Examine the functionalist view of the family Broadly speaking‚ the functionalist perspective has focused on the functions of the family in society and for its members. In other words‚ it looks at how the family‚ as an institution‚ helps in maintaining order and stability in society‚ and the significance of the family for its individual members. There are two main functionalist views on the family – Murdock’s view and Parsons’ view. Murdock’s view on the family is that the family performs four basic
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stratification is universal but variable. Third‚ it persists over generations and fourth‚ it is supported by patterns of belief. There are different sociological perspectives which have been put forward about social stratification; the Functionalists and the Marxists. A Functionalist‚ (Parsons‚ 1954 in Haralambos & Holborn‚ 2004)‚ has argued that stratification systems derive from common values. He proposes that those who perform successfully in terms of society’s values will be ranked highly and they will
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Marxist sees ‘all social institutions as serving the interests of capitalism’. This including the family‚ it suggests that they help to maintain and justify capitalism by reinforcing class inequality and exploitation from the rich. Another opinion on this is the functionalist approach in which they think the family performs the essential needs of the society. Both Marxist and functionalist ideas contrast as functionalists see society based on value consensus in which everyone agrees whereas Marxists
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the nuclear family are influenced by the theory of functionalism‚ which dominated thinking in the sociology of the family for many years. Functionalists are interested in how the functions for the greater good of society and how it contributes to the maintenance of social order. (Moore‚ 2008). Functionalism defines the family as having its part or function within society. Functionalists suggest that if a social institution is apparent then it must have a role or function. The family is looked at
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Assess functionalist views of the role of the family. What do Functionalists believe the role of the family is? Try to back these up using examples of functionalist sociologists. The whole family has an important part to play within our society and each member have a job to do to keep the family together. Just as Talcott Parsons suggested the theory of functionalism means that the function of anything is about the job that is set to do. However Parsons‚ along with Wilmott and Young argued that
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Functionalists agree with many of the positive aspects of the family such as provision of care and teachings of norms and values. The three main functionalist sociologists in this topic are Murdock‚ Parsons and Fletcher‚ who all have a different view towards family but main argument is the functions it provides for society. Murdock believes that the family have to provide 4 main functions: primary socialisation‚ financial support‚ the meeting of sexual and emotional needs and reproduction. These
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Assess the usefulness of the Functionalist view of the family (24 marks) Functionalism is a macro theory and so looks at things on a large scale they consist of structural theorists. They see society as being similar to a human body‚ in that the essential organs in the body perform specific functions. This is like society as one of the essential organs in society is the family‚ as it performs essential functions which serve the needs of the family. And that each part of the body works in harmony
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Compare the main assumptions of the Functionalist and Marxist perspectives on religion. ______________________________________________________________________________ “Religion is an organized collection of beliefs‚ cultural systems and world views that relate humanity to an order of existence.” Sociologist study religion as both a belief system and a social institution. As belief system – Religion shapes what people think and how they see the world. As Social Institution – Religion is a pattern
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Using material from Item A and elsewhere‚ assess the view that the education system exists mainly to select and prepare young people for their future work roles. (20 marks) As stated in Item A sociologists see the education system as performing a vital role in modern societies. Item A also highlights that the education system can equip individuals with the specialised knowledge and skills they will need when they join the workforce. Therefore‚ the education system helps select and allocate individuals
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Asses the functionalist view that religion benefits both society as a whole and its individual members. 33marks The functionalist view of religion stems from Durkheim who said that society is like the human body. He argued that that religion reinforces collective conscience that leads to a unity within society as a whole and that each member of the society is joined in solidarity‚ therefore it acts as glue. It does so by reinforcing social norms and values that bring the community together. It
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