Definition of Modernization

The process of industrializing and advancing modern society as a whole is known as modernization, which results in the development of historical and agricultural societies into contemporary developed societies.

Sociological Explanation

It is the process by which cultures transition from being defined by conventional behavior to rational activity. Some sociologists say modernization includes an ideological component associated with positive sentiments. Compared to the conventional ones, the modern one is considered vibrant, engaging, innovative, and charming. However, according to some sociologists, it has largely destroyed the value of traditional communities. Other postmodernists believe that it leads to social forms that are lifeless, uniform, and ultimately inhumane, such as apartment buildings, urban blight, and high crime.

Karl Marx and Adam Smith promoted opposing views on modernization, with Marx promoting communism and Smith a capitalist vision.

The primary approach to development difficulties in the 1950s and 1960s was modernization theory, which was defined as the hunt for the elements that industrialized nations were thought to possess and thought to be the root of their lack of progress.

The theory aims to advance the theoretical connection between social evolution and family transformation, including theoretical approaches from structural functionalism and social Darwinism. It is believed that science and technology would lead nations away from archaic, preindustrial social systems and toward more sophisticated, internally differentiated ones.

A keen awareness of innovation and change is brought about by modernization, which is intertwined with the premise that human civilizations are evolving and progressing.

The main critique leveled against this ideology is that it focused on inward social systems while omitting the impact of colonialism on the structure of third-world nations.

Example

1. The 1950s and 1960s saw a modernization in the US that conquered and replaced old ideals and ways of thinking that were antagonistic to social progress and economic expansion.
2. Shifting from tribal or local authorities to national parties and government agencies.
3. The transition from illiteracy to education would improve economically valuable skillsets.
4. Secularized belief systems are replacing traditionalistic faiths in society.