Dukheim's functionalist theory

Durkheim’s functionalist theory

Functionalism sees society as based on value consensus → social solidarity.

Functionalists → in order to achieve this solidarity, society has two key mechanisms:
- Socialisation instils the shared culture into its members. helps to ensure individuals internalise the same norms and values, and they feel it right to act in the ways that society requires.
- Social control mechanisms include rewards for conformity, and punishments for deviance. help to ensure that individuals behave in the way society expects.

the inevitability and universality of crime

every society has some level of crime and deviance → society of saints

not everyone is equally effectively socialised into the shared norms and values, so some individuals will be prone to deviate.

particularly in complex modern societies, there’s a diversity of lifestyles and values. Different groups develop their own subcultures with distinctive norms and values, and what the members of the subculture regard as normal, mainstream culture may see as deviant.

modern societies tend towards anomie - the rules governing behaviour become weaker and less clear-cut. This is cuz modern societies have a complex, specialised division of labour, which leads to individuals becoming increasingly different from one another. This weakens the shared culture or collective conscience and results in higher levels of deviance. e.g. Durkheim sees anomie as a cause of suicide.

Erikson (1966)

society of saints

even in a society of saints, deviance would exist in some form - relative

boundary maintenance

clarifies what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour through punishment and social control

crime produces a reaction from society, uniting its members in condemnation of the wrongdoer and reinforcing their commitment to the shared norms and values.

this explains the function of punishment. This isn’t to make the wrongdoer suffer or mend their ways, nor is it to remove crime from society. the purpose of punishment is to reaffirm society's shared rules and reinforce social solidarity.

This may be done via the rituals of the courtroom, which dramatise wrongdoing and publicly shame and stigmatise the offender. This reaffirms the values of the law-abiding majority and discourages others from rule breaking.

Cohen (1972)

boundary maintenance - Cohen (1972)

media coverage of crime and deviance often creates 'folk devils' which leads to 'dramatisation of evil'.

adaptation and change

all change starts with an act of deviance. Individuals with new ideas, values and ways of living must not be too restricted by social control. There must be some scope for them to challenge and change existing norms and values, and in the first instance this will inevitably appear as deviance.

e.g. the authorities often persecute religious visionaries who espouse a new 'message' or value-system. but, in the long run their values may give rise to a new culture and morality. If those with new ideas are suppressed, society will stagnate and be unable to make necessary adaptive changes.

Thus, neither very high nor low level of crime desirable. Each signals malfunctioning of the social system:
- Too much crime threatens to tear the bonds of society apart.
- Too little → society is repressing and controlling its members too much, stifling individual freedom and preventing change.

other functions of crime

Davis (1937; 1961), Cohen

Societies sometimes also manage and regulate deviance rather than seeking to eliminate it entirely. e.g. demonstrations, carnivals, festivals, etc. license behaviour that in other contexts might be punished. Similarly, the young may be given leeway to 'sow their wild oats'. From a functionalist perspective, this may be to offer them a way of coping with the strains of the transition from childhood to adulthood.

other functions of crime - Davis (1937; 1961)

prostitution acts as a safety valve for the release of men's sexual frustrations without threatening the monogamous nuclear family.

other functions of crime - Cohen

a warning that an institution isn’t functioning properly.

e.g. high rates of truancy → problems with the education system → policy-makers need to make appropriate changes to it.

Erikson (1966)

deviance performs positive social functions → society is organised to promote deviance.

the true function of agencies of social control such as the police may actually be to sustain a certain level of crime rather than to rid society of it.

AO3 - limitations of Durkheim’s functionalist theory

For Durkheim, society requires a certain amount of deviance to function successfully, but he offers no way of knowing how much is the right amount.

Functionalists explain the existence of crime in terms of its supposed function - e.g. to strengthen solidarity. But this doesn't mean society actually creates crime in advance with the intention of strengthening solidarity.

Functionalism looks at what functions deviance performs for society as a whole and ignores how it might affect different groups or individuals within society. e.g. prostitution may be 'functional' as a safety valve for male sexual frustrations, but it isn't functional for the illegally trafficked sex worker who has to meet his needs.

Crime doesn't always promote solidarity. It may have the opposite effect, leading to people becoming more isolated, e.g. women staying indoors for fear of attack. but, some crimes do reinforce collective sentiments, e.g. uniting the community in condemnation of a brutal attack.

positive functions of crime in modern industrial societies

1. social change
2. social solidarity
3. boundary maintenance

social solidarity

- collective moral shock and outrage
- particularly when against a vulnerable group such as children
- community solidarity against criminality and reinforce value consensus
- such a reaction may result in laws being made stronger

too much crime and deviance

problematic cuz it means that too many people aren’t committed to the value consensus and thus social order is in danger of breaking down

too little crime and deviance

problematic cuz indicates that social control mechanisms are too strong and whoever oversaw society was being too dictatorial

such controls are unhealthy cuz societies require criticism, dissent and deviance in order to healthily evolve

anomie

feeling frustrated and alienated by society’s social structure, leading to moral confusion