily violate moral standards, capable of unpredictable actions. A typical leader of marginals in post-Soviet Russia is V. Zhirinovsky.

During periods of acute social cataclysms, a radical change in the social structure, an almost complete renewal of the highest echelons of society can occur. Thus, the events of 1917 in our country led to the overthrow of the old ruling classes (nobility and bourgeoisie) and the rapid rise of a new ruling stratum (communist party bureaucracy) with nominally socialist values ​​and norms. Such a cardinal replacement of the upper stratum of society always takes place in an atmosphere of extreme confrontation and tough struggle.