Social Cohesion Emile Durkhiem

Emile Durkhiem Makes the divide permanent between sociology and psychology Collective conscience Studies suicide

Collective Conscience The moral and ethical code that holds every society together Why is this important? Where does the collective conscience come from? People HAVE to have a sense of trust in order to even consider forming a society As that ‘trust’ grows so does the basis of the collective conscience

How can we “see” the collective conscience at VSU?

Changing of the collective conscience….. Stage #1 Society based on mechanical solidarity Primitive society Based on repressive law Little or no job specialization High amount of religion

Stage #2- Organic Solidarity Society based on organic solidarity Most advanced type of society Based on Restitutive law High degree of job specialization Society based on science and industry (not religion)

How does society move from mechanical solidarity to organic solidarity? Increase in a division of labor Increase in individual freedom Because of increase in science

Durkheim and Suicide Caused the divide between sociology and psychology Studied suicide rates per 100,000 people in Germany, France, and a disputed territory between them Used coroner’s notes and suicide notes to classify the person’s behavior into his sociological categories

Suicide suicide is all causes of death resulting directly or indirectly from a positive or negative act of the victim which he or she knows will produce this effect Positive suicide- doing something to die Negative suicide- not doing something that causes death

Variable 1: How INTEGRATED into the collective conscience was the individual Integrated in Sociology - of or pertaining to a group or society whose members interact on the basis of commonly held norms or values. 2 types of suicide fall under this

Type 1. Egoistic Suicide Low level of integration into the collective conscience Example: most typical teen suicides

Type 2. Altruistic High level of integration into the collective conscience Examples: Suttee in India Kamikaze pilots in WWII 9/11 terrorists from the terrorist’s perspective

Variable 2 How REGULATED by the collective conscience was the individual? Two types of suicide

Type 1: Anomic Suicide Low level of regulation by the collective conscience Examples Widow/widower- generally the surviving spouse will be dead in 18 months (1.5 years) or less. Lottery winner

Type 2: Fatalistic Suicide High level of regulation by the collective conscience Examples Prisoner with life without parole Holocaust camp prisoner on a hunger strike

Suicide Across the “Board” Gender Religion Country

Durkheim and Religion Totemic principle Australian aboriginal tribes All human religious expression was intrinsically founded in relationship to the group from which it emerges Sacred-religious Profane- not religious Totem- any religious symbol

Questions?