Functionalism Flashcards
What type of theory is Functionalism?
-Macro
-Structural
What is society based on according to Functionalists?
-Value consensus about it’s members values, goals and rules
Who is a traditional Functionalist?
Durkheim-positivist
What are social facts?
Things such as institutions, norms and values which exist external to the individual and shape people’s behaviours
What has society undergone a change from?
-Change from a simple society i.e. strong collective conscience to a complex division of labour i.e. weaker social solidarity
What does this increase the risk of?
Anomie= normlessness
What did Durkheim study
-Suicide= social fact
-Suicide rates varied between different countries
-Suicide= higher in Protestant countries
-Patterns were due to two factors:
1. Level of integration- altruistic= too much integration, egoistic= too little integration
2. Level of regulation = fatalistic= too much regulation, anomic= too little regulation
What does Parson’s talk about?
Organic analogy
What is the Organic Analogy made up of?
- Systems- institutions work together like organs
- System needs- What society needs in order to survive
- Functions- the function of any part of a system contributes to society’s survival
What are functional prerequisites?
Basic needs for society’s survival
1. Adaption= meeting a person’s economic needs
2. Goal attainment= collective goals to be achieved (political subsystem)
3. Integration= ensures social cohesion
4. Latency= processes to maintain society over-time
What are the two types of society according to Parsons?
- Traditional= collective interests, ascribed status, particularistic standards
- Modern= self-interest, achieved status, universalistic standards
What is Merton’s strain theory?
-Despite having a shared goal of the ‘American Dream’, not everyone in society has equal opportunities to achieve these goals- experience a strain to anomie
What is the first key criticism Merton has of Parsons?
Indispensability= Unlike Parsons, who assumes everything in society is functionally indispensable, Merton argues that not everything if functionally indispensable in it’s original form- ‘functional alternatives’ e.g. one-parent families may be better for socialising than the nuclear family
What is the second key criticism Merton has of Parsons?
Functional unity= Parson’s assumes all parts of society are tightly integrated into a single whole, however Merton argues complex societies have many parts e.g. ‘functional autonomy’
What is the third key criticism Merton has of Parsons?
Universal functionalism= Parson’s assumes everything in society performs a positive function for the whole of society, however Merton argues that something may be functional for some groups and dysfunctional for others
What is the central point behind Merton’s criticisms pf Parson’s?
-We cannot assume that society is a smooth-running, well-integrated system
What is the difference between Manifest and Latent functions? (what example does Merton use?)
Hopi Indians- rain dance to magically produce rain
-Manifest= Intended function= rain
-Latent= Unintended function= promote social cohesion
What are the strengths of Functionalism?
- Seek’s to answer how social order is possible
- Provides a useful starting point for other researchers who can research the independent parts in society
- Craib: Functionalism is a theory of the whole of society
What are the criticisms of Functionalism?
- Marxists: Class conflict is ignored- ‘rose-tinted view’ e.g. only powerful groups values are shared
- Feminists: Ignores patriarchy and women’s oppression
- Postmodernists: Society is characterised by diversity and fragmentisation and so its not suitable to say there is harmony and consensus in society
