Social Control in Sociology

1. Rizwan Aslam
SOCIAL CONTROL
INTRODUCTION
Social control is the basic mean of
social solidarity and conformity rather than
deviance. It controls the behavior, attitudes
and actions of individuals to balance their
social situation. Man is born free but in
chains everywhere he lives. A person living
in a society has to adopt certain rules and
regulation. These are the social norms on
which the whole society is running. For
smooth functions and running of these
norms these controls are necessary. It
regulates harmony and brings unity among
individuals of the same group. It also affects
socialization process. When social norms are
followed by the people of a society, it means
that they adopt conformity to society and
establish control.
Social control is mechanisms by
which any society maintains a normative
social system. Sociologists define social
control as the way that the norms, rules,
laws, and structures of society regulate
human behavior. It is a necessary part of
social order, for societies could not exist
without controlling their populations. A
major purpose of social control is to stop or
prevent negative deviance, which is a break
from established laws and values that may
be damaging to others.
Meaning of Social Control
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 Emilie 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).
DEFINITIONS
Social control refers to the system of
devices whereby society brings its members
into conformity with the accepted standard
of behavior. (Ross)
Social control refers to the patterns of
pressure which society exerts to maintain
order and established rules. (Ogburn and
Nimkoff)
According to Fairchild, It is the process
which helps a society to secure conformity
to individuals as well as groups.
“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 would quickly
dissolve into uncoordinated separate actions
by various participants.
“Social control refers to the techniques and
the strategies for regulating human behavior
in any society.” Roberts
According to him social control
works at all levels of society. For instance,

2. Rizwan Aslam
in our family we all obey our parents, at
office we abide by formal norms etc.
Social Control in Traditional Societies
a) In traditional societies, greater
importance was given to the informal
network of relationships
b) The fear of God, Magic and Spiritual
power was inculcated in them to check
deviance.
c) Informal and subjective measures were
used for securing conformity and
checking deviance.
Social Control in Modern Societies
a) Informal methods used in traditional
societies, for exercising social control
have become non operative.
b) In the changing circumstances where
people have adopted individualistic
orientation and in the era or
industrialization and globalization, unity,
cohesiveness and peace is maintained by
formal means.
c) Judiciary, police forces etc. are the
means of social control in modern
societies.
Need of Social Control
 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
MECHANISMS OF SOCIAL
CONTROL
Every society has devised various
mechanisms to exercise control. Social
control mechanisms are viewed by
sociologists as all those social arrangements
that (i) prevent such strains as may develop
from the individual’s place in the social
structure and (ii) prevent the strains from
leading to deviance (Brearley 1947).
Every society has certain means to
exercise social control, and there are clear
consequences of exercising social control
for promoting stability and conformity in
societies. Mechanisms of social control can
be classified into the following four
categories:
I. Preventive mechanisms: These
mechanisms are designed to prevent such
situations from developing that might lead to
deviance Socialization, social pressures,
establishment of role priorities, force are
some of the mechanisms through which
conformity is promoted or the occurrence of
deviance is prevented.
II. Mechanisms to manage tensions:
Institutionalized safety valves like humor,
games and sports, leisure, religious rituals

3. Rizwan Aslam
are regarded as outlets for the tensions
generated by social restraints, and cultural
inconsistencies within a society.
III. Mechanisms to check or change
deviant behavior: Sanctions are used by
every society to bring about conformity, and
check or change deviant behavior. Sanctions
have been classified into:
a) Psychological sanctions: Negative
sanctions are reproof, ridicule non-
acceptance, ostracism etc. Positive sanctions
include acceptance in the group, praise,
invitation to inner circle events, verbal or
physical pat on the back gifts etc.
b) Physical sanctions: These are
mostly negative. The most important forms
of physical sanctions are expulsion, physical
punishment and extermination.
c) Economic sanctions: These include
positive rewards like promotion of a loyal
sincere worker, grant of tenders to civic
minded businessmen etc., or negative
sanctions like threat of loss or reduction in
one’s income (e.g. threat of discharge by
employer may prevent the employee from
continuing his strike), economic boycott etc.
d) Propaganda Mechanisms: Another
important mechanism that can bring about
change in the desired direction is propaganda or
molding public opinion. Propaganda is a
deliberate attempt to control the behavior and
interrelationships of members in order to change
the feelings, attitudes and values. For example,
the efforts of the government to control
population growth through family planning
propaganda (see Horton and Hunt 1981).
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.
Social Control Theory
Social control theory was developed by
Travis Hirschi in 1969. It is also known as
the Social Bond Theory. Hirschi refers to
four elements which constitute the societal
bond. These bonds include:
 Attachment to other individuals
 Commitment to following rules
 Involvement by typical social behaviors
 Belief a basic value system
When one of these four items break down,
Hirschi hypothesizes that an individual may
then participate in criminal activities.
Social control theory describes
internal means of social control. The theory
has become one of the more widely accepted
explanations in the field of criminology in
its attempt to account for rates in crime and
deviant behavior. Unlike theories that seek
to explain why people engage in deviant
behavior, social control theories approach
deviancy from a different direction. The
theory seeks to explain how the normative
systems of rules and obligations in a given
society serve to maintain a strong sense of
social cohesion, order and conformity to
widely accepted and established norms.
METHODS OF SOCIAL CONTROL
Methods of social control can be
broken into two types: (i) informal, and (ii)
formal. The informal type of control is
casual, unwritten. It lacks regulation,
scheduling and organization. The informal

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types consist of casual praise, ridicule,
gossip and ostracism. The formal type is
codified, scheduled organized, or regulated
in some way, as in promotion, demotion,
satire, monetary payment, mass-media etc.
(see Horton and Hunt 1981). We now
discuss each method in detail.
Informal Social Control
This is also known as primary social
control, as it is more effective in what
sociologists call primary groups. The
primary groups are relatively more
homogeneous, small, compact and intimate
groups. Members are tied to each other and
to the group by feelings of personal loyalty.
A family, playgroups, neighborhood, rural
community, and a simple primitive society
are some examples of such compact social
groupings. In such societies every
individual, is constantly surrounded by very
potent and subtle mechanisms of social
control. Within a family the individual is
under the control of his or her parents and
other family members. Family, in turn, is
under the control of neighborhood or kinship
groups, and these, in turn, are under the
watchful control of the whole society. Thus,
no individual or group can be free from
social control.
We may say that in such social
settings, social control exists like a set of
concentric circles surrounding individuals
and groups. The important characteristics of
this type of control are that it is informal,
spontaneous, and unplanned. Usually the
group shows its disapproval to the deviating
member by ridicule gossip, opprobrium,
criticism, ostracism and sometimes
application of physical force and coercion.
Since the group is compact, ties are strong,
members are personally known and the
individual has little choice of an alternative
groups membership. He cannot afford to
ignore the disapproval of his groups and so
he has to conform to his group’s
expectations. Such methods of control are
effective not only in primitive societies in
which primary groups and relations abound,
but are also effective in modern complex
societies such as ours, particularly within
secondary groups (such as voluntary
associations, clubs and trade unions etc.)
where such informal controls are effective to
achieve the goals of the organization.
Formal Social Control
This is also known as secondary
social control as it is usually found in larger,
secondary social groups. Modern complex
societies such as ours, are good examples of
such social groupings. In such societies we
find a large number of groups, which are
characterized by impersonal relations, and
are oriented to certain specific objectives. A
political party, trade union, factory, office,
students association, may be some
examples. In these secondary groupings,
relations among members are more formal
and less intimate. Their relationships mean
that informal controls such as ridicule,
criticism or ‘gossip’ do not operate here. It
is a well known fact in sociology that
informal groups do develop within such
formal organizations. In a university or a
college, certain clique’s informal controls
are more effective. The point is that such
informal groups which develop within
formal organizations may either inhibit or

5. Rizwan Aslam
facilitate formal secondary controls and
affect the performance of the organization.
Generally speaking, in secondary
groupings informal controls take their place.
Both positive sanctions in the form of
reward, honor, and negative sanctions by
way of punishments, expulsion etc. are used
in this form of control. In the larger society,
such controls are exemplified by law, police,
courts, prisons and other agencies of law
enforcement. Apart from these more visible
forms, formal control mechanisms also
include well organized propaganda through
mass media, to ‘engineer’ social control in
society. In large secondary groupings
informal controls are weakened due to
growing anonymity, mobility, and
conflicting norms and values. Intimacy
declines and members do not have personal
or emotional feelings towards each other.
They frequently move from one place to
another or from one group to another. Thus,
they can easily escape from the controls of
some particular group. Moreover, in a
complex society, there is always a conflict
of norms and values of different groups. One
group may approve a conduct which may be
disapproved by some other group. Under
such circumstances, recourse is ultimately
taken to the formal agencies of social
control.
According to Farrar and Dugdale, the
following are the methods of social control
through law:
1. The Penal technique
2. The grievance remedial technique
3. The private arranging technique
4. The constitutive technique
5. The administrative regulatory
technique.
6. The administrative regulatory
technique.
7. Fiscal technique.
8. The conferral of social benefit
technique
1. The Penal technique
The word “penal” has been defined by
the Black’s Law Dictionary 9th Edition as
“Of, or relating to, or being a penalty or
punishment, especially for a crime”. From
the meaning of the word “penal” we can
deduce that the penal technique is the one
which involves the regulation of crime in the
society. The penal technique is one in which
the law pronounces some actions as
prohibited and it provides punishment for
engaging in such actions.
2. Constitutive Method
This refers to a constituted Justice
system which is collectively accepted by the
people in a given Jurisdiction to review
conducts of individuals in that society. The
constitutive technique is the one that
concerns itself with the formation of legal
personalities. It encompasses all laws that
deal with the registration of companies and
organizations.
3. Grievance-Remedial Method
This technique involves a private citizen
seeking a civil remedy as opposed to a
criminal prosecution conducted by the state.
In other word, it is an institutionalization of
Compensation regime for injured parties in
the society. During communal interaction, if
one party negligently or by omission
breached on the rights of another party, there
is always a place where an aggrieved party
can run to and seek redress for the reward of
damages. In Nigeria, the competence court

6. Rizwan Aslam
of law is in-charge of remedial social
control.
4. Private Arranging Method
The law provides rules which determine
whether some act is validly done. In other
word, every action or conduct for present or
future use must necessarily be on the bases
of law especially when there is disagreement
between two or more parties. For instant,
making a will, selling a house among others.
This occurs in a situation in which the law
doesn’t bind every member of the society.
This particular law only binds those who
choose to be bound by its provisions.
5. Administrative Regulatory
Method
In every country, there is bound to be
indiscriminate quest for the acquisition of
wealth in negative ways especially in
production industries. If there is no
regulation, human lives will either be in a
constant threat or danger or at worst,
colossal disasters. For instant, the
production of food (NAFDAC) and the
production of drugs and other harmful
substances like tobacco.
This method of social control is one in
which the government, in order to protect
the citizens, regulates the activities of
private businesses. If there is no regulation,
the capitalists would exploit the citizenry.
6. Conferral Or Social Benefits
Method
How government spends its revenue to
provide benefits and services to all citizens
irrespective of ethnic and socio-political
affiliations is the core teaching of this
technique. This occurs in a situation in
which the government, through the
instrumentality of the law, strives to provide
basic amenities for the populace. It does this
by establishing schools, hospitals, building
roads and so on.
7. The Fiscal Technique
This method of social control involves
the government using taxation to control the
behavior of citizens. For goods that the
government wants to discourage, it imposes
higher tax rates on them. It also involves the
use of fines in order to discourage some
actions.
TYPES OF SOCIAL CONTROL
Society makes various types of
social control depending on the social
situations. In primitive societies beliefs and
superstitions are enough for the control. In
rural areas folkways, norms, beliefs,
customs and traditions are used as means
social control, while in modern societies
formal agencies like police, army, radio,
universities, newspapers are the means.
Types of Social Control by Karl
Mannheim
Direct and Indirect Control
Karl Mannheim is of the view that
control may be direct as well as indirect.
Karl Mannheim classified social control into
following two types:
 Direct Social Control: It is the control
that exercises upon the individual by the
reactions of the people who are living
within the proximity. Direct control is
that, which is exercised by the primary
groups like family, peer groups, who
praise or condemn the behavior of an
individual. E.g. Family, neighborhood
and play group.

7. Rizwan Aslam
 Indirect Social Control: This is the
type of control which is exercised upon
individual by the factors like customs,
laws, opinions, which affects the entire
social system. Indirect control is
exercised by the secondary groups like
traditions, customs, institution etc. E.g.
Secondary groups, traditions, customs
etc.
Types of Social Control by Kimbell
Young
Positive and Negative Means
Kimbell Young classified social control into
following two types:
 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 to
the traditions, mores etc. accepted by
society. One is positive means which
exists in form of praise, prizes, fame and
respect. 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.
Another mean is negative, which found
in the shape of criticism, punishment and
shames. E.g. Verbal punishment,
defamation and negative criticism etc.
Types of Social Control by Hayes
Hayes classified social control into
following two types:
 Control by Sanction: E.g. Awarding the
obedient and punishing the miscreant
 Control by Socialization and Education
Formal and Informal Social Control
 Informal Social Control: The primary
Group formulates the controlling
measures. For e.g. Mores, Traditions,
Customs etc.
 Formal Social Control: Rules and
regulations formed by Judiciary and law
control the people’s behavior within
society. For instance: Police,
bureaucracy etc.
Conscious and Unconscious Control
Bernarol has classified it on the basis of
conscious and unconscious. Conscious
social control is developed in the real sense
by the society (law), while unconscious is
followed by the individuals but have no
attention towards it and adopt unconsciously
i.e. customs and traditions.
AGENCIES OF SOCIAL CONTROL
Agencies of Social Control can be
broadly divided into two main types:
Informal and Formal
Informal Agencies
1. Family: The most important agency of
social control is family. Family has the
control over child. A person might
violate the other codes and conducts but
not the family norms. Family is a very
important instrument agency of social
control. Family prescribes rules and
regulations that the members have to
follow. These rules and regulations form
a part of social control. The family
socializes the child into the norms,
values, traditions and customs of the

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group. Thus, family has predominant
role in the shaping of the personality of
the child. Family teaches the child to
conform to the norms of the society. It
exercises control over its members to
bring about the desired action.
2. Neighborhood: There are unwritten
laws which demand cooperation and co-
existence among neighbors. The fear of
rejection, ridicule, gossiping and social
isolation by the neighbors forces the
individuals to conform their behavior to
the normative pattern. Neighborhood is a
simple and specific part of a community.
It has a feeling or sentiment of local unit.
There may be more than one
neighborhood in a community. The
neighborhood is the first community
with which the individual comes into
contact with. It exists, a deep influence
on its members as an agency of social
control.
3. Religion: The religious ideology helps
demarcate between good and bad, sacred
and profane etc. Religion serves as an
important agency of social control. It is
religion, which supports the folkways
and modes of a society by playing super
natural sanctions behind them. It adopts
negative as well as positive means to
regulate the behavior of the individuals
in society.
4. The Peer Group: The peer group
controls its members by informal
sanctions
5. Caste/Class: Each caste and class has its
own code of conduct which exercises
control over the members.
6. Administration: 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
7. Public Opinion: Public Opinion of the
people is the most important method of
social control in a democratic set up.
Every man tries to escape from the
criticism and condemnation by the
society. He therefore, tries to act
according to public opinion and public
sentiments. In a democratic set up,
public opinion is more effective and
important than any other agency.
Newspapers, radio, television, motion
pictures, legislations, pamphlets, etc.
mould public opinion. Agencies
Formal Agencies
1. The Law: It’s the most obvious formal
agency that exercises social control. It
determines possible offenders against the
social order. Law is a powerful method
of control. The state runs its
administration through the government.
In primitive societies, the groups
followed similar occupations and
individuals shared a direct and personal
relation among themselves. In short, law
is an important formal means of Control
to regulate the individual behavior in
society.
2. Educational Institution: Schools
formulate specific rules and regulations
that ensure discipline and a code of
conduct. Education in modern times is a
very powerful means of social control. It
prepares the child for social living and
teaches him the values of discipline,
cooperation, tolerance and integration.

9. Rizwan Aslam
Educational institutions at all levels
impart knowledge as well as ethics
through formal structured courses and
behavioral inputs. The child learns many
things from the education institutions,
which he cannot learn from other
sources. It is education, which makes all
efforts to discipline the mind of the
student in the school so that he can
realize the importance of social control.
3. The Media: Television, Radio,
Newspapers, magazines and public
hoardings do not operate like other
agencies of social control by use of
sanctions but can still play a very crucial
role in influencing behavior. The media
penetrate the hidden regions of life.
They pass judgments upon purely
private acts. Human behavior is
continually influenced by the fact that
the public opinion will be ruthlessly
expressed. Any person not conforming
to public opinion is likely to meet with
social rejection.
4. State: State has a vital role in
administering social control. State
functions through the government.
Modern nation-states strive to be welfare
states, i.e. they seek to provide to the
citizens a wide range of social services
like education and medical care. In
modern societies, State has become
increasingly important as an agent of
social control.