Social control as the central concept of sociology and social pedagogy

This article focuses on the issue of social control, which is discussed here from different points of view within sociology and social pedagogy. Social control deals with prevention as well as with responses to deviations from desirable behavioural patterns, and in the centre of its interest are interrelationships and sometimes rather inconsistencies between the individual and society. This is connected with the question of what are actually "desirable patterns of behaviour" and who are the concrete authors of this norm, i.e. in whose interest (individuals or groups) are introduced the norms of behaviour. The authors point out the fact that the usual reference to society conceals only the decisive context, i.e. social norms have in fact very often ideological function which also influences significantly the area of social pedagogy which (like other sciences or more precisely their knowledge) can become a mere instrument of any ideology, i.e. of the ruling class or group.