How often do your traditional beliefs influence your actions? It is one of the exciting questions of today’s world because certain beliefs affect the lifestyle of humans. The term individualization thesis is becoming popular mostly in contemporary western society. The people of this society take decisions based on their judgment and analysis. They do not care what the traditional beliefs and values say about a particular thing. This individualization thesis is the topic of our today’s discussion. It will discuss the thesis’s origin, purpose, and concept or theory. Before moving on further, it is important to define the term first. Thus, let’s begin our discussion with the following very basic question:
What Is An Individualisation Thesis/What Is An Individualisation Theory?
With more and more development, modernization has become a key to progress. This is the fact that many students prefer to hire dissertation proposal writing services in this modern era. With this modernity, you have more ability to think about things and make rational decisions. Beck and Beck-Gernsheim 2002 studied this and formulated this individualization thesis. It is a theory that states that individuals are becoming less influenced by traditional norms. The traditional and social norms are forms of social restrictions. As this restriction eradicates, individuals become more self-reflective and make good decisions.
This thesis is the result of globalization, capitalism, and, of course, modernization. Due to this, individuals have become more self-reflective. They can examine themselves better using modern tools and techniques. Based on this theory, they can now choose their careers and lifestyle based on their thoughts. There is no involvement of traditional beliefs and social norms in their selection.
Who Wrote The Individualisation Thesis?
The two researchers, Ulrich Beck and Elisabeth Beck-Gernsheim, wrote a book on individualisation. The individualisation thesis came from that book. After publishing this book, this theory got spread all over the world. This book is, in fact, a collection of different research papers. It covers very diverse issues, like the progression of norms beyond social myths and beliefs.
This book also discusses the staying power of “zombie categories.” The zombie categories mean those ideas which have become outdated. But the problem is that people are still stuck to those ideas due to their natural habits. In simple words, those ideas and beliefs have become an integral part of an individual’s life. The thesis also discusses a bit about women’s empowerment in society. Beck’s thesis covers a lot of other issues, like family structure etc.
What is the concept of individualisation?
The concept of the individualisation thesis is very easy to understand. It is all about taking your decisions yourself. It does not account for the traditional norms and social beliefs. You make your decision without thinking about them. This concept brings many things, and it greatly impacts the life of an individual. Those impacts sometimes will be negative and sometimes positive, depending on the decisions. It gives full authority to the individual. As I talked about the negative and positive impacts above, let’s know them further. You can find a description of those impacts below.
Positive Impacts
The positive impacts of the individualization thesis include:
Personal freedom
It grants individuals personal freedom. By using this thesis, a person can get rid of all the social distractions and restrictions. It is necessary because social restrictions sometimes impact the lives of individuals a lot. People find themselves unable to make good decisions due to social fears and anxieties. This thesis provides the individual with personal freedom. They can choose what they want. Also, people want personal freedom and the freedom to choose what is best for them, and this theory provides them with this freedom.
Award social status
The concept of the individualization thesis is applicable in every field of life. It awards social status to your personal achievements. For example, you invented something or made a ground-breaking discovery. This concept of individualization will not let others take away your invention or discovery. Thus, it awards social status to individuals.
Negative impacts
After discussing some positive impacts, let’s look at the negative impacts of this thesis. A brief description is as follows:
Difficulty in collectivism
Collectivism is acting collectively to achieve a goal or goals. It is also a very important concept in sociology, where people work together to achieve a common shared goal. The concept of individualisation undermines collectivism. The individuals work on their own to achieve their personal goals. Working hard to achieve your personal goals is a good thing. At the same time, it can be harmful to your objective. Lack of collective interests makes it difficult to achieve collectivism, and individuals often find themselves in the middle of nowhere.
Smaller social circle
The social circle of individuals is smaller. As they work on their own goals and objectives, they tend not to make many friends. This state is also called idiocentrism. Idiocentism is a set of personality traits that indicates an individualistic orientation. The individuals work for their own benefits and goals. The idiocentric people do not account for other people. All they care about is their aims and objectives. This leaves them alone in a society where collectivism prevails a lot. Hence, it negatively impacts the concept of the individualisation thesis.
What is the purpose of individualisation?
After the above discussion, the purpose of individualisation is clear. It allows individuals to make their decisions independently. It also allows individuals not to take traditional societal beliefs and norms into consideration. Below is a detailed description of the purpose of the individualisation thesis:
- It tries to bring more social freedom by empowering the individuals of society. Its special purpose is to empower women.
- It encourages the women to come out of the social influences and make independent decisions.
- It gives them the freedom to choose what they want to do in life.
Conclusion
Individualisation thesis is a useful framework. It eliminates the unknown bias of the people towards their decisions. The zombie beliefs and social myths affect the decisions of individuals a lot. This thesis also eliminates the outdated beliefs. All in all, it is a one-step forward towards modernisation.
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