What Are The Three Major Sociological Theories

Sociologist use three major theories: symbolic interactionism, functional analysis, and conflict theory. A theory is a general statement about how some parts of the world fit together and how they work, however, these three theories are well-known as theoretical perspectives in sociology. A professor, who taught at the University of Chicago, George Herbert Mead (1863-1931), was one of the founders of symbolic interactionism. However, Mead and Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929) developed this perspective in sociology. Charles Horton Cooley, a professor at the University of Michigan, stated that society is what makes us an individual. Symbolic interactionism is defined as a "theoretical perspective in which society is viewed as composed of symbols that people use to establish meaning,
14). The symbolic interactionism is done at a micro level and its main focus is the relationship between individuals in a society. This theory contains several main elements also known as symbols that appear in an everyday life.
Exclusive of symbols, our social life would be no more sophisticated than animals. Symbols, in this category, define the relationships with people, for example, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, teachers and etc. Without symbols, a person wouldn't be able to coordinate actions with others. For example, unable to make plans for a future date, time and place. Also, without symbols, there won't be movies, music, and music which includes musical instruments. The concept dramaturgy kicks in this category. Dramaturgy is a technique, developed by Erving Goffman, to focus on "the social life which is analyzed in the terms of drama or the stage" (Henslin, 2017, p. 118). Sociologist Erving Goffman developed this term into a sociology term to