We looked at the concepts of sociology, rurality and rural sociology and itssignificance. In this article we are going to look at some basic terms used in rural sociology and its historical development.
This
article will help you understand some basic terms often used in the field of
sociology.
In
this article, you should be able to define/describe some basic terms used in
rural sociology and explain the historical development of rural sociology and
the important events in the development of rural sociology.
Definitions/Description of Sociological Terms
At the introductory level in many universities in Nigeria in particular and in Africa in general many students of rural sociology have not had any previous important learning experience in the area of sociology. The aim of this is to enhance a basic understanding of the terms used in the discussion of sociology by experts in the field.
Some of the terms are defined and described below.
1. Sociology
This
is a discipline which refers to the systematic or scientific study of human
society and social behaviour. It focuses on processes and patterns of
organisation and conduct which are recurrent in society. It is the scientific
study of the society.
2. Rural Sociology
It is the scientific study of rural life. It is the systematic body of knowledge which has resulted from the application of the scientific method to the study of the rural society, social processes, basic social systems, society organisation, institutions and group dynamics.
It is a discipline which studies the influence
of physical, biological and cultural factors on the sociology of groups of
persons considered to be rural or non-urban. Rural sociology might be the
sociology of rural life, environmental sociology or social ecology, the
sociology of rural development.
3. Agricultural Sociology
It
is the application of sociology to the agricultural profession. As the majority
of those who are involved in agriculture live and work in the rural areas,
agricultural sociology centres largely rely on the utilisation of rural
sociological concepts. It is the scientific study of the social lives of people
who are engaged in the agricultural occupation.
4. Rural
This
is defined as remote area or place far away from the seat of government and
having no verified nor infrastructural facilities, that is, the countryside and
the people living in the villages (Mumdi 2006). It also refers to areas with
low population density, small size, and relative isolation, where the major
economic activity is largely agricultural production. The areas considered
rural are the settlements that have between 100 and 200 households.
5. Culture
It
is one of the characteristics of a society. It is a social phenomenon that is
learned through the collective experiences of members of a society. Therefore,
new members of a society are raised within the given culture and are thus
different from members of other societies. What members of the society learn
consists of the ways and means by which the groups deal with the basis and
recurring facts of their existence. Culture is a social phenomenon which is
learned through the collective exercise of members of a society from generation
to generation through education and its special forms termed socialisation.
Basic aspects of culture such as ideas, beliefs and values are abstract and are
called non-material culture.
However,
non-material cultures are reflected in tangible or material culture such as
housing, clothing and technology.
6. Norms
Norms
are the customary rules and behaviours established as standards for guiding a
society. They are the rules which prescribe what is socially acceptable or
unacceptable in any social system. Some norms may differ from one community to
another, while others prevail all over the country.
Mores
are customs or inventions which people regard as important for the welfare and
stability of the society.
The
violations of mores are viewed with more seriousness than the violations of
norms.
A
few examples of norms in the Nigerian society include the following:-
·
It is customary in some communities that pregnant women should not go to the
river in the afternoon or birth at night, or sit under the shade of tree, or
see masquerade etc.
·
Strangers especially in Hausaland and Igalaland cannot meet the Emirs and
chiefs directly.
·
In some parts of Hausaland, it is forbidden for a married woman to converse
with another man other than her husband.
An
understanding of these norms of the society is very crucial in the adoption of
new changes by people or farmers.
7. Statuses and Roles
Status
is a position in the system of social relationships. In rural communities
social statuses include father, mother, rainmaker, diviner, councilor, patrilineal
head, schoolteacher, course facilitator among others. Closely related to the
concept of status is role.
A
role is a set of expectations applied to an occupant of a status and is characterized
by certain obligations (functions or duties) and privileges (rights).
Sociologists often utilise the term status roles to indicate that both concepts
are concomitant or simultaneous. An example is, a father (the status) provides
the capital educational and security needs of his child (rights or privileges).
The child on the other hand is expected to show some respect to the father,
carry out some tasks for him and participate in farm work (obligations). The
same person can have more than one status and play more than one set of roles.
8. Values
These
are standard views about what is acceptable, desirable and what should be,
independent of the circumstance or specific situation. Values are generally
derived from beliefs, which are convictions about the ways things are. They
differ from norms, which are rules that control interrelationships. Among the
rural Igala or Bassa-nge in Kogi State some cherished values include, respect
for elders, hard work and respect for constituted premarital virginity among
others.
9. Beliefs
These
are ideas held by members of a society to be true. That is, beliefs are the
acceptance of any statement or idea as true or existing, regardless of whether
they are in exact conformity with the existing standard or not. Beliefs differ
from one community to another, but each of them holds fast to their own as the
most perfect.
Examples
of beliefs among some people in rural Nigeria include:
·
A person sitting on a grinding stone will develop boils
·
A hen that hatches just one chick will bring bad luck to the owner
·
Putting food into mouth with a knife will result in a double row of teeth
·
Beating a male child with a broom will make him impotent.
These
are two kinds of beliefs:
(a) Superstitions:
These are derived from ignorance or fear of the unknown. For example, among
rural people sighting a giant rat, a nocturnal animal in day light portends the
death of a family member; a child fed on egg will grow up a deviant (stealing).
(b) Taboos:
These are practices or objects forbidden because of beliefs attached to them.
For example, some animals such as snakes, fish, and civet cats are not eaten in
different rural communities. Also,it is forbidden for any child to speak bad
words against his parents.
10. Power
It
comprises influence and authority and it is the ability to influence or control
the action of others in a social system. For example, the village head has a
lot of influence and authority in his area of jurisdiction. He is the only one
mandated by the people to enforce obedience into any member of the community
that goes out of social order. The village subheads have power but no
authority. They can influence the actions of other community members as well as
that of the overall head of the house.
11. Boundary Maintenance
Is
the process by which certain groups of people who are native to their
registered domiciliary choose to maintain their identity within the larger
group. They do this in order to preserve their cultural values and norms, so
that they will not be submerged by the natives or the larger group in the
community. For example, all the Sabon Gari area in the northern part of Nigeria
is occupied by the Yoruba.
Similarly,
all the Sabo areas in Yoruba land are occupied by the Hausa. This is done so
that the people can preserve their cultural heritage and prevent it from being
suppressed by the larger society. Inter-marriages between these two groups are
not allowed, but as a result of civilisation, the situation is now gradually
changing.
12. Systemic Linkage
This
process can be made possible by providing common facilities for the two groups
possibly on a neutral ground. Any device that can create communication link
between the two groups can be utilised, e.g. a demonstration plot, housing
facilities, hospitals, a place of worship and any other important facilities
that can bring the two groups together.
Systemic
linkage can be described as using one stone to kill two birds. The system is
necessary for sociological work because of the lack of resources to provide
different facilities for different groups in a community.
In
carrying out this process, it is very essential for the rural sociologist to
study the prevailing situation in the community. This system may not work where
the relationship between the different social groups have not been very
cordial. If the relationship between the groups is cordial, the system will
save the resources, time, and energy of the sociologists.
13. Indigenous Knowledge
Every
society or culture has its knowledge systems including knowledge that enables members
to cope with daily life whether in the areas of aquaculture, health, education
and economics or any other area of human endeavour. The term indigenous
knowledge was first used to describe knowledge that is generated and
transmitted by community’s overtime, in an effort to cope with their own
agro-ecological and socioeconomic environments (Igbokwe, 2001; Igodan and
Adekunle, 1993).
The
term has been variously referred to as traditional knowledge, local knowledge,
community knowledge or rural peoples’ knowledge. Therefore, the new attention
being given to traditional knowledge system has given rise to new areas of
study viz ethno-medicine (traditional medicine), ethno-veterinary medicine,
ethno-botany, ethno husbandry among others.
The
implication is that in the quest for modernization, there are certain
knowledge/practices or innovations existing in developing communities/societies
that can be adopted into Western systems in order to ensure sustainability.
Indigenous
knowledge (I.K) is local knowledge. It is unique knowledge to a given culture
or society. Some indigenous knowledge is not written down. It is held in
people’s heads and transmitted from one generation to the next by word of
mouth.
Areas
of concern about indigenous knowledge are:
·
Indigenous technologies
·
Knowledge systems (such as taxonomies)
·
Decision making systems (such as what crops to grow on certain soils)
·
Organizational structures (such as farmers’ groups).
Other Basic Concepts/Definitions Change
Agent: These
are persons who attempt to facilitate changes in the behaviour of their
constituents or areas.
Cosmopolites: They
are individuals who are and often interact with urban communities. Ethno
Centrism It is the tendency to value highly a person’s own culture and regard
it as superior to the cultures of others.
Incest Taboo: This
is the prohibition of marriage or sexual intercourse between certain relatives
such as mother and son, brother and sister.
Institution: It
is a structural aspect of culture which satisfies some fundamental needs and
functions of a society.
Historical Development of Rural Sociology in Nigeria
Before
1960, when Nigeria became independent of British rule, no attempt was made to
teach Rural Sociology as a discipline in the only Nigerian university, the
University of Ibadan, which was established in 1948 (Jibrow 1992).
When
a Department of Agricultural Economics was established, there was no separate
Department of Rural Sociology established in the institution until 1991. Rural
Sociology has been taught as a subject in the department since 1966.
In
1968, when a department of Agricultural Extension Services was created in that
university, the teaching of Rural Sociology was moved or transferred to the new
department.
In
1962, the University of Ife was founded. This university established the
Department of Rural Sociology and Extension Education in 1966 under Professor
Robert Clark as the Head of Department. He was a member of the University of
Wisconsin’s team to University of Ife.
The
nomenclature of this university was later changed to the Department of
Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology. The change was to reflect the
departmental agricultural orientation.
At
the first stage, only one course, “Extension in Agriculture”, was taught with
some topics in Rural Sociology viz: social systems, culture and adoption of
farm practices.
When
the curriculum was reviewed in the late 1970s several courses in Rural
Sociology were introduced both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. In
the early 1960s Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) was established.
Also,
the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology was established
where courses in Rural Sociology are also offered.
The
most important event in the development of Rural Sociology in Nigeria was the
establishment of the Nigeria Rural Sociological Association (NRSA) on 6th
November 1984.
The
first Annual Conference of the association was held at the University of Ife,
Ile-Ife. The first president of the association was Alao Joseph Adebanyo who
was a professor of Rural Sociology at the University of Ife.
The second important step in the development of Rural Sociology was the founding of the Nigerian Journal of Rural Sociology by the Nigerian Rural Sociological Association at its Inaugural Conference.
The members of the Editorial Board of this journal were obtained from all over the country.
They included A. A.
Jobowo from University of Ife, B. O. Ogunbameu from University of Maiduguri, A.
U. Patel from the University of Ibadan and F. O. Mc Oliver from the University
of Benin.
The
second Annual Conference centred on the theme of Interdisciplinary Approach to
Development. Cooperation between National and Social Sciences towards Planned
Social Change. This attracted many papers from many disciplines by then.
The
Second Annual Conference was held between 6-10 April 1986. The conference
examined the theme Utilisation of Rural Resources for Rural Development which
attracted various papers from many disciplines. Over fifty papers were
presented on topics ranging from Extension, Sociology, Soil Science, Nutrition
to those in Geography, Agricultural Economics, History and Political Science
(Jibowo, 1922). The most outstanding political achievement of this conference
was the attendance by the Federal Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources and
Rural Development, Lt. General Alani Akinrinade (Rtd).
In
the Minister’s keynote address he presented, among other contributions, the
organisation of rural people into pressure groups to bring government attention
to supporting rural development programmes.
Due
to the frequent visits of some executive committee members of the Nigerian
Rural Sociological Association to the Director of Agriculture, and the Director
of Rural Development at the Federal level, some money was donated to the
Nigerian Rural Sociological Association to organize its conferences and support
its academic publications.
According
to Jobowo (1992), the first issue of the association’s journal with the
proceedings of the first conference, and the proceedings of the second
conference were published.
The
proceedings of the third conference and a book of readings coming from some
presented papers at the conference, appeared in press on 21st August, 1986. The
second issue of the association’s journal was also published.
With
the recognition given to the association during its third Annual Conference by
the Federal Government of Nigeria, it was hoped that the association will
continue to grow firmly and sustainably. Discuss the significant event in the
development of Rural Sociology in Nigeria.
Conclusion on Definitions of Sociological Terms and Historical Development of Rural Sociology in
Nigeria
This
article, has examined the basic concepts or definitions of sociological terms
and the historical development of Rural Sociology in Nigeria. I hope by now,
you would be able to understand some basic terms when used in sociological
discussions by experts in the field.
This
article has exposed you to the various definitions or concepts of sociology as
well as its historical development.
In
addition it has examined some important events in the development of Rural
Sociology in a developing country like Nigeria. It has also highlighted how
some sociological departments were established and the Rural Sociology
course/curriculum offered in some universities.
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