Four Sociological Perspectives

Introduction
Throughout my sociology class, I have learned the elements of culture, socialization, and social structure through the comparative lens of contemporary sociological perspectives. The contemporary sociological perspectives include functionalist, conflict, feminist, and symbolic interactionist. I am going to use these four sociological perspectives to analyze an aspect of social identity relative to social interaction such as gender. Gender are learned attitudes and behaviors that characterize women and men (Benokraitis, 2015).
Functionalism
The first contemporary sociological perspective is functionalism. Functionalism maintains that society is a complex system of interdependent parts that work together to ensure a society’s
survival (Benokraitis, 2015). Functionalists believe that men and women have different yet distinct roles to ensure a family/society’s survival. “A man (typically a husband and father) plays an instrumental role of economic provider; he’s competitive and works hard.
A woman (typically a wife and mother) plays an expressive role; she provides the emotional nurturance that sustains the family unit and supports the father/husband” (Benokraitis, 2015). This statement explains that both roles are complementary and the husband and wife are expected to know their role. The traditional family per a functionalist consists of a husband who is expected to work hard throughout the day, while the wife prepares everything for the family and supports him. I agree that a man and woman have very important roles but I believe they should be equally balanced. I was taught the roles on functionalism first hand. My father was a very firm functionalist, which influenced our social interaction. Social interaction is a process in which people take each other into account in their own behavior (Benokraitis, 2015). He worked forty hours a week while my mother worked from home and cared for the house, my father, and I. I do believe it was the key cause for tension in our family. My father was
not very supportive of us and focused primarily on work. He believed in my mother supporting him, and that I was my mother’s chore to attend to. My father and I are not close today because of this, yet I am very close to my mother. I believe women should be working just as hard as a man, whether it be from home or in an office. A man should also be just as supportive towards his wife. We all need a hand in bringing home income and support to accomplish our goals, especially from a spouse. Roles are important in a family and society, but balancing them is even more crucial.
Conflict
The next contemporary sociological theory is conflict. A conflict theory examines how and why groups disagree, struggle over power, and compete for scarce resources (Benokraitis, 2015). Conflict theorists believe that gender inequality is something built into society and our home lives. They believe that capitalism is the cause for gender roles and men’s advantages over women. Capitalism is an economic system in which the ownership of the means of production is in private hands (Benokraitis, 2015). Theorists believe that women’s inequality is a result of exploitation in the workplace. This means that since women are spending long hours of their time doing unpaid domestic work, they should be accustomed to being paid less. This is referred to as a gender pay gap which is the overall income difference between men and women in the workplace (Benokraitis, 2015). It also means gender roles in the work force will result in more money. Gender roles are the characteristics, attitudes, feelings, and behaviors that society expects of females and makes (Benokraitis, 2015). Employers typically require a man to take multiple business trips, small paternity leaves, and work long hours. In return, they get paid more than a woman in the workplace. I can personally relate to this because my father was in this same position at his workplace. He takes multiple business trips throughout the year which fall on our birthdays and holidays. It has taken a huge toll on our family because I have no had my dad present at a birthday party since I was 12. He also missed very important events such as watching my brother walk for the first time, watching me graduate elementary and middle school. My father also missed all my proms because of his long work hours. I have realized that I want to marry a man who will be home with my children and I for special events. It has changed our interaction together because I have less memories with him than I should have as his only daughter. I firmly believe that gender equality in the workforce is necessary. It is important for women to be paid correctly for the job they do, and men to have the same benefits as a woman, such as longer paternity leave. Although men have more power and control than women in the workforce, it takes a toll on their home life.
Feminist
The third contemporary sociological theory is the feminist theory.
Feminist theories examine women’s social, economic, and political inequality (Benokraitis, 2015). Feminists agree that the inequality of gender is both in the workplace and at home. Although, they believe that women’s vulnerability plays a key role in gender inequality. “All feminists (female and male) agree on three general points: (1) men and women should be valued equally; (2) women should have more control over their lives; (3) political, economic, family, and other institutions can reduce gender inequality” (Benokraitis, 2015). Men and women can be feminist, and they believe that gender equality is crucial. They also believe that women need more control, but it will take all of society to help the gender roles become equal. I do not consider myself a feminist, although I do share similar beliefs. I am very passionate about accounting, and I am currently pursuing a degree in this field. I have reached out to local certified public accountants in my area, most of which were men. Many the men were very polite and explained the best route to achieve my career. While a few did not take me serious because of my gender, one man took me by surprise. He persuaded me to look elsewhere for a more “woman friendly” job. He said that an accountant works too many hours to care to a family. I politely took his advice, and will continue to use it to push me further to my goal. I still interact with this
man because he is my boss’s accountant. We share common courteous conversations, although I have lost respect for him. He showed me that gender roles and gender inequality still exists in our society, and desperately need to be taken care of.
Symbolic Interaction The last contemporary sociological theory is symbolic interaction. Symbolic interaction theory examines individuals’ everyday behavior through the communication of knowledge, ideas, beliefs, and attitudes (Benokraitis, 2015). Theorists focus on the day-to-day behavior that causes gender roles. They believe we change our behavior based on the sex we are communicating with. “…believing in gender differences can actually produce differences” (Benokraitis, 2015). This means that if a woman believes she cannot accomplish a task, typically done by a man, she will not complete it. But if she is confident and competent, she can accomplish anything a man can do. I have personally experienced this taking a carpentry class this semester at my high school. At first, I was very intimidated by all the males in my class because it is very unusual for a female to take this class. Carpentry is considered a “mans expertise.” I had confidence that I could succeed just as well as the males, and I pulled out with one of the few A’s in the class. Competence is key, but confidence is what pushed me through the feeling of being unequal. In conclusion, these four sociological perspectives are relative to social interaction such as gender. The four sociological perspectives are functionalist, conflict, feminist, and symbolic interactionist. Theorists from every viewpoint agree that gender is an issue in our society today. I personally relate to each opinion, and share a lot of the same thoughts. It has changed my social interaction with people, even as close as my father. We are not as close anymore because of how society views women as the caregiver, and not the men. Gender equality is something desperately needed everywhere in the world, and it will take everyone to reach this goal.