ENL 4338 Study Guide - Class Conflict, Social Order, Symbolic Interactionism
Document Summary
Each one attempts to integrate various kinds of information about society. Models give meaning to what we see and experience. Each perspective focuses on different aspects of society. Certain consequences result from using a particular model. No one perspective is best in all circumstances. The perspective one uses may depend upon the question being asked. If one is exploring bureaucratic organization, then one might like to use a perspective that is concerned with social order. On the other hand, if one is concerned with social inequality, then perhaps the conflict perspective is more useful. Perhaps the best perspective is one which combines many perspectives. The origins of the functionalist perspective can be traced to the work of herbert spencer and. The problem of maintaining social order is a central problem for understanding society. Understanding society from a functionalist perspective is to visualize society as a system of interrelated parts.
