
For a UPSC CSE aspirant, the optional subject is also an important subject. In the UPSC mains exam, optional marks have two papers, Paper 1 and Paper 2. Each paper is of 250 marks which makes a total of 500 marks. The UPSC optional subject list contains 48 subjects in total, one of which is Sociology.
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SYLLABUS FOR PAPER I
- Sociology – The Discipline
- Modernity and social changes in Europe and the emergence of sociology
- Sociology and common sense
- Scope of the subject and comparison with other social sciences
- Sociology as Science:
- Major theoretical strands of research methodology
- Science, scientific method and critique
- Positivism and its critique
- Non- positivist methodologies
- Fact value and objectivity
- Research Methods and Analysis:
- Quantitative, and qualitative methods
- Variables, hypothesis, sampling, reliability, and validity
- Techniques of data collection
- Sociological Thinkers:
- Karl Marx- Historical materialism, alienation, mode of production, class struggle
- Max Weber- Social action, authority, ideal types, bureaucracy, the spirit of capitalism, and the protestant ethic
- Emile Durkheim- Division of labor, suicide, social fact, religion, and society
- Talcott Parsons- Social system, pattern variables
- Mead – Self, and identity
- Robert K. Merton- Latent and manifest functions, conformity and deviance, reference groups
- Stratification and Mobility:
- Concepts- equality, hierarchy, inequality, exclusion, deprivation, and poverty
- Dimensions – Social stratification of class, status groups, gender, ethnicity, and race
- Theories of social stratification- Structural functionalist theory, Weberian theory, Marxist theory
- Social mobility- open and closed systems, types of mobility, causes of mobility, and sources
- Works and Economic Life:
- The social organization of work in different types of society- slave society, industrial /capitalist society, feudal society
- Labour and society
- Formal and informal organization of work
- Politics and Society:
- Sociological theories of power
- The power elite, pressure groups, bureaucracy, and political parties
- Nation, state, democracy, citizenship, ideology, civil society
- The protest, social movements, agitation, collective action, revolution
- Religion and Society:
- Sociological theories of religion
- Religion in modern society: religion and science, religious revivalism, secularization, fundamentalism
- Types of religious practices: animism, pluralism, sects, monism, cults
- Systems of Kinship:
- Types and forms of family
- Family, household, marriage
- Patriarchy and the sexual division of labor
- Lineage and descent
- Contemporary trends
- Social Change in Modern Society:
- Sociological theories of social change
- Agents of social change
- Education and social change
- Development and dependency
- Technology, science, and social change
SYLLABUS FOR PAPER II
A. Introducing Indian Society
(i) Perspectives on the study of Indian society:
- Indology (GS. Ghurye)
- Marxist sociology (A R Desai)
- Structural functionalism (M N Srinivas)
(ii) Impact of colonial rule on Indian society:
- The social background of Indian nationalism
- Protests and movements during the colonial period
- Modernization of Indian tradition
- Social reforms
B. Social Structure:
(i) Rural and Agrarian Social Structure:
- The idea of Indian village and village studies
- Agrarian social structure – the evolution of land reforms, and land tenure system
(ii) Caste System:
- Features of the caste system
- Perspectives on the study of caste systems: GS Ghurye, Louis Dumont, M N Srinivas, Andre Beteille
- Untouchability – perspectives, and forms
(iii) Tribal communities in India:
- Definitional problems
- Colonial policies and tribes
- Geographical spread
- Issues of autonomy, and integration
(iv) Social Classes in India:
- Agrarian class structure
- Middle classes in India
- Industrial class structure
(v) Systems of Kinship in India:
- Types of kinship systems
- Lineage and descent in India
- Household dimensions of the family
- Family and marriage in India
(vi) Religion and Society:
- Religious communities in India
- Patriarchy, entitlements, and the sexual division of labor
- Problems of religious minorities
C. Social Changes in India:
(i) Visions of Social Change in India:
- The idea of development planning and a mixed economy
- Education and social change
- Constitution, social change, and law
(ii) Rural and Agrarian transformation in India:
- Programmes of rural development, Programme, cooperatives, Community Development, poverty alleviation schemes
- Changing modes of production in Indian agriculture
- Green revolution and social change
- Problems of rural labour, bondage, migration
(iii) Industrialization and Urbanisation in India:
- Growth of urban settlements in India
- Evolution of modern industry in India
- Working-class: structure, growth, class mobilization
- Slums and deprivation in urban areas
- In the informal sector, child labor
(iv) Politics and Society:
- Nation, citizenship, and democracy
- Political parties, the social, pressure groups, and the political elite
- Secularization
- Regionalism and decentralization of power
(v) Social Movements in Modern India:
- Peasants and farmers movements
- Backward classes & Dalit movement
- Women’s movement
- Ethnicity and Identity movements
- Environmental movements
(vi) Population Dynamics:
- Population size, composition, growth, and distribution
- Population policy and family planning
- Components of population growth: birth, death, migration
- Emerging issues: aging, sex ratios, child and infant mortality, reproductive health
(vii) Challenges of Social Transformation:
- Crisis of development: displacement, environmental problems, and sustainability
- Violence against women
- Caste conflicts
- Poverty, deprivation, and inequalities
- Illiteracy and disparities in education
- Ethnic conflicts, communalism, religious revivalism