Transcript Functionalist Theory

Functionalist Theory
Emile Durkheim
History
• Functionalist theory is the first of the three
classical theories we’ll be talking about in the
next few weeks. It developed in the late 19th
century in Europe, as that region was
transitioning from an agricultural to industrial
society, and was primarily concerned with
how so-called “modern” societies differed
from traditional ones.
Basic Tenets
• The basic tenet of functionalism is that
society is like a complex organism. Every part
of the body has a specific role to play in the
functioning of the whole. So last week, when I
asked you to theorize why we have grades,
you all gave me functionalist answers. You
answered the question of what grades are
for- to make us study, to make it easier for
potential employers to evaluate us.
Basic Tenets
• In a functionalist system, all the parts have to
work together in order for social order to
exist. Functionalists believe that societies
work well when everyone accepts their role,
and the need to contribute to the whole. If any
part malfunctions, or becomes dysfunctional,
functionalists believe that pathological
symptoms would occur.
Basic Tenets
• For functionalists, society basically
exists in a state of equilibrium and
order. It is the nature of society to deal
with pathologies as they emerge, and to
return to a state of order and health.
Functionalism
• Functionalists tend to believe that things
some of us may see as dysfunctional
are really functional for society, or at
least for some of the more powerful
people within it.
Functionalism
• For example, a functionalist might
believe that gender discrimination is
functional because its better for women
to be home caring for their children.
Reflection question
• How might each of the following be
perceived as functional?
• Immigration
• Gangs
• Crime
Emile Durkheim
• The originator of
functionalism was Emile
Durkheim, who is also a
key figure in
establishing sociology
as a discipline.
Durkheim lived from
1858 to 1917, as the
son of a French Rabbi.
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Emile Durkheim
• Durkheim was inspired
by the political
upheavals of his day,
most notably the
Franco-Prussian War,
and hoped that
sociology could help
stabilize and revitalize
the society in which he
lived.
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Emile Durkheim
• In an age in which
philosophers tended to talk
about society quite
generally- in terms of broad
statements about human
nature or society—Durkheim
was among the first to study
social life in terms of specific
empirical measurements. In
this work, he distinguished
sociology from both
philosophy and psychology.
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Emile Durkheim
• Durkheim argued that social
order was only possible
because people worked
together. In order to work
together, he argued, groups
need some kind of social
solidarity.
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Social Solidarity
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• Social solidarity is
the degree or type
of integration in a
society- the feeling
that we’re in this
together
Social Solidarity
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• What are some
social groups to
whom you feel
solidarity? For
each- why do you
feel solidarity with
them.
Social Solidarity
According to functionalist theory, social solidarity
corresponds to the divisions of labor in a given society.
Social Solidarity
• The division of labor is simply the separation and
specialization of work among people. As industry and
technology proliferate, and population increases,
society must be become more specialized if it is to
survive. In modern society, this is especially evident.
Labor has never before been as specialized as it is
now, and the current trend is toward even further
increased specialization
Social Solidarity
• Durkheim was not merely concerned with what the
division of labor was, but how it changed the way
people interacted with one another. He was
concerned with the social implications of increased
specialization.
Social Solidarity
•
As specialization increases, Durkheim argued, people are increasingly separated, values and
interests become different, norms are varied, and subcultures (both work-related and socialrelated) are formed.
Social Solidarity
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Durkheim theorized that
social solidarity
corresponded to the
division of labor in a
society. In traditional or
tribal societies, solidarity
is usually based on
kinship ties or familial
networks. Durkheim
calls this mechanical
solidarity.
Social Solidarity
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Mechanical solidarity
comes from
homogeneity, when
people feel connected
through similar work,
educational and
religious training, and
lifestyle.
Social Solidarity
The other kind of social
solidarity is organic
solidarity.
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Organic refers to the
interdependence of the
component parts. Thus,
social solidarity is
maintained in more
complex societies
through
interdependence.
Social Solidarity
Because people are forced to perform distinct, separate,
and specialized tasks, they come to rely on others for their
very survival. While shoemakers and carpenters may be
functioning fine, if farmers stop working, everyone starves. If
the carpenters quit, no one has any shelter. If the garbage
haulers don't show up, the streets become dumps and
diseases spread. Durkheim saw that without one another in
a highly specialized society, no one can survive. In organic
societies, social solidarity is based on interdependence, not
homogeneity.
Suicide
• Durkheim’s most famous work was
about suicide. He argued that suicide
was related to dysfunctional levels of
social solidarity.
Suicide
• Durkheim’s most famous work was about suicide. He
argued that suicide was related to dysfunctional
levels of social solidarity.
• In mechanical societies, people tend to commit what
Durkheim called Altruistic suicide. In mechanical
societies, the individual is extremely attached to the
society and thus put the goals of the group above
their own life.
Suicide
• Durkheim’s most famous work was about suicide. He argued
that suicide was related to dysfunctional levels of social
solidarity.
• In mechanical societies, people tend to commit what Durkheim
called Altruistic suicide. In mechanical societies, the individual
is extremely attached to the society and thus put the goals of the
group above their own life.
• Individuals who commit suicide based on altruism die because
they believe that their death can bring about a benefit to the
society. In other words, when an individual is too heavily
integrated into the society, they will commit suicide regardless of
their own hesitation if the society's norms ask for the person's
death.
Suicide
• Odd as it seems to call it altruistic, suicide bombers
are an example of this. Their loyalty to their group is
so strong that they value the group’s goals over their
own life.
Suicide
• In organic societies such as ours, Durkheim argued
that suicide was the result of anomie.
• Watch this clip featuring an example of anomie, and
try to figure out what that word means:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4siTwwGvHLQ&fe
ature=related
Suicide
• Durkheim defined the term anomie as a condition
where social and/or moral norms are confused,
unclear, or simply not present. Durkheim felt that this
lack of norms--or pre-accepted limits on behavior in a
society--led to deviant behavior.
Suicide
•
•
Durkheim defined the term anomie as a condition where social and/or
moral norms are confused, unclear, or simply not present. Durkheim
felt that this lack of norms--or pre-accepted limits on behavior in a
society--led to deviant behavior.
Anomic suicide is there fore a condition or malaise in individuals,
characterized by an absence or shrinking of standards or values
(referred to as normlessness), and an associated feeling of alienation
and purposelessness. He believed that anomie is common when the
surrounding society has undergone significant changes in its economic
fortunes, whether for good or for worse and, more generally, when
there is a significant discrepancy between the ideological theories and
values commonly professed and what was actually achievable in
everyday life.
Reflection question:
• How is Durkheim’s analysis of suicide
an example of the sociological
imagination? How does it reflect a
functionalist approach?
Contemporary Functionalists
• Contemporary functionalists have built
upon Durkheim’s model, applying it to more
contemporary situations. Robert Merton is
a contemporary functionalist whose
contribution was to specify various types of
functions.
Contemporary Functionalists
• Contemporary functionalists have built
upon Durkheim’s model, applying it to more
contemporary situations. Robert Merton is
a contemporary functionalist whose
contribution was to specify various types of
functions.
Contemporary Functionalists
• Contemporary functionalists have built upon Durkheim’s model,
applying it to more contemporary situations. Robert Merton is a
contemporary functionalist whose contribution was to specify various
types of functions.
• Manifest functions and dysfunctions are conscious and deliberate,
latent ones the unconscious and unintended.
• While functions are intended (manifest) or recognized (latent), and
have a positive effect on society, dysfunctions are unintended
(manifest) or unrecognized (latent) and have a negative effect on
society
Manifest and laytent functions
• So for example, the manifest function of a rain dance, is to
produce rain. A latent function might be to improve the
social cohesion of those participating in the ritual. The
manifest function of antigambling legislation may be to
suppress gambling, its latent function to create an illegal
empire for the gambling syndicates. Or Christian
missionaries in parts of Africa manifestly tried to convert
Africans to Christianity, latently helped to destroy the
indigenous tribal cultures. Or the control of the Communist
Party over all sectors of social life in Russia manifestly
was to assure the continued dominance of the
revolutionary ethos, latently created a new class of
comfortable bourgeois bureaucrats.
Manifest and laytent functions
A minute ago, I asked you to think about the
functions of immigration, gangs and crime. Are
the functions you came up with manifest or
latent functions?