Yogendra Singh Methodology Yogendra Singh is neither functionalist

Yogendra Singh Methodology • Yogendra Singh is neither functionalist nor Marxist but he empha sizes theory in relation to context. • He relates structural functional, structuralism, structural historical, culturalism and Marxist orientation and constructs in the study social stratification. • He applied integrated approach for his analysis of social stratification, modernization and change in Indian society.

Wrote on 1. Social stratification 2. Social change 3. Modernization 4. Indian sociology 5. Culture change

Social stratification • Stratification is the social process through which rewards and resources such as wealth, power and prestige are distributed system atically and unequally within are among societies. The sociology of social stratification hinders many basic and complex theoretical issues. • These relate to the nature of social order, social equality and inequality, social justice, power and the nature of man. In sociology, these issues relate to questions of theory, structure and process of social stratification. • The three are organically interrelated, though heuristically distinct. In this context, Singh offers a basis for the analysis of substantive as well as theoretical issues in social stratification

• “Theoretically, most studies of social stratification calls first for answers to the ‘what’ and ‘how’ questions about pertinent phenomena with reference to the structural units of the entity; • Secondly, it requires answers to the ‘why’ questions with reference to the need in society for ranking the roles and statuses of its members and/or to provide the media for the flow of ‘institutional power'; and, • Thirdly, it leads to the ‘what will it be’ and ‘what ought it to be’ questions with reference to the changing process of entity. ”

Caste System and Social Stratification • The bases of this view are: institutionalized inequality (scheduled caste), closure of social system in respect of social mobility, an elementary level of division of labour legitimized on ritual basis of reciprocity, and emphasis on quality (ritual purity or racial purity) rather than performance. • In other words, caste is associated with an autonomous form of cultural system or worldview. • Caste system is seen here as a status principle of social stratification, for sociology of social stratification in India, the treatment of caste becomes unavoidable as a standard to measure changes with reference to other principles of stratification such as of wealth (class) and power (elite).

Class Structures and Social Stratification • The class categories employed in the census documents and other socio economic survey agencies are mainly based on attributional criteria of income, occupation or agricultural or non agricultural modes of earning the livelihood. • The term ‘maliks’, ‘ryots’ or even orthodox Marxist categories such as ‘bourgeoisie’, etc. , are used by social scientists of specific theoretical dispositions. Compared to the studies on caste, the literature on class is, however, not substantial. The reason is partly historical, and more importantly it is because of the continued overlaps between the caste and class status situations or interaction in the Indian system of social stratification.

Social Change • Two types of tendencies of social change in modern India: “First, there has taken place a substantial change in the social structure without simultaneously bringing about a structural change in the society. It results into tensions and often builds up social crisis. • Secondly, there has taken place a sea change in the subjective domain or the consciousness of the people in respect of social change. ”

• Singh adapts western theories in terms of historicity of Max Weber, functionalism of Parsons, dialectic of Marx and social processes such as cooperation and conflict but he tries to understand in context to the Indian society and culture. • Singh is also influenced by the ideology of Gandhi and Nehru. He studies both stability and change in India. He applies integrated approach and explains structural rationalization and functional specificity of Indian society.

Integrational Approach (i) sanskritization and westernization; (ii) little and great traditions consisting of (a) processes of parochialization and universalization, and (b) cultural performances and organization of tradition; (iii) multiple traditions; (iv) structural approach, based on (a) functional model, and (b) dialectical model; and (v) cognitive historical or Indological approach.

1. The causation of social change is to be sought both from within and without the social system or the tradition. For this we find the concepts employed by Redfield and Singer as being particularly useful and make a distinction between the heterogenetic or exogenous and orthogenetic or endogenous sources of change. 2. A distinction between cultural structure and social structure is also made to focus upon the need to observe changes at the level of these two relatively independent substantive domains. Again, following Redfield, cultural structure has further been sub divided into the categories of the little tradition and the great tradition. Similarly, the social structure is divided to form categories of micro structure and macro structure.

3. These distinctions follow from the need to focus upon the contexts, through which processes of change could be evaluated in matters of spread and depth. 4. Finally, the direction of change is represented in a linear evolu tionary form from ‘traditionalization’ toward ‘modernization’. Traditionalization comprises the total range of changes governed by orthogenetic patterns in the cultural and social structures. Modernization similarly represents the net balance of changes following from heterogenetic contacts.