examples of structural functional theory

Functionalism emphasizes that social stability and order comes from shared behaviors, norms, and values.The basic assumption of functionalism is that all structures, particularly institutions within society serve a purpose or function, contributing the stability of the social system.British English – /fUHngkshUH-nuh-li-zuhm/.American English – /fUHngshnUH-liz-uhm/.family: Provides reproduction and protection of children as a primary agent of socialization fosters understanding of expected behaviors, norms, and values.education: Transmits knowledge to the next generation, teaching good citizenship, and preparation for future work.Those that are labeled deviant will develop a collective identity. deviance: Creates social solidarity by branding some behaviors as deviant.This shift justifies the discrimination ( ageism) older people experience as they become less useful to society. aging ( disengagement theory): As people age they gradually withdraw from society and are relieved of responsibilities, providing an orderly transition between generations.The Historic Environment: Policy & Practice, 11(2-3), 158-180.( noun) A theory that views society as a complex but orderly and stable system with interconnected structures and functions or social patterns that operate to meet the needs of individuals in a society. Structural functionalism, social sustainability and the historic environment: a role for theory in urban regeneration. Izadi, A., Mohammadi, M., Nasekhian, S., & Memar, S. However, since sociological theories are complementary, we cannot say which one is better and only when they are combined do we get a better understanding of society.

Therefore, this is how both these theories fall short of being complete explanations. This proves the significance of structural functionalism. Although societies are constantly changing, the changes are often minimal, and thus, the essential elements of a society remain pretty stable. The perspective of the second idea overlooks societal equilibrium (Rusu, 2020). This is the main difference between both concepts. Structural functionalism and conflict theory have opposing views on the dynamics of society since the first concept believes that society is inclined towards stability, and the second reason is that there is constant conflict. The theory of conflict was actually developed to demonstrate the shortcomings of structural functionalism. In addition, social institutions can mainly be described through their consequences, which, however, does not fully explain the reasons for these effects (Wandi et al., 2021). Consequently, change is a continuous process until it reaches a crisis point where transformation takes place.įunctionalism intently focuses on the equilibrium of a society and says that it consists of mutually dependent parts working together to maintain that equilibrium. Therefore, when people reach a point where further growth of society is not possible, a crisis takes place, which transforms the society. However, the conflict theory says that the probability of change is embedded in the basic structures and relations among the classes of our society (Rusu, 2020). These new integrated structures guarantee the smooth running of our society, and thus, it argues that the members are responsible for its stability and order. Thus, even though changes occur, structures inside a society emerge to compensate for the change. Structural functionalism says that when a society becomes complex, differentiation takes place, and integration takes place among the new institutions. This can be explained by the fact that different social groups strive to take each other’s place in the social hierarchy. According to the first subject of study, discrimination fits perfectly into society because it produces positive results, but second idea states that social change is inevitable and will occur continuously and rapidly (Rusu, 2020). The study of structural functionalism and conflict theory is characterized by dissimilar value orientations since they have the same perception of inequality, which is that the dominant groups profit from discrimination. While this notion believes that social inequality and oppression may be necessary for the stability, integration and functioning of a society, the theory of conflict holds exploitation by dominant groups to be the main reason for social problems.

In the concept of functionalism, it is believed that an individual is simply an occupant of their social role and is, thus, not as significant as a person but rather as a combination of social roles and status (Izadi et al., 2020). The first subject in question emphasizes social order more than social change, unlike conflict theory, which believes that fundamental changes and conflicts are unavoidable in a society.

Examples of structural functional theory