Social production is the process of creating any material goods necessary for the existence and normal functioning of society. Production is called social because there is a division of labor between the most diverse members of society. Everyone knows that any production is organized to meet the specific needs of people. The degree of socialization of production elements that indicate their belonging to private individuals or society is considered a criterion for the development of the socio-economic formation of this society.
The foundations of social production in world political economy were laid several centuries ago. Any human activity aimed at turning some natural resources into commodities can be considered social production. Its main phases are:
- production of products;
- distribution;
- exchange;
- consumption.
In the course of human production, material and non-material benefits are obtained . In the process of distribution of the finished product (commodities and means of production), they are redistributed between various subjects of production. An exchange is the process of marketing and acquiring various goods for other goods or their monetary equivalent. The consumption or use of goods is personal or productive.
Social production is characterized by the following factors, which are its primary basis:
- labor or conscious activity, which is aimed at meeting the social and personal needs of a person in various spiritual and material benefits;
- means of production, which include objects of labor (materials, raw materials) and means of labor (equipment, implements, structures).
Social production and its structure were the subject of study by the most famous economists and philosophers. As a result of such a study, it was concluded that it has a cellular structure. In almost any country, labor resources, raw material bases and consumers are dispersed over its territory; therefore, to ensure human needs for certain commodities, it is necessary to divide the labor, in which social production is dispersed between different specialized enterprises.
Due to the cellular structure of this production, two levels are distinguished during its functioning:
- production as an aspect of the technological process of labor, carried out directly in the primary cells of production;
- production as a socio-economic and industrial-economic process of the whole country or nation.
At the first (micro level), people are direct workers with certain labor and production relations. At the second level of functioning of social production, called the "macro level", economic and industrial-economic relations are formed between business entities.
Social production has the following structure:
- material production - it is formed by the most diverse branches of construction, industry, agriculture, which are based on the creation of material goods from natural resources. It also includes serving the needs of people in the industry: trade, transport, utilities, consumer services;
- intangible production - it is formed by such systems: health care, education, science, art, culture, in which intangible services are rendered and various spiritual values โโare created.
The initial basis for the life of any society is social production. So, a person, before creating works of art, engaged in science, politics or health care, must satisfy his most minimal needs: to have a shelter, clothes, food. That it is the source of well-being of society.