A short and simple definition of
Emile Durkheim's concept of "social facts" relates to social
structures and norms which regulate individual and collective life.
Durkheim thought that sociology
should be "the science of social facts". Social facts for Durkheim
are elements in daily life which are purely social or cultural and they are characterized
by being common to all or at least many members of society. Social facts do not
depend on any particular individual nor any natural state of affairs, but from
a social point of view they are in fact: facts!.
Although they are not natural, social
facts are objective. It is not up to anyone to decide if a certain social norm
or institute exists. Like it or not, these are the external factors that
together with natural facts shape our existence.
An example of a social fact can be the
institute of the family and kinship, religion and language are also social
facts that precede us in shaping our reality. Even manners of fashion can be
regarded as social facts, to be studied under Durkheim's sociology.
Durkheim's theory was developed in
his famous What is Social Fact?. Here
you can read a little bit more about the thought of Emile Durkheim.
Marcel
Mauss later developed Durkheim's idea and talked about "total social
facts". For Mauss a total social fact is an action connected to all or
most realms of social existence (like economics, culture, politics etc.)
You
can also check out these good books by and on Durkheim:
