Social Conflict and Cultural Conflict Theories - Research Paper Example

Social Conflict and Cultural Conflict Theories Introduction Conflicts are part of societies. Conflicts have existed in the world from time immemorial. People and societies have similarities and differences that manifest in their individual interests. Conflicts arise from these factors. People fail to agree on certain issues. These disagreements either are solved through negotiations and sacrifices or are never solved. When there is failure in finding solutions to existing differences conflicts arise. Conflicts normally arise from an interaction characterized by purpose between two or more parties and takes place in a competitive setting. There have been theories that have been established to explain and may be offer solutions to these conflicts. Examples of these theories include social conflict theories and cultural conflict theories among others. Background Social conflict theories are Marxist-based theories that argue that people within the society, including groups differ in terms of material and non-material resources (Surhone, Timpledon, & Marseken, 2010). This division manifests between the rich and the poor. The rich have the power, control the means of production while the poor are powerless or have limited power, and thus have no control over resources. The rich who have power use it to exploit and oppress the groups that have lesser power. This exploitation occurs through economic and brute force. Cultural conflict theory considers cultural diversity in the modern industrial society as the major cause of conflicts. The cultural embodiment in people that is diverse is the root cause of conflicts (Sellin, 1983). This paper will examine and explain the similarities and differences that are existent in social conflict theories and cultural conflicts and their manifestation in communication between individuals and groups and how the conflict escalates and deescalates (Surhone, Timpledon, & Marseken, 2010). Literature review Thorsten Sellin (1938) put prominence on the cultural multiplicity of modern industrial society. He viewed law as an embodiment of the normative constitution of the dominant cultural group (Sellin, 1983). To him, the criminal law holds the "crime norms,” that present what is considered as inappropriate behavior and its punishment. It shows the values and interests of the groups, which manage to control the legislative process. He also considered the "conduct norms" of other groups that are less powerful as they reflect on the specific social situations and experiences of these groups and often come into conflict (Culture Conflict) with the crime norms. This results to the construction of deviant or criminal definitions that surround the everyday behavior of the individual members of the less powerful groups. Sellin states that as society diversify and become heterogeneous, the likelihood of more frequent conflict arises, therefore deviance increase (Sellin, 1983). George Vold (1958) expanded on the ideas of Sellin by emphasizing on the understanding of the social nature of crimes as a manifestation of group struggles (Vold, 1958). He states that humans are social by nature and form groups based on interests and needs that people share. These needs and interests come into play as individuals interact and result to competition. This happens as people try to maintain and expand their group position in the control of resources. This competition results to conflicts (Vold, 1958). Austin Turk in 1969 added to this theory by developing a general conflict theory of crime. He focused on institutional authority where the power is embedded on structural relations that are specific to a certain society (Turk, 1969). In this power authority domain, Turk observed that conflict that occur between authorities and subjects happen when behavioral differences between authorities and subjects are determined by cultural differences. The probability of the occurrence of conflict increases the more organized those who have an illegal attribute are and how they engage in illegal acts. It becomes less probable the less sophisticated the participants are (Turk, 1969). Social conflict theories are based on competition for scarce resources. Various scholars contributed to this theory. For instance, Machiavelli states that the tendency towards conflict is a basic element that is existent in human nature. To him human beings are naturally violent. Social conflict theory is based on Carl Marx ideas. According to Marx, all societies are stratified into two major social groups. These two groups are the ruling class and the subject class (Sitton, 1996). The ruling class has powers that are derived from the ownership and control of the means of production. The ruling class uses this power to exploit and oppress the subject class. This oppression and exploitation leads to a basic conflict of interest between the two classes. The institutions that exist in society, for instance, political and legal institutions are meant to safeguard the position of the ruling class. They are instruments that aid the domination of the ruling class and to safeguard their interest. Therefore, the social conflict theory looks at the society as an ocean of inequality. The inequality manifests itself in issues of property. This causes conflicts. Social conflict theory is based on five essential factors, inequality, power, authority, competition and exploitation (Sitton, 1996). Similarities Both social conflict theories and cultural conflicts are based on social observation. This means that the two theories are based on societal causes. They base on the way the society is structured so that groups engage in conflicts because of certain forms of societal imbalance (Edgar, 2007). Both theories are based on power. Social conflict theory looks at conflicts in terms of power to control and own resources. Therefore, one group is exploited because another group owns the means of production leaving them with nothing. Cultural conflict is based on power in terms of the power that is based on structural relationships that are a characteristic of a specific society. They both rely on material or resource base. Both state that conflicts among groups come about because of exploitation (Tischler, 2010). They are based on the fact that one group of individuals is capable and has power to control the societal resources while the other group is left to survive on scarce resources. The availability of enough resources to ne group and unavailability of resources to another group causes conflicts. This is because one group involves itself in activities that will ensure they maintain the resources they have while the other group will involve itself in activities that will ensure that they get the resources that they need (Tischler, 2010). The theories also assert that conflicts mainly arise because of competitions that exist between groups as they struggle for resources. These groups are involved in activities that are intended to either maintain their resource base or increase their resource base. There is no group that is contended with the resources that they own. Therefore, as they struggle to maintain or increase their resources they conflict because of the interaction of their interests and needs. No group can accept to give in to the demands of the other group. This is why the powerful group develops legal structures to ensure that the less powerful group remains under the same conditions (Bartos & Wehr, 2002). Differences The social conflict theory and cultural conflict theories have certain differences with regard to the way they view conflicts among groups in the society. The social conflict theory looks at conflicts as a manifestation of an inequality in resource ownership and allocation. This theory looks at power, authority, competition and exploitation in terms of material issues. It states that all conflicts arise because the ruling class that is powerful in society owns a large portion of property while the subject group that is less powerful owns a small portion of societal property yet it is the larger group. Therefore, conflicts arise because of the activities engaged by these groups as they fight for resources (Andersen & Taylor, 2005). On the other hand, cultural theory bases its argument on societal structures that aid the inequalities in material property and resource allocation and ownership. For instance, Thorsten Sellin put emphasis on cultural diversity as a cause of conflicts (Turk, 1969). The fact that the world comprises of more than one culture is enough cause of conflicts among groups because cultural diversity brings about diverse interests. He defines this through the use of crime norms and conduct norms that are specific to particular groups in society. This also means that these groups do not engage in conflicts because of material issues but also because of their differences. Cultural diversity means that there are certain groups that are more powerful than others are. Therefore, the powerful group defines acceptable behaviors for the less powerful groups. This automatically leads to the advancement of deviant behavior codes (Turk, 1969). In addition, groups become more heterogeneous conflict issues increase because deviance increases. This means that the cultural conflict theory acknowledges deviance as a cause of conflict. Deviance here could include the fact that people accumulate material gains through ways that are not acceptable in society. It is in this respect that issues of crime as a form of conflict is defined. The values and norms of cultural groups play an important role in the definition of conflict in the society. It defines deviance, which is considered as an abnormal behavior that might cause conflicts (Vold, 1958). As individuals engage in communication, the similarities and differences result into conflicts. Interests of groups are outlined in their communication. For instance, the communication between the ruling class and the subject class reflect their interests for material gain and control. The ruling class will communicate their desire to maintain and control the means of production in the society. The subject class will communicate their desire for the need of more resource allocation and control. They will communication their frustration and exploitation. Therefore, this will result in conflicts (Samovar & Porter, 1994.). The powerful groups in society communicate their interests in the definition off deviance in the society. The lesser powerful groups communicate their dissatisfaction on the definition of deviance in society. Therefore, these struggle leads to conflicts. For instance, in the united states of America, the culture of the three dominant groups that include whites, black Americans and Latinos creates an evidence of cultural conflicts. In the search of recognition and material well-being, the three groups come into clash because of similar interests and different cultural affiliations. One group develops norms that it expects other groups to observe. Lack of observance brings up conflicts Personal experience When I was 16 I was shot while going home from school, and although the incident was perpetrated by a Latino, such as myself, there was racial tension present due to the fact that I had a lot of black friends. The perpetrator believed that I should be with Latino friends only and separation was better. This made me think of segregation and assimilation in the south in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as equality versus inequality. People from white, black or Latino races never mingled because of segregation. In fact, the whites viewed themselves as superior to others and they controlled most of the resources. People from other cultures consider their own members more equal than others from other cultures; even when looking for material wealth. Clearly, people are expected to abide by set values, norms and standards that are set by their cultural affiliations. When this fails, conflicts arise. Summary Conflicts in the society, as brought out by social conflict theory and cultural conflict theory occur between and among groups. Social conflict theory considers conflicts as a reflection of the struggle for ownership of material base. Cultural conflict theory considers conflict as a manifestation of cultural or societal values and norms and the definition of deviance. However, both of them assert that conflicts arise because of exploitation, power, authority, competition and inequality. As long as these issues exist, conflicts will always exist because of them. The similarities and differences in communication of groups and individuals as they communicate their interests, needs and frustrations will always result to conflicts. This is because the diversity of cultural groups, social classes and the scarcity of resources will always bring a conflict of interest. Where interests are alike, the scarcity of resources will always result to struggle that will cause conflicts among groups. Therefore, social conflict theory and cultural conflict theories are essential in the explanation of conflicts in the society. References Andersen, M. L., & Taylor, H. F. (2005). Sociology: understanding a diverse society. London: Cengage Learning. Bartos, O. J., & Wehr, P. E. (2002). Using conflict theory. London: Cambridge University Press. Edgar, A. (2007). Cultural theory: the key concepts. London: Routledge. Samovar, L., & Porter, R. (1994.). Intercultural Communication: A Reader. . New York: International Thomason Publishing. . Sellin, T. (1983). Culture and Conflict in Crime. New York: Social Science Research Council. Sitton, J. F. (1996). Recent Marxian theory: class formation and social conflict in contemporary capitalism. New York: SUNY Press. Surhone, L. M., Timpledon, M. T., & Marseken, S. F. (2010). Social Conflict Theory. New Jersey: VDM Verlag Dr. Mueller AG & Co. Kg. Tischler, H. L. (2010). Introduction to Sociology. London: Cengage Learning. Turk, A. (1969). Criminality and Legal Order. Chicago: Rand McNally. Vold, G. (1958). Theoretical Criminology. New York: Oxford University Press. Read More