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SumaiyaAltaf Tuesday, October 08, 2019 04:33 PM

Past paper question
 
Can anyone answer this question from past paper?
There is continuous struggle between material and non-material cultures. In this process the non-material culture lag behind the material culture and create culture lag. As a sociologist give your opinion how to fill the gap.

The dream of rain Sunday, October 13, 2019 10:58 AM

[QUOTE=SumaiyaAltaf;1099995]Can anyone answer this question from past paper?
There is continuous struggle between material and non-material cultures. In this process the non-material culture lag behind the material culture and create culture lag. As a sociologist give your opinion how to fill the gap.[/QUOTE]

Since, cultural lag is failure of a society to keep in pace with scientific or modern advancement. Therefore, to fill the gap society must be made aware about new technological advancement, innovations must be demonstrated conveniently, individuals attitudes must be changed and society must learn to adopt new advancement more easily. This will help the society to keep a balance in their material and non-material culture, thus,reducing the gap.
Hope it gives u a generalized idea.

Warda Furqan Tuesday, December 03, 2019 04:40 PM

Hello,

Material change in culture is mostly or maybe always faster than non-material culture. For example, cable was introduced in our society but the people were not accepting it. They considered it against the social values. The difference in the innovation and our attitude created a cultural lag. It can be filled through analyzing the demographic and socioeconomic analysis of the society. Then, assess which parts of the society are less accepting. Study the theory of diffusion and cultural lag for it. There are different strategies for different segments of a society. Generally, we need to educate, make material innovation affordable, involve government in campaigning, and make sure the effect of the change is immediate so that people adopt it.

Johnmac Wednesday, December 04, 2019 01:09 PM

[QUOTE=The dream of rain;1102276]Since, cultural lag is failure of a society to keep in pace with scientific or modern advancement. Therefore, to fill the gap society must be made aware about new technological advancement, innovations must be demonstrated conveniently, individuals attitudes must be changed and society must learn to adopt new advancement more easily. This will help the society to keep a balance in their material and non-material culture, thus,reducing the gap.

Hope it gives u a generalized idea.[/QUOTE]



Outline appreciated.

My query is about the last line of question. It says “as a sociologist “.

What can be the difference when replying as
(a) a sociologist
(b) an administrator
(c) a corporate

Please correct me ; if wrong ,as i consider the difference in approaches to be a key in answering this question. Making our replies more objective.


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aishalam Wednesday, December 04, 2019 06:38 PM

[QUOTE=Johnmac;1105608]Outline appreciated.

My query is about the last line of question. It says “as a sociologist “.

What can be the difference when replying as
(a) a sociologist
(b) an administrator
(c) a corporate

Please correct me ; if wrong ,as i consider the difference in approaches to be a key in answering this question. Making our replies more objective.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk[/QUOTE]

I did attempt this question in the 2019 exam and I took the exact view you have. The question asks your view as a sociologist, so your advice needs to be more structured to areas which sociologists can influence. Also supplement your answers with WHY these recommendations would work.

For example cultural lag can be reduced significantly by [B]keeping institutions of socialization involved and updated.[/B] One way of doing this is by using [B]educational institutions[/B] to launch awareness campaigns or hosting technical seminars/workshops/festivals in order to sensitize the youth to the new material cultural addition. Another sociological institution that can be used is the [B][B]media.[/B][/B] Why these work is because most of our values and opinions are formed through socialization and hence we can influence people's attitudes and mindset fairly easily through them or in any case help make new things seem less "alien".

Another thing sociologists can do [B]is advice the country's policy makers. [/B]Government help and policies can definitely help reduce cultural lag. This is an external form of sanctions and is an important social control tool.

You can think of other examples too and link them to sociological theory.

Johnmac Wednesday, January 15, 2020 12:33 AM

[QUOTE=aishalam;1105631]I did attempt this question in the 2019 exam and I took the exact view you have. The question asks your view as a sociologist, so your advice needs to be more structured to areas which sociologists can influence. Also supplement your answers with WHY these recommendations would work.



For example cultural lag can be reduced significantly by [B]keeping institutions of socialization involved and updated.[/B] One way of doing this is by using [B]educational institutions[/B] to launch awareness campaigns or hosting technical seminars/workshops/festivals in order to sensitize the youth to the new material cultural addition. Another sociological institution that can be used is the [B][B]media.[/B][/B] Why these work is because most of our values and opinions are formed through socialization and hence we can influence people's attitudes and mindset fairly easily through them or in any case help make new things seem less "alien".



Another thing sociologists can do [B]is advice the country's policy makers. [/B]Government help and policies can definitely help reduce cultural lag. This is an external form of sanctions and is an important social control tool.



You can think of other examples too and link them to sociological theory.[/QUOTE]



Grateful
So, for my own sake,i would revise following things that i have learnt from you for my own consumption:-

-A sociologist is aptly concerned about social solidarity, bondings, culture, values,social strata etc.

-A sociologist May influence the society through social institutions. Every institution, beside its primary objectivity has a social influencing role.Media,Schools & Colleges, mosques, family, tribe etc; almost every institution can be a social influencer.

-What are some specific institutions established in Pakistan for social upbringing?

-What are the pressing social issues of Pakistan which may asked in the exam?(since it is expected that paper is full of pressing issues and not theories and definitions)

Your replies and contributions would be appreciated.



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aishalam Wednesday, January 15, 2020 08:32 PM

[QUOTE=Johnmac;1107017]Grateful
So, for my own sake,i would revise following things that i have learnt from you for my own consumption:-

-A sociologist is aptly concerned about social solidarity, bondings, culture, values,social strata etc.

-A sociologist May influence the society through social institutions. Every institution, beside its primary objectivity has a social influencing role.Media,Schools & Colleges, mosques, family, tribe etc; almost every institution can be a social influencer.

-What are some specific institutions established in Pakistan for social upbringing?

-What are the pressing social issues of Pakistan which may asked in the exam?(since it is expected that paper is full of pressing issues and not theories and definitions)

Your replies and contributions would be appreciated.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk[/QUOTE]

Hello, I'm glad my reply could help. In response to your above observations and questions, I have the following inputs to make;

[b]-A sociologist is aptly concerned about social solidarity, bondings, culture, values,social strata etc.[/b]
They are but they also deal with other more widespread issues like how climate change is a result of a culture of consumerism that is common in modern society. This pattern of behaviours falls under the scope of study of sociologists, economists and even environmentalists but what can we do about it? Not much really. We can try and influence it but efforts to change human habits don't bear fruit fairly quickly. And then there is the fact that some sociologists believe that sociology should not deal with such controversial issues at all. That the job of a sociologist is only to study HOW and WHAT is happening not HOW TO MAKE IT BETTER. So you see there are different schools of thoughts here but as a baseline you are completely correct.


[b]-A sociologist May influence the society through social institutions. Every institution, beside its primary objectivity has a social influencing role.Media,Schools & Colleges, mosques, family, tribe etc; almost every institution can be a social influencer.
[/B]
Well true and not true. Sociologists understand the power that these institutions have but they rarely have the authority to influence them directly. They can advice policy makers and governments but rarely can they implement change themselves. For example if sociologists after a long and concentrated study believe that in a certain area pre-school books which depict very specific gender roles (e.g. a banker always being a man and a cook always being a woman) gives rise to generations of people who have a sexist outlook on occupational mobility. Now they've pinpointed the problem but in order to change those textbooks they'll have to campaign and they can do that by making use of various advocacy tools or media (social media or even traditional media), or writing directly to parliamentarians or local government or whoever would be in charge of the educational system at that level. So you see even if sociologists know the problems and know how we can improve the situation they rarely if ever have the power to actively change much and if you would refer to my comments above you'll see that many sociologists believe that that is just how it should be as this is only an academic Field.

[B]-What are some specific institutions established in Pakistan for social upbringing? [/B]
Let's go over all the basic ones; families of course but in Pakistan we also have very large and interconnected extended families even if the group isn't living in a joint family system our culture gives a lot of respect to older familial and male roles. Hence these institutions are important for children's socialisation.
Then come schools. We also have madarssas that most kids go to or have religious Quranic teachers that come to our homes to teach. So they are a part of our upbringing too. Then after traditional classrooms, in some areas of Pakistan tutions are also common. Some children join academies or have personal tutors who teach and help with homework so they are integrals parts as well.
Then of course our peer groups; our friends, classmates, neighbours, family friends. We also are nowadays heavily influenced by our online presence on social medias so that is a big part. Government is a social institution that plays a major part since it dictates essentially what kind of education a child will receive and what kind of opportunities will be available to them. I suppose those are the basic ones.

[b] What are the pressing social issues of Pakistan which may asked in the exam?(since it is expected that paper is full of pressing issues and not theories and definitions)[/b]
Some issues that I recommend you read up on are gender based violence, religious tolerance/intolerance, the social contract theory (v. V. Important nowadays. It's more philosophy than anything else but gives you a clue as to why and how modern societies and their relationships with governments are formed and maintained), modernisation vs. westernisation, Pakistani culture and it's protection/promotion, regionalism (how to end or at the very least control this from a sociological perspective), population explosion in Pakistan, the actual role of media and it's responsibility etc etc. You can find more issues in a section fo the sociology course that is given by FPSC. It is the second last heading if I remember correctly. Try to prepare those but if I can give you a word of advice even in pressing contemporary topics like these try to get in the theoretical base since this is not a general paper but a specialised one. For example when talking about governments and their responsibility to the public be sure to talk about the social contract theory and those that proposed it. This will fetch you higher marks then if you were just doing it generally.

I hope all of the above helps. Feel free to ask if anything doesn't make sense. I'd be happy to help.

Johnmac Monday, January 20, 2020 01:42 AM

[QUOTE=aishalam;1107038]Hello, I'm glad my reply could help. In response to your above observations and questions, I have the following inputs to make;



[b]-A sociologist is aptly concerned about social solidarity, bondings, culture, values,social strata etc.[/b]

They are but they also deal with other more widespread issues like how climate change is a result of a culture of consumerism that is common in modern society. This pattern of behaviours falls under the scope of study of sociologists, economists and even environmentalists but what can we do about it? Not much really. We can try and influence it but efforts to change human habits don't bear fruit fairly quickly. And then there is the fact that some sociologists believe that sociology should not deal with such controversial issues at all. That the job of a sociologist is only to study HOW and WHAT is happening not HOW TO MAKE IT BETTER. So you see there are different schools of thoughts here but as a baseline you are completely correct.





[b]-A sociologist May influence the society through social institutions. Every institution, beside its primary objectivity has a social influencing role.Media,Schools & Colleges, mosques, family, tribe etc; almost every institution can be a social influencer.

[/B]

Well true and not true. Sociologists understand the power that these institutions have but they rarely have the authority to influence them directly. They can advice policy makers and governments but rarely can they implement change themselves. For example if sociologists after a long and concentrated study believe that in a certain area pre-school books which depict very specific gender roles (e.g. a banker always being a man and a cook always being a woman) gives rise to generations of people who have a sexist outlook on occupational mobility. Now they've pinpointed the problem but in order to change those textbooks they'll have to campaign and they can do that by making use of various advocacy tools or media (social media or even traditional media), or writing directly to parliamentarians or local government or whoever would be in charge of the educational system at that level. So you see even if sociologists know the problems and know how we can improve the situation they rarely if ever have the power to actively change much and if you would refer to my comments above you'll see that many sociologists believe that that is just how it should be as this is only an academic Field.



[B]-What are some specific institutions established in Pakistan for social upbringing? [/B]

Let's go over all the basic ones; families of course but in Pakistan we also have very large and interconnected extended families even if the group isn't living in a joint family system our culture gives a lot of respect to older familial and male roles. Hence these institutions are important for children's socialisation.

Then come schools. We also have madarssas that most kids go to or have religious Quranic teachers that come to our homes to teach. So they are a part of our upbringing too. Then after traditional classrooms, in some areas of Pakistan tutions are also common. Some children join academies or have personal tutors who teach and help with homework so they are integrals parts as well.

Then of course our peer groups; our friends, classmates, neighbours, family friends. We also are nowadays heavily influenced by our online presence on social medias so that is a big part. Government is a social institution that plays a major part since it dictates essentially what kind of education a child will receive and what kind of opportunities will be available to them. I suppose those are the basic ones.



[b] What are the pressing social issues of Pakistan which may asked in the exam?(since it is expected that paper is full of pressing issues and not theories and definitions)[/b]

Some issues that I recommend you read up on are gender based violence, religious tolerance/intolerance, the social contract theory (v. V. Important nowadays. It's more philosophy than anything else but gives you a clue as to why and how modern societies and their relationships with governments are formed and maintained), modernisation vs. westernisation, Pakistani culture and it's protection/promotion, regionalism (how to end or at the very least control this from a sociological perspective), population explosion in Pakistan, the actual role of media and it's responsibility etc etc. You can find more issues in a section fo the sociology course that is given by FPSC. It is the second last heading if I remember correctly. Try to prepare those but if I can give you a word of advice even in pressing contemporary topics like these try to get in the theoretical base since this is not a general paper but a specialised one. For example when talking about governments and their responsibility to the public be sure to talk about the social contract theory and those that proposed it. This will fetch you higher marks then if you were just doing it generally.



I hope all of the above helps. Feel free to ask if anything doesn't make sense. I'd be happy to help.[/QUOTE]



Well gradually, pleasure is becoming all mine ,since i believe the discussion entered into very objective phase. Surely this would reap fruits for me in the coming exams.

Heartening to see the kind of approach that you possess while dealing with such topics. I was bound to go through your profile and probably the word,” senior member “ rightly suits you.

Anyways, let’s reap some more benefits out of your ,”seniority”.

What theories you believe may be asked in the coming exam?

I,m putting you in spot , yet you can still manoeuvre away-if feel so.

Something worrying this year are dual exams-the same day.So, meagre time to refresh and revise.I endeavour to be specific before exam.

Secondly, how can i share my essay outline for scrutiny/suggestions?




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aishalam Monday, January 20, 2020 10:15 AM

[QUOTE=Johnmac;1107169]Well gradually, pleasure is becoming all mine ,since i believe the discussion entered into very objective phase. Surely this would reap fruits for me in the coming exams.

Heartening to see the kind of approach that you possess while dealing with such topics. I was bound to go through your profile and probably the word,” senior member “ rightly suits you.

Anyways, let’s reap some more benefits out of your ,”seniority”.

What theories you believe may be asked in the coming exam?

I,m putting you in spot , yet you can still manoeuvre away-if feel so.

Something worrying this year are dual exams-the same day.So, meagre time to refresh and revise.I endeavour to be specific before exam.

Secondly, how can i share my essay outline for scrutiny/suggestions?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk[/QUOTE]

You aren't putting me at the spot at all! The css interview and assessments process is over for me personally, so I have far too much time on my hands and the long waiting game till May is best suffered through while keeping in touch with the system so here I am. I have shared my email address on my profile, you could send it there and whenever I find time I can take a look.

As to your question on sociological theories, I'm going to paste below a response I made a little while ago to some other thread here on the forum which might help;

"The basic approaches to the study of sociology are the three main paradigms; structural functionalism, conflict and symbolic interaction. You must learn sociology with its own concepts and theories and develop a "sociological perspective". I highly recommend giving time to these paradigms and also giving a good thorough study to part II-Sociological theory of the FPSC sociology course before preparing the other parts because it'll help you develop a sociological outlook and thinking.

This year's paper was highly conceptual. I enjoyed attempting it but that was only because I took the time earlier to carefully and methodically learn about the FPSC recommended sociologists and their theories. You need to immerse yourself in the subject. Once you know the basic theories you can apply them everywhere and even a seemingly general question will gain more weight (and hence marks) if you can back it up with respected sociologists' theories and views.

For example; question number 4 from CSS-2019 was How cultural ethnocentrism promotes social change and maintain social order. Comment.

I attempted this question by first defining the term then giving examples of ethnocentrism and how "generally" it can maintain social order and also promote social change (social order: ethnocentrism promotes a feeling of solidarity amongst the members of the group against "others" and they develop cultural, social and legal measures to maintain an order where they are superior. e.g. European Colonialism and their "civilize the savages" campaign, apartheid in south Africa etc. Social change= the oppressed class gets tired of the discrimination and fights for change. e.g Martin Luther King Jr. and his marches, Black panther movement, freedom struggle of the Muslims against double ethnocentrism of both British colonizers and Hindu Mahasbha.) After this part I supported my stance with theories. Ibn Al-Khaldun and the concept of Assabiya (tribalism), Karl Marx and the fall of capitalism and W. E. B Dubois and racial discrimination in America."

Johnmac Monday, January 20, 2020 10:49 AM

[QUOTE=aishalam;1107170]You aren't putting me at the spot at all! The css interview and assessments process is over for me personally, so I have far too much time on my hands and the long waiting game till May is best suffered through while keeping in touch with the system so here I am. I have shared my email address on my profile, you could send it there and whenever I find time I can take a look.



As to your question on sociological theories, I'm going to paste below a response I made a little while ago to some other thread here on the forum which might help;



"The basic approaches to the study of sociology are the three main paradigms; structural functionalism, conflict and symbolic interaction. You must learn sociology with its own concepts and theories and develop a "sociological perspective". I highly recommend giving time to these paradigms and also giving a good thorough study to part II-Sociological theory of the FPSC sociology course before preparing the other parts because it'll help you develop a sociological outlook and thinking.



This year's paper was highly conceptual. I enjoyed attempting it but that was only because I took the time earlier to carefully and methodically learn about the FPSC recommended sociologists and their theories. You need to immerse yourself in the subject. Once you know the basic theories you can apply them everywhere and even a seemingly general question will gain more weight (and hence marks) if you can back it up with respected sociologists' theories and views.



For example; question number 4 from CSS-2019 was How cultural ethnocentrism promotes social change and maintain social order. Comment.



I attempted this question by first defining the term then giving examples of ethnocentrism and how "generally" it can maintain social order and also promote social change (social order: ethnocentrism promotes a feeling of solidarity amongst the members of the group against "others" and they develop cultural, social and legal measures to maintain an order where they are superior. e.g. European Colonialism and their "civilize the savages" campaign, apartheid in south Africa etc. Social change= the oppressed class gets tired of the discrimination and fights for change. e.g Martin Luther King Jr. and his marches, Black panther movement, freedom struggle of the Muslims against double ethnocentrism of both British colonizers and Hindu Mahasbha.) After this part I supported my stance with theories. Ibn Al-Khaldun and the concept of Assabiya (tribalism), Karl Marx and the fall of capitalism and W. E. B Dubois and racial discrimination in America."[/QUOTE]



So very grateful for your valuable input.
I have also sent an email for essay outline.Please review at your convenience.
Let me review theories that have been suggested.Also if you feel appropriate ,share your Mark sheet to be an encouragement for all those reading this thread.


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