What is Functionalist Perspective in Sociology?

You will be unable to live peacefully if each element in a society is not in place. The functional perspective looks at society as a complex system, which has a significant part in maintaining peace, solidarity and stability. The elements such as gender inequalities create a lot of discrimination in society. The theory revolves around these elements and works on making the proper use of these elements to balance society. The sociology students will learn all about these in their course. You need to understand the essence of these elements and the significance of the theory to relate to it. It is equally essential to learn why the theory is also called structural, functional perspective and learn its meaning. The next section will help you understand the same.

Structural Functionalist Perspective

As mentioned earlier, different elements or reasons can harm the balance in a particular society. You need to understand these elements, and a structural-functionalist perspective will help you learn about them. The factors such as the institutions, roles, relationships and norms have equal contribution in maintaining a balance. You cannot deny or ignore any of these elements. Each has its effect on society. Structural functionalism regards social change as an adaptive response to some tension in society. The theory also states that the elements are interdependent, and it impacts the people's behaviour in that particular society. You need to relate to these elements and try and analyze them from your perspective. It will be easier for you to learn the theory if you can identify these elements and examine how some changes affect society. It is essential to understand the impact and significance of each component to understand the theory better. The theory is an important one in sociology. The following section will help you understand and define the theory from the perspective of sociology.

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Functionalist Perspective in Sociology

Emile Durkheim was the person who worked on this theory. He was keen on finding the possibilities of having a social order and the ways to keep it stable. The theory is critical in sociology, and every student of sociology must learn the theory correctly. The theory defines the different elements that are responsible for maintaining a proper balance in society. It regards society as a complex system, and any disruption can cause severe damage to the societal balance. The theory also suggests that elements like institutions, roles, relationships, gender and norms are dependent on each other. Therefore, a change in any one of these elements will result in an overall transformation. The theory explains that each of these elements has a specific role to play in society. For example, an institution exists because it has a role to play in society. Once it stops playing that role, it will lose its importance and die. Similarly, it is essential to understand the functions of each element and maintain that to keep the balance. The theory looks into the macro level of the society rather than the micro-level. It does not feel the necessity of looking into everyday life. The following few sections will help you relate to the theory concerning family, religion and social media.

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Functionalist Perspective on Family

Families are an essential part of society. You need to understand the essence of this element while going through the functionalist perspective. The family is responsible for creating a culture and maintaining a balance in society. The new members coming into the family will have a social status and live and learn how the other members teach him/her. The social balance depends on the upbringing of the new member. He/she will not be able to cope with the surroundings. Also, the way he behaves or responds to any situation depends on the family. Therefore, the functionalist perspective theory makes the family an essential element in society and defines how it has an integral part in maintaining social balance.

The theory also states the significance of religion in society. The following section will help you learn how religion plays a significant role in society.

Functionalist Perspective on Religion

The different groups of people are sometimes based on their religious beliefs. It is, therefore, essential to consider religion to be one of the significant elements of society. This element can help maintain peace between like-minded people. Some people are open-minded and accept others from different religions. Both are equally essential to maintain peace and prosperity. Often the balance gets hampered due to conflict in religious beliefs of different individuals. You need to understand that each person will have their own religious faith. The difference in opinions often creates conflicts, and it must be controlled to maintain the social balance.  You will come across people of different religious beliefs staying in the same locality. Understand their mind frame and how they are maintaining peace and solidarity in that area. You can take that example and try looking at society as a whole.

Social media has a significant impact on the present generation. You need to understand the functionalist perspective of social media as well.

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Functionalist Perspective of Social Media

The standard perspective shared by people on social media platforms has a significant impact on society. Social media is very active presently, and people around the world are active on such platforms. There are common views shared by people from different nationality, religion or culture. It impacts the social balance. Hence, social media presently is taken into consideration in the functionalist perspective theory.

The next section will help you with some examples of functionalist perspective. It will help you learn the theory correctly.

Functionalist Perspective Examples

The functionalist perspective looks into the different aspects that may affect the social balance. You will understand the factors that might affect the same. The following are few aspects that affect the balance:

• Gender inequality
• Social class
• Income groups
• Religion
• Gender roles, and many more

These factors affect the balance, and you need to have a good knowledge of their impact.

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