Topic 5 - Functionalism

Who identify three similarities between society and biological organisms

• Parsons

  1. System - regulated, interdependent that fit together in fixed ways

  2. System needs - society has needs to be met to survive

  3. Functions - function of system is contributing to meet everyone’s needs

Who argues that the system has two mechanisms for ensuring that individuals conform to shared norms and meet systems needs

• Parsons

• Socialisation - internalises norms

• Social control - positive and negative sanctions rewarded

What is the building block approach to society

• Each action we perform is governed by a specific norm or rule

• Occupant must carry out role or they are not performing need for society

• Institutions are clusters of roles that help meet society’s needs

What are the 4 basic needs that need to be met by sub-system

• Parsons ‘AGIL schema’

  1. Adaptation - meets members material needs through economic sub-systems, how society distributes resources

  2. Goal attainment - need to set goals and allocate resources to achieve them, e.g. political systems government

  3. Integration - Different parts of the system integrated together to pursue shared goal e.g. to maintain stability and order such as legal system

  4. Latency - Maintaining society over time e.g. education, family and religion

Who does an internal critique of functionalism

• Merton

• Not all parts of society are positively functional

• Functional unity is exaggerated

• Not everything has a function, some may harm other groups such as CJS

Who criticises functionalism saying they are not puppets

• Wrong

• Says it states that individuals have no free will

Postmodernist criticism

• Cannot account for diversity and instability in today’s postmodern society