Theory + Methods Flashcards
Functionalism theory overview
Based on Durkheim, refined by Parsons and Merton. It argues that society is a stable, harmonious and intergrated system + social order and cohesion maintained through consensus.
Parsons, The organic analogy
System - Everything fits and works together in society. In society the parts are social institutions (education etc) and individual roles (teacher) etc.
System needs - The organs in the body have needs to survive, so does society, like socialised people to continue society.
Functions - The function of things in the body and society are the contributions they make to meeting the systems need.
Value consensus (Parsons)
Social order is possible through shared cultural or a central value system. The cultural value system of goals and norms etc are what form the basis of the value consensus which hold society together. Durkheim believed that people were selfish and without collective conscious, society would be chaos.
Intergration of the individual
Parsons says that there are two ways to direct individuals to conform to the social needs;
Socialisation; through family, education, and work etc. This is where individuals internalise the values and norms of society and it becomes part of them.
Social control; Positive sanctions reward conformity and negative ones punish deviance.
Merton’s manifest + latent functions
Criticises Durkheim for assuming that each social institutions activities have a positive function.
Sometimes dysfunction can occur in a society and the social structure does not work as intended and can have negative consequences.
Evaluation of Functionalism
Recognises the importance of social structure in understanding society and how major institutions like family, economy and education have links between them
It explains why most people conform to the rules of society.
Interpretivist/action theory: too deterministic – passive products of social system that controls their behaviour
Conflict perspective/Marxism: Takes for granted the value consensus in society, values are not consensus but are inflicted on us by dominant members of society.
It ignores/downplays inequalities in our society and the unequal distribution of power
Post-modernism: Functionalism tries to explain everything from a meta narrative (single perspective) but society is so fragmented this cannot work
Marxism Overview
We are in a capitalist society - based on exploitation of low wage labourers, the bourgouise stay on top. Proletariat get exploited, working the most hours for the lowest pay and they don’t even realise it. However, when they do realise (class consciousness) they will come together and have a revolution, overthrow capitalism.
Class consciousness (Marxism)
Due to being exploited, they would get together and create political systems to fight their exploiters (Bourgeoisie) They are no longer just working class individuals but a class who need to overthrow the capitalist regime.
Evaluation of Marxism
Marx only sees one division between people which is class. Weber argues that status and also power are important divisions of inequalities.
Weber argues that Marx is too simplistic, Weber says that we should divide the proletariat itself into skilled and un-skilled as well as the middle class divided into white collar, petty bourgeoisie and office workers.
Feminist overview
- Sociology is too ‘malestream’ people who are studied are mostly male, researchers are male and the theories mostly apply to men.
There are three types of feminism; Radical, Liberal, Radical
Radical feminism
The patriarchy oppress women in every aspect of their lives through complex systems of inequality relationships in society. Firestone (1972) argues that woman’s biology is the basis of inequality.
Liberal feminism
Concerned with human and civil rights; all humans should be equal. They argue that laws and policies against sex discrimination in employment and education can secure equal opportunities.
Sexist attitudes and cultural beliefs are purely socially constructed, woman and men can do the the same things but it is socialised to say the opposite.
They hate Functionalists like Parsons distinction between instrumental and expressive roles and how men do the former and women the latter.
+ L.F research has produced much research that suggest gender differences are socially constructed
- Focused on reducing the effects of woman’s discrimination rather than the causes.
Marxist feminists
Believe that woman are a source of exploitative labour; they are able to be paid less because they are assumed to be dependent on husbands.
Women are a reserve army of labour; when there are economic booms or wars, women are drafted into the labour force, but when there are recessions or when men return from war woman are drafted out.
Post-Modernism overview
- From the 70’s, considered to be the period we are living in now. Always changing, unstable and fragmented but also global due to things like global village and the internet. We define ourselves by what we consume ‘Pick’N’Mix identity’
- Foucault argues that there is no foundation for knowledge as there are no criteria we can use to prove a theory true or false.
- However a criticism of Post-modern views on knowledge is that how can we ‘know’ that we can’t know true or false narratives of society. It’s like how we we ‘know’ we don’t know anything when we know at least that we don’t know.
