Durkheim had a strong structural view of society, and the manner in which each of us is influenced by these social facts and how we must fit into these. Durkheim attempted to see a role for the social as distinguished from the economic, psychological and biological. This can be seen in his view of the social influences on suicide rates. Durkheim shows how the division of labor is set within a social context, so that economic relationships are governed by social conventions that may not always be apparent. Durkheim view that the division of labor does not result in a disintegration of society, but changes the form of social solidarity provides a useful way of examining modern society. Durkheim says that individualism is a product of long historical developments within western society. Individual rights and the encouragement of individual action and initiative give an individual self worth. People themselves are social facts in that they are social products created by society. People are not products of egoism; self-interest is the basic motivation for human action. Durkheim feels that the development of individualism will promote self-interest and egoism, this is not the source of individualism, and an unchecked development of egoism would destroy society. Durkheim argues that freedom is not to be identified with liberation from all restraints, rather, freedom exists in being "master of oneself" by "putting oneself under the wing of society." That is, freedom is achieved within a set of moral rules, and discipline within this set of rules is an essential aspect of freedom. The notion of rights and responsibilities may be a means of tying these together. Many of common approaches to sociology derive from Durkheim. The method of attempting to determine social facts and their influence, along with concepts such as norms, values, socialization, institutions, etc. could be considered to come at least partly from Durkheim.
