Social Control: An Analysis

Social control in India existed even before the country became independent. The existing literature argues that social control is of many types and has a definite purpose. It is found among tribes, the police, army and even political parties. Social control therefore works to discipline the behaviour of individuals in most nuanced ways, as it shapes the cognitive abilities of the people concerned While India gained independence in 1947, this paper argues that social control in post-colonial societies like India and elsewhere, has evolved from being simple to more complex. The central argument of the paper is that, social control theories are deterministic in nature i.e., they often pre-suppose that people are anti-social in their behavior. As a result, solutions are often directed towards reforming or correcting such ‘anti-social’ behavior. Thus, ‘stigma’ and ‘labeling’ are often the consequences of social control. The paper attempts to highlight both the positive as well as devastating effects of social control. The method adopted by the paper is qualitative