FUNCTIONALISM THEORY

FUNCTIONALISM THEORYPAULA JANE ESCASINASMICHELLE DUGUIL

FUNCTIONALISMThis perspective focuses on social systems as a whole, how they operate, how they change, and the social consequences they produce.Society is more than the sum of its parts; rather, each part of society is functional for the stability of the whole society.Examples: government/state children of the family family school children statePurpose: order, stability, & productivity

The view that social institutionsboth FORMAL organizational sets (law, religion, politics) and INFORMAL but commonly recurring social actions (crime, volunteerism, suicide, love)have consequential effects upon society (functions that they serve).Effects may be:Explicit and deliberate (manifest)Surprising and unintended (latent)

David mile Durkheim1858-1917

April 15, 1858 November 15, 1917

French sociologist, social psychologist & philosopher.

Principal architect of modern social science

FATHER OF SOCIOLOGY

Talcott parsons1902-1979

December 13, 1902 May 8, 1979

20th centurys most influential American sociologist

Laid the foundation for what was to become the modern Functionalist Perspective.

Developed a general theory for the study of society called action theory.

Sociological theories always have to be understood in terms of the time in which they were developed

For Durkheim key features of the 19th century were:

Industrialisation - the specialized division of labour

..and the movement of people from country to city urban life

and its still going on in other parts of the worldFor Parsons two particular things struck him about life in 1950s USA

The considerable affluence enjoyed by many

..and the vast scale of urban society

(Downtown Los Angeles early 1900s and 2010)Times of progress and improvement ? Functionalists thought so.Both sociologists developed a view which focuses on the idea that societies

EVOLVE , grow or develop - a bit like living organisms

Societies are simply organised to start with, but over time they grow and become more complex

Like an organism, societies have certainNEEDSNeeds are called functional prerequisites All societies have these needs but they can achieve them in different ways.

Systems are developed to meet the needsEDUCATIONAL SYSTEMPOLITICAL SYSTEM

The systems and the society are held together because everyone shares the same valuesThere is a shared culture

The shared culture is transmitted through socialization into common norms and values

Social order is created through the use of sanctions

Society changes as SYSTEMS or STRUCTURES become more complex.

In large scale industrial society new ways have to be found to meet functional prerequisites.

Industrial societies could be DYSFUNCTIONAL if essential needs are not being met or if some groups cannot achieve the goals of the whole society.

- ROBERT MERTON