1. Social Cohesion
Emile Durkhiem

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

3. 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

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

5. 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

6. 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)

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

10. 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

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

12. 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

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

14. 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

15. 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

16. Suicide Across the “Board”
Gender
Religion
Country

17. 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

18. Questions?