Assess the Contribution of Functionalist Sociologist to Our Understanding of the Family

In order to understand the entirety of a society, we must first understand each part and how it contributes to the stability of the society. According to the functionalist

The Functionalist theory emphasizes the contributions (functions) that all parts of society (e.g., social institutions) make within society. This theory has contributed to sociology by providing a view “which emphasizes the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain stability.” (Schafer 2013, pg13)

to of have ignored that in a number of families (this tends to be a

To see any piece of society, for example, the family or religion, the part must be seen in connection to society in general. For instance, a functionalist would look at the family as far as its commitment to the support of the social framework. While functionalism can be valuable in portraying the essential operation of the wellbeing framework, it doesn't consider the impact of political and monetary intrigues and force battles that make the wellbeing framework a challenged domain, nor would it be able to represent social clash and social

Moreover, Societies are held together by both consensus with values and coercion. The functionalist view is that the balance of harmony among the society is held up by societal institutions. For example, schools, church and family are seen as the most significant foundation for an adequately functional society.

In this essay I am going to compare and contrast Functionalism and Marxism. They are both sociological perspectives which have theories about society and the people that live within it. They attempt to explain how society influences people, and similarly how people influence society. However, the two perspectives are clearly different.

This essay will compare and contrast and contrast two leading sociological theories: Marxism and Functionalism. Marxists predominantly believe that within society inequality and prejudice are rife, whereas Functionalists live under the impression that society operates in a state of social equilibrium wherein class and social status are necessities which we allow to transpire. This essay will explore the different viewpoints each theories take on subjects such as religion, community, family and education.

The Functionalist theory believes that society functions so that each individual plays a specific role. Their perspective of social inequality is the belief that "inequality is not only inevitable but also necessary for the smooth functioning of society."

Functionalism is a theory which allows an individual to understand their place in society, and understands the relationship between physical input and behavioural output. It also believes that society is a system of components that are internally connected and that all the components work together to maintain stability in the society.

Functionalism looks at society in aspects of how it contributes to the steadiness/cohesion of the whole society (Anderson, Taylor, & Logio, P. 18). There are many institutions that are looked at that include the economic system, government, education, religion, health care, and family. All of which have different roles and perform different functions to ensure that society operates in a well-ordered manner. An example of this would be how family reproduces, takes care of children, exposes children to culture and heritage, supports other family members, and shares life experiences. Shared values and social stability are keys to this perspective. When this system breaks down it is because people’s needs are not being covered and shared values are deteriorating. When this occurs, it affects all parts of functionalism and the society must achieve

The first sociological theory is functionalism. A functionalism perspective is a “sociological approach that emphasizes the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain its stability.” (Schaefer, 2009) This simply means for in the instance of a family that the family in a whole is

Functionalism is a consensus perspective, whereby society is based on shared values and norms into which members are socialised. For functionalists, society is seen as a system of social institutions such as the economy, religion and the family all of which perform socialisation functions.

Another view on how Functionalist views the family, as they believe every institution in society contributes to the smooth running of society. To functionalists the family is at the heart of society. Functionalist view suggests that the nuclear family has become socially isolated from extended kin. More reliant on the Welfare State.

Marxists view the family in a very disparaging light and regard the family as a tool of capitalism and the bourgeoisie. Marxists believe that the family has many roles which are beneficial to the capitalist society. Zaretsky conducted his study in 1976 and concluded that the family was the key ingredient for capitalism as the family consumes the products of capitalism which enables the bourgeoisie to keep profits up and allows the capitalist system to continue. He argues that the family served interest of capitalism in various ways, namely,

Functionalist theory is one of the major theoretical perspectives in sociology. It can be argued that the functionalist theory has made a significant contribution to the study of society. It originates from the work of Emile Durkheim who suggests that social order is possible and society remains stable due to the functioning of several institutions. Everything has a specific function in society and society will always function in harmony. The main institutions studied by functionalism are the family, the education system, religion and crime and deviance.