Peter Berger & Thomas Luckmann: Social Construction of Reality #Phenomenology #Berger and Luckmann

Summary

In this video, Emma from Such Logic Online explores Berger and Luckmann's theory of the social construction of reality. She discusses how individuals perceive society as orderly and objective, but in reality, social reality is a construct of human actions. Emma explains the process of how individual activities become habitual, patterned, and eventually institutionalized, leading to an objective reality that individuals internalize. She emphasizes that while society appears to be an external, objective entity, it is entirely a creation of social interactions, and the video concludes with a teaser for a continuation in the next episode.

Takeaways

• 📚 The video discusses the theory of social construction of reality by Berger and Luckmann.
• 🎓 The theory is significant in sociology and phenomenology, influencing social values.
• 🌟 The theory suggests that individuals perceive social reality as objective and external to themselves.
• 🤔 Berger and Luckmann argue that this perception is a 'natural attitude' individuals have towards social reality.
• 🏗️ Social reality is actually a product of individual actions and activities that become habitual and institutionalized over time.
• 🔄 The process involves the creation of objective reality through individual actions that are habitualized, patterned, and institutionalized.
• 🧠 The socialization process is key in making individuals internalize the institutionalized reality, thus becoming social beings.
• 🔄 Objective reality is both produced by individuals and, in turn, shapes individuals' behavior and identity in society.
• 👥 The video emphasizes that society is not an objective entity but a socially constructed one, maintained through shared beliefs and practices.
• 🔄 The theory challenges the notion of society as a naturally ordered system, highlighting its constructed nature.

Q & A

Who are Berger and Luckmann, and what is their theory about?

Berger and Luckmann are prominent sociologists who contributed to the field with their theory of the social construction of reality. This theory posits that society's reality is not an objective entity but is constructed by human interactions and agreements.

What is the social construction of reality according to Berger and Luckmann?

The social construction of reality is a theory suggesting that what we perceive as reality is actually a product of our social interactions. It is not an objective truth but is created through the shared understandings and agreements within a society.

How do individuals understand social reality according to the script?

Individuals typically understand social reality as an objective and external phenomenon that exercises constraints over them. They perceive it as a natural, external, and objective reality that maintains social order.

What is the 'natural attitude' as described in the script?

The 'natural attitude' refers to the way individuals perceive and accept social reality as an objective and external phenomenon. It is the taken-for-granted assumption that the social world exists independently of individual perceptions.

How does Berger and Luckmann's theory challenge the 'natural attitude'?

Berger and Luckmann's theory challenges the 'natural attitude' by suggesting that social reality is not an objective given but is socially constructed. They argue that individuals should bracket this natural attitude to understand social reality sociologically.

What is the process through which objective reality is created according to the script?

The process of creating objective reality begins with individual activities that become habitual, then patterned, and eventually institutionalized across generations, leading to the acceptance of these practices as external and objective realities.

How does the socialization process relate to the construction of social reality?

The socialization process is integral to the construction of social reality as it involves the internalization of institutionalized practices and norms by individuals, thereby making them social beings who accept and perpetuate the social reality.

What role does the concept of 'institutionalized practice' play in the social construction of reality?

Institutionalized practice refers to activities that have become standardized and accepted over time within a society. It plays a crucial role in the social construction of reality as it forms the basis of objective reality that individuals perceive and follow.

How does the script explain the duality of reality being both objective and subjective?

The script explains that reality can be both objective and subjective through the lens of Berger and Luckmann's theory. Objective reality is produced by individuals and then internalized by them, making them social beings. This duality highlights the interplay between individual actions and societal structures.

What is the significance of the social construction of reality in maintaining social order?

The social construction of reality is significant in maintaining social order because it provides a shared understanding of the world that individuals accept as objective. This acceptance allows for the continuation of societal norms and practices, thereby preserving order.

What does the script suggest about the nature of society and its relationship with the individual?

The script suggests that society is not an external, objective entity but is a socially constructed entity. It challenges the belief that society is like the natural world, maintaining order independently of human constructs, and instead posits that society is entirely a creation of social interactions.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to Social Construction of Reality

Emma begins her video by expressing gratitude to subscribers and urging viewers to subscribe and click the bell icon. She introduces the topic of Berger and Luckmann's theory of social construction of reality, a prominent sociological theory that gained traction after the publication of their book. The theory posits that individuals perceive social reality as an objective external phenomenon that constrains them, maintaining societal order. However, Berger and Luckmann argue that this social reality is actually a construct of society itself. They suggest that individuals have a 'natural attitude' towards this reality, treating it as if it were an objective fact, when in fact it is a product of social interactions. The video aims to delve into how individuals understand and construct social reality, and how this construction is both objective and subjective.

05:00

🔄 The Process of Objectivity in Social Reality

In the second paragraph, the video script explains the process by which individual actions become habitual and eventually form patterns that are institutionalized across generations. These institutionalized practices are perceived as objective reality by individuals, who accept them as external and constraining forces. The video discusses the socialization and internalization processes through which individuals come to accept and be shaped by these institutionalized realities. It highlights how society maintains order through these constructs, which are treated as objective by individuals despite being socially created. The video concludes by emphasizing that society is a socially constructed entity and invites viewers to continue the discussion in the next video, encouraging them to like, subscribe, and comment.

Keywords

💡Social Construction of Reality

The concept of 'Social Construction of Reality' refers to the idea that the world is shaped by human social interactions and agreements. In the video, this concept is central as it's discussed how individuals collectively create and maintain their social world. The script mentions that social reality is not an objective truth but a product of social interactions, which is exemplified by how individuals perceive society as orderly and external to them.

💡Phenomenology

Phenomenology is a philosophical movement that explores the nature of human experience and consciousness. In the context of the video, phenomenology is tied to the social construction of reality as it examines how individuals perceive and construct their social world. The script notes that the theory of social construction of reality emerged as a leading theory in phenomenology.

💡Peter Berger

Peter Berger is a sociologist mentioned in the script as one of the key contributors to the theory of social construction of reality. Berger, along with Thomas Luckmann, developed the concept that social reality is a human construct. The script discusses Berger's focus on how individuals understand reality within society.

💡Thomas Luckmann

Thomas Luckmann, like Peter Berger, is a sociologist who contributed to the understanding of social construction of reality. The script highlights Luckmann's work on how social reality is constructed and how it is perceived as objective by individuals, despite being a product of social interactions.

💡Natural Attitude

The 'Natural Attitude' refers to the way individuals perceive the world as objective and external to themselves. In the video, Berger and Luckmann argue that individuals have a natural attitude towards social reality, treating it as an objective phenomenon. This is exemplified in the script where individuals believe that society maintains order because of objective social reality.

💡Objective Reality

Objective reality, as discussed in the video, is the perception of the world as existing independently of individual perception. The script explains that objective reality is a product of individual actions that become institutionalized over time, and individuals then perceive these institutions as external and constraining forces.

💡Subjective Reality

Subjective reality pertains to individual perceptions and interpretations of the world. The video contrasts objective reality with subjective reality, suggesting that while objective reality is a collective construction, subjective reality is personal. The script implies that subjective reality is how individuals internalize and interpret the objective reality.

💡Institutionalized Practices

Institutionalized practices are routines or behaviors that are widely accepted and followed within a society. The script uses this term to describe how individual actions become habitual, patterned, and eventually institutionalized, forming the objective reality that individuals perceive as external.

💡Socialization

Socialization is the process by which individuals learn the norms, values, and behaviors of their society. In the video, socialization is key to how individuals internalize the objective reality created by society. The script mentions socialization as a process where individuals become social beings by internalizing institutionalized reality.

💡Internalization

Internalization is the process of adopting the values, beliefs, and behaviors of one's society. The video discusses how individuals internalize the institutionalized practices of society, making them their own and thus becoming social beings. The script illustrates this by explaining how individuals accept and are constrained by social reality.

💡Societal Order

Societal order refers to the structured and organized nature of society. The video script discusses how individuals perceive societal order as a natural, objective phenomenon. However, Berger and Luckmann argue that this order is actually a result of the social construction of reality, maintained by the collective adherence to institutionalized practices.

Highlights

Emma Sunless Card expresses gratitude to subscribers and encourages new viewers to subscribe and click the bell icon.

Introduction to Berger and Luckmann's theory of social construction of reality.

Social construction of reality is a leading theory in phenomenology and sociology.

Discussion on how individuals understand and construct social reality.

Luckmann's focus on the individual's perception of reality within society.

The concept that society is orderly and social reality is external and objective.

Berger and Luckmann argue that social reality is socially constructed, not objectively given.

The natural attitude of individuals towards social reality as objective and external.

Suggestion to bracket the natural attitude for sociological understanding of reality.

Objective and subjective realities as discussed by Berger and Luckmann.

Objective reality as a product of individual actions and activities.

The process of how individual actions become institutionalized practices.

Institutionalized practices are perceived as objective reality by individuals.

The socialization process and internalization of institutionalized reality.

How individuals become social beings through the internalization of objective reality.

The cycle of reality creation and perception across generations.

The belief in society as an external objective entity maintaining order.

Conclusion that society is a socially constructed entity, not a natural one.

A call to action for viewers to like, subscribe, and comment for continued discussion in the next video.

Transcripts

[Music]

hello everyone this is Emma sunless card

and you are watching my youtube channel

such logic online first of all I would

like to express my gratitude to those

who have already subscribed to our

channel they request all the audience

[Music]

and don't forget to click the bell icon

hello everyone in today's video I will

discuss about partner and Blackmun's the

theory of social construction of reality

barter luck men

the most prominent phenomena budgets who

contributed in the sociology with the

theory social construction of reality

this social construction of reality

actually published as a book and after

its publication the book emerged as the

leading theory the phenomenology and

that contributed in the social value so

in today's video I will discuss about

what is social construction of reality

and how individual understand the social

construction of reality and how the

reality is constructed socially but

there is Luckman basically focused on

how individual understand the reality in

the society there is how the social

reality individual understands and over

and above how the social reality is

constructed in the society so one thing

there is how you will understand the

reality and how the social reality is

constructed socially that is how LED

editing this was a deconstructed

socially these are the two important

things which means analyzed and

discussed by but their allotment

according to but there in Buckman

the individual or members of the society

considers that the society is in orderly

where that is society maintains is order

and they perceive their social reality

is external to them and social reality

is objective it exercises

constraint about them and because of

this the society maintains his order so

this is the social reality as objective

phenomena but here burn terror Luqman

argues that this is individuals use of

the natural attitude towards the social

reality they have the natural attitude

the social reality is objective and

external to individual but originally

the social reality is socially

constructed

so this socially constructed reality is

appeared as external and objective

reality because of that individual or

members of the society is using an

attitude towards this reality

according to Barton and Luckman

individual takes social reality as

granted as a natural net as natural

reality as external objective reality

process but Sharon Luqman

suggests that social logic should

bracket of the natural attitude of the

individual towards the social reality

for understanding for explaining and

describing the social reality

sociologically birds are in luck men can

discussed about the reality in two way

this one is objective reality another

only subjective reality that is he

discussed how reality can be objective

and subjective there is one reality it

can be objective as well as subjective

according to Barger and Luckman the

objective reality is the product of

individual there is individual or

members of the society produce objective

reality again on the other hand the

Barger and Luckman argued that this

objective reality determines individuals

behavior in the society that is

objective reality produces individual

members of the society as social being

so two important things one that

individual produces the objective

reality and this objective reality again

individual internalizes and this

internalization process is called the

making of individual as social being

I will discuss how the reality becomes

objective there is how individual

produces objective reality these things

I will discuss this the creation of the

objective reality starts with the

individuals activities first individuals

start a certain activity and the action

or activity becomes a habit alized and

this habitual iced activity takes into a

pattern away that is the habitual eyes

activity of the individuals or members

of the society becomes a pattern

activity and once the pattern of

activity continues throughout the

generation that is once it reproduces

generation to generation generation

after generation then it forms an

institutionalized practice it formed it

forms a institutionalized the

performance in the society activities in

the society so this once the activity

becomes institutionalized it becomes the

objective reality now individuals accept

or follow this institutionalized

practices as external to them and the

beliefs that these are objective and

external which exercises constraint over

them but actually these are the product

of individual action and activities now

second aspect that is how the the

reality which once produced by the

individuals constrain or makes the

individual the human beings the social

being particularly is the socialization

process there is true socialization

process and internalization there's

individual internalizes the

institutionalized object reality in the

society throughout the process of

socialization and these are the two

processes through which individual

accept the reality what exists in the

society that are called

the institutionalized relative so in

this where individual fields that they

are following and they are being

constrained by the social reality and

individual becomes the product of the

external objective reality basically

barger and Luckman here says that the

social reality is the socially

constructed it is the individual who

attaches natural attitude towards the

reality as external and objective in one

generation reality is created and in

another generation this reality is taken

as an objective external reality in this

way society maintains its order but

individual or members of the society

believes that society is something

external objective and it is maintaining

its order like natural world but it is

not like this the society is completely

a socially constructed entity so in the

next video I will continue the

discussion please like and subscribe my

channel and put your comment in the

comment box