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Файл:The Information Resonance in Social System. Monograph
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CHAPTER 6. CONSTITUTION OF VIRTUAL ACTIONS 111
The person in a society of performance, from I.Gofman's
point of view, is always the potential playwright, wishing to
manipulate others and to place characters at own discretion.
And this need “to be the puppeteer” where abilities of the
control over own behavior are stronger. The person loses the
human qualities, between people there is no human connection,
there is only symbolical exchange including individuals in a
vicious circle of some “new sociality”. In this case, social
relations develop not due to manufacture, exchange and
consumption, but due to the communications which are
dramatized and expended by the increasing number of the
models of behavior [23].
In modern society there is a process of fragmentation of the
person, his crushing which, at times, he cannot show even in the
variety of virtual identities and roles not to mention the real
ones. A person - thing, a person – fragment, a person – desire
are the persons which are more and more actively claimed by
the communications, the information-political technologies
offering the carrier instead of the message. The person is no
more anxious withthe search for the integrity and the integrated
ego. The "ideal" becomes the "dividuum", the person divided,
many-sided. The "carrier" includes individuals in interactive
contacts, the general reactions, but is capable to remove the
inter subject relation marked by the contents of the information.
Interactivity generates a new "consumer" class-consumtariat
and the new ruling elite, capable to live in a network and
actively to use its opportunities [24].
In a virtual social reality the roles of individuals vary.
Persons from passive objects turn to active subjects that
corresponds to attributes of a virtual society. The individual has
had an opportunity itself to form the figurative number. The
computer communications cover all spheres of social activity:
1) it is used for performing professional tasks, 2) for e-mail
correspondence, 3) for active participation in political life.
Thus, information in a virtual society should be treated, in
I.V. Sokolov's opinion, not only as a process of perfection and
development of information technologies, but also as a
PART II. SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS 112
process of qualitative change of cognitive social structures.
Information merges with the processes of socialization, the
intellectualization, essentially increasing the creative potential
of the person. Information technologies influence social
processes, including the development and the position of the
person in the society, the change of social structures of the
society [25]
The virtual social reality acts as an alternative of social
reality, as it has no rigid social restrictions, and the person can
feel more free. In this reality the individual starts to live for the
moment choosing brave models of behavior, spiritual
connection between generations is lost. In modern society
different, sometimes inconsistent values, norms, and models of
behavior are offered to the individual in huge quantities. People
do not have the basic rules of behavior by which they could be
guided, people do not know what is good, and what is bad.
They constantly risk, choosing this or that model of behavior.
Therefore, to live in the present period, in A.Giddens's opinion,
means to live in the world of accidents and risks. The concept
of risk becomes central in the society which says goodbye to the
past, to the traditional ways of activity, which is open to the
novel future. However, the today's daily life did not begin more
risky, than earlier. Just in conditions of the modernity to think
in the concepts of risk has become more or less regular job,
partly even imperceptible. The modern risk has become more
institutialized. The institutional systems of risk influence
practically everyone, whether he participates in litigations, or
takes credits in banks. People do not have confidence in
tomorrow's day, they live in certain virtual conditions, aspiring
to a better life, drawing the illusory pictures of the world in
their imagination [26].
The uniform cultural connection between generations is
lost, and the society is threatened with the danger to break up to
groups and the atoms connected not by spiritual understanding,
but the external need and necessity.
Z.Bauman says that the main cultural value becomes the
value of individualism [27]. The individualization is considered
CHAPTER 6. CONSTITUTION OF VIRTUAL ACTIONS 113
as a denying of forms of the sociality known from the past, as
something that acts at one and the same time as the cause and
effect of fragmenting both the social validity and the lives of
each concrete person; in new conditions, not only major social
tasks are substituted by personal desires and aspirations, but
also people even more often and willingly refuse "long-term"
mentality for the benefit of "short-term". In an individualized
society the person loses control over the majority of significant
social processes, he tries to refuse the perspective purposes for
the sake of reception of immediate results. As a consequence, a
more and more obvious fragment of human existence occurs.
The modern person becomes disoriented, limited and helpless,
as in the modern world, the events are boundless and
uncontrolled in essence, they are of the quasi spontaneous,
unplanned, unforeseen, spontaneous and casual character. The
individual is less and less capable to supervise own destiny, the
uncertainty of human life grows. On the one hand, the person
acquires freedom, that he aimed at instinctively, trying to
overcome the pressure of the society, but, on the other hand, he
feels uncertainty, fear to lose this freedom: “the Standard of
living, a social standing, a recognition of utility and the right on
own advantage can disappear all together and without the
prevention” [28].
Uncertainty reflects in the change of the system of values
and the models of behavior. People, aspiring to adapt to the
changing conditions, start to deny stability and duration as the
important conditions of normal existence. They start to live in
the virtual world as only the present starts to exist for them;
there is neither past nor future:
In due time A.Toffler ascertained, that in the modern
society, people are in the condition of futuroshock as they
collide with the advanced achievements of modern technologies
forming a virtual reality. Accelerated rates of technical and
public progress force individuals to feel cut off, suffering from
shattering stress and loss of orientation [29]. In the given
situation, the person cannot adequately perceive the world
around him, in his consciousness the borderline between the
PART II. SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS 114
real and unreal is erased. As a result, the virtual world becomes
a unique reality in which the individual lives.
Thus, the basis of the new social order is virtual social
interactions. The social reality is doubled and becomes
simultaneously both practical and virtual. An actual social
interaction is an interaction with the participation of real, not
the imagined actors. The virtual social interaction takes place
when one of the sides – the real subject, and another – “image
of another”. As the basis of social system of this type the
symbolical exchange as the form of symbolical social
interaction acts. The specific social action – “virtual social
action” is formed. It is possible to assume, that virtualization as
the social phenomenon results in transformation and most base
“cell” of initial, elementary system of society – social
interaction. There is a system of actual and virtual social
action. In the virtual social reality, the roles of individuals vary.
Persons from passive objects turn to active subjects, that
corresponds to the attributes of a virtual society. The virtual
social reality acts as an alternative of a social reality as there
are no rigid social restrictions in it, and the person can feel
more free. In this reality, the individual starts to live for the
moment, choosing brave models of behavior, the spiritual
connection between generations is lost. In modern society,
different sometimes inconsistent values, norms, models of
behavior are offered the individual in huge quantities.
Chapter 7. “Virtual strata”:
birth in information resonance
Concept of “virtual strata”
ew approaches are necessary for an explanation of the
N
reasons of activization of the specified social agents in
crisis. Topic of the chaos increase consequences forecasting and
possible vectors of development becomes especially actual. It is
necessary to search for an explanation not in demonization of
new historical and economic laws, that is a mystification of the
social actuality, but in realization of scientific - sociological paradigms that means search of social subjects-initiators of
changes – "social agents". It is possible to assume that these
agents during the epoch of chaos and instability change the
behaviour, creating the new scenario of social roles and start to
turn to virtual strata. The subjects of virtual strata formation’s
stays almost didn’t worked out in sociology.
The conception of “virtual strata”, presented by Russian
sociologist L.E. Blyacher, concerns to rare studies of this kind
[1]. However, the degree of influence of global informationcommunication process and appearing of special “virtual” space
in Internet space is not considered. L.E. Blyacher marks that a
special type of group solidarities – virtual strata actualize in
society in the epochs of chaos and instability. The process of
“relative deprivation” generates these strata. Blyacher thinks
that “in order to the mechanism of deprivation was triggered in
action need the actualization...of some “imaginary world”
…characterized by special logic that differ from logic of real
world” [2]. The conception of relative deprivation was
developed by S.H. Staufer, R. Merton and T.R. Gart [3;4;5]. As
PART II. SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS 116
I.Hintikka thinks, that these possible worlds and collection of
individualized functions, serving for the establishment of
members of these world have the status of manifestation of
objective reality and they were created by the people for the
interaction with reality [6]. In Blyacher’s opinion, the virtual
strata exist just in interaction with stable forms [7]. I think that
Blyacher understates the potential of virtual strata. My opinion
is that virtual strata themselves provoke the chaos and
permanent instability, being the generation of instability.
The goal of the chapter is to define new typical virtual strata
and mechanisms of their formation.
Chaos and deprivation
Formation of virtual strata consists as follows. Deep
manifestation of social
chaos consists in:
1) destruction of self-identification and erosion of Self-
concepts;
2) the neglect of the past standards, rules and motives;
3) the future is no longer a guideline;
4) the moral consciousness is blocked;
5) the dictatorship of the practices of everyday life instead
of values;
6) social space is divided into segments - the particular
"social realities";
7) in these segments multidirectional strata are formed; new
social actuality is formed in segments, entering into the
contradiction with the rests of the former actuality, generating
constant instability and chaos.
8) group solidarities of a special type – virtual strata – are
actualized in society [8].
The description of the mechanism of their occurrence and
functioning is the description of a phenomenon of social chaos.
These strata generate process of "relative deprivation". Relative
deprivation occurs not necessarily because of 1) losses of the
status or 2) disappearances of stratum, in summary "negative
CHAPTER 7. “VIRTUAL STRATA”: BIRTH IN INFORMATION 117
estimation" position, and also occurrence of the claim for
special position in social system. These communities have a
reorganization of the picture of the world – creation of a new
"social reality". Actualization is necessary for a deprivation
"ending" - transformation of an imagined reality into the social
actuality is needed. This new actuality is marginal, i.e. submits
to the special logic of actions – the actuality of possible. New
possible social worlds are arises so.
Alternative worlds perceived in individual imagination
become the social formations in communications - strata. Been
born, they actualize the "projects" of the new social life through
the valid interactions. Virtual strata is actualized in a contact of
imagined strata.
Being a result of instability, they provoke chaos and
permanent instability as a condition of the stable existence. The
world of virtual strata is the world of anomie, it is the world, in
which virtual strata are owners of a life. Due to instability and
anomie they can get status advantages compared to other strata.
The "risk society", "society of unforeseen consequences",
"crisis without the end" is a social world of a virtual strata. In
my opinion, the reason of activization and growth of expansion
of virtual strata from the end of XX century is a sharp growth of
influence of the information not only on the behaviour of
individuals, but also on stratification structure, and on the social
system itself.
Virtual strata: the birth between two spaces
Growth of the information and information streams from the
middle of XX century leads to a sharp growth of the symbolical
social world - the social reality, generated by not a practice, but
by consciousness. The social reality as the imagined social
world becomes independent of its basis – the social actuality.
The reality picture becomes more difficult and does not
represent the facts. A great number of samples of possible
social practices are born from images. They compete to
PART II. SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS 118
traditional and steady samples of actions. Anomie grows and
becomes a constant.
Actual social actions come to the contradiction with virtual
action. Virtual action and a virtual reality begin own social life.
There is an alternative, parallel social space. World crises
become more and more scale and unpredictable. The reason is
in radical transformation of the structure of global society as
systems. We, in my opinion, deal with shift of social structure
and occurrence of a break of social space. What there is a social
space?
The social space is the ordered interaction of set of
individuals. Integrity of social space it is based on division of
labour and solidarity, but also and on the contradiction of
interests of groups. The permission of social contradictions does
not split social space, and transforms it. The new form of social
life at first only is conceivable "a reality picture", but then it
becomes the rule actual and dominating practices.
I suggest to separate "a social reality" and "the social
actuality". Samples of social actions exist as conceivable parts
of the general conceivable picture of social life. Individuals
think (believe) that these fragments and are the valid life.
However these pictures are the illusions, the deformed and
fantastic description of the latent valid social life. The illusory
picture of social life is "a social reality". "The social actuality"
is the social life hidden from individuals. The social actuality
can open only special - scientific - knowledge.
But individuals live directly in space of "a social reality",
see and interpret also a society, and itself as it is represented in
a picture of a social reality. It is the world wished, far from its
basis - the social actuality. In this world people create and
design different social forms. Many of these forms never will
arise, since they contradict the social actuality. The world of a
social reality is astable, likelihood, fantastic. It is a virtual
reality. The social actuality is the world taken place social
practices and forms.
Always the social reality hid the social actuality. It was
organic unity of form and content. A condition of stability of
CHAPTER 7. “VIRTUAL STRATA”: BIRTH IN INFORMATION 119
social life is the unity of a social reality and the social actuality.
The reality submits to the actuality, and virtual (conceivable)
social action is subordinated to the actual. Virtual is the
intermediary between practical actions. Recently there was a
transformation of system of social action. From the relation
between practical actions of two individuals it has turned to the
relation between virtual and actual actions of the same
individual. Thus "another" began to "drop out" of action
system. Social orientation of the actor was displaced from
"another" on itself. Now means of identification of the
individual and the choice of a way of action and social norm is
created by the individual. He creates a picture of actions
(virtual) and is guided by itself.
What characteristics allow some strata to the virtual to
concern? Among network (global) actors recently there was
special "tribe" of players - strata of financial speculators professional strata of players at a stock exchange. They use
situations of instability and unforeseen consequences not so
much, how many them create, manipulating consciousness of
economic agents not through mechanisms economic, and
through communications channels, rating agencies, operating
opinion, motives and estimations, offering counterparts projects
favourable to virtual practices.
They are marginal because they are deprivated relative to
national local financial systems. To achieve identity, i.e. to play
a role of financial players in a global network or global, instead
of local, society, they create and play new type roles of
alternative "virtual strata" through communications and global
financial interactions. They are alternative both as "others", and
as provokers of instability of national financial systems.
Last crisis is an example of the real economy influence
force of stock market agents. Danger consists in integrity of
stock market agents in a world financial system. The less
market agents are involved in share gamble, the less they feel
crisis and generate a special virtual reality – the crisis of trust.
Stock market speculators turn from marginals of a real economy
into powerful strata. They influence the behaviour of other
PART II. SOCIAL TRANSFORMATIONS 120
agents through creation of a myth about deficit of money in
channels of communications. As a result of a crisis of trust all
liquidity of economic subjects is put by them and frozen
because of uncertainty in the future. Also typical virtual strata
arise. As a result of well-being growth there is a change of a
code of self-identification of consumers, relative positive
deprivation: they turn into investors. When their income grows,
consumers receive surplus of means which should be invested.
Self-identity thus changes. The investment market is filled up
with "amateur investors" (virtual strata) which do not
understand, in what they are to put up money and make any
mistakes. Then self-identity evolves: the investor regenerates
into the speculator. For the speculator the influence sphere is
narrowed – it goes there where enrichment goes quickly and
with the minimal risk.
This process has deprived the world market of investments
of the future, has led it up a blind alley. If the weight of virtual
strata - speculators - exceeds critical size all financial market
becomes speculative, the real economy turns in virtual, there
comes the time of steady chaos. Network virtual strata has
found them identity and has ceased to be marginal.
A consequence is a mass psychology change. People are aimed
at short-range plans and projects more and more. The risk
society with uncertain consequences was born. Sociologists
make the diagnosis: "the liquid modernity [9], "the runaway
world"[10]. There is a shadow of virtual strata behind of it all.
But consequences of intrusion virtual strata are even more
disturbing. There is a phenomenon of "deprivation inside out" the overestimated self-estimation of the status of top-managers
grows. Compensation grows rapidly, appointments to posts
depends on their professional qualities ever less, representatives
of the professions which are not creating anything useful (agents
of virtual economy, glam-capitalists and consumers) receive
more money. Labour ethics collapse, the motivation to work
decreases, the middle class is gradually washed away from a
society, remain very rich and very poor. The morality collapses.
The population starts to be guided by the most primitive
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