...will prepare them physically, mentally and socially for their life chances (Clark 2005). Educational institutions play a very important role in reducing social inequalities. Over the last century British schools experienced very important changes and moved from a selective system to a comprehensive one in the 1960s and 70s. Much research has shown that the move from a selective to a comprehensive system in the UK had a positive effect in reducing gender and social inequality (Leicester et al 2000; Ianneli and Paterson 2005). Gender has been viewed as one of the most important influence on educational attainment in the UK and other parts of the world. Across European and British schools there has been a much greater awareness of gender equality...
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...Decisions in the Life of a Vietnamese Mother Introduction: I will write a short biography of my mother who has made crucial decisions, which have had a great impact not only on herself, but also on my current family life. I will identify the social factors which influenced her decisions in order to identify the importance of the decisions from the perspective of sociology (option #3). To see my mother’s decisions in the viewpoint of sociology, I will apply Functionalism of Emile Durkheim, Marxism of Karl Marx, Interactionism of Max Weber and Feminism to the social factors that guided her decisions. As well, I will use five concepts to clarify the results of her decisions: manifest function and latent function, education, deprivation, religion,...
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...Perspectives In this assignment I will explore the sociological perspectives. In sociology there are 7 perspectives. Sociology is “The study of human social behaviour, especially the study of the origins, organization, institutions, and development of human society.” (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 2011). The seven perspectives of sociology are functionalism, Marxism, feminism, interactionism, postmodernism, new right and collectivism. Definitions “Functionalism interprets each part of society in terms of how it contributes to the stability of the whole society. Society is more than the sum of its parts; rather, each part of society is functional for the stability of the whole society” (Crossman, 2015). “Marxism is a political, social, and economic philosophy derived from the work of the 19th-century historians Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It views human history as a struggle between social classes and asserts that capitalism is inherently exploitative.” (Chegg.com, 2015) “Feminism is a complex set of political ideologies used by the women’s movement to advance the cause of women’s equality and to end the sexist theory and practice of social oppression. (Crossman, 2015) “The interactionist perspective is one of the major theoretical perspectives within sociology. It focuses on the concrete details of what goes on among individuals in everyday life. Interactionists study how we use and interpret symbols not only to communicate with each other,...
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...very different approaches to understanding what society is like. The functionalist theory was created by Robert Merton and Emilie Durkheim. The perspective views society as a combination of institutions, functions that create societal equality, stability and harmony. This means all the functions rely on each other; if one function changes, then so will all the others. This theory is based on natural science itself that’s positivism. This means if there are many problems they blame parts of society. The conflict theory was a perspective that emphasized inequality. Karl Marx was popular for developing this theory. He wanted capitalists to use their power by harbouring resources, and manipulate institutions like religion. Furthermore, thus alienates all the workers. This theory is limited to individuals and cannot observe wider societal situations. Conflict theory is highly undeveloped. If any problems arise this theory blames the entire system. Both functionalism and conflict theory has in common and is that they both look at society on the “micro level” meaning both look at the bigger picture. Both functionalism and the conflict theory understand societies larger elements such as institutions. Functionalism thinks institutions create equality, stability and harmony. Whereas, the conflict theory believes institutions are used for capitalists to manipulate each other....
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...Item A and elsewhere, assess the contribution of functionalism to our understanding of families and households (24 marks) According to functionalist sociologists, the family is a key institution of society. It performs vital functions for the maintenance of society as a whole and for the benefit of all its individual members. For example, according to George Peter Murdock, it provides for the stable satisfaction of the sex drive and thus avoids the social disruption and conflict that could be caused by a sexual ‘free for all’. Similarly, the family reproduces the next generation and thereby ensures the continuation of society over time. Functionalists tend to see the nuclear family as the ideal family type for modern society. For example, Talcott Parsons argues that it is the family structure best equipped to meet the need of industrial society for a mobile labour force. Similarly, the nuclear family performs two essential functions for its members and for society as a whole. However, not everyone accepts the functionalist view of the family and its role. Marxists and feminists reject its consensus assumptions about who benefits from the family. Similarly, historians and sociologists have put forward evidence to challenge Parsons’ view that there is a ‘functional fit’ between the type of society and the type of family structure found within it. When considering the question, we need to understand that functionalism has contributed towards our understanding of the...
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...Micro-level Theories. “The Macro-level Theories focus on families as a social institution” (Strong & Cohen, 2014, p. 39). “A social institution is the organized pattern of statuses and structures, roles and rules by which a society attempts to meet certain of its basic needs “(Strong & Cohen, 2014, p. 39). Macro-level theories examine the how the family is influenced by society. Family ecology theory, structural functionalism theory, conflict theory, and feminist perspective are all example of Macro-level theories. Micro-level Theories emphasize what happens within families. The theories take into account everyday behavior, interaction between family members, and patterns of communication. Symbolic interaction theory, social exchange theory, and family systems theory are examples of Micro-level theories. This reaction report will discuss two of the “Theoretical Perspectives on Families:” the structural functionalism theory and the social exchange theory and provide modern day examples of these theories. Structural Functionalism Theory “The structural functionalism theory is a framework for building a theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability” ("Structural," 2015, p. 1). This means that the family consists of several members that performs different tasks and must be functioning properly for the well- being of the whole family. The theory further states that each family performs four main functions namely...
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...Reid English February 2, 2015 Persuasive Essay “Centering primarily on cultural anthropology and sociology and reaching its extremes in the applied field of family-life education, functionalism began as an attempt to make social science more ‘scientific’ by borrowing from biology the idea of studying institutions as if they were muscles or bones, in terms of their ‘structure’ and ‘function’ in the social body.” (Friedan 322) Margaret Mead, a social scientists who pioneered in the field of culture and personality, discovered the theory of Functionalism, which gave an absolute meaning and a sanctimonious value to the generic term woman’s role. I disagree with their theory of woman existing only for their analysis of sex-roles in the social structure of the United States because it contemplates no alternative for a woman other than the role of a housewife. When Betty Friedan wrote this novel on the Feminine Mystique it was in the 1950’s when woman were looked upon much differently then they are now. The Feminine Mystique was actually one start to the woman’s right movement and motivated woman nation wide to stand up for their freedom. Women were automatically given this image of a housewife in this time period and felt imprisoned, as if they had no other choice. Women sought for absolute equality between sexes and freedom to start any career they dreamt of. It is amazing how differently human beings thought of each other just a little over 50 years ago. Today people would never...
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...symbolic interactionism, functionalism, conflict theory, and feminist theory. When evaluating a social problem, sociologists will typically use the theory which best relates to the problem. However, some sociologists may never favor a certain theory. Symbolic interactionism is a theoretical perspective in which society is viewed as composed of symbols that people use to establish meaning, develop their views of the world, and communicates with one another. Symbolic interactionism can be traced back to the eighteenth century when individuals evaluated their own conduct by comparing themselves with others, and using symbols to understand their own experiences. Symbolic interactionism relates with just about every aspect of a society. Without these symbols, we would not know who parents, aunts, uncles, etc are because those are just symbols to show relationship. There would not be movies, bridges, instruments, anything that requires a plan, a symbol of how it will turn out. These symbols also affect the behaviors of a society and how people act. The society would not know who to respect, who to obey, who to love because people would not have any symbol to classify their status in society. Functionalism, also known as functional analysis and structural functionalism, is a theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of various parts, each with a function that, when fulfilled, contributes to the society’s equilibrium. Functionalism in a society requires both...
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...Racial issues of Canada After World War II the idea of multiculturalism is changed, the demographics, ideology and persistent lobbying has done a significance increase in racism. A new revolutionary perspective against Nazism, anthropology and dissolution of European empires had transformed the ides and concept of race which fundamentally changes the shape of Canadian diversity and pluralism. Many people believed that new changes seems to be reinvent white domination, individualist and liberal are more likely to be concerned in this process. According to them the concept of racism on the basis of color was categorically denied, they think that color has nothing to do with it. This will diminish the actual significance the attribute of visible minorities. Theses minorities were encouraged towards the acceptance of the beliefs and values of the leading majority. Civil rights started a movement In Canada to disappear the factor of race, as it is creating a affecting the positions of the citizens. It minimized the importance of sub groups and social relation was left unmediated, this movement leads prompt the efforts towards the norms and values of the bigger society in the explicit and clearest ways. In Canada, many steps have been taken since twenty five years to remedy the racism. The majority in Canada first extent the Asian franchise, this reduces the racial barrier to immigration and leads to the proposal of aboriginal people assimilation in 1969. This action showed that...
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...perspectives. In this assignment I will be explaining some of the different sociological perspectives in today’s society. The sociological perspectives which I will be explaining will be Functionalism, Marxism, Feminism, and interactionism, Collectivism, Postmodernism and The New Right. The first perspective which I will be explaining will be Functionalism. Functionalism is the view that our society is based onagreed norms and values. A norm is social rules that define correct behaviour in society. An example of a norm can be an individual attending school until they are the age of 18. Values are what are important to an individual and this differs in class, culture, ethnicity and gender. An example of a value which is important to most of our society is going to school, going to church or volunteering. Functionalists see social structure or the organisation of society as more important than the individual itself. They say that people are born into society and become the product if all social influences around them because they’re socialised by different institutions such as family, education, media and religion. Sociologist Talcott Parsons sees society as a system that works together to keep things running smoothly just like the human body. Social consensus is a key belief of functionalism. It allows society to continue to progress because the theory believes that we have shared norms and values in society which we must follow. Another sociological perspective that I will be...
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...information. The different media thus convey the messages of the dominant culture and provide subcultures with justifications for these relations of ruling. These patterns of inequality can be interpreted through four major sociological angles: structural functionalism, conflict theory, and feminism. The term media is the plural of “medium” and is commonly found in association with the process of communication. “The mass media include newspapers, motion pictures, radio and television” (Curtis 304). These forms of communication have influenced in a greater scale society with the advance of technology in the last decades. The age of mass communication has made it possible for people to gain access to far more information than any society ever had. Information is indispensable to an advanced and complex civilization to the point of becoming a commodity for which individuals are willing to pay for. However, this commodity has not been a convenient tool when enhancing social values that promote social equality. In fact, it has become a crucial agent in determining various trends of inequality; being social class discrimination and gender discrimination key aspects that foster those patterns. During 1950s structural functionalism was constantly used in studies of mass media, enabling sociologists to examine the role of media institutions (Curtis 305). Sociologists such as Lasswell and Wright established that...
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...Integration is important because it maintains a unity and a certain balance in a particular society. Also, cultural integration helps keep a society together, so all can share the same beliefs and values in a social system. Therefore, it helps to reduce conflict in a society where cultural integration is present. If all parts of a society are linked together, it becomes more homogeneous, which affects the amount of conflict present. Functionalist thought is a general consensus that socialization helps integrate people of a society. Everyone in that particular society follows the rules of that culture. These rules can be described as an invisible agreement, which is put forth by the culture in which the society follows or practices. Functionalism believes that cultural integration has a special purpose in a society. Its purpose is to join people of a society into a common bond. It draws the people into a similar way of thinking. Functionalist thought believes that cultural integration is directly responsible for the amount of deviance in a society. If people are culturally integrated and share the same beliefs and values, then the amount of deviance must be low, compared to a society that is not integrated. In conclusion,...
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...functionalist perspective Functionalists believe that education performs very important roles for individuals, the economy and the wider social structure. It provides secondary socialisation, passing on shared culture enables individuals to develop their potential and regulates their behaviour. Functionalists argue that education has three broad; socialisation where education helps to maintain society by socialising young people in to key cultural values, such as achievement, individualism, equality of opportunity, social solidarity and democracy. The second one is skills provision in which education teaches the skills required by a modern industrial society. These may be general skills that everyone needs such as literacy and numeracy or the specific skills needed for particular occupations. And the final function is role allocation, where education allocates people to the most appropriate jobs for their talents using examination and qualifications. This is seen to be fair because there is equality of opportunity, everyone has the chance to achieve success in society on the basis of their ability. ...read more. Middle Educational mechanisms such as grades, examinations, references and qualifications are used to sort individuals. Society is this a meritocracy in which people are rewarded for intelligence, ability and effort. Functional importance is decided by length and specialist training required for particular occupations. It is claimed that to be a brain surgeon, for example...
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...principal perspectives and these are Functionalism, Marxism, Feminism, Interactionism, Postmodernism, Collectivism and New Right. Functionalism In 1951, Talcott Parsons introduced the Functionalist view and this studies the social structure as a whole of how it functions as well as how each social structure is crucial in the interests of society. Functionalism believes that humans and the society have basic needs, institutions and governments might be responsible to meet the required needs of people also the functionalist may consider that they are different kinds of sources that could limit the individual’s behaviour within the chosen society, meaning that the society will behave appropriately based on one’s behaviour while having the same values, on the other hand the functionalist view does recognise that there may be errors or inequalities within the society but bearing in mind this can be functional for the society. However there have been criticisms against functionalism as some may believe that it is not a realistic way of living and not considering one’s own choices also functionalism may seem to ignore conflict and diversity within individuals in the society. Parsons sees inequalities as a well function to society as it helps in the running of society or community. The main key idea of functionalism is to ensure smooth running of the society and this is done through the structures of households and family. The weakness of functionalism does not clearly address the conflicts...
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...homogenous society with social stability and a high degree of social integration, leading to a value consensus. The norms and values brought in with the immigrants led to a Cultural Clash, where each different ethnicity were seen to be against the norm. This created many stereotypes e.g. boisterous West Indians. Prejudice also came about, buoyed by xenophobia, competing for jobs between ethnicities and a lack of similarity (Assimilation) with foreigners. Patterson continues by arguing this has caused self-segregation, whereby ethnic minorities separate themselves in certain areas, and this combined with ‘White Flight’ has caused entire areas and schools to be dominated by certain ethnicities e.g. Tower Hamlets and South Hall. However, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) point out that self-segregation is caused by racism, rather than white flight. Additionally, research has found that...
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