MTP - Structural-Functional Approach Lesson
Structural-Functional Approach Lesson
One of the first major theoretical perspectives to evolve out of Auguste Comte's Positivism was the Structural-Functional Approach. This theory operates under the notion that society is a living organism and that each part contributes to society's survival. The foundation of this approach rests on societal structure - families, work, school, community- guiding our lives. The scope of this approach is at the macro-level which takes a broad look at these social structures and determines their functions within society. In comparison to the other major theoretical perspectives, the Structural-Functional approach, commonly referred to as Functionalism, is very conservative with the simple goal of understanding what makes society run. There have been and still are many sociologists who subscribe to this particular viewpoint, but the one who is considered to be the founding father of Structural-Functionalism is Emile Durkheim.
Emile Durkheim Presentation
Watch the presentation below to learn more about Durkheim.
Despite Durkheim's reputation as the Father of Functionalism, there are many sociologists who would argue that the title should be given to Herbert Spencer instead. Spencer was an English sociologist who compared society to the human body. Using functionalism as his base, Spencer argued that just as the various parts of the human body worked together towards the survival of the body, so too did social structures work in conjunction toward society's survival. Throughout his work, Spencer stressed that all societies developed and grew in the same way despite the difference in specific cultures (just as the human body does despite the differences within physical characteristics). He also incorporated Charles Darwin's biological work on evolution into sociology claiming that there was a "survival of the fittest" within society. Although that phrase now has a negative connotation when used in reference to people, Herbert Spencer was originally making the case that within society those structures or roles with the functions that were the most necessary in society would be the structures or roles that survived the passage of time and the evolution of society.
While Durkheim and Spencer introduced the world to the functions of social structures, it was another sociologist who identified a classification system for these functions. Robert Merton, an American sociologist, fine-tuned Durkheim's and Spencer's work by declaring that any social structure has more than one, if not many, functions. In 1949, Merton published Social Theory and Social Structure- a book that, according to the International Sociological Association, is the third most important sociological book of the 20th century. In it, Merton introduced the world to new sociological terms and illustrated their meanings.
Robert Merton's Functions
Flip through the photo album below to see Merton's contribution to the Structural-Functional Approach.
The popularity of the Structural-Functionalist Approach peaked during the mid-20th Century as sociologists used it to explain individual roles and their expected behaviors or society's dependence on social stratification as a necessity. The problem with the approach, however, was its premise on stable patterns of behavior. There was not much room within an approach committed to stability and unity to explain social change. As the latter half of the 20th Century was marked by social change, sociologists increasingly turned to the other two major theoretical perspectives to guide their work.
Structural-Functional Approach Video
Watch the Video on the Structural-Functional Approach below.
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