Functionalist Views Flashcards
Murdock(1949) 4
Nuclear families perform 4 main functions for society:
Sexual- who you can and can’t have sex with. e.g. rules of incest
Reproductive- society would die quickly without it
Economic- family members share money and food to ensure the survival
Educational- socialise family members, children become more disciplinedd.
EVALUATION - Murdock only looked at 250 societies which are not enough to make generalisations from - family life is different across different societies.
Talcoff Parsons (1959) 2
Two functions of the family:
Primary socialisation- basic norms and values being taught, allows children to understand how society works.
Stabilisation of the adult personality- to help people fit into society and for society to remain stable.
EVALUATION- Families are not always perfect - feminist says there is a “dark side” to family life, like domestic violence and child abuse.
