The Social Perspective of Human Settlements:

A human settlement, or community, is not merely a collection of houses. It is a human (social and cultural) organi ation. (The houses, !hich are cultural products of humanity, "elong to one of the si# dimensions of society or culture, the technological dimension, as e#plained "elo!). Also, it is not $ust a collection of human individuals% it is a socio&cultural system% it is socially organi ed. This means that you need to 'no! some things a"out society things learned in sociology. The community has a life of its o!n !hich goes "eyond the sum of all the lives of all its residents. As a social organi ation, a community is cultural. See(ulture. That means it is a system of systems, and that it is composed of things that are learned rather than transmitted "y genes and chromosomes. All the social or cultural elements of a community, from its technology to its shared "eliefs, are transmitted and stored "y sym"ols. Social Animation (promoting community participation or self help) mo"ili es and organi es a community. This means that the social organi ation of the community is changed, ho!ever slightly or greatly. The mo"ili er or animator, therefore, is a social change agent, or catalyst. )nderstanding the nature ofsocial change, its social nature, in a community, should "e in the mo"ili er*s tool "o#.

An Animator +ust ,no! A"out Society:

It may "e dangerous to da""le in changing something a"out !hich you 'no! nothing. It is therefore the responsi"ility of the mo"ili er to learn something from the sciences of anthropology and sociology(-). A mo"ili er is an applied sociologist, so must 'no! some important features of the su"$ect. (.hile mo"ili ing is an applied social science, it is not the same thing as Social /ngineering. See Social /ngineering). Although the science of sociology is usually taught at the university level, and a social scientist needs a Ph0 no!adays, you do not need all that formal education. Starting from here, perhaps doing a little private literature research on your o!n as !ell, you can learn !hat you need a"out sociology to understand the social nature of communities. The most important thing to learn !as mentioned already, that a social organism such as a community has a life of its o!n that goes "eyond the lives of the residents in it. Those individuals have their o!n changes !hile they develop as human individuals. They are "orn, they get older, they "ecome

adults, they marry, they get $o"s, some "ecome recogni ed leaders, they have children, they die. All of these personal changes in individuals do not, in themselves, change society or a community. In fact, as they are recogni ed, they contri"ute to the sta"ility of society, and to the continuation of the community. The second thing to learn !as "riefly mentioned also. All things social and cultural are transmitted "y sym"ols rather than "y genes. (ommunity development, !hich is a form of social change, re1uires changes in the messages of sym"ols rather than genetic surgery.

,eep the /ssential /lements of Society in +ind:

.hile sociology in itself can "e interesting, the mo"ili er needs to 'no! more a"out it so as to "e a "etter mo"ili er. Since the notion of 2community2 is a social construct, the nature of 2social2 is important to understand. .hat, for e#ample, is the 2glue2 that holds a community (or any social organi ation) together3 Ho! can individuals "e interdependent upon each other, even !hile they "elieve they are independent organisms3 0o such "eliefs, even if they are not accurate, serve some purpose in sustaining or supporting social organi ation3 It is important for the animator to note the inter&connections "et!een the cultural dimensions (descri"ed "elo!) !hich comprise a community. .hile social scientists may disagree a"out the precise nature of those inter&connections, all !ill agree that the "asic characteristic of society (and thus of the communities !ithin a society) is that they are interconnected. A community, li'e other social institutions, is not merely a collection of individual persons% it is a changing set of relationships, including the attitudes and "ehaviour of its mem"ers. 4emem"er that your goal is community empo!erment. ,no!ing !hat a community is, and its social and cultural nature, !ill help you to 'no! !hat it is that is "ecoming empo!ered "y your efforts.