Functionalist Flashcards
Overview of functionalists view?
-People are shaped by society
-People are socialised by norms and values
-Top down approach
Who are our functionalist sociologists?
Murdock
Parsons
Murdock belif?
After studying 250 society’s he found that the nuclear family is universal
What are murdocks 4 functions?
-Stable satisfaction of sex drive
-Reproduction of child
-Socialisation of the young
-Meeting economic needs
Murdock- Sex?
Universal family satisfied sexual needs, if we didn’t have this then everyone would be sexually frustrated
Murdock- Reproduction?
Having children means we can carry on the next generation w/o children society wouldn’t be able to continue
Murdock- socialisation?
Nuclear family is essential to pass on norms and values and traditions for the value consensus
Murdock- economic?
Nuclear family (farther) provides finances for food and shelter meeting economic needs
Critics of Murdock?
-Outdated
-Ethnocentric
-Not all family members needs are met
-Rose tinted view
Critics- outdates?
-We are more diverse in a society we have different family types now such a the Kibbutz
Critics- ethnocentric?
Only looked at one society who share similar values
e.g. nayer of sudan
Critics- Not all family members needs are met?
Ignores domestic violence
Critics- rose tinted?
Nieve, we’ve changed as a society
Parsons beliefs?
Because of the shift of the pre industrial society to industrial society’s its lead to the shift of extended nuclear family to private because it’s easier be geographically mobile
Parsons 2 roles of the family?
Primary socialisation of children
Stabilisation of adult personalitys
Parson- primary socialisation?
Teaching children norms and values of family, only nuclear family can portray this role as they are in a supportive environment
Parsons- stabilisation of adult personality?
Men- instrumental role in society being breadwinners, not expressing emotions
Women- expressive role, show emotions housewife
These roles give adults the ability to balance stress
Parsons- warm bath theory?
Family is like a warm bath, it relieves all the stress and tensons from work helping the men function for there next day at work
Willmott and young symmetrical family?
Criticsm
Did a study looking at family and kinship in the east london disagreeing with the industrialisation brought upon the death of the extended family
The movement towards the nuclear family wasn’t as fast as functionalist say we still have extended family in the 20th century
-Extended family is in decline: Slum clearances and the creation of council estates
Welfare state and employment opportunities
More emphasis on women’s rights
Changing attitudes in the home and a move toward egalitarianism
Harris et als evaluation of Wilmott and Young?
Nuclear family has become privatised/isolated family has simply changed in postmodernist time
People more individual then they were 40 yrs ago reflecting family relationships suggesting that their has been a decline in both family and community occupation
Dobash and Dobash Femenist critics of Wilmott and Young?
Spectacle of weather the housework is equal
Parsons- critics Losett?
Extended family wasn’t dominant in preindustrial society
Most common was nuclear family 10% were extended
Had a short life expectancy so unable to have an extended family
Parsons critic wilmott and young?
Extended family still common as life in industrial was hard
‘Mum centered’ working class means must have close connection with daughter
Parsons- extended family is common today?
Dispersed extended family
Parent have close ties with adult children and preform function
