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CHAPTER
What is Sociology?
NOTE FOR STUDENTS
There are probably one or two main reasons why you are studying Rural Sociology. Perhaps both
reasons apply to you along with some others not mentioned. First, of course, Rural Sociology may
be a required subject in the syllabus of a university degree for which you are studying. This would be
so if you are a B.Sc. (Agr.) student in India and as such the question of your choice to study Rural
Sociology does not arise. Second, you may be personally interested in the subject and would elect to
study it irrespective of its presence as a required subject in your syllabus. In either case, as a “science”
student in India within the context of its educational system which bifurcates “arts” and “science”you
have come to Rural Sociology with a background in physical and biological sciences. This course is
probably your first introduction to social sciences, commonly referred to in India as “arts” subjects.
You will consequently experience some problems at the outset, as may happen with any new subject
or course of study. However, you may find these problems particularly marked now because of your
different academic background and the novelty of area of study of rural sociology. Initial confusion
is quite understandable and expectable. This new subject is probably being taught to you in the third
or the final year of your undergraduate course leading to a bachelor’s degree. You have hitherto
studied physics, chemistry, botany, zoology, plant pathology, entomology, mathematics and other
physical and biological sciences that are precise and tangible in nature, together with such applied
fields as soils, animal husbandry, agronomy, dairy technology, and agricultural engineering. All of
these are tangible and measurable to a high degree. They deal with physical elements and compounds
and plant and animal life—their behaviour and reaction under various conditions. In studying Rural
Sociology, you must move your attention from these subjects to the behaviour of rural man in relation
to other various conditions—his attitudes, aspirations, motivations, etc. You must move into an area
of study that is exact, less precise and largely intangible. Yet it is this area that determines and
fashions the other areas you have studied, for it is the behaviour of man that determines what is done
with the knowledge from the physical, biological and other sciences—hence the vital importance of
study of man’s behaviour. Recognise that at first you will have problems of comprehension, of
orientation in thinking and of adjustment, but as you begin to think in terms of your own behaviour,
that of your friends, of rural people, and of others, and as you persist in these efforts, you will gain
increasing comprehension and ‘a frame of reference’ that will allow you to understand the essential
concepts contained in this book.
Your approach to the study of Rural Sociology is important. Set aside the fact that it is a required
subject in your course and remember now and throughout these studies the purpose of this subject:
to help you to understand the behaviour of rural people. Rural Sociology will yield insight into your
own behaviour. If you are preparing to become a rural community development worker in India or
any other developing country or in a private organisation, or if you plan in any way to be working
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4 RURAL SOCIOLOGY
among rural people in agro-industry, industry, teaching, research or administration, you cannot be
effective unless you understand the rural people themselves. A prerequisite to effective work with
rural people is a clear understanding and appreciation of the people themselves; this understanding
is the basic reason for studying Rural Sociology. However, technically competent you may be in
other fields, such competence cannot compensate for lack of knowledge of how to work with rural
people in extending or applying technical knowledge about their crops, livestock, homes and
communities. To work with them effectively you must understand them. Rural sociology acquaints
you with the intricacies of behaviour of rural people.
Also, your approach to this subject should avoid the unfortunate customary way of studying a
theoretical “arts” subject, a method which involves little application but much memorization of
definitions, quotations, and stock phrases for reproduction at the examination. That customary
approach to the study of Rural Sociology will by no means serve any useful purpose, least of all the
purpose for which it has been included in your syllabus. It is a subject that has important and
significant practical implications, and it is not a subject for purposeless philosophical ramblings. It
has direct and important significance for practical programmes of rural community and national
development, both within government programmes and within private firms and organizations. Its
concepts are meant for lasting comprehension and practical application in various areas of rural
life. Concepts are interlinked and developed so as to give relevance to the entirety of rural life. This
book, therefore, follows a definite sequence of presentation which will let you gain comprehension
step by step commencing with basic fundamental concepts of understanding human behaviour. As
you study each chapter keep this sequence in mind and ensure that each concept is understood
clearly, for you build on it in understanding other concepts. From time to time stop and consider in
your mind what you have understood in the light of the overall picture of village society as a whole.
Do not become enamoured with high sounding definitions or lengthy statements. Some definitions
and statements must be rather complex to convey in capsular form the concept that they strive to
contain. Avoid memorization of them, but do study them with care and diligence and do seek their
essential ingredients. Then put them into your own words, including the essential ingredients, and
remember in that way, so that you can explain them to others with clarity. This approach has been
encouraged throughout this book.
Chapter I will acquaint you with the general field of sociology and its specialized field, Rural Sociology.
It should also serve to dispel popular misconceptions associated with the subject. The purpose of
studying rural sociology, and its role and relevance to programmes of community development, are
also discussed at some length in the first chapter. Let this chapter challenge your thinking and
stimulate discussion with your fellow students on these topics, both within and outside of classroom
sessions. Do not be afraid to disagree, but have sound reason to present your disagreement. Remember
that in such discussion there is no question of ‘winner’ or ‘loser’. All participants in the discussion
should gain because the true fruits are stimulated and clearer thinking.
A section on historical development of Rural Sociology has been included too. Again, this presentation
is not for memorization of dates and names (although a knowledge of them shows development
through time), but it will give you background on the emergence of Rural Sociology as a field of
study, its development, and some of the observations of early social thinkers. This background should
help you to begin to develop your own thinking in respect to the field of Rural Sociology.
Villages are probably not unknown to you: and perhaps you were born and brought up in a village.
Whether or not this is the case, you have much to learn about the behaviour of rural people (which
may be your own) under various circumstances and conditions. This chapter is the beginning of
such learning. As you learn, understand, and appreciate each concept, you will be progressively
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equipping yourself with tools which enable you to see the village from a new perspective and with
deeper insight into the reasons, motivations, purposes, and objectives of the way rural people act,
think, and live. It will be the same village and the same people, but with knowledge of Rural Sociology,
you will view them very differently and more analytically. This new viewpoint will allow you to plan
an effective strategy for working with them. As you study this chapter and each succeeding chapter,
keep in mind a specific village and its people whom you know, and attempt to apply each concept to
the actual conditions and situations existing there. The purpose of this book is not to communicate
vague concepts and abstractions. It is concerned with living rural people and the practical conditions
of life in which they are involved.
Through history man has made efforts to gain increasing control over his physical environment and
to gain freedom from its limitations. He has sought to gain knowledge about his environment and the
myriad phenomena that surround him in natural elements and other inanimate objects and in plant and in
animal life. From this knowledge, he has built bodies of knowledge—fields of study and disciplines. But
man himself has also been an object of study; man has tried to understand his human behaviour in
relation to others. Emerging from this attempt are the social sciences, which study man and his works
from various standpoints. Sociology, the youngest of the social sciences, focuses on the study of human
behaviour in its entirety. It joined the family of social sciences when it was recognized that the other
social sciences failed to fully explain man’s social behaviour.
Sociologists have defined sociology in many ways. It was Auguste Comte (1789–1857), often referred
to as the father of sociology, who named the field of study from two words—the Greek ‘logos’ meaning
word, speech, reasoning, or calculation, and the Latin ‘socius’ meaning companion. ‘Logus,’ as a suffix,
indicates scientific study. For example, biology means the science of life, geology, the science of the
earth and anthropology, the science of man. Sociology would, therefore, mean the study or theory of
companions, concerned with what goes on when people get together in groups and interact one with
another. Definitions can at best serve to identify what is defined, and while definitions of sociology may
vary, the focus and central theme undoubtedly remains the same. Most people have a wrong idea, or no
idea at all, of the field’s content, but their error is not surprising since sociology as a scientific field of
study emerged only a little more than 60 years ago. Because of the several misconceptions about sociology,
it is useful to describe what it is not, thereby, dispelling misconceptions and clarifying the major concerns
of the field of sociology.
(1) Sociology is a Science, not a Social Philosophy: A social philosophy is a system of ideas and
values that tell people how to behave and lays down procedures, norms, and rules of behaviour according
to which people are expected to act. Sociology studies how people do behave without trying to influence
how they should behave. It studies what is, not what should be. Social philosophies may be many, such
as Buddhism, Hinduism, or Christianity. Just as there cannot be a Christian Botany, or Hindu Chemistry,
there cannot be a Muslim, Christian, or Hindu Sociology. Sociology is a science, not a design for living.
(2) Sociology is Science, not Socialism: Even though the two words are similar, they are not connected
one with another. One is a science interested in systematic determination of facts concerning human
behaviour; the other is a political and economic movement. Sociology has ‘no axe to grind’; it takes no
sides other than that of science.
(3) Sociology is Science, not Social Reform or Social Welfare: Sociology seeks knowledge about
people and their behaviour. From its scientific investigations may emerge useful tools for effective work
by social reform and welfare workers, but it does not seek reform or welfare. Sociologists and rural
sociologists may serve as consultants for rural community development and social reform or welfare
programmes, but they do no more than present facts, analyse social situations, and give advice for action
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that may serve to facilitate achievement of objectives. Sociology is therefore knowledge, not direct
treatment. Its competence lies in building scientific knowledge within its field of study and in building
principles about the phenomena of man’s behaviour in interaction with other people. While some contend
that ‘nothing is so practical as a scientific principle’ [Anderson, 1947], it is largely the responsibility of
other social reformers and community development and social welfare workers to fully utilize such
knowledge and principles to make their work more effective. In doing so, however, these workers do not
themselves become sociologists anymore than a medical practitioner becomes an engineer by using
knowledge of engineering.
(4) Sociology is not Social Science: It is one of the social sciences. It is the youngest of the family
and has several specialisations such as rural sociology, industrial sociology, and political sociology. In
addition to sociology, some of the other social sciences are political science, economics, psychology
(and its specialisation, social psychology), and cultural anthropology. All these social sciences study
man in various aspects of his life. These sciences overlap, and the deeper the study of man, the more
evident it becomes that no one field of knowledge can fully explain him. The social sciences together
attempt to do this to the extent they are able.
(5) Sociology is not based on General Impressions and Points of View Derived from Overall
Experience in Working with People: It is a science based on empirical evidence from organised and
verified facts. A person does not become a sociologist by virtue of his contact with people no matter how
frequent and how varied this experience, any more than a woman becomes a gynaecologist by virtue of
having given birth to a large number of children.
Despite variation in definition, the basic focus and theme of sociology remains the same. What then
are the essential ingredients or elements that form a compound called sociology? Let us attempt to list
these so as to indicate the broad content of the field of sociology.
1. It is the study of man.
2. It is the scientific study of man.
3. It is the study of man’s behaviour.
4. It is the study of man in relation to groups with whom he interacts.
The above can be united in the following working definition: Sociology is the scientific study of
man’s behaviour in relationship to other groups and individuals with whom he interacts.
It is essential to comment on various aspects of the above definition to make for greater comprehension
and clarity.
(A) Sociology studies human behaviour—the behaviour of man and not of lower animals. There are
other disciplines that concern themselves with animals, but these are foreign to the concerns of sociology.
Psychology may use animals in behavioural research and glean information and insights relevant to their
area of concern. Sociology, however, does not use such subjects for study, but it does use the tools that
psychologists have to offer for the understanding of human behaviour. It limits its concern to the study of
human behaviour, starting with the premise that man is a unique being whose behaviour in relation to
others with whom he is in contact can best be understood by studying man himself.
The primary concern of sociology is not with man as a biological being or with the origin or history
of man or even his accomplishments. Sociology is concerned basically with man’s behaviour in relationship
with other people. The biological or historical aspects of man concern sociology only to the extent that
they affect, or are a product of, human relationships. To repeat, sociology is concerned basically with
man’s behaviour in relation to other people with whom he interacts.
Other disciplines also belong to the family of social sciences and concern themselves with the study
of man in various aspects of his life, such as political science, economics, cultural anthropology, social
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psychology, and history, but these do not fully explain man’s social behaviour nor deal with it in its
entirety as sociology seeks to do.
Further, human behaviour is patterned and shared. In other words, it is not a result of drift, of undefined,
unrelated, and random acts. Human behaviour is related by design and sequence (however, illogical at
times this may appear) into a pattern. This behaviour is shared with other human beings.
(B) Sociology is the scientific study of human behaviour; it seeks to apply the scientific method to
the study of human behaviour. It uses scientific tools to study human behaviour as effectively as possible
with maximum precision and objectivity, so that human behaviour is laid open for analysis and study as
would be a dissected rabbit for a zoologist.
Sociology assumes that a significant contribution can be made, by the application of the scientific
method, to man’s understanding of himself, his society, and the practical problems that he faces.
(C) Sociology studies human behaviour in relation to groups with whom he interacts. There are
three key words here—groups, relationships and interaction. Man does not ordinarily live in isolation; he
lives in physical and social proximity to other human beings. He is gregarious and relates himself to
some human beings more than to others. He identifies himself with some persons more than he does with
others and develops a feeling of belonging both with them and with the geographic area within which
they all reside. He and these people are considered and identified by others and by themselves as a unit
having its own forms and standards of behaviour by which members meet their needs, live and act.
‘Interaction’ means action between and among individuals when they take each other into account and
have reciprocal influence on one another. Such interaction may be verbal or may take other forms.
Human relationships and human interaction are the central core of the field of sociology; around them
are built social groups, organizations, institutions, and other components of the structure of society.
One other key word in the understanding of the field of sociology and its definition is ‘groups’.
From the time he is born and as long as he lives, man lives and interacts within human groups both in his
immediate social environment and outside of it. He is constantly subjected to influences of these groups
and in turn influences them to varying extents. Sociology studies man in his group relations. Group
relations is one of the chief foci of the field of sociology and this focus is one way in which sociology
distinguishes itself from other social sciences such as cultural anthropology, psychology, and economics.
It is important to bear in mind that so far we have defined sociology only broadly so as to indicate
and identify its area of concern and study. Boundaries of any discipline serve as an aid to understanding
and are established with this in mind. Strict limitation or demarcation of a discipline is in fact rather
futile; however, tentative they may be, boundaries are essential. They serve best if considered as a loose
cloak to delimit the field, rather than to rigidly define its concerns.
What then in greater detail is the content, the subject matter of sociology? This writing is an attempt
to outline it in an introductory form with special reference to the rural society. Inkeles suggests the
following as a general outline of content of the field of Sociology:
I. Sociological Analysis
Human Culture and Society
Sociological Perspective
Scientific Method in Social Science
II. Primary Units of Social Life
Social Acts and Social Relationships
The Individual Personality
Groups (including Ethnic and Class)
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WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY?
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Communities: Urban and Rural
Associations and Organizations
Populations
Society
III. Basic Social Institutions
The Family and Kinship
Economic
Political and Legal
Religious
Educational and Scientific
Recreational and Welfare
Aesthetic and Expressive
IV. Fundamental Social Processes
Differentiation and Stratification
Cooperation, Accommodation, Assimilation
Social Conflict (including Revolution and War)
Communication (including Opinion Formation, Expression and Change)
Socialization and Indoctrination
Social Evaluation (the Study of Values)
Social Control
Social Deviance (Crime, Suicide, etc.)
Social Integration
Social Change
[Inkeles, 1963, p. 12]
WHAT IS RURAL SOCIOLOGY?
Rural Sociology is a specialized field of sociology. What has been stated above about sociology refers to
man regardless of whether his residence is urban or rural? However, within sociology there are distinctions
and specialisations. The majority of people on the earth live in villages and rural areas and follow patterns
of occupation and life somewhat different from those living in urban areas. Their behaviour, way of life,
and beliefs are conditioned and deeply influenced by their rural environment. A specialisation of the
field of sociology has ‘therefore’ emerged. We have stated that sociology is the scientific study of man’s
behaviour in relation to groups with whom he has reciprocal interaction. Simply enough, when this study
focuses on man living in rural areas it is the field of Rural Sociology, the rural location of man’s residence
and its consequences being the distinction that demarcates this specialised field of sociology.
WHY STUDY RURAL SOCIOLOGY?
The purpose underlying the study of Rural Sociology is to develop greater understanding of the behaviour
of rural people and rural society. Rural Sociology equips the student with tools of understanding that
allow effective analysis of rural people in their relationships with others in rural society. But why is the
study of human behaviour considered desirable as a field of study offered to college students? In the
United States system of education the student may have the option of studying this subject, but in some
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countries, such as India, this is a required subject at the undergraduate level for courses of study like the
Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture and the student has no choice in the matter. The decision to make Rural
Sociology a compulsory subject was based, in these nations, on the deep conviction that such inclusion
was strongly desirable for the following reasons:
(A) The subject is a part of the student’s general education. The field contributes to a general
understanding of the world and hence to a well-rounded and comprehensive education. While relatively
few students who study the field become professional rural sociologists, all are members of society and
become more and more involved in various social roles after they graduate from formal academic training.
All people must live in society and all have social roles to enact whatever the occupation or profession
they follow. Sociological knowledge or knowledge of the society in which he lives and of the people
with whom he interacts is of considerable significance and value for anyone of any vocation or occupation.
The study of sociology and its specialised field, Rural Sociology, helps the individual to understand
himself and his own social nature, and accordingly, his relation to other people in society. It also helps
develop the scientific attitude of thinking critically and objectively with precision, and this attitude is
valuable for any future occupation. To some extent, as with other sciences, it liberalises the individual—
frees him for truth, helps him choose wisely, and gives him insight into the ways of others.
(B) The subject can provide beginning of a professional training for a future career as a rural sociologist.
A student may prepare himself in one of two major ways:
1. As a teacher and/or researcher following academic interests in the field.
2. As a consultant of change agents and rural life analyst in programmers promoting rural community
development.
In this applied field, especially at present in developing countries like India, the rural sociologist
faces a great challenge and opportunity to make effective contributions which may even mean the success
or failure of ongoing programmes of rural community development. In such countries, the problem area
lies not so much in provision of technical skill and knowledge pertinent to the changes desired, but in the
communication of skills and knowledge and in harmonious work not only with rural people among
whom change is desired but also among the change agents. For instance, introduction of rat control
measures for food crop protection in villages of Uttar Pradesh in north India involved a great deal more
than providing village people with rat poison. It meant working out fully a strategy of approach and
competently applying rural sociology skills involving at least the following:
(a) Understanding of the social groups (sub-castes) that may be involved in exterminating rats.
(b) Religious beliefs concerning rats in Hindu mythology and the strengths of these beliefs in the
area.
(c) Social and economic implications of supply of materials necessary for rat extermination and
continuation of the rat control service.
(d) Involvement of formal (and informal) groups necessary for sanction and promotion of such a
practice.
In addition, the belief and convictions of the extension worker who introduces the above change are
involved, together with general understanding and support among the entire team of change agents—in
India the Block Development Officers, Assistant Development Officers, and Gram Sewaks (village level
workers).
The above example is just one of hundreds of such situations that would call for applied skills of a
rural sociologist who can work out an effective strategy of promoting and achieving the desired change.
The study of Rural Sociology, so as to provide applied rural sociologists who can serve in action
programmes of rural community development in developing countries such as India, is vital and urgently
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needed. Rural society is changing; in most countries this change is rapid. In developing countries,
programmes of rural community development are influencing both tempo and direction of change.
Adequate knowledge of rural society in these countries is lacking. We have a vague idea of what rural
society once was, but this is so coloured with sentiment and feelings of ‘the glorious and golden past’
that actualities and their true relevance to the present are obscured. We do not have a clear idea of rural
society as it really is today—perhaps because we are too closely involved and certainly because our
systematic study of it is scarce. Change agents, governments, or citizens may think that they have a clear
idea of what they want rural society to be in the future and may wish to bend efforts to move most
effectively towards that end. But to achieve any end a thorough knowledge of the science of Rural
Sociology and its application to all programmes of promoted change in rural areas is essential. We
cannot do without it.
The world’s population is more rural than urban and in the developing countries, where promotion
of change for increased agricultural product within the total context of rural community development is
receiving top priority in investment of national resources and in other ways, the need for applied rural
sociologists is critical.
Considerable evidence shows that whether in the form of rural analysis, change agents, consultants
and programme teachers in agricultural educational institutions, agricultural missionaries, agricultural
attaches, or salesmen for agricultural industrial firms, rural sociologists are and will continue to be in
demand. This demand is definitely increasing all over the world.
IMPORTANCE OF RURAL SOCIOLOGY TO RURAL COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT AND THE ROLE OF THE RURAL SOCIOLOGIST
There is an old saying that if you are to teach a student a subject, it is essential to understand not only the
subject but also the student. This idea applies not only to classroom teaching but also to managing and
increasing production in industry and agriculture. To increase agricultural production and promote rural
community development, knowledge of and technical skill with scientific implements and practices are
essential, but basic also is an understanding of the farmer—the rural man and his home and community
of which he is a part. It is precisely such knowledge that Rural Sociology makes available.
About forty-five years ago when India achieved national independence, it encountered the tremendous
task of development of a widely diverse country in which acute shortage of food was a chief problem. It
had to cope with this problem in the face of a rapidly increasing population and a rate of agricultural
production which was among the lowest in the world. At the time, the basic difficulty in increasing
agricultural production was not a lack of imported technical agricultural skills and ‘know-how’ or
indifference to the need for research on improved strains of foodgrain seed or farm practices. The difficulty
lay in communicating scientific knowledge and skills already available to the farmer in acceptable form
and in securing his adoption of these improved practices. The Government, realizing the need to build
channels of communication, established the National Extension Service (NES) in 1953. The NES provided
a network of channels to reach every village in the country. Units of approximately 100 villages were
called NES Blocks. Resident extension workers, about one to every ten villages, had some degree of
independence in operation but coordinated operations at the Block and District levels. These resident
change agents were responsible for bringing about increased agricultural production within the total
context of development of the village community. In order to do this effectively, they needed at least two
essential skills:
(a) Sufficient technical knowledge of and skill in the improved agricultural practice to be introduced.
(b) Skill in communicating their knowledge of the practice of the farmer.
Communication was in fact the change agent’s chief job. Effective introduction of improved practices
is impossible without an effective strategy of approach based on a thorough knowledge and understanding
of the farmer and the social and cultural context within which he operates in his home, his village, and
the local region. Rural Sociology provides such knowledge and makes possible the planning of a strategic
approach for desired changes; it allows constant analysis of the rural situation and, within reasonable
limits, prediction of possible results.
This relevance of Rural Sociology was recognised to some extent in the early community development
programmes in India, and some Rural Sociology topics were included in the training courses for community
development workers at various levels. Greater recognition and importance have since been given to
Rural Sociology as a subject directly relevant to rural community development programmes and to other
rural programmes of promoted change in India and in other developing countries. It has achieved academic
status and is offered at the degree level in all of the approximately 70 agricultural colleges and agricultural
universities in the country. However, no more than a beginning has been made in the application of rural
sociological techniques to the community development programme for promoted change in rural areas
in India, and there is tremendous opportunity for fuller utilisation of Rural Sociology’s potential for
aiding change programmes. The same applies for such programmes in other developing countries.
The importance of Rural Sociology in community development programmes is evident in India and
other developing nations when we consider that what is basically involved in changing human behaviour
and working with rural people in a rural context using educational (not authoritative) methods.
We have already noted that the rural community development worker or change agent, in order to
introduce improved practices, must master the methods of communication appropriate to rural areas and
must have adequate knowledge of scientific facts underlying recommended practices (that is, new practices
which are end products of research). Obviously, he or she must understand the practice before he or she
can communicate it to the rural people concerned.
Moreover, he must know what is going on in the minds of rural people, must know their relationships
and interactions, their groups, their institutions, their organisations, and the culture they share—all of
which influence their behaviour. It is this knowledge which is available in the field of Rural Sociology.
Without it the community development worker will flounder from the moment he selects the rural area in
which he wants to work. Without it he cannot make adequate decisions concerning specific changes
desired, let alone operate effectively in the field on such problems as whom to approach first and how to
approach them, what groups or individuals to work with and with what emphasis in which areas and
from which individuals to expect opposition, and what total strategy to follow in attempting change.
His position is somewhat like a captain who must know not only his ship and the destination he must
reach but also must understand ocean currents and tides and the wind systems of the world. All these
powerful forces can either help him on his way or wreck his ship, the community development worker
needs to understand not only his own programme and his objectives, but the currents of thought in the
minds of the people with whom he works. He needs to understand their motives, their reactions, their
receptivity to new ideas—why some are more receptive than others, why some people take the initiative
and lead, and why others hesitate.
Knowledge of rural people and their life is essential to the community development worker. He will
gain deep insight into the behaviour of rural people and the influence of their culture and society on
them. He will understand the human forces which can help and others that will stand as obstacles to his
efforts. He will recognise the hidden resources of rural people and know which social and cultural obstacles
to avoid rather than try to steer the ship of his programme straight across them. He will become aware of
how much is known and how much is yet to be known about the behaviour of rural people. This kind of
knowledge is the content of the field of Rural Sociology.
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Scientific knowledge about rural people in India and other developing countries is scanty compared
with knowledge of plants, soil, and animals. Greater study and research in the Rural Sociology of these
countries is greatly needed, particularly in the context of programmes of promoted change in rural areas.
We shall never know enough about rural people, but constant study and relevant application will make
for greater effectiveness of efforts to bring about desirable changes.
ROLES OF THE RURAL SOCIOLOGIST
Rural Sociology here has been defined as the scientific study of rural people in relation to groups with
whom they interacts. Rural Sociologists do not study cattle or poultry or crops or agricultural implements—
they study people.
The primary role that rural sociologists must play is that of technical or professional social scientists
within the specialized field of Rural Sociology. In addition, they also have a role as citizens and members
of society.
(1) Technician or Professional: As in other scientific fields, there is a distinction between Rural
Sociology as a pure science and as an applied science. A pure science searches for knowledge about its
field and builds a body of knowledge without necessarily holding a deep concern for its practical use. An
applied science taps this body of knowledge and searches within it and without for its use in solution of
practical problems. In the role of technician or professional the rural sociologist is a teacher and researcher
delving into the intricacies of behaviour of rural people for new knowledge and new insights, ever
striving to seek relevance and practical utility for the solution of rural social problems. As a teacher, he/
she is devoted to the effective communication of the subject matter of the field to students, through them
helping to meet demands for professional rural sociologists in the country. The ideas and opinions of the
general public are smothered with stereotypes and erroneous notions about rural people and rural areas.
The impression of the ‘village fool’ is too well embedded in the minds of urban people, as are beliefs that
rural people are less intelligent than urban people, are all brawn and no brain, are incapable of initiative,
leadership, and wise action, have criminal tendencies, are immoral, and are in all ways inferior to city
dwellers. Rural sociologists as scientists must try to correct these erroneous beliefs, which are no more
than nonsense. As researchers, they will probe scientifically into group relationships and interactions of
rural people in rural society, building and strengthening the academic field; will give attention to applied
research on specific sociological problems of rural community development.
As technicians, they may be employed as rural analysts or field consultants in the planning and
operation of rural programmes of community development in countries like India. Rural sociologists
acting as consultants or rural life analysts finds themselves addressing such questions as:
What unit in the village should community development workers primarily work with to achieve
greatest effectiveness?
How can they discover and identify the pattern of influence in a village and use this to ease introduction
of an improved practice?
How can they identify and recognise the existing channels of dissemination of information in a
village and use these to help introduce an improved practice?
How will they operate in the face of strong village factions and opposition to the programme of rural
community development?
Application of the knowledge and skills of Rural Sociology should help to find practical answers to
such questions and should give sound guidance for handling such situations.
With the expansion of the community development programme in rural India and other such
developing countries, the need for rural sociology technicians has increased and the rural sociologists