The meaning of the word "anomie". Anomie is a special state of society

In sociology, anomie is understood as the absence of norms in society. A synonym for this word is the word alienation. If deviant behavior characterizes an individual or a group of people, then anomie is a state in which the entire society finds itself in a kind of “normative vacuum.”

This phenomenon was first described by E. Durkheim in his famous work “Suicide”. Durkheim identified anomic suicide as a special type of this form of deviant behavior. Human desires in general know no limits, despite the fact that the possibilities of satisfying them are limited. Based on this, Durkheim concluded that people can be happy only if their needs coincide with their capabilities. It is for this purpose that society introduces normative restrictions, essentially telling a person what he can want and what he cannot. If such restrictions are destroyed, the person either begins to use all means available to him to achieve his goals, or falls into a state of alienation, which can lead to suicide.

A representative of sociologically oriented psychoanalysis, E. Fromm described the state of anomie as a loss of a sense of belonging to society and one’s social group, when an individual is deprived of his own identity and personal values, experiencing a feeling of alienation and loneliness. A person in this state becomes alienated from society, losing the need to establish contacts and achieve social success.

T Parsons described anomie as a state of society in which people are in a state of disintegration, and their behavior does not correspond to the requirements of social institutions. Parsons considered the main negative result of anomie to be a decrease in the integration of society, as well as an increase in feelings of insecurity and mental disorders.

R. Merton used the concept of anomie much more broadly, as a justification for any deviant behavior. He proceeded from the fact that in every society goals are in a certain relationship to the means of achieving them. First, goals can be both approved and disapproved by societies. Secondly, each goal has normative (that is, fixed by relevant social institutions, social norms and public opinion) means of achievement, as well as means of achievement that are prohibited.

At the same time, Merton noted that different societies place a stronger emphasis on either ends or means. If a society's goals are most important, it can be considered anomic. Indeed, in a society in which wealth is considered a value and there are no special restrictions on the choice of means to achieve it, people will choose the most effective means that lead to this state, regardless of whether they are acceptable from the point of view of social norms and morality or No. And vice versa, if a culture pays sufficient attention to the means of achieving the goal, then its bearers will also be more selective in the choice of means, and therefore, anomie will be inherent in society as a whole to a lesser extent.

Another reason for anomie, according to Merton, may be the limited availability of means of achieving a socially prestigious goal, associated with stratification within society. For example, in the United States, wealth is a generally accepted and even imposed manifestation of success in life. However, the means to achieve wealth are not available to all members of society. Not all people can get a good education, become qualified specialists and get a good, well-paid job. Therefore, they have to resort to means that are not approved by society, that is, deviant behavior.

Greek a - negative particle, nomos - law) - a concept introduced by E. DURKHEIM to explain DEVIANT BEHAVIOR (suicide, apathy and disappointment) and expressing a historically determined process of destruction of the basic elements of culture, primarily in the aspect of ethical norms (Durkheim E. "Suicide ", St. Petersburg, 1912). With a fairly sharp change in social ideals and morality, certain social groups cease to feel their involvement in a given society, they are alienated, new social norms and values ​​are rejected by members of these groups, including socially declared patterns of behavior. Instead of conventional means of achieving individual or social goals, their own (in particular, illegal) ones are put forward. The phenomena of anomie, affecting all segments of the population during social upheavals, are especially strong among young people.

ANOMIE

(‹ gr. anomos lawlessness) is a concept that characterizes the moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, characterized by an acute crisis (disintegration) of the value system, an aggravation of the contradiction between goals and the possibilities of achieving them. A. is expressed in an increase in apathy, alienation, disappointment, and deviant behavior. The concept of A. was introduced into socio-political theory by E. Durkheim, who argued that the problem of A. is generated by the transitional - from traditional to modern society - nature of the modern era, characterized by the loss of moral guidelines, both by an individual and by society as a whole. The theory of A. was later developed by R. Merton, who interpreted A. as a result of inconsistency and conflict between different elements of the value-normative system. According to Merton, a person adapts to the state of A. in different ways: conformism (submissive behavior) or varieties of deviant behavior (innovation, ritualism, withdrawal from the world, rebellion). (Dictionary, p. 15)

ANOMIE

A concept introduced by E. Durkheim to explain deviant behavior: suicide, apathy, disappointment, etc. It expresses a historically determined process of destruction of the basic elements of culture - primarily in terms of ethical norms - with a fairly sharp change in social ideals and morals. Certain social groups cease to feel their involvement in a given society and become alienated; members of these groups reject both old and new social norms and values, including socially declared patterns of behavior. Instead of conventional means of achieving goals - individual or social - their own means are put forward, in particular illegal ones. Manifestations of anomie, affecting all segments of the population during social upheavals, are especially strong among young people.

ANOMIE

1. A. (English apotga; from Greek an - negation + onyma - name) - partial or complete loss of the ability to remember proper names. The term applies to amnestic syndromes, but not to cases of forgetting names, which often occur in completely normal people.

2. A. (French anomie - absence of law; English anomie or apotu) - a sociological term introduced by E. Durkheim for the concept of such a state of society when many of its members lose respect and trust in existing norms, values, institutions, which is typical for periods of unrest and restructuring. See Deviant Behavior.

3. A hypothetical stage in the development of human society, at which there are no norms and values ​​regulating the behavior and life of people in a group; it was assumed (for example, S.I. Gessen) that humanity, in general, goes through 3 stages of development: A., heteronomy and autonomy. Similar 3 stages are assumed in the moral development of a child. (B.M.)

ANOMIE

anomia) - 1. A type of aphasia in which the patient is unable to give names to surrounding objects, despite the fact that he retains an understanding of their role, as well as the ability to put words into sentences. 2. Lack of respect for laws and established rules, which is a sign of psychopathy and dissocial mental disorders in a person.

Anomie

Word formation. Origin: Greek. a - negative particle + nomos - law.

Specificity. Destruction of social regulations and prohibitions. Expresses a historically determined process of destruction of the basic elements of culture, primarily in terms of ethical standards. With a fairly sharp change in social ideals and morality, certain social groups cease to feel their involvement in a given society, they are alienated, new social norms and values ​​are rejected by members of these groups, including socially declared patterns of behavior. Instead of conventional means of achieving individual or social goals, their own (in particular, illegal) ones are put forward. The phenomena of anomie, affecting all segments of the population during social upheavals, are especially strong among young people.

Literature. Durkheim E. Suicide. St. Petersburg, 1912;

Luces S. Alienation and anomie // Philosophy, politics and society. Series 3. Oxford, 1967

Merton R.K. Social Theory and social structure. Glencoe (Ill.), 1957

Fischer A. Die Entfremdung des Menschen in einer heilen Gesellschaft

ANOMIE

1. Partial or complete loss of the ability to remember names. The term in this sense is used only to refer to aphasic and amnestic syndromes, but not to the usual condition familiar to very many. 2. In a society or group, a state when the social structure is destroyed and social values ​​and cultural norms are lost. Anomie involves disorder, disorganization and a threat to collective security and can be observed in a number of conditions, for example after some kind of disaster, such as an earthquake, war or, less obviously, when large groups of people emigrate from rural areas to cities where their original social values ​​do not exist. correspond to the local ones, and besides, assimilation is opposed by the urban population. 3. A condition in which members of an apparently well-ordered society feel isolated and alienated due to an overly specialized social structure that limits intimacy. This meaning is used to characterize the psychological state of many people living in highly developed, technological, urban societies.

ANOMIE

from Greek a – negative particle + nomos – law and from French. anomie - absence of law, organization) is a moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, which is characterized by the decomposition of the value system due to the crisis of modern consumer society, the contradiction between the declared goals (wealth, power, success) and the impossibility of their implementation for the majority. The term was introduced by E. Durkheim in 1912, and the theory of A. was developed by R. Merton. A. - the destruction of social regulations and prohibitions, a social phenomenon that explains deviant behavior (suicide, apathy and disappointment). Expresses a historically determined process of destruction of the basic elements of culture, primarily in terms of ethical standards. With a fairly sharp change in social ideals and morality, certain social groups cease to feel their involvement in a given society, they are alienated, new social norms and values ​​are rejected by members of these groups, including socially declared patterns of behavior. Instead of legal means of achieving individual or social goals, their own (in particular, illegal) ones are put forward. The phenomena of A., affecting all segments of the population during social upheavals, have a particularly strong effect on young people. A. is the cause of many destructive conflicts or an increase in the negative consequences of ordinary conflicts in a normal society. It can be expressed in such mass asocial actions as pogroms. Modern Russian society, apparently, is “sick” with a severe form of A. Therefore, the fight against A. will contribute to the prevention of all types of conflicts more significantly than working directly with conflicts.

Anomie is a philosophical and sociological concept that expresses the state society(see), in which the absence or instability of social and moral imperatives and rules governing relations between individuals and society leads to the fact that a significant part of the population finds itself “outside” society and comes into confrontation with its normative prescriptions.

The problem of anomie was posed by E. Durkheim in his book “On the Division of Social Labor,” where, in the course of analyzing the “abnormal” forms of this division, he highlighted anomie. According to Durkheim, the state of anomie arises as a result of the fact that the division of labor does not produce solidarity, and thus the set of rules spontaneously established between social functions is no longer able to regulate the relations of social structures. The state of anomie can also characterize an individual who is in a state of conflict with society. In his work, Durkheim identified three types of suicide: “egoistic,” “altruistic,” and “anemic.” The latter tend to increase during socio-economic crises and disasters, when individuals cannot adapt to a rapidly changing social situation. Durkheim considered anomie to be one of the factors of public health or ill health. Anomie, in his opinion, by generating systematic deviations from social norms, prepares and accelerates changes in society.

Durkheim's interpretation of anomie was developed by Merton, who introduced a system of concepts describing the phenomenon of “deviant” (or deviant) behavior. Among the elements of social and cultural structure, Merton identifies two main elements:

1. a system of goals, intentions and interests determined by a given culture;
2. elements that define, regulate and control acceptable ways of achieving these goals.

Very often, regulatory norms and moral imperatives do not coincide with socially standardized ways of achieving these goals, that is, the choice of appropriate means and methods is limited by social and cultural norms accepted in society. According to Merton, deviant behavior can be seen as a symptom of a mismatch between culturally determined aspirations and the socially organized means of achieving them. Merton identifies two possible types of inconsistency between elements of a sociocultural structure:

1. a situation where the choice of alternative ways to achieve goals is not limited in any way, any means and methods of achieving these goals are allowed;
2. a situation where activity to achieve goals becomes an end in itself.

In contrast to concepts that explain anemic behavior by biological drives, Merton believes that anomie “calls to life” not by some random goals, but by generally accepted cultural values ​​accepted in society, which, in turn, is associated with different access to legal opportunities. , an institutionally acceptable means of achieving culturally determined goals. The high degree of disintegration between means and ends and the existing social class structure (leaving the individual in an uncertain, “declassed” state, without a sense of solidarity with a specific group), taken together, contribute to more frequent manifestations of anomie. Thus, anomie, according to Merton, is the result of the separation of these elements of the social and cultural structure.

Anomie- this is a state of public or individual moral and mental consciousness, which is characterized by the corruption of moral norms, the collapse of the moral and value system. The concept of anomie was proposed by French sociologist Emile Durkheim to interpret deviant behavioral responses, for example, suicidal intentions, illegal acts. The state of anomie is inherent in society in times of unrest, revolutions, perestroika, social crisis, due to the contradiction between the promulgated goals and their impracticability for the prevailing part of the subjects, that is, in those periods when the majority of members of a particular society lose confidence in the existing moral values, moral guidelines and social institutions. The problem of anomie is closely related to professional degradation, disappointment in life and activities, and the alienation of the individual from society, which invariably accompanies the phenomenon described.

Social anomie

In the course of a rather abrupt change in the goals and morality of a certain society, certain social categories cease to feel their own involvement in this society.

The concept of anomie is a process of destruction of the fundamental foundations of culture, in particular ethical norms. As a result, such categories of citizens are alienated. In addition, they reject new social ideals, norms and morals, including socially proclaimed patterns of behavior. Instead of using generally accepted means of achieving individual or social goals, they put forward their own, often illegal ones.

The state of anomie, affecting all layers of the population during social upheavals, has a particularly strong impact on young people.

In sociology, anomie is any type of “deviation” in the value and normative system of society. Durkheim first introduced the term anomie. He considered anomie to be the absence of law, norms of behavior, or their insufficiency. Durkheim emphasized that the problem of anomie arises more often in conditions of dynamic reforms and during periods of economic crises. The described concept provokes a certain psychological state, characterized by a feeling of loss of life guidelines, which arises when the subject faces the need to implement contradictory norms. In other words, such a state arises when the old hierarchy is destroyed and the new one has not yet formed. Until social forces, which are left to themselves in times of crisis, come into balance, their comparative value cannot be taken into account, therefore, any regulation is found to be untenable for some time.

Later, this phenomenon is understood as a state of society caused by the redundancy of contradictory norms (Merton anomie). In such conditions, the individual is lost, not understanding exactly what norms need to be followed. The integrity of the normative system and the order of regulation of social relationships are collapsing. People in the described conditions are socially disoriented, they experience anxiety, a feeling of isolation from society, which naturally provokes reaction, crime, marginality and other asocial phenomena.

Durkheim saw the causes of anomie in the contrast between the “established” and modern industrial society.

The problem of anomie is caused by the transitional nature of the historical period, a temporary decline in the moral regulation of new economic-capitalist relations.

Anomie is a product of incomplete transformation from mechanical unity to organic unity, since the objective foundation of the latter (the social distribution of labor) progresses more intensively than it finds a moral basis in the collective consciousness.

Factors in the emergence of anomie: a collision of two categories of socially generated phenomena (the first is interests and needs, the second is a resource for their satisfaction). According to Durkheim, a prerequisite for personal integrity is a cohesive and stable society. Under generally accepted orders, the abilities of individuals and their needs were provided quite simply, since they were kept at a low level by the corresponding collective consciousness, preventing the development of individualism, personal liberation, setting strict limits on what a subject could achieve legally in a given social position. The hierarchical feudal society (traditional) was constant because it set different goals for different layers and allowed each of its members to feel their own existence meaningful within a limited closed layer. The development of the social process provokes the growth of “individualization” and at the same time undermines the strength of group supervision and the stable moral boundaries inherent in the old times. The degree of personal freedom from traditions, group mores, prejudices, the presence of individual choice of knowledge and means of action expands sharply in new conditions. The relatively free structure of industrial society ceases to determine the life activity of individuals and constantly recreates anomie, which implies the absence of stable life ideals, norms and patterns of behavior, which puts most people in a position of uncertainty, depriving them of collective unity, a sense of connection with a certain category and with the entire society in general. All of the above leads to an increase in deviant and self-destructive behavioral reactions in society.

Social norm and social anomie

One of the fundamental concepts of sociology is the social norm, which is considered as a mechanism for assessing and regulating the behavioral response of individuals, categories and social communities. Social norms are instructions, attitudes, and expectations of appropriate (socially approved) behavior. Norms are some ideal patterns that determine what individuals should say, think, feel and do under certain conditions. The system of norms that operate in a particular society forms an integral set, the various structural elements of which are interdependent.

Social norms are the responsibility of one individual in relation to another or the social environment. They determine the formation of a network of social relations of a group, society. Social norms also represent the expectations of groups of different sizes and of society as a whole. The surrounding society expects a certain behavioral response from each individual who adheres to the norms. Social norms determine the development of a system of social relationships, including motivation, ideals, aspirations of the subjects of action, expectations, and evaluation.

A social condition consisting in the loss by its members of the significance of social attitudes and ideals, which provokes an increase in deviant behavior, is called social anomie. In addition, it manifests itself:

• in the absence of standards of comparison among people, social assessment of their own behavior, which provokes an “lumpenized” state and loss of group unity;
• in the inconsistency of social goals with the approved methods of achieving them, which pushes individuals towards illegal means of achieving them if the goals set are unattainable through legal means.

Sociologists, comparing the concepts of anomie and deviant behavior, considered the point of intersection of their non-compliance by members of society with the norms established by it. The main difference between the terms anomie and deviant behavior lies in the social scale of the factors that provoked their manifestation. The nature of anomie goes much deeper. It is caused by serious social transformations that affect society as a single system and its individual members.

Anomie theory

Anomie is a state of absence of rules of law and lawlessness.

In sociology, anomie is a state of social abnormality, applicable to large communities and small groups. The foundation for the emergence of the theory of anomie, which explains the causes of crime, was laid by Durkheim.

Durkheim's theory of anomie. The French sociologist argued that socially deviant behavioral reactions and crime are completely normal phenomena. Because if there is no such behavioral response in society, then, consequently, society is painfully under control. When crime is eliminated, progress stops. Illegal acts are the price to pay for social transformation.

Durkheim's theory of anomie is based on the postulate that a society without crime is unthinkable. Because if acts that are considered illegal in modern society cease to be committed, then some “fresh” variations in behavioral reactions will have to be included in the category of criminal acts. Durkheim argued that “crime” is ineradicable and inevitable. The reason for this is not the weakness and natural nature of people, but the existence in society of an infinite variety of different types of behavior. Unity in human society is achieved only through the use of conformist pressure against such diversity in behavioral response. Such pressure can be ensured by punishment.

Durkheim argued that crimes will be few and small in a society in which there is enough human unity and social cohesion. When social solidarity is destroyed and the isolation of its constituent elements increases, deviant behavior and, consequently, crime increase. This is how anomie appears, Durkheim believed.

In the problem of maintaining the solidarity of society, according to Durkheim, the punishment of criminals is of great importance. A correct understanding of the “laws” of decency and honesty is the original and most important source of the unity of society. In order to preserve the love of this social structure of the ordinary citizen, it is necessary to punish the criminal element. In the absence of the threat of punishment, the average individual may lose his own deep attachment to a particular society and his willingness to make the necessary sacrifice to maintain such attachment. Also, the punishment of the offender serves as visible social confirmation of his “social ugliness.”

Anomie examples.

• Modern sociological science interprets anomie as a state characterized by the absence of self-identity, goals or moral and ethical guidelines in an individual subject or an entire society. Below are examples of situations indicating the presence of anomie phenomena in a particular society:
• state of public disorder;
• some elements of society do not understand the meaning of life, for them the main problem is survival;

Overcoming anomie, for the most part, is characterized by dependence on the specific cause of anomie and the type of conflict that gave rise to it. In situations where society is unable to form a new normative value system or elevate any particular one to the rank of generally significant, it turns to the past, looking for grounds for solidarity in it.

In sociology, the phenomenon of anomie was studied not only by Durkheim; later it was significantly developed by the American sociologist Merton. According to his ideas, anomie is the orientation of individual citizens and social situations that do not correspond to the goals determined by the culture of society. According to Durkheim, the described phenomenon means the inability of society to control the natural impulses and aspirations of individuals. In turn, Merton believed that many of the aspirations of subjects will not necessarily be “natural”; they are often determined by the educational activities of society itself. The social system limits the ability of individual social groups to satisfy their own aspirations. It “presses” certain individuals in society, forcing them to act illegally.

Merton viewed anomie as a collapse of the system of control of individual desires, as a result of which the individual begins to desire more than he is able to achieve under the conditions of a particular social structure. He notes that the described phenomenon arises from the inability of many citizens to follow the norms that they fully accept, and not from the presence of freedom of choice.

Examples of anomie can be given in the model of modern American society, where all citizens are striving for wealth; those who cannot legally achieve financial well-being achieve it through illegal means. Therefore, deviations largely depend on the set of institutional means and the presence of cultural goals that a particular subject follows and uses.

The state of anomie is an absolute discrepancy between declared and civilizing goals and socially structured means of achieving them. When applied to an individual member of society, anomie is the eradication of her moral principles. In this case, the individual loses all sense of tradition, continuity, and loses all obligations. The connection with society has been destroyed. Thus, without updating spirituality and moral guidelines, a radical transformation of society, the development of new values ​​and norms, and overcoming anomie are impossible.

To explain deviant behavior (suicidal tendencies, apathy, disappointment, illegal behavior).
According to Durkheim, anomie is a state of society in which decomposition, disintegration and collapse of the system of values ​​and norms that guarantee social order occur. A necessary condition for the emergence of anomie in society is the discrepancy between the needs and interests of some of its members, on the one hand, and the possibilities of satisfying them, on the other. It manifests itself in the form of the following violations:

1. vagueness, instability and inconsistency of value-normative prescriptions and orientations, in particular, the discrepancy between the norms defining the goals of activity and the norms regulating the means of achieving them;
2. low degree of influence of social norms on individuals and their weak effectiveness as a means of normative regulation of behavior;
3. partial or complete absence of normative regulation in crisis, transitional situations, when the old value system is destroyed, and the new one has not taken shape or has not established itself as generally accepted.

Further development of the concept of anomie is associated with the name of Robert Merton.

The concept of anomie expresses a historically determined process of destruction of the basic elements of culture, primarily in terms of ethical standards. With a sufficiently sharp change in social ideals and morality, certain social groups cease to feel their involvement in a given society, their alienation occurs, new social norms and values ​​(including socially declared patterns of behavior) are rejected by members of these groups, and instead of conventional means of achieving individual or social their own goals are put forward (in particular, illegal ones). The phenomena of anomie, affecting all segments of the population during social upheavals, have a particularly strong effect on young people.

According to the definition of Russian researchers, anomie is “the absence of a clear system of social norms, the destruction of the unity of culture, as a result of which people’s life experience ceases to correspond to ideal social norms.”

Notes

Literature

• Vazha Gorozia, Shorena Turkiashvili The concept of anomie and attempts to modify it
• Kovaleva A.I. Anomie // Knowledge. Understanding. Skill. - 2005. - No. 4. - P. 155-156.
• Merton R.K. Social structure and anomie // Sociology of crime (Modern bourgeois theories). - M.: Progress, 1966. - P. 299-313.

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Synonyms

See what “Anomie” is in other dictionaries:- (gr. a negative particle, nomos law) a concept introduced by E. Durkheim to explain deviant behavior (suicide, apathy and disappointment) and expressing a historically conditioned process of destruction of the basic elements of culture... Great psychological encyclopedia

- (French anomie, absence of law, organization, from Greek - negative particle and law), the concept of bourgeois. sociology. Expresses the attitude of individuals to the norms and moral values ​​of the social system in which they operate, and means: 1)… … Philosophical Encyclopedia

Anomie- (French anomie – zan, ұyimdasudyn zhoktygy) – қоғамнѣ құндиліктар зүесінді үбегилі и ғадиторы ілірірінін ңғым. Anomia asіrese otpelі қоғamрада зійі кіздіді. Buryngy adetke ainalgan bagdarlar zhana talaptarga sәikes kundylyktarmen zhyldam… … Philosophy terminerdin sozdigi

- (from the French anomie, absence of law, organization), a concept denoting the moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, which is characterized by the decomposition of the value system caused by the crisis of society... Modern encyclopedia

- (Greek). Iniquity. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. anomia and many others. no, w. (... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

See what “Anomie” is in other dictionaries:- and, f. anomie f. absence of law c. Philosopher Moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, characterized by the decomposition of the system of moral, social, etc. values. Krysin 1998. The concept introduced by E... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

Anomie- (from the French anomie, absence of law, organization), a concept denoting the moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, which is characterized by the decomposition of the value system caused by the crisis of society... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

Mental disorders of the individual, expressed in low social self-esteem and non-compliance with legal norms. Dictionary of business terms. Akademik.ru. 2001 ... Dictionary of business terms

- (from the French anomie, the absence of a law of organization), sociological and socio-psychological Concept denoting the moral and psychological state of individual and social consciousness, which is characterized by the decomposition of the system... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

- (Greek a negative particle, nomos law) a concept introduced by E. Durkheim to explain deviant behavior (suicide, apathy and disappointment) and expressing its own ... Psychological Dictionary