- Solidarity as a value
- The values
- Individualism and collectivism
- Masculinity and femininity
- Types of solidarity
- Mechanical solidarity
- Organic solidarity
- Examples of solidarity
- References
The solidarity is the unity of a group or class and relies on the support of the interests of others, even in adverse difficult situations or for oneself. In general, it refers to the ties that unite the members of a society; therefore, the term is used mainly in sociology and other social sciences.
Solidarity is also one of the main values of Christianity, based on the idea that those who share their well-being with others will be worthy of salvation. This is one of the best known messages of Jesus Christ, summed up in his popular phrase "love your neighbor as yourself."
Because it is one of the most important topics studied by sociology, many of the great sociologists in history have theorized about how and why solidarity occurs. Some of the best known and most influential are Émile Durkheim and Peter Kropotkin.
On the other hand, solidarity is also closely related to altruism, one of the topics studied in greater depth by social psychology.
Solidarity as a value
Solidarity is considered one of the fundamental values of well-functioning societies. Because human beings are social animals, we need to collaborate with others to overcome obstacles, achieve our goals and feel fulfilled.
But what exactly is a value? In sociology, a value is considered to be a basic guide to behavior followed by functional members of a society.
The values
Values can also be understood as the criteria that individuals use to assess and plan their own lives, in such a way that they can choose between different courses of action that may be contrary.
Some examples of social values can be equality, rationality, freedom and democracy. Among these, solidarity is one of the most studied, both from the point of view of social psychology and sociology.
These values represent what we socially consider to be good, virtuous, and worthy of achievement. They represent a kind of behavior guide that all citizens are expected to comply with, despite not having been made explicit in most cases.
In this sense, solidarity as a value probably arises from the Judeo-Christian tradition, which has had a great influence on Western culture.
Because sacrifice for the interests of others and concern for others are two of the fundamental pillars of Christian practice, these values have permeated our society and are still followed today.
Geert Hofstede, a Dutch social psychologist born in the early 20th century, developed a model for comparing the core values of different cultures.
Although he did not focus on solidarity as a differentiated value, he did examine two others that are directly related to it: individualism (versus collectivism) and masculinity (versus femininity).
Individualism and collectivism
One of the five core values that Hofstede used to examine the differences between different cultures and countries was their degree of individuality.
According to this psychologist, some cultures place a great emphasis on the "I"; In these individualistic cultures, the ties between people are not very strong and the only supportive relationships would be between members of the same family.
On the other hand, some cultures would be at the other extreme and would therefore be collectivist. People in this type of society would put the interests of others ahead of their own, in such a way that loyalty ties would be created between them and solidarity would be a much more common value.
According to several cross-cultural investigations based on Hofstede's investigations, Latino cultures would be halfway between individualism and collectivism, so solidarity is an important value for us but it is not as fundamental as in other places like Asia.
Masculinity and femininity
The other of Hofstede's values that relates to solidarity is masculinity vs. femininity of a country. This researcher defined a male society as one in which great emphasis is placed on achievement, assertiveness, material goods, and heroism.
On the contrary, a female society is one that values empathy, caring for others, cooperation and quality of life the most. For this reason, women's societies would give greater importance to solidarity.
In this case, Latino societies are among the most feminine (and therefore supportive) in the world.
Types of solidarity
Émile Durkheim described two types of solidarity within a society: mechanical solidarity and organic solidarity.
While mechanics has to do with the feeling of familiarity that people have with those who have a similar life, organic is more related to the interdependence that forms in developed societies.
Mechanical solidarity
- It is based on the characteristics that people have in common. For this reason, it is typical of small societies, where all the members are fundamentally equal.
- It hardly generates interdependence.
- It doesn't have much to do with morality or ethics.
- In societies where there is mechanical solidarity, its absence is punished by law and very harshly.
- It is usually based on religious laws and dictates, so it cannot be doubted.
Organic solidarity
- Based on interdependence and division of labor.
- Typical of developed societies with many members.
- Protected by constitutional rights rather than restrictive laws.
- Based on logic and human values, without any religious or spiritual connotation.
Examples of solidarity
In our day to day we can carry out a large number of actions that help us to be more faithful to the value of solidarity. Some of these actions are the following:
- Participate in a volunteer service.
- Give the seat in public transport to someone who needs it.
- Donate money to an NGO or give it to the poor.
- Listen to the problems of others and help them solve them.
Of course, this list is incomplete; If you want to help others and behave in solidarity, you can find thousands of ways to do it.
References
- "Solidarity" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: March 17, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
- "Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: March 17, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
- "The Meaning and Functions of Social Values" in: Your Article Library. Retrieved on: March 17, 2018 from Your Article Library: yourarticlelibrary.com.
- "7 Examples of solidarity" in: Meanings. Retrieved on: March 17, 2018 from Meanings: significados.com.
- "Mechanical and organic solidarity" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: March 17, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.