theories

• Social Functionalism

  Theory that emphasizes the interconnectedness of various parts of society and how they contribute to the functioning of the whole
• Social Functionalism


  • Views society as a complex system composed of different institutions, organizations, and social structures that work together to maintain social order and stability
• Emile Durkheim


  French sociologist who rose to prominence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, one of the principal founders of modern sociology
• Functionalism


  Society is similar to a biological organism or a body, with interrelated parts, needs and functions for each of these parts, and structures to ensure that the parts work together to produce a well-functioning and healthy body
• Institutions


  Structures that meet the needs of the society such as educational system, financial institution, businesses, marriage, and many more
• Social Facts


  Ways of thinking and acting formed by the society that existed before any one individual and will still exist after any individual is dead, examples are the law, moral regulations, religious faiths, and many more
• Manifest Functions


  The recognized and intended consequences of institutions
• Latent Functions


  The unrecognized and unintended consequences of institutions
• Role of Family in Society

  • Serves as the foundation of society, fulfilling essential roles in socialization, emotional support, economic stability, and cultural transmission
• Role of Government in Society

  • Encompasses functions ranging from protection and security, legislation and regulation, to the provision of public services and infrastructure, manages economic affairs, engages in diplomacy and foreign relations, and enacts policies to address environmental challenges and conserve natural resources
• Role of Economy in Society


  • Allocates resources, provides employment opportunities, drives production and consumption, fosters innovation, and influences social mobility and equality
• Role of Education in Society


  • Empowers individuals with essential skills, promotes social mobility, fosters understanding among diverse groups, and drives economic growth and innovation
• If one of the core institutions in society is missing or dysfunctional


  It can result in significant societal challenges
• Social Conflict Theory


  Holds that social order is maintained by domination and power, rather than by consensus and conformity
• Bourgeoisie


  The owners of capital, according to Karl Marx
• Proletariat


  The working class, according to Karl Marx
• Profit from goods should be equally divided among the laborers since they are the ones who work to produce such goods
• Symbolic Interactionism


  A sociology theory that seeks to understand humans' relationship with their society by focusing on the symbols that help us give meaning to the experiences in our life
• George Herbert Mead


  Sociologist who developed the symbolic interactionism theory
• Premises of Symbolic Interactionism

  • Humans act toward people or things based on the meanings they assign people or things
  • The meanings we assign to people and things arise from our social interactions with one another
  • Humans adjust the meanings they assign people or things by internally interpreting their interactions with the world