Agencies of social control are mechanisms used by societies to regulate individual and group behavior. This includes formal agencies like law, education, and administration as well as informal agencies like customs, traditions, and religion. Social control aims to promote conformity, order, and stability through both positive reinforcement like rewards and negative reinforcement like punishments for deviant behavior. Well-functioning societies require effective social control mechanisms exercised through institutions to maintain social norms and solidarity.

1. Agencies of social
control
Macro Social Issues
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Whatissocialcontrol
» Social control refers generally to societal and political mechanisms or processes that regulate
individual and group behavior, leading to conformity and compliance to the rules of a given society,
state, or social group.
» Many mechanisms of social control are cross-cultural, if only in the control mechanisms used to
prevent the establishment of chaos or anomie.
» Some theorists, such as Émile Durkheim, refer to this form of control as regulation. Sociologists
identify two basic forms of social controls: a) Internalization of norms and values b) External
sanctions, which can be either positive (rewards) or negative (punishment)
» “Social control focuses on the capacity of a social organization to regulate itself.” Morirs Janowitz
» According to him , this concept of self - regulation can be applied to the actions of individuals and
organizational units. Without social control even the best intentioned efforts at cooperative
endeavor would quickly dissolve into uncoordinated separate actions by various participants
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Defininganagencyof socialcontrol
» Society or group maintains social control by creating its own agencies which may
enforce formal or informal control.
» Agencies such as law, education, physical coercion and codes on the one hand,
folkways, mores, customs, convention, tradition, religion, etc., on the other, have
been used by the society for this purpose.
» To Ogburn and Nimkoff; “The patterns of pressure which a society exerts to
maintain order and established rules ."
» Landis defines social control, "as a social process by which individual is made
group -responsive ,and by which social organization is built and maintained."
(Social Control.p.4)
» Lumely expresses social control, "as the practice of putting forth directive
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Natureof socialcontrol
» The influence of social control is exercised for promoting the welfare of all the individuals or the
group as a whole.
» Social control is as old as human society.
» It is an essential condition of the human society.
» The influence of social control is universal.
» Where there is society, there is social control.
» Social control is exercised through both formal and informal agencies
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Techniquesforsocialcontrolandtypesof socialcontrol
» Analyses of the forms of social control differ.
» A common distinction is between repressive or coercive forms of control so called
hard techniques, including direct physical constraint and the softer ideological
forms that operate through the shaping of ideas, values and attitudes
» Positive Social Control: Rewards and incentives have an immense value upon the
activities of individual. Everyone desires to be rewarded by the society,
consequently they have to conform with the traditions, traditions, mores etc.
accepted by society. E.g. Rewards, fame , respect and recognition etc.
» Negative Social Control: A person is prevented from doing something wrong by
threat of punishment. Fear of these punishments helps the people to prevent from
violating the socially accepted customs, traditions, values and ideals. E.g. Verbal
punishment, defamation and negative criticism etc.
» .
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Typesof socialcontrol
» Formal social control -The formal means of social control come from institutions.
» Man is forced to accept these forms of social control
» Generally these forms are exercised by secondary groups.
» The state, law, education and those which have legitimate power.
» They apply coercive measures in the case of deviance
» Informal social control-These agencies of Social Control have grown according to
the needs of the society.
» Folk ways, mores, customs, social norms etc. fall under this category of social
control.
» Generally primary institutions exercise this type of social control
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Needforsocialcontrol
» Social control is necessary for an orderly social life.
» Without social control the organization of the society is about to get disturbed.
» According to Kimball Young, it is necessary “to bring about conformity, solidarity
and continuity of a particular group or society”.
» It is possible only through social control.
» Society has to make use of its mechanism to accomplish the necessary order and
discipline.
» Herbert Spencer has put forwarded the view that society is a collection of group of
individuals. Man lives in society because it has a utility. Through society he is able
to preserve his identity and views.
» In order to preserve his identity and characteristics, he has to exercise some
control for which certain rules and institutions are created. These agencies of
social control are helpful for preserving the identity of the individuals and society.
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Agenciesof socialcontrol
» There are following agencies of social control
» Law
» State Education
» Folkways
» Mores
» Administration
» Religions
» Family
» Neighborhood
» Public Opinion
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Lawandjusticeasaformcontrolincontrollingcrimeanddeviance
» Law is a powerful method of control. The state runs its administration through the government. It enforces law
within its territory with the help of the police, the army, the prison and the court; it enacts laws to regulate the
lives of the people. The deviants or the violators of social rules are punished as per law; the state carries out
certain function by means of law. E.A. Ross says that 'law is the most specialized and highly furnished engine
of social control employed by society. It is law, which prevents the people from indulging in antisocial
activities. The lawbreakers are punished by the law of the state. It helps in governing our social conduct and
behaviors.
» The Criminal Justice System (CJS) is a broad and collective term for a wide range of institutions and systems
that exist to prevent, detect and prosecute crime as well as to punish and/or rehabilitate offenders.
» The Court is the tribunal where more serious crimes (indictable offences) are tried.
This is a formal court with a judge and jury. The initial hearing will have taken place at a magistrates' court
but, if the crime is deemed serious enough, the full hearing takes place before a Crown Court judge.
» These are formal agents of social control in contrast with informal agents of social control such as the
education system, the family, the media, etc. Increasingly some of these informal agencies are taking on a
more formal role.
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Stateadministrationandreligionasagenciesof socialcontrol
» Administration is very powerful and the most effective instrument of social control. It forces the individual to
obey social control.
» The administrations punish the violators with the help of the police, the army etc.
» Force or Coercion Physical force or coercion is an important means of social control. It is ancient as society
itself. It is essential for social progress.
» Even these days some societies resort to it against the deviants or those who disobey social norms. Every
state has its own armed forces or police force. It is an effective weapon to prevent people from indulging in
anti-social activities. It also makes people, obey social order.
» The state carries out its functions by means of law, which is ultimately backed by physical force. As an
important agency of social, control the state exercises its force over its people through various means such
as the government law, administration, the armed forces, the police are all forces of social control.
» Church is regarded as an institutionalized expression of religion. It serves as an agency of social control. In
the past church was a powerful agency of social control for quite some time.
» The church and the priests were held in high esteem. The authority of the church was recognized and
accepted by the people. As a result, nobody could deny that power be snatched away or distributed
elsewhere.
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Mechanismsthatfostertheagenciesof socialcontrol
» Social control is the control exercised by the society over its members.
» There are many people in society who always conform to the social norms and values and they
are known as conformists. But few people who always deviate from the existing norms and values.
» They are known as nonconformists or deviants.
» Social control mechanisms are means by which society can influence people’s behavior to
conform to expectations.
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Conclusion
» Therefore, we can say that through social control, members of group remain united and exhibit a
common behaviour pattern . In case there is no social control, society would wither away. It is for
this reason that an overwhelming majority of our society adhere to normative pattern.
» An ‘organized society’ controls its members effectively and the organization structure in each case
has its share of importance. A rigidly structured society like conservative communities and village
societies can firmly control individuals
» The different institutions have not had the privilege of being nurtured with the same degree of
liberalness, conflicts may arise between them. For example, if an individual finds that the values
taught by his family are diametrically opposed to those that modern educational institutions
impress him with, a schism in his thoughts will take place which can adequately confound him
particularly when his emotional attachments with either is of an equal degree.
» An individual must then have standard institutions for his training and, in this respect, the
importance of political, economic and the different social institutions is immense in maintaining
social order.
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