Analysis Of Functionalist And Conflict Perspectives: The Division Of Labor

Many believe that gender roles are the only way for a family to prosper in a society where men provide for the family financially and women keep the house in order. The idea that a family must “have enough money to sustain a certain standard of living before they can decide that one member must stay home to raise the children”(Source C) is factual to a certain extent. There are many more ways to provide for a family and both men and women do not necessarily have to abide with societal roles. Women can succeed outside the house and men can contribute more within the house. However, the main thing that hurts women is they experience “pay gap, occupational segregation, denial of promotions to leadership, glass ceiling in different professions, increased casualization of women workers” and “lower levels of equation and work opportunities”(Source A). Society has created this barrier where women have to battle these disadvantages to escape conforming to gender

This response addresses question four and define the provided theories, which include structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. In doing so, various components of the theories are identified in relation to the topic of social change. In doing so, it is important to point out that in sociology, theories are used to explain the patterns, the way groups of people decide to perform specific actions, and the way societies do certain things or rather experience a change in a different manner. On the other hand, social change implies the growth and development of a social order, which bears some significant consequences.

In the United States and in several other countries around the world, many people recognize Wal-Mart for being a great place to shop for any and every household item on the market. However, sociologist find Wal-Mart to be a bit more than just a one-stop shop for everyday items. Sociologist use different perspectives to view society and its functions to evaluate the “why’s” and “what’s” within a society. The two main perspectives or theories used by sociologists to analyze society are macrosociology and microsociology, but more specifically: Functionalism, Conflict Theory, and Symbolic Interactionism.

Explain the three major sociological perspectives of functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Identify which perspectives use a macrolevel or a microlevel of analysis. Apply each perspective to socialization.

Traditional gender roles (men performing instrumental tasks and women performing expressive tasks) are viewed as important not only for the individual but also for the economic and social order of society. Failure to maintain the traditional division of labor is believed to lead to destruction of family life as well as higher rates of crime, violence, and drug abuse. Human capital theorists claim that sex differences in promotion rates are due to sex differences in commitment, education, and experience; women are believed to have less to offer employers. Even if these differences exist, this position ignores the fact that women are in a system of inequality, where social expectations prevent them from having qualifications that are similar to men. The conflict perspective emphasizes men’s control over scarce resources. The gendered division of labor within families and in the workplace results from male control of and dominance over women and resources. Differentials between men and women may exist in terms of economic, political, physical, and/or interpersonal power. Men remain the head of household and control the property. Also, men gain power through their predominance in the most highly paid and prestigious occupations and the highest elected offices. Liberal/Equal Rights Feminists – seek equal access for females within the current social system; focus is on equality of opportunity (e.g., civil rights and occupational equality). Radical/Transformative Feminists –

Internationally the act of deviance is being practiced daily. Sometimes is knowingly and unknowingly, the culture, or the society norms. Right or wrong is a prospective, deviance basically a judgmental call. “It is important to remember that when sociologists use the term deviant they are making a social judgment, never a moral one” (Ferris, Stein page 156.) There are three way that you can view deviance from a sociologist’s standpoint, which are, Functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. All three allow us to take an outlook on how to view the act of deviance.

Theories in sociology provide us with different perspectives with which to view our social world. A perspective is simply a way of looking at the world. A theory is a set of interrelated propositions or principles designed to answer a question or explain a particular phenomenon; it provides us with a perspective. Sociological theories help us to explain and predict the social world in which we live.

With different needs, goals, orientation, women cannot always unite. In occasions of financial poverty, poor women 's efforts are more likely to connect brothers and sisters of the same refinement than they are to join sisters within class lines. There are different orientations to fight for whereas the interests of class, race, and gender do intersect. Generally, one separation sees the fight for equality with men as meaning that centering on customary women 's work like childcare and housework, will watch them into these gender roles. The other division begins by women fighting for benefits such as paid maternity leave, stipends, and Social Security, low-cost, or free daycare. The benefits women have one today are in both realms (GEIA).

Women are known to be the nurturing part of human nature. It is women who birth and generally care for the young of human kind; however, the roles of women have progressed to be so much more in today’s society. Now women are looked to not only as a homemaker, but a breadwinner as well. In many families, the women provide a major source of income and are responsible for the wellbeing of the family. “More than a quarter century has passed since Arlie Hochschild’s The Second Shift powerfully made the case that women cannot compete fairly with men when they are doing two jobs and men are doing only one.” (Moravcsik). He goes on to say that women’s roles have shifted to being able to balance a job and a family at one time. Despite the many jobs that

In society “when a man offers to help, we shower him with praise and rewards. But when a woman helps, we feel less indebted” usually due to societal view of women as “mothers” (Grant np). Not all women are mothers or want to be treated that way. Their work is just as much of an energy use, help, and debt in some cases. Even highly educated women are discriminated against. “At every level of academic achievement, women’s median earnings are less than men’s earnings, and in some cases, the gender pay gap is larger at higher levels of education (“Simple np). The work of a woman is devalued, and wrongly accounted for. All help at work needs to be accounted for, “Most organizations regularly assess individual accomplishments. Why not track acts of helping as well? assigning communal tasks evenly rather than relying on volunteers can also ensure that support is shared, noticed, and valued” (Grant np). Although it may not be assigned work, any work in the workplace should be accounted for. “For example, the expectation that women more than men bear the responsibility to raise children gently nudges thousands of highly educated women out of full-time work” (Thompson np). Women are devalued due to the past values of the patriarchy. Often men are seen as head of families and providers, while that is completely incorrect. Women’s work is just as valuable

1.Compare and contrast the conflict and the functionalist perspective relative to the political system in the United States. Select one current issue such as healthcare, immigration, or one of your choosing and discuss the issue from both perspectives.

Conflict Theory vs. Structural Functionalism, this is like a fight between conservative and liberal. Structural Functionalism is a sociological theory that focuses on the structures of society and their functional significance (positive and negative consequences) for other structures (Ritzer, 2013). In another word, Structural Functionalism focuses on hierarchy, high position in the society. The theory is based on the belief that a person who held a high position like doctor or lawyer should get pay more because they make a lot of contribution to society. While on the other side, Conflict Theory “explains social structure and changes in it by arguing that actors pursue their interests in conflict with others and according to their resources for social organization” (COLLINS 414) it goes against with pretty much what Structural Functionalism stand for. With Conflict Theory, people in the society should be paid for how much they contributed, it stands for fairness. Conflict theory examines how society is stratified along class, race and ethnicity, gender, and age categories, and how these categories are linked to the unequal distribution of resources. Patterns of social interaction are inherent with benefits for some and deprivations for others. The goal for conflict theory is to understand the conflict between the advantaged and the disadvantaged while also taking action to reduce inequality (Sociology 662). One of the example the shows the conflict between Conflict Theory

Sociology is the study of the social lives of human beings and how humans live culturally and socially develop relationships. It is crucial to understand the society that humans live in and a series of social behavior that humans undergo. The three major ways you could view sociology, Structural Functionalism, Conflict theory, and Symbolic Interaction. Not everyone will have the same sociological perspective because the different perspectives are truly based on what you believe this world runs on.

There are three main theories of sociology; functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism. This paper will focus on two of those theories, functionalism and conflict theory. The objective is to delineate the assumptions of two out of the three theoretical perspectives and apply these assumptions to an analysis of social stratification. How this will be accomplished will be by comparing and contrasting their assumptions and by analyzing the two theories affect on social stratification. Then I will state my opinion on which of the two better fits my personal sociological views. Functionalism is many people's way to view the world sociologically. It states clearly that the

The structural-functional theory also known as functionalism is sociological theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. Functionalists view education as a contribution to the smooth inner working of society. Education is a lifelong process, we are constantly learning new things and deepening our knowledge of things we already know. The education system works to prepare individuals to become fully functioning members of society. It works to teach people certain skills that will help them to be successful in life. However, education not only teaches people the skills they will need to be successful in life, but it also teaches them how to be decent citizens and to work well with others. Many people view education are a service to the overall function of society.