What is characteristic of a traditional society? Features of traditional society. Types of society, their characteristics

Plan
Introduction
1 General characteristics
2 Transformation traditional society
and literature

Introduction

Traditional society is a society that is regulated by tradition. Preservation of traditions is a higher value in it than development. Social order It is characterized by a rigid class hierarchy, the existence of stable social communities (especially in Eastern countries), and a special way of regulating the life of society, based on traditions and customs. This organization society strives to preserve the socio-cultural foundations of life unchanged. Traditional society - agricultural society.

1. General characteristics

A traditional society is usually characterized by:

· traditional economics

· predominance of the agricultural way of life;

· structural stability;

· class organization;

· low mobility;

· high mortality rate;

· low life expectancy.

A traditional person perceives the world and the established order of life as something inextricably integral, holistic, sacred and not subject to change. A person’s place in society and his status are determined by tradition (usually by birthright).

In a traditional society, collectivist attitudes predominate, individualism is not encouraged (since freedom of individual action can lead to a violation of the established order, time-tested). In general, traditional societies are characterized by the predominance of collective interests over private ones, including the primacy of the interests of existing hierarchical structures (state, clan, etc.). What is valued is not so much individual capacity as the place in the hierarchy (official, class, clan, etc.) that a person occupies.

In a traditional society, as a rule, relations of redistribution rather than market exchange predominate, and elements of a market economy are strictly regulated. This is due to the fact that free market relations increase social mobility and change the social structure of society (in particular, they destroy class); the redistribution system may be regulated by tradition, but market prices are not; forced redistribution prevents “unauthorized” enrichment/impoverishment of both individuals and classes. The pursuit of economic gain in traditional society is often morally condemned and opposed to selfless help.

In a traditional society, most people live their entire lives in a local community (for example, a village), and connections with the “big society” are rather weak. At the same time, family ties, on the contrary, are very strong.

The worldview (ideology) of a traditional society is determined by tradition and authority.

2. Transformation of traditional society

Traditional society is extremely stable. As the famous demographer and sociologist Anatoly Vishnevsky writes, “everything in it is interconnected and it is very difficult to remove or change any one element.”

In ancient times, changes in traditional society occurred extremely slowly - over generations, almost imperceptibly for an individual. Periods of accelerated development also occurred in traditional societies ( shining example- changes in the territory of Eurasia in the 1st millennium BC. BC), but even during such periods, change was slow by modern standards, and upon its completion, society again returned to a relatively static state with a predominance of cyclical dynamics.

At the same time, since ancient times there have been societies that cannot be called completely traditional. The departure from traditional society was associated, as a rule, with the development of trade. This category includes Greek city-states, medieval self-governing trading cities, England and Holland of the 16th-17th centuries. Stands apart Ancient Rome(before the 3rd century AD) with its civil society.

The rapid and irreversible transformation of traditional society began to occur only in the 18th century as a result of the industrial revolution. By now, this process has captured almost the entire world.

Rapid changes and departure from traditions can be experienced by a traditional person as a collapse of guidelines and values, loss of the meaning of life, etc. Since adaptation to new conditions and a change in the nature of activity are not included in the strategy of a traditional person, the transformation of society often leads to the marginalization of part of the population.

The most painful transformation of traditional society occurs in cases where the dismantled traditions have a religious justification. At the same time, resistance to change can take the form of religious fundamentalism.

During the period of transformation of a traditional society, authoritarianism may increase in it (either in order to preserve traditions, or in order to overcome resistance to change).

The transformation of traditional society ends with the demographic transition. The generation that grew up in small families has a psychology that differs from the psychology of a traditional person.

Opinions about the need (and extent) of transformation of traditional society differ significantly. For example, the philosopher A. Dugin considers it necessary to abandon the principles of modern society and return to the “golden age” of traditionalism. Sociologist and demographer A. Vishnevsky argues that traditional society “has no chance,” although it “fiercely resists.” According to the calculations of Academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, Professor A. Nazaretyan, in order to completely abandon development and return society to a static state, the number of humanity must be reduced by several hundred times.

1. Knowledge-Power, No. 9, 2005, “Demographic oddities”

· Textbook “Sociology of Culture” (chapter “Historical dynamics of culture: cultural features of traditional and modern societies. Modernization”)

· Book by A. G. Vishnevsky “Sickle and Ruble. Conservative modernization in USSR"

· Book “European Modernization”

· Nazaretyan A.P. Demographic utopia of “sustainable development” // Social Sciences and modernity. 1996. No. 2. P. 145-152.

mythological | religious | mystical | philosophical | scientific | artistic | political | archaic | traditional | modern | postmodern | modern

It has been proven that society is continuously evolving. The development of society can proceed in two directions and take three specific forms.

Directions for the development of society

It is customary to distinguish between social progress (the tendency of development from a lower level of the material state of society and the spiritual evolution of the individual to a higher one) and regression (the opposite of progress: the transition from a more developed state to a less developed one).

If you demonstrate the development of society graphically, you will get a broken line (where ups and downs will be displayed, for example, the period of fascism - the stage of social regression).

Society is a complex and multifaceted mechanism, and therefore progress can be traced in one area, while regression in another.

So, if we turn to historical facts, then one can clearly see technical progress (the transition from primitive tools to sophisticated CNC machines, from pack animals to trains, cars, airplanes, etc.). However back side medals (regression) - destruction natural resources, undermining the natural human habitat, etc.

Criteria for social progress

There are six of them:

• affirmation of democracy;
• growth in the well-being of the population and its social security;
• improving interpersonal relationships;
• growth of spirituality and ethical component of society;
• weakening of interpersonal confrontation;
• the measure of freedom provided to an individual by society (the degree of individual freedom guaranteed by society).

Forms of social development

The most common is evolution (smooth, gradual changes in the life of society that occur naturally). Features of its character: gradualism, continuity, ascension (for example, scientific and technical evolution).

Second form social development- revolution (rapid, deep changes; radical revolution in social life). The nature of revolutionary changes has radical and fundamental features.

Revolutions can be:

• short-term or long-term;
• within one or more states;
• within one or several spheres.

If these changes affect all existing public spheres(politics, daily life, economy, culture, social organization), then the revolution is called social. This kind of change causes strong emotionality and mass activity of the entire population (for example, such Russian revolutions as the October and February revolutions).

Third form social development- reforms (a set of measures aimed at transforming specific aspects of society, for example, economic reform or educational reform).

Systematic model of typologies of social development by D. Bell

This American sociologist distinguished world history at stages (types) regarding the development of society:

• industrial;
• post-industrial.

The transition from one stage to another is accompanied by a change in technology, form of ownership, political regime, lifestyle, social structure of society, method of production, social institutions, culture, population.

Pre-industrial society: characteristic features

Here we distinguish between simple and complex societies. Pre-industrial society (simple) is a society without social inequality and division into strata or classes, as well as without commodity-money relations and a state apparatus.

In primitive times, gatherers, hunters, then early pastoralists and farmers lived in a simple society.

The social structure of pre-industrial society (simple) has the following features:

• small size of the association;
• primitive level of development of technology and division of labor;
• egalitarianism (economic, political, social equality);
• priority of blood ties.

Stages of evolution of simple societies

• groups (local);
• communities (primitive).

The second stage has two periods:

• clan community;
• neighbor's

Transfer from tribal communities to neighbors became possible thanks to a sedentary lifestyle: groups of blood relatives settled close to each other and were united both by marriage and mutual assistance regarding joint territories, by a labor corporation.

Thus, pre-industrial society is characterized by the gradual emergence of the family, the emergence of division of labor (between genders, between ages), and the emergence of social norms that constitute taboos (absolute prohibitions).

Transitional form from simple to complex society

A chiefdom is a hierarchical structure of a system of people that does not have an extensive administrative apparatus, which is an integral part of a mature state.

In terms of numbers, this is a large association (larger than a tribe). It already contains gardening without arable farming and a surplus product without surplus. Gradually, a stratification arises into rich and poor, noble and simple. The number of management levels is 2-10 or more. A modern example chiefdoms are: New Guinea, Tropical Africa and Polynesia.

Complex pre-industrial societies

The final stage in the evolution of simple societies, as well as the prologue to complex ones, was the Neolithic Revolution. A complex (pre-industrial) society is characterized by the emergence of a surplus product, social inequality and stratification (castes, classes, slavery, estates), commodity-money relations, and an extensive, specialized management apparatus.

It is usually numerous (hundreds of thousands - hundreds of millions of people). Within a complex society, consanguineous, personal relationships are replaced by unrelated, impersonal ones (this is especially true in cities, when even cohabitants may be strangers).

Social ranks are replaced by social stratification. As a rule, a pre-industrial (complex) society is referred to as stratified due to the fact that the strata are numerous and the groups include exclusively those who are not related to the ruling class.

Signs of a complex society by W. Child

There are at least eight of them. The signs of a pre-industrial society (complex) are as follows:

1. People are settled in cities.
2. Non-agricultural specialization of labor is developing.
3. A surplus product appears and accumulates.
4. Clear class distances emerge.
5. Customary law is replaced by legal law.
6. Large-scale public works such as irrigation emerge, and pyramids also emerge.
7. Overseas trade appears.
8. Writing, mathematics and an elite culture emerge.

Despite the fact that an agrarian society (pre-industrial) is characterized by the emergence large number cities, most of population lived in a village (a closed territorial peasant community leading a subsistence economy that is weakly connected with the market). The village is focused on religious values ​​and traditional way of life.

Characteristic features of pre-industrial society

The following features of traditional society are distinguished:

1. Agriculture occupies a dominant position, in which manual technologies predominate (using animal and human energy).
2. A significant proportion of the population is rural.
3. Production is focused on personal consumption, and therefore market relations are underdeveloped.
4. Caste or class system of population classification.
5. Low level of social mobility.
6. Large patriarchal families.
7. Social change is proceeding at a slow pace.
8. Priority is given to the religious and mythological worldview.
9. Homogeneity of values ​​and norms.
10. Sacralized, authoritarian political power.

These are schematic and simplified features of traditional society.

Industrial type of society

The transition to this type was due to two global processes:

• industrialization (creation of large-scale machine production);
• urbanization (relocation of people from villages to cities, as well as promotion of urban life values ​​in all segments of the population).

Industrial society (originating in the 18th century) is the child of two revolutions - political (Great French revolution) and economic (English Industrial Revolution). The result of the first is economic freedom, a new social stratification, and the second is new political form(democracy), political freedoms.

Feudalism gave way to capitalism. The concept of “industrialization” has become stronger in everyday life. Its flagship is England. This country is the birthplace of machine production, new legislation and free enterprise.

Industrialization is interpreted as the use of scientific knowledge regarding industrial technology, the discovery of fundamentally new sources of energy, which made it possible to perform all the work previously carried out by people or draft animals.

Thanks to the transition to industry, a small proportion of the population was able to feed a significant number of people without cultivating the land.

Compared to agricultural states and empires, industrial countries are more numerous (tens, hundreds of millions of people). These are the so-called highly urbanized societies (cities began to play a dominant role).

Signs of an industrial society:

• industrialization;
• class antagonism;
• representative democracy;
• urbanization;
• division of society into classes;
• transfer of power to the owners;
• little social mobility.

Thus, we can say that pre-industrial and industrial societies are actually different social worlds. This transition certainly could not be easy or quick. It took Western societies, so to speak, the pioneers of modernization, more than one century to implement this process.

Post-industrial society

It gives priority to the service sector, which prevails over industry and agriculture. The social structure of post-industrial society is shifting in favor of those employed in the above-mentioned sphere, and new elites are also emerging: scientists and technocrats.

This type of society is characterized as “post-class” due to the fact that it shows the disintegration of entrenched social structures, identities that are so characteristic of industrial society.

Industrial and post-industrial society: distinctive features

The main characteristics of modern and post-modern society are indicated in the table below.

Thus, both industrial and post-industrial society- these are modern types. The main distinctive feature of the latter is that a person is not considered primarily as an “economic person”. Post-industrial society is a “post-labor”, “post-economic” society (the economic subsystem loses its decisive significance; labor is not the basis social relations).

Comparative characteristics of the considered types of social development

Let us trace the main differences that traditional, industrial and post-industrial societies have. Comparative characteristics presented in the table.

So, it is worth recalling once again the three types of social development: traditional, industrial and post-industrial society.

Traditional	Industrial	Post-industrial
1.ECONOMY.
Subsistence farming	Based on industry, agriculture— increasing labor productivity. Destruction of natural dependence.	The basis of production is information. The service sector comes to the fore.
Primitive crafts	Machinery	Computer techologies
The predominance of collective forms of ownership. Protection of property of only the upper class of society. Traditional economics.	The basis of the economy is state and private property, a market economy.	Availability different forms property. Mixed economy.
The production of goods is limited to a certain type, the list is limited.	Standardization is uniformity in the production and consumption of goods and services.	Individualization of production, up to exclusiveness.
Extensive economy	Intensive economy	Increasing the share of small-scale production.
Hand tools	Machine technology, conveyor production, automation, mass production	The economic sector associated with the production of knowledge, processing and dissemination of information has been developed.
Dependence on natural and climatic conditions	Independence from natural and climatic conditions	Cooperation with nature, resource-saving, environmentally friendly technologies.
Slow introduction of innovations into the economy.	Scientific and technical progress.	Modernization of the economy.
The standard of living of the majority of the population is low.	Growing income of the population. Mercantilism consciousness.	High level and quality of life of people.
2. SOCIAL SPHERE.
Dependence of position on social status. The main units of society are family, community	The emergence of new classes - the bourgeoisie and the industrial proletariat. Urbanization.	Erasing class differences. Increasing share of the middle class. The share of the population engaged in processing and disseminating information is increasing significantly over labor force in agriculture and industry
Stability of the social structure, stable boundaries between social communities, adherence to a strict social hierarchy. Estate.	The mobility of the social structure is great, the possibilities of social movement are not limited. The emergence of classes.	Eliminating social polarization. Blurring class differences.
3. POLITICS.
Dominance of the Church and the Army	The role of the state is increasing.	Political pluralism
Power is hereditary, the source of power is the will of God.	The dominance of law and law (though, more often on paper) Equality before the law. Individual rights and freedoms are legally established. The main regulator of relations is the rule of law.	Civil society. Relations between the individual and society are built on the principle of mutual responsibility.
Monarchical forms of government, no political freedoms, power above the law, absorption of the individual by the collective, despotic state The state subjugates society, society is outside the state and its control does not exist.	Granting political freedoms, the republican form of government prevails. A person is an active subject of politics. Democratic transformations	Law, right - not on paper, but in practice. Democracy. Consensus democracy. Political pluralism.
4. SPIRITUAL SPHERE.
Norms, customs, beliefs.		Continuing education.
Providentialism consciousness, fanatical attitude towards religion.	Secularization consciousness. The emergence of atheists.	Freedom of conscience and religion.
Individualism and individual identity were not encouraged; collective consciousness prevailed over the individual.	Individualism, rationalism, utilitarianism of consciousness.	The desire to prove oneself, to achieve success in life.
There are few educated people, the role of science is not great. The education is elite.	The role of knowledge and education is great. Mainly secondary education.	The role of science, education, and the information age is great. Higher education. A global telecommunications network—the Internet—is being formed.
The predominance of oral information over written information.	The dominance of mass culture.	Availability different types culture
TARGET.
Adaptation to nature.	Liberation of man from direct dependence on nature, partial subordination of it to himself. The emergence of environmental problems.	Anthropogenic civilization, i.e. in the center is a person, his individuality, interests. solving environmental problems.

conclusions

Types of society.

Traditional society- a type of society based on subsistence agriculture, a monarchical system of government and the predominance of religious values ​​and worldview.

Industrial society- a type of society based on the development of industry, a market economy, the introduction of scientific achievements in the economy, the emergence of a democratic form of government, a high level of knowledge development, scientific and technological progress, and the secularization of consciousness.

Post-industrial society– a modern type of society based on the dominance of information ( computer technology) in production, development of the service sector, lifelong education, freedom of conscience, consensus democracy, and the formation of civil society.

TYPES OF SOCIETY

1.By degree of openness:

— closed society – characterized by a static social structure, limited mobility, traditionalism, very slow introduction of innovations or their absence, and authoritarian ideology.

— open society – characterized by a dynamic social structure, high social mobility, the ability to innovate, pluralism, and the absence of state ideology.

1. By availability of writing:

— preliterate

—written (knowing the alphabet or symbolic writing)

3.According to the degree of social differentiation (or stratification):

— simple — pre-state formations, there are no managers and subordinates)

— complex – several levels of management, layers of the population.

Explanation of terms

Material prepared by: Melnikova Vera Aleksandrovna

Modern societies differ in many ways, but they also have the same parameters according to which they can be typologized.

One of the main directions in the typology is choice of political relations, forms state power as grounds for highlighting various types society. For example, U and I societies differ in type of government: monarchy, tyranny, aristocracy, oligarchy, democracy. Modern versions of this approach highlight totalitarian(the state determines all the main directions of social life); democratic(the population can influence government structures) and authoritarian(combining elements of totalitarianism and democracy) societies.

The basis typology of society it's supposed to Marxism difference between societies type of industrial relations in various socio-economic formations: primitive communal society (primitively appropriating mode of production); societies with the Asian mode of production (presence special type collective ownership of land); slave societies (ownership of people and use of slave labor); feudal (exploitation of peasants attached to the land); communist or socialist societies (equal treatment of all towards ownership of the means of production through the elimination of private property relations).

Traditional, industrial and post-industrial societies

Most stable in modern sociology is considered a typology based on the selection traditional, industrial and post-industrial society

Traditional society(it is also called simple and agrarian) is a society with an agricultural structure, sedentary structures and a method of sociocultural regulation based on traditions (traditional society). The behavior of individuals in it is strictly controlled, regulated by customs and norms of traditional behavior, established social institutions, among which the most important will be the family. Attempts at any social transformations and innovations are rejected. For him characterized by low rates of development, production. Important for this type of society is an established social solidarity, which Durkheim established while studying the society of the Australian aborigines.

Traditional society characterized by the natural division and specialization of labor (mainly by gender and age), personalization of interpersonal communication (directly of individuals, and not officials or persons of status), informal regulation of interactions (norms of unwritten laws of religion and morality), connection of members by kinship relations (family type of community organization) , a primitive system of community management (hereditary power, rule of elders).

Modern societies differ in the following features: the role-based nature of interaction (people’s expectations and behavior are determined by social status and social functions individuals); developing deep division of labor (on a professional qualification basis related to education and work experience); a formal system for regulating relations (based on written law: laws, regulations, contracts, etc.); complex system social management(separation of the institute of management, special governing bodies: political, economic, territorial and self-government); secularization of religion (its separation from the system of government); highlighting a variety of social institutions (self-reproducing systems of special relations that make it possible to ensure public control, inequality, protection of its members, distribution of goods, production, communication).

These include industrial and post-industrial societies.

Industrial society- this is a type of organization of social life that combines the freedom and interests of the individual with general principles regulating them joint activities. It is characterized by flexibility of social structures, social mobility, and a developed system of communications.

In the 1960s concepts appear post-industrial (informational) societies (D. Bell, A. Touraine, J. Habermas), caused by drastic changes in the economy and culture of the most developed countries. The leading role in society is recognized as the role of knowledge and information, computer and automatic devices. An individual who has received the necessary education and has access to latest information, gets an advantageous chance of moving up the social hierarchy. The main goal of a person in society becomes creative work.

The negative side of post-industrial society is the danger of strengthening on the part of the state, the ruling elite through access to information and electronic media and communication over people and society as a whole.

Lifeworld human society getting stronger is subject to the logic of efficiency and instrumentalism. Culture, including traditional values, is being destroyed under the influence administrative control gravitating towards standardization and unification of social relations and social behavior. Society is increasingly subject to the logic of economic life and bureaucratic thinking.

• transition from the production of goods to a service economy;
• the rise and dominance of highly educated technical vocational specialists;
• the main role theoretical knowledge as a source of discoveries and political decisions in society;
• control over technology and the ability to assess the consequences of scientific and technical innovations;
• decision-making based on the creation of intellectual technology, as well as using the so-called information technology.

The latter is brought to life by the needs of the beginning to form information society. The emergence of such a phenomenon is by no means accidental. The basis of social dynamics in the information society is not traditional material resources, which are also largely exhausted, but information (intellectual) ones: knowledge, scientific, organizational factors, intellectual abilities of people, their initiative, creativity.

The concept of post-industrialism today has been developed in detail, has a lot of supporters and an ever-increasing number of opponents. The world has formed two main directions assessments of the future development of human society: eco-pessimism and techno-optimism. Ecopessimism predicts total global catastrophe due to increasing pollution environment; destruction of the Earth's biosphere. Techno-optimism draws a rosier picture, assuming that scientific and technical progress will cope with all the difficulties on the path of social development.

Basic typologies of society

In the history of social thought, several typologies of society have been proposed.

Typologies of society during the formation of sociological science

Founder of sociology, French scientist O. Comte proposed a three-member stage typology, which included:

• stage of military dominance;
• stage of feudal rule;
• stage of industrial civilization.

The basis of the typology G. Spencer the principle of evolutionary development of societies from simple to complex is established, i.e. from an elementary society to an increasingly differentiated one. Spencer envisioned the development of societies as component a single evolutionary process for all nature. The lowest pole of the evolution of society is formed by the so-called military societies, characterized by high homogeneity, the subordinate position of the individual and the dominance of coercion as a factor of integration. From this phase, through a series of intermediate ones, society develops to the highest pole - industrial society, in which democracy, the voluntary nature of integration, spiritual pluralism and diversity dominate.

Typologies of society in the classical period of development of sociology

These typologies differ from those described above. Sociologists of this period saw their task as explaining it based not on the general order of nature and the laws of its development, but on nature itself and its internal laws. So, E. Durkheim sought to find the “original cell” of the social as such and for this purpose looked for the “simplest”, most elementary society, the most simple form organization of “collective consciousness”. Therefore, his typology of societies is built from simple to complex, and is based on the principle of complicating the form of social solidarity, i.e. consciousness by individuals of their unity. In simple societies, mechanical solidarity operates because the individuals composing them are very similar in consciousness and life situation - like particles of a mechanical whole. IN complex societies exists a complex system division of labor, differentiated functions of individuals, therefore the individuals themselves differ from each other in their way of life and consciousness. They are united by functional connections, and their solidarity is “organic”, functional. Both types of solidarity are represented in any society, but in archaic societies mechanical solidarity predominates, and in modern societies organic solidarity predominates.

German classic of sociology M. Weber viewed the social as a system of domination and subordination. His approach was based on the idea of ​​society as the result of a struggle for power and to maintain dominance. Societies are classified according to the type of dominance that prevails in them. The charismatic type of dominance arises on the basis of the personal special power - charisma - of the ruler. Priests or leaders usually possess charisma, and such dominance is non-rational and does not require a special system of management. Modern society, according to Weber, is characterized by a legal type of domination based on law, characterized by the presence of a bureaucratic management system and the operation of the principle of rationality.

Typology of the French sociologist Zh. Gurvich features a complex multi-level system. He identifies four types of archaic societies that had a primary global structure:

• tribal (Australia, American Indians);
• tribal, which included heterogeneous and weakly hierarchized groups united around the endowed magical power leader (Polynesia, Melanesia);
• tribal with military organization, consisting of family groups and clans (North America);
• tribal tribes united into monarchical states (“black” Africa).

• charismatic societies (Egypt, Ancient China, Persia, Japan);
• patriarchal societies (Homeric Greeks, Jews of the Old Testament era, Romans, Slavs, Franks);
• city-states ( greek city policies, Roman cities, Italian cities Renaissance);
• feudal hierarchical societies (European Middle Ages);
• societies that gave rise to enlightened absolutism and capitalism (Europe only).

IN modern world Gurvich identifies: technical-bureaucratic society; a liberal democratic society built on the principles of collectivist statism; society of pluralistic collectivism, etc.

Typologies of society in modern sociology

The postclassical stage of development of sociology is characterized by typologies based on the principle of technical and technological development of societies. Nowadays, the most popular typology is one that distinguishes between traditional, industrial and post-industrial societies.

Traditional societies characterized by high development of agricultural labor. The main sector of production is the procurement of raw materials, which is carried out within peasant families; members of society strive to satisfy mainly domestic needs. The basis of the economy is the family farm, which is able to satisfy, if not all of its needs, then a significant part of them. Technical development is extremely weak. The main method in decision making is the “trial and error” method. Social relations are extremely poorly developed, as is social differentiation. Such societies are tradition-oriented, therefore, oriented towards the past.

Industrial society - a society characterized by high industrial development and rapid growth economic growth. Economic development is carried out mainly due to an extensive, consumer attitude towards nature: in order to satisfy its current needs, such a society strives for the most complete development of the natural resources at its disposal. The main sector of production is the processing and processing of materials, carried out by teams of workers in factories and factories. Such a society and its members strive for maximum adaptation to the present moment and satisfaction of social needs. The main method of decision-making is empirical research.

Another very important feature of industrial society is the so-called “modernization optimism”, i.e. absolute confidence that any problem, including social, can be solved based on scientific knowledge and technology.

Post-industrial society is a society that originates in currently and has a number of significant differences from industrial society. If an industrial society is characterized by a desire for maximum industrial development, then in a post-industrial society a much more noticeable (and ideally primary) role is played by knowledge, technology and information. In addition, the service sector is developing rapidly, overtaking industry.

In post industrial society there is no faith in the omnipotence of science. This is partly due to the fact that humanity is faced with the negative consequences of its own activities. For this reason, “environmental values” come to the fore, and this means not only careful attitude to nature, but also Attentive attitude to balance and harmony necessary for adequate development of society.

The basis of post-industrial society is information, which in turn gave rise to another type of society - informational. According to supporters of the theory of the information society, a completely new society is emerging, characterized by processes that are opposite to those that took place in the previous phases of the development of societies even in the 20th century. For example, instead of centralization there is regionalization, instead of hierarchization and bureaucratization - democratization, instead of concentration - disaggregation, instead of standardization - individualization. All these processes are driven by information technology.

People offering services either provide information or use it. For example, teachers transfer knowledge to students, repairmen use their knowledge to maintain equipment, lawyers, doctors, bankers, pilots, designers sell clients their specialized knowledge of laws, anatomy, finance, aerodynamics and color ranges. They do not produce anything, unlike factory workers in an industrial society. Instead, they transfer or use knowledge to provide services for which others are willing to pay.

Researchers are already using the term " virtual society" to describe the modern type of society, formed and developing under the influence of information technologies, especially Internet technologies. The virtual, or possible, world has become new reality due to the computer boom that has swept society. Virtualization (replacement of reality with a se simulation/image) of society, researchers note, is total, since all the elements that make up society are virtualized, significantly changing their appearance, their status and role.

Post-industrial society is also defined as a society " post-economic", "post-labor", i.e. a society in which the economic subsystem loses its decisive significance, and labor ceases to be the basis of all social relations. In a post-industrial society, a person loses his economic essence and is no longer considered an “economic man”; he focuses on new, “postmaterialist” values. The emphasis is shifting to social and humanitarian problems, and the priority issues are the quality and safety of life, the self-realization of the individual in various social spheres, and therefore new criteria for welfare and social well-being are being formed.

According to the concept of post-economic society, developed by the Russian scientist V.L. Inozemtsev, in a post-economic society, in contrast to an economic one, focused on material enrichment, main goal For most people it becomes the development of their own personality.

The theory of post-economic society is associated with a new periodization of human history, in which three large-scale eras can be distinguished - pre-economic, economic and post-economic. This periodization is based on two criteria: type human activity and the nature of the relationship between the interests of the individual and society. The post-economic type of society is defined as this type social structure, Where economic activity man’s life is becoming more intense and complex, but is no longer determined by his material interests, and is not set by traditionally understood economic feasibility. The economic basis of such a society is formed by the destruction of private property and a return to personal property, to the state of non-alienation of the worker from the tools of production. Fast- economic society inherent new type social confrontation - the confrontation between the information-intellectual elite and all people who are not included in it, engaged in the sphere of mass production and, due to this, pushed to the periphery of society. However, each member of such a society has the opportunity to enter the elite himself, since membership in the elite is determined by abilities and knowledge.