SOCI 210 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Homophobia, Incest, Social Conflict
3 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Gendered Interactions and Institutions II
Structural Functionalism (Function/ Order)
- Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
- Structural Functionalism emerged in the Post WWII (Great Depression→
1930s>1960s)
- Sociologists started drawing on Durkheim to theorize about social interaction
with a specific focus on an understanding of the social institutions and
processes of socialization as functions
- How can they be improved to contribute to the functionality and
stability of society in a post war period?
- Economic scale→ changes within society after a war
- Quite common to seek forms of stability and order. So it makes
sense then that there would be a focus on social institutions
and how they contribute to stability
- Organism metaphor
- Human body: Each part serves to function in an overall system
- Institutions (Structures) serve various social needs (Functions)
- Each social institution in society is contributing to the overall
functioning of a society (System)
- Media, religion
- Socialization and social order
- Inequality: Some degree is necessary where complex tasks/ roles
- Lack of rewards, etc. but society needs all of these different roles and
tasks to be undertaken
- Moral codes (Systems of norms, values, beliefs)
- Serve as binding mechanisms in society
- Homophobia might be considered normal and considered
binding mechanisms
- Incest codes are understood to contribute to efficient
reproduction over time
- Critique: What about social change/ conflict?
- Robert Merton (1968)
- Elements of the social system may in fact be dysfunctional
- Who are they functional for?
- These social arrangements might benefit some people
more than others
Marxist/ Conflict Theory (Dysfunction/ Inequality)
- Karl Marx (1818-1883)
- In a context of industrialization, Marx and Engels argued that social
inequalities can be traced to the emergence or unequal organization of work
in society
- Owners vs. workers. Owners of the means of production (factory work) and
many workers that contribute to the overall functioning of that industry but
have very low earnings as a result of their work
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Structural functionalism emerged in the post wwii (great depression . Sociologists started drawing on durkheim to theorize about social interaction with a specific focus on an understanding of the social institutions and processes of socialization as functions. Economic scale changes within society after a war. Quite common to seek forms of stability and order. So it makes sense then that there would be a focus on social institutions and how they contribute to stability. Human body: each part serves to function in an overall system. Each social institution in society is contributing to the overall functioning of a society (system) Inequality: some degree is necessary where complex tasks/ roles. Lack of rewards, etc. but society needs all of these different roles and tasks to be undertaken. Moral codes (systems of norms, values, beliefs) Homophobia might be considered normal and considered binding mechanisms. Incest codes are understood to contribute to efficient reproduction over time.
