The different but complementary nature of these two approaches can be seen in the case of armed robbery. Which perspective views society as a set of interrelated parts that work together to produce a stable social system? Gender socialization occurs through four major agents of socialization: family, education, peer groups, and mass media. For example, while a conflict theorist studying a political protest might focus on class difference, a symbolic interactionist would be more interested in how individuals in the protesting group interact, as well as the signs and symbols protesters use to communicate their message. Another examination might study the different functions that occur in food production: from farming and harvesting to flashy packaging and mass consumerism. Symbolic interactionism is a micro-level theory that focuses on the relationships among individuals within a society. Protestants were more likely to commit suicide than Catholics in Durkheims society, and his work supports the utility of theory in sociological research. This force, Durkheim continued, is the moral authority of society. However, history has not supported their prediction that capitalism will inevitably result in a revolution of the proletariat. Mobile Technology Fact Sheet. Pew Research Internet Project, April 2012. This general framework reached fruition in the writings of mile Durkheim (18581917), a French scholar largely responsible for the sociological perspective as we now know it. The Communist Manifesto. Briefly explain the importance of each of the following. Tong, R. (2009). Manifest functions are the consequences of a social process that are sought or anticipated, while latent functions are the unsought consequences of a social process. Want to create or adapt books like this? Ex: Functionalism and Conflict theory, Change is one of the basic features of society. Durkheim, . At that time, sociologists began to feel that structural-functionalism did not sufficiently explain the rapid social changes happening in the United States at that time. Sociological theories may be broadly divided into macro approaches and micro approaches. London, England: Coward-McCann. This theory emphasizes that different groups in society have different interests stemming from their different social positions. 1958. The parts of society that Spencer referred to were the social institutions, or patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs, such as government, education, family, healthcare, religion, and the economy. Theorists Herman and Reynolds (1994) note that this perspective sees people as being active in shaping the social world rather than simply being acted upon. Social scientists who apply symbolic-interactionist thinking look for patterns of interaction between individuals. Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1962). A manifest function of college education, for example, includes gaining knowledge, preparing for a career, and finding a good job that utilizes that education. Generally considered as gaining acceptance in the late 1970s and early 1980s, postmodern social theory is a micro-level approach that looks at small, local groups and individual reality. 1. For example, one function of a societys laws may be to protect society from violence, while another is to punish criminal behavior, while another is to preserve public health. In general, however, conflict theory emphasizes that the various parts of society contribute to ongoing inequality, whereas functionalist theory, as we have seen, stresses that they contribute to the ongoing stability of society. Society occurs as a result of interacton between individuals and small groups of individuals over long periods of time, micro-sociologists that explore the interaction of individuals of groups of individuals In many ways, conflict theory is the opposite of functionalism but ironically also grew out of the Industrial Revolution, thanks largely to Karl Marx (18181883) and his collaborator, Friedrich Engels (18201895). Slow social change is desirable, but rapid social change threatens social order. 8th ed. https://www.marxists.org/glossary/people/d/pics/durkheim.jpg public domain. People act to maximize their advantages in a given situation and to reduce their disadvantages. Their understanding of the situation and subsequent interaction will be very different from those arising from the more typical shaking of hands. Students can study with teachers and pupils from the other side of the globe. Governments find it harder to hide conditions inside their countries from the rest of the world. Summarize the most important beliefs and assumptions of symbolic interactionism and exchange theory. For example, no such revolution has occurred in the United States, where workers never developed the degree of class consciousness envisioned by Marx and Engels. Your ability to get others to act on your will, Having a higher social status than those around you. All rights reserved. 1952. Chapter 22: Conclusion: Understanding and Changing the Social World, Chapter 1: Sociology and the Sociological Perspective, Chapter 2: Eye on Society: Doing Sociological Research, Chapter 5: Social Structure and Social Interaction, Chapter 7: Deviance, Crime, and Social Control, Chapter 20: Social Change and the Environment, Chapter 21: Collective Behavior and Social Movements, https://www.marxists.org/glossary/people/d/pics/durkheim.jpg, Chapter 11 Gender and Gender Inequality, Chapter 2 Eye on Society: Doing Sociological Research, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 1.3 Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology, 2.2 Stages in the Sociological Research Process, 2.4 Ethical Issues in Sociological Research, 2.5 Sociological Research in the Service of Society, 3.1 Culture and the Sociological Perspective, 4.4 Socialization Through the Life Course, 4.5 Resocialization and Total Institutions, 4.6 Socialization Practices and Improving Society, 5.1 Social Structure: The Building Blocks of Social Life, 6.4 Groups, Organizations, and Social Change, 7.1 Social Control and the Relativity of Deviance.