Chapter 12

Political Organization and Social Control

What We Will Learn What are the different types of political

organization? What are the various theories concerning the

origins of the state? In the absence of kings, presidents,

legislatures, and bureaucracies, how is social order maintained in stateless societies?

What are the causes of war?

Three Dimensions of Political Organization

1. Extent to which political institutions are distinct from other aspects of the social structure.

2. Extent to which authority is concentrated into specific political roles.

3. Level of political integration (the size of the territorial group that comes under the control of the political structure).

Four Types of Political Structures Band societies Tribal societies Chiefdoms State societies

Band Societies Least complex form of political

arrangement. Characterized by small, nomadic

populations of food collectors. Most bands number between 30 and 50

people.

Band Societies Little concept of individual property

ownership with a high value on sharing, cooperation, and reciprocity.

Little role specialization and highly egalitarian.

Thought to be the oldest form of political organization.

Characteristics of Band Societies There is a high value placed on “getting along”

with one another. Bands are independent of one another and are

not part of a larger political structure. Political decisions are often embedded in the

wider social structure. Leadership roles in band societies tend to be

informal.

Tribal Societies Found most often among food producers. Tend to have populations that are larger,

denser, and somewhat more sedentary. Leadership is informal and not vested in a

centralized authority. Have certain pan-tribal mechanisms that

cut across and integrate all of the local segments of the tribe into a larger whole.

Chiefdoms Political authority is likely to reside with a single

individual, acting alone or in conjunction with an advisory council.

Integrate a number of local communities in a formal and permanent way.

Made up of local communities that differ from one another in terms of rank and status.

Chiefships are hereditary, and the chief and immediate kin are a social and political elite.

State Systems Most formal and complex form of

political organization. Authority of the state rests on two

important foundations.1. The state holds exclusive right to use

force and physical coercion.2. The state maintains authority by

means of ideology.

Voluntaristic Theory of State Formation: Childe Development of intensive agriculture during the

neolithic period created food surpluses. Food surpluses allowed a segment of the

population to engage in new occupations such as weavers, traders, potters, and metalworkers.

This required political integration to mediate between special interest groups and provide an economic superstructure.

Hydraulic theory of state formation: Wittfogel Small-scale irrigation farmers in arid or semiarid

areas saw economic advantages in merging their small communities into a larger political entity capable of large-scale irrigation.

Though archaeological evidence indicates that certain states developed before the introduction of large-scale irrigation, centralized political governments appear to be functional for agricultural systems dependent on irrigation.

Coercive Theory of State Formation: Carneiro Suggests that the existence of the state is

the direct result of warfare. Although warfare is the mechanism of

state formation, it operates only in areas that have limited agricultural land for expanding populations.

The Modern Nation-State A nation is a group of people who share a

common symbolic identity, culture, history, and often, religion.

A state is a particular type of political structure distinct from a band, tribal society, or chiefdom.

The term nation-state refers to a group of people sharing a common cultural background and unified by a political structure that they all consider legitimate.

Changing State Systems of Government According to Freedom House, an organization

that tracks political trends throughout the world: Over the last two decades the world’s

population living in “free” societies increased from 36 to 41%.

Those living in “partly free” societies increased from 22 to 24%.

Those living in “not free” societies decreased from 42 to 35%.

Variations in Political Aspects of World Cultures

Variations in Socioeconomic Aspects of World Cultures

Social Control Every society must ensure that most of the

people behave themselves in appropriate ways most of the time.

Social norms are normal, proper, or expected ways of behaving.

Deviance is a violation of social norms. Sanctions are institutionalized ways of

encouraging people to conform to the norms.

Social Norms in the U.S.

Informal Social Control Socialization Public Opinion Corporate Lineages Supernatural Belief Systems Age Organizations

Age-Graded Society

Formal Social Control Verbal competition Intermediaries Councils of elders Oaths Ordeals Formal court systems Warfare

Why A Society Will Go to War It blames another society for its own

social problems. It believes it is threatened. Wants to further its own ends. Is defending a moral position.

Quick Quiz

1. _______ refers to the way in which power is distributed within a society so as to control peoples' behavior and maintain social order.

a) Political organization

b) Social order

c) Gender stratification

d) Religion

Answer: a Political organization refers to the way

in which power is distributed within a society so as to control peoples' behavior and maintain social order.

2. The least complex form of political arrangement is the ________, characterized by small groups of food collectors.

a) chiefdom

b) band

c) tribe

d) state

Answer: b The least complex form of political

arrangement is the band, characterized by small groups of food collectors.

3. In societies known as ________, political authority is likely to reside with a single individual, acting alone or with an advisory council.

a) bands

b) states

c) chiefdoms

d) tribes

Answer: c In societies known as chiefdoms,

political authority is likely to reside with a single individual, acting alone or with an advisory council.

4. The ________ system of government is the most formal and most complex form of political organization.

a) band

b) tribe

c) state

d) chiefdom

Answer: c The state system of government is the

most formal and most complex form of political organization.

5. All societies have some form of ________, which involves teaching the young what the norms are and that they should not be violated.

a) normalization

b) public opinion

c) socialization

d) coercion

Answer: c

5. All societies have some form of socialization, which involves teaching the young what the norms are and that they should not be violated.