Forms of social behavior of people

The topic of social behavior is of great importance in modern social psychology. Social behavior involves psychological influence on people and the occupation of a specific position among them. As a rule, this type of behavior is considered as the opposite of individual behavior, which, in turn, is not related to the position a person occupies in society, and to the relationships that develop between him and the people around him, and is also not designed to affect individual people. or society as a whole of any influence.

Psychologists distinguish several types of social behavior. We will consider the following:

Mass behavior
Group behavior
Sex role behavior
Prosocial behavior
Competitive Behavior
Obedient Behavior
Deviant behavior
Illegal behavior
Problem behavior
Attachment behavior
Maternal behavior
Some other forms

Let's look at each type in more detail.

Sex role behavior

Gender-role behavior is behavior that is characteristic of people of a particular gender and is associated with the main social roles performed by these people in the life of any society.

Mass, group and sex-role behavior are characteristic of groups and individuals and depend on what social functions they perform and what goals they pursue. The following types of social behavior describe a person in the process of his interaction with other individuals.

What is deviant behavior

Under deviant behavior

It is common to understand actions that contradict established social norms.

The persistent manifestation of deviations forces society to apply sanctions to this person - isolation, punishment, correction, treatment.

Simply put, deviation is a violation of any rules. In this regard, psychologists claim that the vast majority of people on the planet are deviants. Indeed, it is difficult to live your whole life without violating a single established rule - this means not only state legislation, but also some informal regulations, such as the need to communicate with friends in your free time. Too much work ethic (“workaholism”) and a passion for dieting are also deviations.

Competitive Behavior

Competitive behavior is when people around him are perceived by a person as potential or real competitors, and he enters into struggle or competition with them. This behavior is designed to achieve advantage and victory. type A behavior is associated with competitive behavior , according to which a person is impatient, irritable, hostile and distrustful, and B behavior , according to which a person does not seek to compete with anyone and expresses a friendly attitude to everyone.

Characteristics of the concept

Scientists involved in various social sciences believe that the social behavior of an individual is a characteristic of the mutual processes of individuals, with mutual communicative relationships manifested in a certain environment and setting, and depending on the conditions of the current situation and the environment. At the same time, depending on different factors, an individual’s behavior can differ radically.

For example, an outwardly calm and phlegmatic person in conditions of increased danger is capable of radically changing, becoming collected, active and caring. Or again: workers came to work shifts, some of them are interested in the quality of their products, while others, without much desire, perform their duties because it is necessary, otherwise you will not receive a salary. The former want not only to receive remuneration, but also to benefit society; the latter are not interested in the fate of the product being produced; they want much more to receive money for working hours.

People behave differently during mass meetings and rallies. Some walk calmly, without disturbing the column and order, while others try with all their might to cause discord, to show their deviations and negative opinion of what is happening. Each of the people in society is a participant in socio-political events, but behaves purely individually, according to their worldview, views, interests and needs.

The behavior of society is especially pronounced when two or more individuals interact and depends on economic, political and cultural factors. The scientific concept of behavior in society includes a combination of processes associated with satisfying the physical, material and spiritual needs of the individual, expressed as a reaction to the environment. Therefore, the subjects (actors) of social behavior will always be not only an individual, but also a group of people (small or large), with their own attitudes, preferences and actions, depending on the level of socialization of the structure of society.

Social behavior is always characterized by a norm - a generally established rule that an individual must follow. The norm fully justifies the status expectations of subjects and helps direct people’s actions in the right (by the standards of a given society) direction. With the help of norms, individuals undergo socialization and are determined by the role they will perform in society.

An individual's status expectations help him develop certain tactics of action in relationships with other people, which will be expressed in a behavioral model. A conscious, intellectually developed person is able to coordinate his own behavior, depending on the age group. In childhood and adolescence, people’s behavior is influenced by agents (parents, educators, teachers, coaches); in adulthood and old age, people rely on acquired knowledge, life psychology, established beliefs and worldview.

Therefore, social behavior, consisting of actions that change under different conditions, is calculated to exert a certain influence of one individual on another. The older generation is able to set an example of their own attitude to ongoing social processes and guide the younger generation to choose a social role, using the example of their own model, life experience and accepted norms.

Problem behavior

Problem behavior refers to any behavior that causes psychological problems in a person. In most cases, problem behavior consists of behaviors that are incomprehensible and unacceptable to others and may be maladaptive, destructive, or antisocial.

In addition to other forms of social behavior, one can also find those that characterize close relationships between people. These types are attachment behavior and maternal behavior.

Types of deviant behavior

Psychology, sociology and medicine have their own approaches to defining deviant behavior and classify its types in different ways. Different scientific directions even define actions and actions differently - one school considers some action “normal”, while another considers it deviant.

One of the existing classifications of deviant behavior was proposed by Ts.P. Korolenko and T.A. Donskikh - domestic psychiatrists.

Non-standard behavior
- in this case, the individual violates some rules, but in general his activities are positive and useful for society.
Destructive behavior
– has a destructive orientation. In this case, externally destructive and internally destructive actions are distinguished. In the first case, a person either uses certain means to escape reality and get the desired emotions (alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling, etc.), or directly violates laws and causes harm to others.

In the second case, a person’s actions are aimed at direct self-destruction - suicide, fanaticism, conformism, narcissism, etc.

Human behavior itself is a reaction to social norms. There can only be a few such reactions, and their description was given at one time by Robert King Merton, one of the greatest sociologists of the twentieth century.

Each society forms both the goals of its existence and the means of achieving them, and each individual responds to this through one of the possible reactions

Submission - complete submission to both goals and means of achieving them;
Innovation - the individual submits to the goals of society, but uses other means to achieve them;
Ritualism - the goal is rejected as unattainable, but a “mechanical” adherence to traditions remains;
Retreatism is withdrawal from society due to disagreement with its goals and means;
Rebellion is an attempt to bring a new order to society, to change both goals and means.

Three of these types of behavior are outright deviant

But ritual behavior in most cases is not perceived as deviant: society, as a rule, pays attention only to the external side of the behavior of individual people. There is an opinion that almost all members of society profess ritual behavior without thinking about the purposes of existence or even outright denying them

Maternal behavior

In general, maternal behavior is the behavior inherent in mothers in relation to their children, as well as the behavior of any person in general, which is similar to the behavior of a mother in relation to a child.

There are also some other forms of social behavior that are interconnected with the relationships of people developing in society. Such behavior can be called behavior the purpose of which is to avoid failures and achieve success, gain power or subordination to someone; confident or helpless behavior, as well as some others.

Signs of deviant behavior

There are clear signs that an individual’s actions are deviant behavior, namely

Inconsistency with generally accepted social norms;
Violation of these norms;
Negative assessment of others, imposition of sanctions;
Causing harm to yourself and others;
Persistence – the antisocial act is repeated many times;
Social maladjustment;
The general orientation of the personality is destructive.

The last feature, however, is controversial. After all, the concept of deviant behavior also includes cases such as talent, genius, heroism and self-sacrifice. Such actions and manifestations also violate some established rules, but ultimately their goal is the creation, sometimes even the salvation of society.

Other forms of social behavior

The desire for success is a special form of social behavior that influences a person’s success and, to a certain extent, his fate. The desire for success was most developed in the last century, and today it characterizes a huge number of successful people.

Avoiding failure is an alternative form of striving for success. This type of behavior manifests itself in a concern about not being last among other people, not being worse than them, not becoming a loser.

We can also distinguish such types of social behavior as the desire to communicate with other people and its opposite – avoidance of people. A separate form can be called the desire for power and the desire to maintain power , if a person already has it. The opposite of the last two is the desire for submission.

Another form of social behavior that scientists have paid attention to is confident behavior, when a person is self-confident, strives for new achievements, sets new tasks for himself, solves them and achieves new results.

However, it is quite common to see how capable people who want to achieve success and have the ability to do so fail due to uncertainty and excessive anxiety in cases where they should not have been shown. This behavior is called helpless behavior , and is defined as behavior in which a person, having everything he needs to achieve success, remains inactive, thereby dooming himself to failure.

Lecture on social studies on the topic: “SOCIAL BEHAVIOR” (Vocational and technical education)

Behavior is the process of interaction of individuals with the environment, manifested in their external (motor) and internal (mental) activity. Behavior includes actions within the framework of any human activity and any form of communication with other people.

is somewhat different in essence .

This term refers to
the way of life and actions of a large number of people, which has a significant impact on social life and the stability of society.
The subjects of social behavior are the masses, the public, the crowd and, in some cases, individuals and their interpersonal associations (family, circle of friends, etc.).

Mass

refers to a large number of people who cannot be united by any common characteristic. According to the political and economic situation, the number of people who make up the mass may be more or less, but it can never be absent. Such people are politically neutral, content with their position, do not join any party, and almost never vote.

“popular masses” has a slightly different meaning

It denotes the presence in society of a working majority, which in some cases, for example during periods of political instability, becomes the driving force of social progress.

Crowd

is an outwardly unorganized community of people who are in direct contact with each other, connected by a common emotional state and object of attention. The crowd is characterized by activity and a high degree of conformity, i.e. easily suggestible.

There are random, expressive, conventional and active types of crowd. Random crowd

consists of people gathered, for example, near the scene of the incident.
An expressive crowd
is a group of people jointly expressing joy or sorrow, anger or protest.
A conventional crowd
is a group of people whose behavior fits within the norms established for certain situations, but goes beyond the usual behavior, for example, rampant fans at a concert.
An active crowd
is a group of people taking active actions in relation to a specific object.
It is divided into aggressive, escaping, acquisitive and ecstatic. Aggressive,
for example, is represented by a crowd of pogromists.
The fleeing
crowd unites people in a state of panic.
Acquisitive
- these are looters, and
ecstatic
- driven to frenzy as a result of some rituals.

Public

- this is a large group of people formed on the basis of their common interests, without any organization, but always in the presence of a situation that affects these interests. The public arises with the appearance of the subject of general attention. It can be an event, a person, a scientific discovery, an object of art, etc. Unlike the crowd, elements of rational discussion, criticism and struggle of opinions are possible for the public.

The types of social behavior include social movements, collective behavior and individual social behavior.

Social movements are mass actions of representatives of any social group aimed at ensuring group or public interests, promoting or hindering social change. Depending on the goals and nature of the social changes they strive for, social movements can be of several types.

Political movements

express demands towards the state.
They can move from peacefully expressing their demands to decisive action in the form of propaganda of their views, calls for resistance to power, and even uprisings. Utopian movements
aim to create ideal social systems.
Reform movements
advocate for change through peaceful means.
Revolutionary movements
strive to establish a new social order by destroying the previous social order.
Conservative movements
oppose all kinds of reforms.

Social movements often arise due to dissatisfaction with existing orders. is formed in the environment of the movement ,

expressing a system of views, values, goals and ways to achieve them.
In addition, any movement needs a leader who
has supporters who, united, form
an organization.
In stable societies, social movements arise rarely; in unstable societies, they occur frequently.

Collective behavior

-
these are massive, unpredictable reactions of people to critical situations that arise objectively and suddenly.
Most often, collective behavior occurs in a crowd. A person, falling into a crowd, becomes infected with its passions. There is a mental unification of people at the “herd” level, as a result of which a homogeneous mass is created. Such a crowd is easy to influence and easy to manipulate, creating an emotionally charged atmosphere.

Social behavior of an individual is externally observable

actions
, actions of individuals in a certain sequence, one way or another affecting the interests of other people, their groups, and the whole society.
Human behavior takes on social meaning when they are involved in communication with other people. The social behavior of an individual is always reasonable and deliberate. It is influenced by a person’s attitude towards himself, towards others, towards society, predisposition and readiness for active activity. All this is called a social attitude. Depending on the changing situation, the social attitude may also change. People's behavior that does not correspond to generally accepted values and norms is called deviant behavior.

Deviant behavior can be both negative and positive. The first is manifested in the desire to disrupt the functioning of the social system, and the second in the desire to improve it. To determine the essence of deviant behavior, it is necessary to clearly identify all its components. This is, firstly, the person committing the act, secondly, the norms (rules) that are violated, and thirdly, the group of people or the entire society reacting to the behavior.

There are five types of behavior: conformism, innovation, ritualism, retreatism, rebellion. Of these, only conformism is not a deviation. All others belong to varieties of deviant behavior.

Conformism

(submission) means accepting the values of a given social community, even by abandoning one’s own beliefs.
An individual often submits to the opinion of the majority, although he may internally disagree with it. Innovation
(innovation) is expressed in acceptance of the group's goals, but rejection of the means to achieve them.
Ritualism
(from the word “ritual”) is expressed in the rejection of goals, but the acceptance of the means to achieve these goals.
Retreatism
(care) manifests itself in a complete denial of the values, goals and means accepted in a given society.
At the same time, the individual strives to isolate himself from society, to “withdraw into himself.” Rebellion
is expressed in the complete denial of the values, goals and means proclaimed by society and an attempt to replace them with new ones, to establish a new social order.

Reasons for deviant behavior

some theories explain in terms of biological, psychological and sociological factors.
The biological approach
indicates a person’s innate predisposition to commit deviant acts,
the psychological one
explains deviant behavior by various deviations in mental development,
the sociological one
takes into account the influence of social and cultural factors.

The absence of deviations in the behavior of subjects contributes to the formation of a social order in society, which represents a system that includes the relationships of individuals, rules of behavior that facilitate the performance of various types of activities. The normal functioning of society and the establishment of social order in it is facilitated by social control,

which ensures the orderly interaction of the elements that make up society through normative regulation, including social norms (rules) and sanctions (rewards and punishments).

Social control can be formal or informal. Formal control

carried out by government organizations through methods of isolation, segregation and rehabilitation.
Isolation
is intended to eliminate contact between the individual and society and is applied to persons who have committed a crime.
Separation
is also the cessation of an individual’s contacts with other people, but for a limited period, with the prospect of his return to society, for example, arrest.
Rehabilitation
is the preparation of a deviant to return to society and fulfill the necessary social roles.

Informal control

typical for small groups.
It manifests itself in both encouragement and criticism, ridicule of the deviant and even expulsion from the group. Types of informal control include social rewards, punishment, persuasion, and revaluation of norms. Social rewards
are expressed in approval of a person's behavior.
Punishment
reflects dissatisfaction with the behavior of the deviant and is expressed in statements, threats or physical influence.
Persuasion
is a verbal influence on a person in order to prevent deviant behavior.
Revaluation of norms
occurs when behavior that was considered deviant can be assessed as normal.

Social control is associated with socialization, during which people acquire patterns of behavior necessary for society. Often a person does not even think about the essence of his behavior, since he implements it at the level of habit. He himself selects for himself patterns of behavior that correspond to generally accepted norms. In addition, a person included in a particular group experiences its influence and, therefore, does not allow himself to commit deviant acts.

A type of social behavior is social conflict.

It represents the process of development and resolution of contradictions between people and social groups.
Social conflict is a complex phenomenon that has its own characteristics in each specific case. Nevertheless, in the course of any conflict three stages
- pre-conflict, the conflict itself and its resolution.

Pre-conflict stage

can be quite long.
During it, contradictions accumulate, emotional tension is intensified, the object of the conflict is determined,
i.e. that phenomenon, object, attitude, etc., which is equally highly valued by both conflicting parties. At this stage, it is possible to resolve the situation peacefully, without influencing the opponent. If both sides understand that a collision is inevitable, they strive to find out each other’s weak points and develop a strategy for their actions.

At the second stage

the parties proceed to active hostilities. They may be in the nature of an open confrontation, or they may contain actions hidden from the enemy, aimed at imposing a certain way of behavior on him.

Conflict resolution stage

is associated with the cessation of hostile actions of the parties in connection with the elimination of the causes of the conflict.
If the causes have not been eliminated, and the parties to the conflict have ceased active actions towards each other, then in this case we can only talk about suspending the conflict.
Methods for resolving conflict can

be different.
The conflicting parties can sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement that
provides terms acceptable to both parties.
If an agreement is reached through mutual concessions, then they speak of a compromise.
In cases where the parties do not want to make concessions or even begin the negotiation process, not wanting to show their weakness, you can resort to
mediation,
i.e.
participation in the resolution of the conflict by a third party not interested in the results and object of the conflict. This method is often used to resolve political conflicts. Finally, the stronger party can use force
on the weaker party and force it to admit that it is right.

There are many types of conflicts.

Thus, depending
on the number of subjects,
intrapersonal, interpersonal and social conflicts are distinguished.
Intrapersonal conflicts
occur in a person’s mind when he needs to make one decision or another.
The choice can be very difficult in some cases. Often a person has to choose between what needs to be done and what he wants. A person’s willpower plays a big role in decision making. Interpersonal conflicts
are a clash between two or more people.
The objects of such conflict are very diverse. The peculiarity is that the people involved in the conflict directly interact with each other. Social conflicts
occur between groups of people. In this case, direct personal contact between members of opposing groups is not necessary. Examples of social conflicts are uprisings and revolutions.

Depending on the area,

in which the conflict occurs, there are political, economic, social, cultural, ethnic and religious conflicts.
Political conflicts
arise between subjects of power.
These may be states that have certain interests in the international arena. Within the country, these are various political forces, for example parties, trade unions, government bodies, etc. Economic conflicts
arise between economic entities regarding the distribution of resources and sales markets.
Social conflicts,
as noted above, arise between different social groups regarding the distribution of material and spiritual benefits and participation in the exercise of power.
Cultural conflicts
arise between adherents of different cultural values (for example, regarding trends in music, literature, art, which are unequally assessed by the participants in the conflict).
Ethnic conflicts
manifest themselves in confrontation between different ethnic groups.
They can be political, economic, or social, but in any case, the basis of the conflict is hostility towards representatives of another nation. In some cases, ethnic conflicts intersect with religious ones,
representing a clash between different faiths over religious issues. These conflicts may have the nature of a theological dispute, but history knows examples of forceful measures to instill the “true” faith among the “infidels.”

These types of conflicts do not exhaust all approaches to their classification. We can distinguish such conflicts as war, confrontation, discussion, fight, etc. But experience convinces us that whatever the conflict, there will always be civilized ways to resolve it peacefully.

Questions and tasks

1. What is the difference between the concepts of “behavior” and “social behavior”?

2. Who is the subject of social behavior?

What types of social behavior exist?
What behavior is called deviant?
What types of behavior are there? Which of them belong to types of deviant behavior? Describe them.
What are the causes of deviant behavior?
What conditions contribute to the formation of social order in society? What role does social control play in this?
What is social conflict? What are its stages?
Give a classification of conflicts.

Types of behavior

In society, there are behavioral models based on the actions of past generations, and therefore a variety of forms of social behavior have developed. These include several different types.

Mass

This behavior is characterized by an emotional component that simultaneously captures the consciousness of a large number of people. Examples include panic, hysteria, following fashion, spreading rumors, rallies, holiday processions, challenges on social networks, etc.

Group

Depends on the form in which the goals of individuals are realized - in a team, based on interests or informally. Groups can distribute roles for subjects, focus on tasks, provide information, create material and spiritual benefits, organize actions that benefit society (volunteers), or, conversely, cause harm (extremists, terrorists).

Deviant

Behavior deviating from the norm is manifested in rejection of social norms, established foundations, customs, processes, and relationships between people. Deviations can manifest themselves in antisocial actions, nihilism, mental disorders, causing mental reactions to social processes. This type of behavior always receives a negative assessment from other members of civil society, since it seeks to deny the moral principles and legal foundations of the existence of individuals.

Competitive

Based on the desire for leadership and the most favorable conditions of existence in society. This type of behavior is used between opponents in government or party organizations, producers of goods and services, groups of entrepreneurs, and resembles a competition for the most favorable conditions. Therefore, this behavior is divided into subtypes: creative, opportunistic, guaranteeing.

Illegal

This type is aimed at violating the rights and freedoms of another individual, and refers to offenses. A person intentionally or accidentally causes harm to another person. Actions (causing bodily harm) and inaction of subjects (leaving a person in danger) depend on various reasons that prompted a person to behave negatively, violating established rules and laws in force in society. Examples of illegal behavior include creating an emergency on the road, hooliganism, or insulting another person.

Antisocial

Characterized by a sharp negative attitude towards society, denial of all existing norms and standards of correct behavior, the individual’s desire to oppose the accepted rules with all his might. This type can be characteristic of both a specific individual and a group of subjects. Antisocial behavior manifests itself in gross violations of the law, vandalism, trampling and non-recognition of social rules and principles. All actions that an individual or a particular group commits are directed against society.

Helping

It consists of providing assistance and assistance from one individual to another. This happens when subjects (volunteers, sponsors, philanthropists) who are not indifferent to the problems of another person appear in society. The social service that exists in the state also belongs to the helping type. This form can exist on reciprocity, when people do not abandon each other in trouble, as well as on unilateral influence, when only one side is involved in solving a person’s problems.

Prosocial

It belongs to the category of helping, and is completely in tune with it, but at the same time the help is carried out on a large scale and affects the mass part of society. Can be on a unilateral or mutual basis. Examples include assistance from the Council of Europe to developing countries, provision of an IMF loan, allocation of funds for the development of cultural centers, maternity capital (in the Russian Federation), assistance from city mayors at the birth of a child, and the creation of charitable foundations. Such assistance is based on kindness, material assistance and psychological support.

Any forms of social behavior are based on the emotional manifestation of the mutual attitude of individuals towards each other, and are carried out in the form of friendship, love, good, evil, enmity, success, power, cooperation. Also of particular importance are morals and foundations, traditions and customs, which contain patterns of behavior that do not contradict social norms.

Therefore, the behavior of individuals can be:

es parental;

ritual.

The natural is characterized by the achievement of individual goals, norms and capabilities of subjects. Ritual is based on a certain sequence of actions that are inherent in a particular society. There are also other forms of behavior - parental, cooperative, aggressive, etc.

There are many examples of types and forms of social behavior during the same process. For example, during a demonstration or rally, some people behave in an organized and cultural manner, while others behave illegally, trying to organize mass unrest, destabilize the situation and provoke the crowd to commit illegal actions. The presented example of action or inaction fully characterizes the essence of the concept of social behavior.

Factors and levels of behavior

In society, an individual’s behavioral goals depend on the natural and social environment around him and other factors, which include:

biological and physical qualities (health, the presence of certain abilities, endurance);
emotional component and psychological type of a person;
the presence of goals and objectives that determine the role of the individual and his desire for leadership and obtaining a certain status;
attitudes towards economic and political processes in the state;
perception of other individuals, analysis of their behavior during interaction;
the ability to adapt to changing internal and external conditions;
ability to pass levels of specialization;
development of situational human behavior;
the instinct of self-preservation in stressful situations and during various disasters.

Social behavior depends on one’s own and third-party assessment of actions, the actions of surrounding people, emerging motivation, psychological aspects, and political consciousness. Often the behavior of individuals is unconscious or spontaneous, arising under the mass imposition of ideas from formal and informal groups, spontaneous actions of the crowd.

The levels of social behavior of subjects are always characterized by several components.

Among them:

Individual's reaction. This refers to attitudes, emotions and actions that arise after spontaneous mass events.
Habitual actions. They reflect the model of interaction with others developed over the years, as well as established relationships.
Purposefulness of actions. Characterized by balanced decisions, consciousness and achievement of the assigned task.
Implementation of planned goals. A person implements projects (material or spiritual) that he has determined for himself in advance.
Human behavior is controlled by methods established by the state and society that correspond to real processes and historical events.

The methods used include:

accepting and demanding compliance with social norms;
establishment and widespread regulation of legal norms;
requirement to fulfill moral and ethical principles.

All types of methods listed are considered applicable to each individual throughout his life, but depend on the age group. For example, a child cannot be forced to follow many adult rules, but social behavior skills, basic culture and ethics can be taught. Therefore, one mother’s child behaves calmly in the presence of strangers, while the other’s child is capricious and defiantly hysterical. Which mother is the best agent - the answer is obvious.

At the state level, approval of lawful social behavior is reflected in regulations. Based on legal norms, documents reflect the desires of society to resist unlawful behavior, protect the individual from the negative actions of other individuals, and serve as prevention against unlawful acts.