Essay on Concept of Social Disorganisation – Like nature, the human society too has its own order. The orderliness of society depends on its internal strength to maintain its equilibrium. Society will be in a state of equilibrium as long as its various parts are properly adjusted and fulfil their functions.
The orderliness or the equilibrium that is normally maintained in the natural world is often upset due to certain forces at work. In the same manner, the equilibrium in the social world is also often disturbed.
Whenever the social equilibrium is severely disturbed ‘social disorganisation’ sets in. Thus ‘social disorganisation’ can be understood as nothing but the state of social disequilibrium, in which the smooth functioning of various parts of society gets disturbed.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
The concept of ‘disorganisation’ occupies a prominent place in modern sociological literature. The concept was developed by Thomas and Zananiecki in their famous book “The Polish Peasant in Europe and America”.
According to them, the term ‘social disorganisation’ refers to the decrease in the influence of the existing social rules of behaviour upon individual members. As a result of this there develops individuation and lack of cohesion in society. It was explained by them as a process which will automatically and inevitably create social problems.