![]() Society is more than the sum of its parts!įunctionalists propound that social structures shape the behaviour of individuals. Read: Understanding our society through Durkheim’s Division of Labour Malinowski (also a functionalist) argues that the main function of religion is to help people deal with situations they cannot control. It introduces morals and norms and thus reinforces the collective will of the society. For instance, a functional explanation for the existence of religion, according to Durkheim, is that religion is a source of solidarity and identification. ![]() As various organs work together in an organism, similarly various institutions work together to ensure overall equilibrium in the society. The early functionalist thinkers described society by drawing comparisons from biology. In order to understand any of these parts, we must see them in relation to society as a whole. Each part has a unique function to play that maintains the well being of the entire society. ![]() Read: Three Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology: Explainedįunctionalism uses the premise that society is a system and all its parts are interconnected and interrelated. Ronald Fletcher rightly argues that ‘there is no comprehensive account of functionalism to which all social theorists would own allegiance.’ Different writers have made different contributions over time. Merton, and their followers.įunctionalism, as a single body of thought, does not exist. However, functionalism, as a dominant sociological theory, came to prominence in the 1950s, especially through the works of Talcott Parsons, Robert K. The elements of functionalist thought in sociology are found in the works of Auguste Comte and Emile Durkheim. The way one-on-one interactions and communications behave.Functionalism traces its roots back to the work of Plato and Hegel. The people with the most toys win, and they will change the rules of the game to keep winning.ĭoes education transmit only the dominant certain cultures? The way inequities and inequalities contribute to social, political, and power differences and how they perpetuate power. How does education work to transmit culture? How each organ works to keep your body healthy (or not.) The way each part of society functions together to contribute to the functioning of the whole. Different sociological perspectives enable sociologists to view social issues through a variety of useful lenses. Table 1. Sociological Theories or Perspectives. Three paradigms have come to dominate sociological thinking, because they provide useful explanations: structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Paradigms are philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them. In sociology, a few theories provide broad perspectives that help explain many different aspects of social life, and these are called paradigms. Classic sociological theories are still considered important and current, but new sociological theories build upon the work of their predecessors and add to them (Calhoun 2002). ![]() Sociological theory is constantly evolving and should never be considered complete. Grand theories attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change. Macro-level theories relate to large-scale issues and large groups of people, while micro-level theories look at very specific relationships between individuals or small groups. Theories vary in scope depending on the scale of the issues that they are meant to explain. Theories can be used to create a testable proposition, called a hypothesis, about society (Allan 2006). A sociological theory seeks to explain social phenomena. Sociologists study social events, interactions, and patterns, and they develop a theory in an attempt to explain why things work as they do. Sociologists develop theories to explain social occurrences such as protest rallies.
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