Rev 12: Durkheim

INTRODUCTION: Durkheim, who is considered to be a 'father of sociology,' saw Rousseau as the father of sociology. Saint Simon, Comte, Tocqueville & Spencer all utilized sociological concepts & some form of the scientific method, but Durkheim was first to make sociology a scientific discipline

SUMMARY: For Durkheim, one of the main problem for the social sciences, which he answers w/ his theory, was 'What creates social order?'
During the modern era, there is a problem w/ maintaining social order
Durkheim makes SEVENTEEN major points
1. Society & social behavior could & should be studied scientifically
2. Social facts are observable 'phenomena' that allow the study of society
3. Social cohesion is the force that unites a society, creating congruity, consistency, etc.
4. Mechanical solidarity is the type of cohesion based on traditional relationships
5. Organic solidarity is the type of cohesion based on self determination
6. The division of labor is the basis of organic solidarity today, in that every member participates in it & every member benefits from it
7. Collective consciousness consists of the knowledge, beliefs, values & norms that we hold in common
8. The cult of the individual represents society's unprecedented hi level of individualism
9. Anomie is the social condition of a weakened or absent common morality
10. Integration is the process of bringing new individuals & social phenomena into society
11. Regulation is the process of controlling, directing, or ruling society
12. Common morality consists of the beliefs, values, & norms that we hold in common
13. Religion is a primary type of traditional cohesion
14. Durkheim opposed political socialism, but believed in a greater level of cohesion or cooperation in society
15. Occupational associations are optimal institutions for achieving social reform
16. Modern society was displacing traditional society & mech solidarity was dissolving, but organic solidarity is slow to develop
17. Organic solidarity is not totally in effect, therefore there is a great risk of anomie & social instability

	DURKHEIM IS A PROGRESSIVE FUNCTIONALIST: I.E. ADVOCATED CHANGE & FOCUSED ON REGULATORY & INTEGRATORY PROCESSES
	Saint Simon was the most influential social theorist on Durkheim's thinking
	Durkheim built on Saint Simon's work of sociology as a 'science,' social evolution, etc.
	Durkheim is usually categorized as a functionalist because many of his ideas have been utilized by that discipline
	Functionalism is usually considered to be conservative, especially when compared to conflict theory
	Durkheim is a progressive functionalist
	Durkheim believed that contemporary philosophy should be constructive & organizational, NOT critical
	Contrary to what is taught by many sociologists, Durkheim was not a conservative; Durkheim was a progressive thinker who had a deep interest in socialism & social change
	Durkheim is less interested in economics than Marx or Weber, but like Marx & Weber, Durkheim was very interested in the industrial revolution & urbanization
	For Durkheim, one of the main problem for the social sciences, which he answers w/ his theory, was 'What creates social order?'
	Many issues that Durkheim studied stem from his concern w/ the inevitable results of the development of modern society
	There are SEVENTEEN fundamental principles of Durkheim's theory
	1. SOCIETY COULD & SHOULD BE STUDIED SCIENTIFICALLY
	Society & social behavior can be studied scientifically
	Durkheim was first to make sociology a scientific discipline
	Durkheim believed that society made individuals not vice versa
	2. SOCIAL FACTS ARE OBSERVABLE 'PHENOMENA' THAT ALLOW THE STUDY OF SOCIETY
	Social facts include relationships, institutions, groups, statistical patterns, as well as more abstract concepts like culture & social structure
	Durkheim conceived the idea that there were such things as 'social facts' that were observable 'things' that enabled the study of society
	Durkheim's famous 1st principle of sociology was to 'study social facts as things'
	When Durkheim advocated study social facts as things he was advocating that social life can be analyzed as rigorously as object or events in nature
	3. SOCIAL COHESION IS THE FORCE THAT UNITES A SOCIETY, CREATING CONGRUITY, CONSISTENCY, ETC.
	Cohesion is necessary in both pre industrial & industrial society
	The social forces, the cohesion that holds pre industrial & industrial societies together are different
	4. MECHANICAL SOLIDARITY IS A TYPE OF COHESION BASED ON TRADITIONAL RELATIONSHIPS
	Mechanical solidarity is the type of cohesion in pre industrial society
	Cohesion is based on tradition culture
	Mechanical solidarity is based on a relatively narrow division of labor, which creates relatively high level of independence combined w/ nearly all relationships being primary
	5. ORGANIC SOLIDARITY IS A TYPE OF COHESION BASED ON SELF DETERMINATION
	Organic solidarity is the type of cohesion in industrial society
	Cohesion is based on mutual interdependence
	Organic Solidarity is based on a very broad division of labor, which creates relatively high level of mutual interdependence combined w/ nearly all relationships being secondary
	Durkheim considered organic solidarity to be the cement of a society
	Much of Durkheim's theory was based on his conception of organic solidarity
	6. THE DIVISION OF LABOR IS THE BASIS OF ORGANIC SOLIDARITY TODAY, IN THAT EVERY MEMBER PARTICIPATES IN IT & EVERY MEMBER BENEFITS FROM IT
	The division of labor is the primary type of mutual interdependence in society today
	Durkheim elaborated on Saint Simon's scheme of the new industrial class to develop his ideas on the division of labor
	The division of labor resulted in development of modern society ( see below )
	Durkheim perceived the ideas behind the industrial system as possessing an inherent unity
	7. THE COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS CONSISTS OF THE KNOWLEDGE, BELIEFS, VALUES & NORMS THAT WE HOLD IN COMMON
	Collective consciousness is our strongly held common morality
	8. THE CULT OF THE INDIVIDUAL REPRESENTS SOCIETY'S UNPRECEDENTED HIGH LEVEL OF INDIVIDUALISM
	The cult of the individual is strongly held individual morality
	Individualism is the opposite of collective consciousness
	Individualism increases the chance of suicide
	The cult of the individual was a source of societal disorganization
	9. ANOMIE IS A WEAKENED OR ABSENT COMMON MORALITY
	Anomie is a condition of normlessness in society
	Durkheim coined term anomie
	Individuals are confronted w/ anomie when they are faced w/ insufficient moral constraints
	For Durkheim, anomie is the social condition of a weakened or absent common morality which leads to deviance, crime & possibly even social chaos / revolution
	Modern society has made old morality obsolete, but new morality is in flux & thus weak or absent
	Compared to the absolute power of "the old morality" people in modern era do not have a clear concept of what is & is not proper & acceptable behavior
	10. INTEGRATION IS THE PROCESS OF BRINGING NEW INDIVIDUALS & SOCIAL PHENOMENA INTO SOCIETY
	Society is becoming more integrated as it develops internalized social control
	Integration is the degree in which collective sentiments are shared; i.e. degree to which people feel part of social groups
	11. REGULATION IS THE PROCESS OF CONTROLLING, DIRECTING, OR RULING SOCIETY
	Regulation is externalized social control
	Regulation is the degree of external constraints on people
	W/o regulation, a person experiences anomie
	12. COMMON MORALITY CONSISTS OF THE BELIEFS, VALUES, & NORMS THAT WE HOLD IN COMMON
	Common morality decreased during the modern era
	There is a problem w/ maintaining social order
	Disorder was viewed, generally, as an automatic consequence of an economic system in which every individual pursues his/her own interest unless such a system had a common morality of organic solidarity, the division of labor, etc.
	See Also: Durkheim on Crime
	13. RELIGION IS A PRIMARY TYPE OF TRADITIONAL COHESION
	The source of religion is society's shared sentiments
	The nature of society's religions were also affected by the transition from mechanical solidarity to [ traditional solidarity ] organic solidarity [ rational solidarity ]
	14. DURKHEIM OPPOSED POLITICAL SOCIALISM, BUT BELIEVED IN A GREATER LEVEL OF COHESION OR COOPERATION IN SOCIETY
	Durkheim's studies of socialism were to be an "analysis of the causes of an idea."
	Durkheim used the concept of socialism to emphasize or highlight his theoretical scheme
	While Durkheim was not a socialist in Marxist sense, he, like Weber, is having a debate w/ 'the ghost of Marx'
	One cannot say merely that Durkheim opposed Marxism because he accepted many basics & rejected many others
	Durkheim especially opposed any revolutionary doctrine, which he feared would only result in anarchy & moral disruption
	Durkheim also refused to recognize the class character of society as being center of conflict in society, but did recognize that equalization of classes was necessary
	In essence, Durkheim synthesized works of St. Simon & Marx
	15. OCCUPATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS ARE OPTIMAL INSTITUTIONS FOR ACHIEVING SOCIAL REFORM
	Occupation associations (OAs) are similar to business unions, but have much more authority in the workplace & in society
	OAs are organizations of professionals in a particular field who organize to advance their own interests & the interests of society
	Today one of our most powerful OAs is the American Medical Assoc (AMA) which regulates doctors, the healthcare field for the benefit of themselves, the patient, & society as a whole
	16. MODERN SOCIETY WAS DISPLACING TRADITIONAL SOCIETY & MECH SOLIDARITY WAS DISSOLVING, BUT ORGANIC SOLIDARITY IS SLOW TO DEVELOP
	Durkheim viewed the development of the modern era with hope, but later became disillusioned
	The development of modernity was especially dangerous because it broke down traditional society, which was held together by mechanical solidarity
	Durkheim believes that modern society is not fully developed, which is a position which Habermas now embraces
	17. ORGANIC SOLIDARITY IS NOT TOTALLY IN EFFECT, THEREFORE THERE IS A GREAT RISK OF ANOMIE & SOCIAL INSTABILITY
	Because of the transition from tradl soc to mod soc, i.e. the trans from mechanical to organic solidarity, & because societies change at different rates, & because some societies have lost tradl soc but have not adopted mod soc values, we are experiencing a crisis or breakdown
	At the personal & social level the crisis of the transition from tradl to mod society is experienced as anomie, i.e. an absence of a common morality
	For the most part Durkheim did support the development of modernity, but after "the Great War" his son was killed & he had great doubts that modern society could ever function as well as traditional society

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Emile Durkheim
1858 - 1917
Born in France
Resided in Germany
Son died in The Great War
( known today as WW I )
Deeply hurt Durkheim,
Became cynical about society & died soon after

DURKHEIM, Emile (1858-1917). A pioneer social scientist, Emile Durkheim established sociology as a separate discipline, or field of study. He was the first to subject the specific events of everyday life to close sociological study and to determine specific scientific methods of examination.
   Emile Durkheim was born on April 15, 1858, in Epinal, France. He studied philosophy at the prestigious Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris. Upon graduation in 1882 he taught in secondary schools until 1887, when he was appointed to a lectureship especially founded for him at the University of Bordeaux. This was the first course of social science officially provided in a French university.
   Durkheim's first book, 'The Division of Labor in Society', published in 1893, focused on the problems of new technology and the mechanization of work. This division of labor, according to Durkheim, made workers both more alien to one another, as their jobs were different, and more dependent on one another, as none any longer built the whole of a product. The methods to be used to examine society in this new discipline Durkheim laid out in 'The Rules of Sociological Method' (1895).
   His classic 'Suicide' (1897) examines the ties that bind individuals to the society in which they live, and their breakdown. Suicide appeared to be more frequent in societies where individuals are less a part of the life around them, as in modern industrial societies. He distinguished three types of suicide: In egoistic suicide the individual shuts himself off from other human beings. Anomic suicide comes from the belief that the world has fallen apart around one. Altruistic suicide springs from great loyalty to a cause.
   In 1902 Durkheim was appointed to the University of Paris, becoming a full professor in 1906. He taught there until his death on Nov. 15, 1917.

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Excerpted from Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia
Copyright © 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 The Learning Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Major Works of Durkheim
Suicide
The Division of Labor in Society
The Rules of Sociological Method
The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, 1915

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Outline on Durkheim & Saint Simon
1858 - 1917 1760 - 1825

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SOCIAL INEQUALITY

For both D & StS, the major soc problem is social inequality

The fundamental problem for StS, Durkheim & others is how to reconcile the structured inequality of mod soc w/ the requirements of social solidarity

D & StS recognized that the greater level of social inequality inherent in mod society creates tensions not experienced in earlier forms of society

To D & StS, the social problems created by social inequality could be addressed in two manners including decreasing inequality or by increasing common morality

a. Society could try to reduce the social inequality & indeed both D & StS supported policy to increase the middle class, & reduce the upper & lower classes

An example of D & StS's policies might be to increase inheritance taxes

b. D & StS advocated fostering a greater common morality to bond people together

D & StS believe the most functional society forms a moral, class based society

Durk believed that StS recognized class conditions but felt it could be developed into a hierarchical but none the less organic order of soc peace & stability

For D & StS, integration was to be achieved by instituting moral ideas

For D & StS, morality is equivalent to social solidarity

The concept of morality becomes central to Durk's analysis of society

PROGRESS

For StS & Durk, the progress of soc depended on developing a moral order to suit new social & techl conditions

For D, following the ideas of StS, moral ideas are cement of society

For D & StS, society needs a common morality to embody common social relations, ways of living, lifestyles, etc.

POSITIVISM

Durk recognized StS's positivism as an advancement of the soc sci

Durk acknowledges StS's positivism as an imp discovery, placing it btwn metaphysics & the specialized sciences

Thus Durk agrees w/ StS that the soc sciences should not just look at social problems; the soc sciences should also look at the positive aspects of society & try to develop policies to advance society

SOCIAL EVOLUTION

Durk & StS are social evolutionists in that they believe & work to see that society changes in what they see as a progressive direction

Durk accepts StS's social evolutionist view & says: "...the ancient social system gave way, another was formed in the very bosom of the first. The old society contained within itself a new society... But these two organizations are necessarily antagonistic to each other .. the first calls on faith and imposes beliefs... The second calls on reason and even trust... Only with the enfranchisement of the communes, the emergence of a class of independent producers, and the subsequent growth of an industrial system under the impact of scientific and technological advances, did the feudal organization become evidently anachronistic"

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Outline on Durkheim on Methodological Rules & Values

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Durk identified 2 types of social facts: material & nonmaterial social facts

Social facts are ways of thinking, acting, or feeling & social structures & cultural norms & values, which are external to the individual & have the power of coercion over him/her

a. Material soc facts are those that become materialized so far as to become an element of the external world

Examples of material sical facts include fashion, architecture, entertainment, etc.

b. Nonmaterial social facts are those shared mental phenomena that become an integral part of society in the common morality, the culture, etc.

Examples of nonmaterial society include norms, values, suicide, mechanical solidarity, organic solidarity, or more generally culture

Nonmaterial facts can include soc relationships such as the relationships around suicide, the div of labor, mechanical solidarity, organic solidarity, etc.

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Outline on Durkheim's Mechanical & Organic Solidarity

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MECHANICAL SOLIDARITY

2a. Mechanical solidarity: Solidarity is based on the narrow division of labor, which creates relatively high level of independence combined w/ nearly all relationships being primary

In pre industrial societies, mechanical solidarity, i.e. the social forces that held society together consisted of traditional, unquestioned beliefs & forced conformity

Mechanical solidarity had both good & bad aspects

Modern society w/ its high division of labor & large anonymous, urban populations destroyed mechanical solidarity

What holds mechanical society together according to Durkheim?

In a mechanical society, i.e. a traditional society, the bond is that the members of society are engaged in similar activities & have similar responsibilities thus having a common goal & identity

Durkheim believes that the process of modernization is the process of replacing mechanical solidarity w/ organic solidarity

ORGANIC SOLIDARITY

Organic solidarity is the solidarity based on very broad division of labor, which creates relatively high levels of mutual interdependence combined w/ the fact that nearly all relationships being secondary

Organic solidarity is based on absolute reliance, trust, dependence, & anonymity

The forces of interdependence create a cohesive society

The very nature of large cities, make us all interdependent

Modern society has a much greater & more refined division of labor

People in modern society occupy more specialized positions & have a much narrower range of tasks & responsibilities

What holds organic society together according to Durkheim?

In an organic society, i.e. modern society, the bond is that members of society have different tasks & responsibilities to perform that are highly specialized & therefore they need one another to survive

Organic solidarity consists of cohesion based on mutual interdependence & has FOUR features

FEATURES OF ORGANIC SOLIDARITY

1. The division of labor was a central feature in society which created order in modern industrial society

Durkheim also recognized other factors as crucial to industrial society including professional associations, religion, social boundaries, etc.

2. Professional associations are modern soc institutions that allow for rationalization in society & as Weber noted, a system which minimizes the negative effects of oligarchy & alienation

3. Religion: For Durkheim, a religion is a reflection of the collective consciousness of the society

Thus religion builds solidarity & maintains social order because as people adhere to its tenets, they are affirming the tenets of the society

4. Society creates boundaries / deviants in order to determine what is & what is not acceptable

Deviants & criminals are "internal threats" that create social cohesiveness

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Outline on the Division of Labor ( DOL )

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- Project: The Division of Labor, Solidarity, & Social Problems

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The division of labor (DOL) is highly specialized economic activity

The DOL is workplace relationship where different workers carry out different steps in producing a product

The DOL is a characteristic of most societies in which different individual or groups specialize in different tasks

The DOL is the specialization of work tasks, by means of which different occupations are combined w/in a production system

DOL = SPECIALIZATION = EFFICIENCY = COMPLEXITY

An example of the DOL can be seen in assembling bicycles in that one person performing all six required steps in assembling a bike, can make one unit in the same amount of time as it takes six people, each specializing in one of the six steps, to make 12 units

In 1776 Adam Smith argued that the DOL produces efficiencies because of the increased dexterity of the worker as he or she specializes in one task, because of the time save "in passing from one sort of work to another," and because of the introduction of machinery

All societies have at least some rudimentary division of labor, especially btwn the tasks allocated to men & those allocated to women

W/ the development of industrialism, however, the DOL becomes vastly more complex than in any prior type of production systems.

In the modern world, the DOL is international in scope, hence globalization

The most fundamental change in the nature of work over time has been the increasing DOL

EARLY DOL

In hunter gatherer societies, each member engaged in more or less the full range of work activities except as labor as divided by gender & age

See Also: Workplace Control

The DOL reached some limits in the 1970s in that jobs were so finely dissected, & wkrs were so alienated that even mgt sought alternative methods of job org

Modern indl society has developed the DOL to such a great extent via Scientific Mgt., bureaucracy, etc. that workers literally go insane

Since the 70s, there has been some limited reversal of the trend of an increasing DOL, in some industries such as auto manufacturing

In the 2000s, job enlargement & the recognition that "big picture people" give orgs an advantage is more than apparent

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Emile Durkheim on Suicide:
The Cult of the Individual

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DURKHEIM STUDIED SUICIDE TO SHOW THAT 'THE MOST PERSONAL ACT' HAD A SOCIAL COMPONENT RELATED TO THE DEGREE OF CONNECTION ONE HAS IN SOCIETY & THE AMOUNT OF CONTROL ONE EXPERIENCES

Introduction: Durkheim is known for establishing the 1st sociology dept.
This was at the University of Paris
Durkheim is known for establishing sociology as a social science
He did this through applying the scientific method to social facts in his study of suicide

Suicide was written by Durkheim in 1897

Durkheim conducted the research on suicide in order to establish sociology as a social science on par w/ psychology

Durkheim was the first to carry out a study involving the large scale collection of data to test a social theory

For Durkheim, suicide is perhaps "the most personal act" any human can undertake

Durkheim believed that if he could show that the most individual of acts, which had previously been attributed to psychological causes, had social causes, then he would validate the power & worth of sociology

In writing Suicide, Durkheim reviewed the literature, examined appropriate theory, & employed common sense:

Durkheim believed a society had to accomplish two major functions to be successful

a. INTEGRATION IS THE DEGREE TO WHICH COLLECTIVE SENTIMENTS (KNOWLEDGE, BELIEFS, VALUES) ARE SHARED BY MEMBER IN SOCIETY

The opposite of social integration is isolation in a society

b. REGULATION IS THE DEGREE OF EXTERNAL CONSTRAINT ON PEOPLE
Regulation is the common norms people live under
Regulation vs Lack of Regulation in a society

The widespread failure of integration or regulation in society yields societal collapse
The occasional failure of integration or regulation in society yields an increased rate of suicide

What are some common causes of suicide?
Why do some people commit suicide & others don't?
What are some possible explanations?

Depression                   Terminal illness
Spouse leaves them      Picked on by peers
Lost job                        Loneliness

DURKHEIM'S HYPOTHESIS WAS THAT PEOPLE, AS A GROUP, WOULD BECOME MORE SUICIDAL TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY EXPERIENCED EXTREME INTEGRATION OR REGULATION

Durkheim then uses the deductive method to develop his thesis & hypotheses:

Durkheim's hypothesis is that suicide would be highest among single, Protestant, men because these groups are less integrated & less regulated

Other groups w/ a tendency toward suicide are those who are highly integrated or over regulated

Durkheim's method was to travel from parish (country) to parish & examine death certificates of suicides & record demographic info, & the circumstances surrounding the death

Durkheim rode from parish (county) to parish in France in the 1890s

Durkheim collected data on social background of suicide victims, e.g. demographic information including age, religion, class, job, work history, income, wealth, gender, etc.

Then Durkheim grouped people according to suicide rates & each social factor; & he did this by hand ( a computer would do this today )

Durkheim's types of suicide include altruistic, fatalistic, egoistic, & anomic

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Table on Durkheim's Four Types of Suicide

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1. ALTRUISTIC SUICIDE IS CORRELATED W/ HIGH INTEGRATION INTO SOCIETY

When social integration is too strong, the individual is literally forced into committing suicide

Hero suicide occurs when a parent dies while pushing their child out of the way of a car

With altruistic suicide, death is deliverance

Altruistic suicide springs from hope, for it depends on the belief in the beautiful afterlife

A suicidal person who dies for a cause is exhibiting characteristics of altruistic suicide

EXAMPLES OF ALTRUISTIC SUICIDE

Non Extreme Examples

- a soldier jumping on a grenade or charging a hill

- a policeman dying in the line of duty

- a parent pushing a child from path of a car

Extreme Examples:

- Kamikazes

- radical arab bombers

- in 1996, men emolating (burning) themselves to protest the Miss World pageant in India

- Supplement: The followers of Reverend Jim Jones at the People's Temple in Jonestown, Guyana

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- Supplement: Jonestown, Guyana Conspiracy

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- Supplement: The followers of David Koresh & his followers of the Branch Davidians in Texas

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- Supplement: Waco Investigation

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2. FATALISTIC SUICIDE IS CORRELATED W/ HIGH REGULATION BY SOCIETY

Persons w/ pitilessly blocked opportunities & passions, violently choked by oppressive discipline are more likely to commit fatalistic suicide

Fatalistic suicide was little mentioned by Durkheim

EXAMPLES OF FATALISTIC SUICIDE

Examples of someone more likely to commit fatalistic suicide include:

- slaves

- prisoners

- overworked college students

- American middle class working men

- American middle class house wives

- School age suicides/killers who cannot stand the harassment by the in crowd, because they are different

- over-worked Japanese employees

- over worked American executives

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3. EGOISTIC SUICIDE IS CORRELATED W/ LOW INTEGRATION INTO SOCIETY

Individuals who experience a sense of meaninglessness are more likely to commit egoistic suicide

Egoistic suicide is often found in societies where individuals are not well integrated into the society; i.e., modern, developed nations

The personal feeling or emotion often associated w/ low integration into society is depression, loneliness, & a sense of meaninglessness

For Durkheim, egoistic suicide stems from the social currents of incurable weariness & sad depression

Society is where we "learn," internalize via socialization, or imprint our norms & morals

Members of a society internalized norms & morals into the self & thus become integrated into the society by both the processes of socialization, as well as by the particular shared norms & morals

Therefore, w/ egoistic suicide, a person may also appear as if they are out of control

People prone to egoistic suicide lack an internal control of the self, an internal "locus of control"

Durkheim notes in his analysis of suicide that if people are left to pursue their private interests in whatever way they wish, they are likely to feel considerable personal dissatisfaction

For Durkheim, people are not satisfied even when the are left to pursue their private interests in whatever way they wish because all needs cannot be fulfilled by the individual, many needs can only be fulfilled by the group, collective, or society

For Durkheim, the self as constructed by society, is nearly insatiable

Needs that are satiable simply lead to the generation of more & more needs

EXAMPLES OF EGOISTIC SUICIDE

- People prone to egoistic suicide having a low level of integration into society can be seen in the fact that unmarried individuals have higher rates of suicide than married people

- People prone to egoistic suicide having a low level of integration into society can be seen in "lone wolf suicide," i.e. a higher rate of suicide, depression, etc., by loners

- Teens prone to egoistic suicide can be seen in the high rates of suicide in high school & college students

Lonely, troubled young men in high school or college are:

- generally isolated
- not popular
- harassed or teased by others

- Millionaire suicide occurs because of low integration into suicide because they feel lonely because they often believe that 'people only like me for my money'

The loneliness of wealth, & millionaire suicide can be seen in Richie Rich, the poor little rich kid

The loneliness of wealth, & millionaire suicide can be seen in the fact that people who gain sudden wealth often have a hard time adjusting socially & often lose spouses & friends

- Star egoistic suicide can be seen in the loneliness of fame that leads many stars to suicide

Examples of star egoistic suicide might include:

Marilyn Monroe

- Supplement: Janis Joplin of Big Brother & the Holding Co. d. 1970

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Jim Morrison of the Doors.

- Supplement: Kurt Cobain of Nirvanna b. 1967 d. 1994

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	For Durkheim, religion insulates one against suicide because it integrates people into society
	For Durkheim, religion insulates one against suicide because religion limits wants
	Two groups are the most prone to suicide, young men aged from 14 to 24, and middle age men aged 45 to 55
	Young men & middle age men may have high levels of suicide because they are likely to experience overwork or sense of failure
	Young men just finishing their education or starting their career are suddenly stratified into their position in life & that position may not be as high as they believed it would be
	Middle age men are just at the pinnacle of their career & they may not have risen as high as they expected or they may feel that it was all for naught
	Young & middle age men are often the most isolated in our society
	Young men may feel isolated because they have just left home & have not integrated into a new community
	Middle age men may feel isolated because their family is now grown & they are not integrated into their community
Link	4. ANOMIC SUICIDE IS CORRELATED W/ LOW REGULATION BY SOCIETY
	Anomie is the experience where culture ( common knowledge, beliefs, values, norms ) does not exist & / or has become ineffective
	For Durkheim, culture may be thought of as the collective unconsciousness
	In comparing anomie to alienation, alienation is the separation or isolation from existing culture whereas anomie is the condition where there is no culture, i.e., no culture to be separated from
	See: Anomie
	See: Alienation
	See: Culture
	Societal disintegration leads to currents of depression & disillusionment
	The moral disintegration of society predisposes the individual to commit suicide, but the currents of depression must be there to produce differences in rates of anomic suicide
	But even though social forces may be weak, an individual is never totally free of the collectivity
	Disruptions in regulative powers of society leaves people dissatisfied because they have little control over their passions
	So people are allowed to run wild in an insatiable race for gratification
	Success can significantly reduce the regulation that one experiences: The newly rich may quit their job, move to a new community, perhaps find a new spouse
	These changes disrupt regulatory effect of old structures & the person may not yet feel new regulatory effects
	EXAMPLES OF ANOMIC SUICIDE:
	- I am so weak, I have nothing left to lose
	- suicide from a great loss such as a lay off
	- a Bum who believes, 'I can do whatever I want because no one can hurt me' "Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose" Janis Joplin
	- the belief, 'I am so powerful, I cannot lose'
	- the college student away from home, family, friends, for the first time, becomes wild party animal, & dies of overdose, car wreck, etc. believing, at some level, that they cannot be hurt or controlled
	- the person moving to big city for first time who believes they are powerful, & becomes dangerously manic
	- the Millionaire who believes, 'I can do whatever I want because I am so powerful: No one can tell me what to do'
	- a suicide from great gain such as finally "making it big" career wise
	- a superstar, or anyone who dies "accidentally" in that they were not depressed, despondent, etc.
	People who die of anomic suicide, live the wild life, feel free, & feel little societal control or fear
	- Jimi Hendrix
	- Supplement: James Dean
	- John Belusi?
	Social or natural crises reduce regulation & people feel they have nothing left to lose, no reason to live
	Periods of disruption unleash currents of anomie, moods of restlessness & normlessness
	Rates of anomic suicide may rise w/ almost any social crises such as a storm, a war, an economic boom, an economic depression, etc.
	Individuals experience the sensation of anomie as the fear or anxiety that society is breaking down, that the old rules no longer apply
	Either an econ boom or an econ depression make society incapable of exercising its authority over individuals
	For an anomic society, the old norms no longer apply, but new norms are not yet in place
	Losing a job can cut the individual off from the Regulation that the company, the job, the workplace friendships may have had
	Being cut off from the economic sector, or family, religion, the state, etc. leaves a person rootless

	FINDINGS: DURKHEIM CONSTRUCTED A PROFILE OF A SUICIDAL PERSON THAT IS STILL VALID TODAY: MALE, YOUNG OR MID AGED, PROTESTANT, VERY POOR OR RICH
	Men commit suicide more than women Women make more attempts at suicide, but men succeed more often
	The young, mid teens to mid twenties & the middle aged, late 40s & 50s are the most suicidal age groups
	Protestants are more likely than Catholics or Jews to commit suicide
	Durkheim theorized that Protestants would be more likely to commit suicide than Catholics or Jews because Protestant religions are more individualistic while the Jews & Catholics have a stronger community orientation
	People of all classes have about the same rates of suicide, except for the extreme rich & poor, which have a higher rate of suicide
	Those who have been recently laid off more likely to commit suicide
	If you are male, young, mobile/ in transition, & Protestant, you are at high risk for suicide
	If you are male, middle age, Protestant, & laid off, you are at high risk for suicide
	Durkheim's findings are still valid today & yet most of the focus is on psychological causes, not sociological causes of suicide
	Durkheim's study has been confirmed by many other researchers & its generalization is very widespread
	Similar patterns of suicide can be found today in the US as Durkheim found in nineteenth century Europe

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Table on Durkheim's Four Types of Suicide

High

Low

Integration

1. Altruistic suicide

3. Egoistic suicide

Regulation

2. Fatalistic suicide

4. Anomic suicide

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Outline on the Definition of Alienation & Anomie

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ALIENATION IS THE RESULT OF BEING SEPARATED FROM THE PREDOMINANT CULTURE

Many theorist have contemplated the meaning of alienation

Hegel 1770 - 1831

Feuerbach 1804 - 1872

Marx 1818 - 1883

Blauner contemporary

Alienation is a state of being, a relationship ( mental & physical manifestations ) characterized by the separation or isolation from existing culture ( knowledge, beliefs, values, norms held in common ) caused by an estrangement from idealistic and/ or materialistic factors

While both Hegel & Feuerbach discussed the nature of alienation, Marx built upon these to develop his own dialectical- material view of alienation

Alienation, as defined by Marx, is the separation or isolation of workers from the products of their labor Contemporary definition: feelings or the experience of emotional distance, isolation, powerlessness, loss of control

ANOMIE IS THE RESULT OF A WEAKENED OR ABSENTCULTURE / MORALITY

For Durkheim, anomie is weakened or absent common morality; a condition of normlessness in society

Durkheim developed his concept of anomie to explain the condition in modern society where the old culture or common morality, break down, but have not yet been replaced by its modern form, in the form of organic solidarity as manifested in a societal div of labor

Anomie is a state of being, a relationship, with mental & physical manifestations, characterized by the lack of a controlling culture ( knowledge, beliefs, values, norms held in common ) caused by the destruction, ineffectiveness or rejection of culture

Anomie is the lack or weakness of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group

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Examples of alienation include: 'I am alienated if there is a strong culture, but I cannot become part of that culture' or 'I am anomic if culture has basically disintegrated or is ineffective'

Durkheim, taking the term from the Greek anomia which means lawlessness, argued that anomie could result from rapid social change

FOR MERTON, ALIENATION IS THE RESULT OF NOT BEING ABLE TO ACHIEVE THE NORMAL LIFE GOALS OF A SOCIETY

Some US sociologists, in particular Robert K. Merton (1910- ), have maintained that anomie can lead to deviance

For Merton, when an individual or group is prevented from achieving widely accepted goals, law-breaking may result

Both alienation & anomie exhibit any number of psychological & political manifestations
- depression                                  - thievery
- anger                                          - violence
- revolutionary political ideals    - deviance

While the concept anomie is similar to Marx's concept of alienation, there are significant differences btwn the two including the fact that anomie is a condition of a lack of, or a vacuum of common culture, while alienation is a condition where a person or group is separated from an existing common culture

For Hegel, alienation was only a phenomenon of mind caused by an estrangement from the dominating ideas of the time

FOR MARX, ALIENATION IS A COMMON CONDITION IN CAPITALIST SOCIETIES BECAUSE PEOPLE, RATHER THAN BEING ABLE TO MANIFEST THEIR CREATIVITY THROUGH WORK AS THEY SHOULD, ARE EXPLOITED AT WORK

For Marx, alienation is a condition in which a person's own powers appear to be controlled by independent forces or entities [ Marx & his contemporaries were called the young, or left Hegelians ]

Marx believed that people find their humanity through labor, not religion, not sex, not anything else

Marx believed that the failure to realize our human nature results in alienation

We are what we do

Our labor becomes objectified in our products

Craftsperson, or the primitive hunter gatherer produces, controls the products & either consumes it, or sells it themselves