Conflict Theory Of Poverty

According to Griffiths & et. al (2015), functionalism is a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of the individuals in that

In sociology, functionalism is one of the main theoretical perspective. The father of the sociology Emile Durkheim was the promoter of functionalism. Functionalism mainly focusing on the stability and order of the society. This gives a variety of elaboration about the society or human behaviour. All the parts of the theoretical perspectives connected and influenced each other, this all works together in maintain the society healthy. All of these parts depends one to another, if one of the parts not working properly, that will affect all the system or that all circles.

Although quite different, both Functionalism and Marxism have their similarities. They also have their positive and negative aspects and ways in which each theory dysfunctions. Functionalism is the study of society as a functioning system including interdependent institutions or patterned relations that are steady overtime, and that enact specialized functions for the whole. The main focus is on how direction is kept between parts of society. Any given pattern of relations or structures within society is interpreted by reference to the results or functions that such patterns have for them majority. It is an essential assumption within the functionalist perspective is that participation in social systems is voluntary. When a sociologist uses

Functionalism is a macro system theory which sees society as a mega structure of linked social institutions such as school, family and the legal system. Each different institution is functional to ensure the whole of society is maintained. For example primary socialisation takes place within the home where children are taught basic life

Functionalism also known as functionalist perspective is one of the major theoretical perspectives in sociology. Functionalism clarifies each part of society in terms of how it contributes and helps the balance of the society as a whole. Each part of society is functional for the

The lowest is the lower class. The people in this category don’t have jobs, are homeless, and don’t have good medical care. Next, there is the working class. The working class contains the people who have minimum education and who work in a factory or use manual labor. Examples of people in this job are dishwashers or cashiers.

Functionalism is the belief that all aspects in a society serve a function and are necessary for the survival of the of the society, even if the function of a class is to stay in poverty. There are certain groups that benefit when someone is thrown under the bus. It is functional to keep a class in poverty because they benefit people, it is difficult for the people in poverty to move out of poverty, and school funding is not equal for every school.

What is middle class? According to Webster’s dictionary, middle class is “a social class that occupies a position between the upper class and the lower class (poverty) and is composed mainly of business and professional people, government officials, farmers, and skilled workers”. “ Schools often operate from middle class norms and values; therefore, middle class children are more successful in school” (Payne).

Conflict theory simply means that more powerful groups use their power in order to exploit groups with less power and the money is the mechanism which creates social disorder. Yesterday, I read a news about how so many kids are dying due to malnutrition in Yemen. I read some comments to see what people are thinking and what can be done about it? One comment said “if they cannot feed their kids they should stop having children and the problem will be solved”. Really, is that a solution, is it moms fault that their kids are hungry in a world that there is enough food for the entire population yet most people are hungry. She does not get hunger is caused by poverty and inequality, not scarcity. What that person who made the comment and many others who have the same perspective do not know is that inequality perpetuated because it benefits the rich and powerful at the expense of the poor and “capitalism is the core of inequality and suffering” (lecture). And as you said in the lecture notes many people cannot see “how capitalistic system shapes all of society” that and blames the individuals for the suffering as in the example that I gave above. I also believe many of us know the consequences of capitalism but still continue to blame the individuals rather than taking an action, be an ally or rather than supporting those who suffer at least by making a supportive comment on the social media.

The functionalism theory is also known as structural functionalism and lays claim on the fact that the society is composed of interdependent portions each of which adds to the functioning of the whole society. Functionalists break

Poverty can also be viewed from a macro level as a social inconvenience or issue (Attree, 2006). Using social and economic developmental programs to assets individuals that are influenced by both social and economic issues, such as Community Development Corporations and Comprehensive Community Initiatives, can help increase the abilities and resources of low income individuals (Brisson &Usher, 2007). Poverty can be defined as a social injustice that causes unfair treatment of a certain group that has low-income, by the justice system and politics (Stark & Barbara, 2009). This is mentioned because while addressing poverty from a macro level, conflict theory explains inequality of political power that have led to poor allocation of material

Functionalism is a theory that views society as an orderly and stable system with interconnected parts designed to meet the needs of individuals in society. Durkheim tried to explain functionalism by saying” the important concepts functionalism theory concern on major social values such as, social order, education, crime and deviance”. In other words, Functionalists argue that, “crime and deviance occur when the aspirations of individuals and groups do not coincide with available opportunities, and the disparity between desires and fulfillment will lead to deviant behavior” (p 172) Durkheim also believed crime and deviance are very essential component in advance societies because through these kinds of experiences help people try developing

Overall, our society looks down upon those living in poverty. However, there have been different approaches to and views of poverty over time (Barusch, 2015). For instance, the religious approach to poverty was to stress, if not require, charity toward poor individuals (Barusch, 2015). This approach does not explain poverty as a shortcoming of the individual or of the society; rather, it was viewed as a reality of the human condition (Barusch, 2015). Likewise, in colonial America, poverty was not viewed as a fault of either the individuals or the society (Trattner, 1999). Taxes were collected to care for individuals who could not do so for themselves, and had no family to do so, either (Trattner, 2017). Some people have punitive responses to poverty, thinking that poor individuals are lazy, especially those who are capable of working and do not and alcoholics (Barusch, 2015). Another perspective on poverty is that it is orchestrated by the wealthy, who want to drive these individuals to low-paying jobs (Barusch, 2015). Yet another view on this matter is that no one is to blame; it is simply that the economy changed, and now the individual’s skills are outdated, rendering them unemployed (Barusch, 2015). Some believe that poverty is a result of growing up in a culture of poverty, teaching individuals that industry is not rewarding, causing them to focus on instant gratification (Barusch, 2015). This is viewed as irresponsible spending, and causes people to believe that these

Conflict theory is the tensions and conflicts that come to fruition when many things such as resources and power are distributed unevenly between groups, this can lead to major conflicts for change or just leave many who are less fortunate to suffer. To explore one of the most major conflicts, global poverty, and better stop and prevent it, one must use culture relativism and ethnocentrism to better understand what the main cause of global poverty is. To only say that conflict theory is the only perspective to look at this major problem would be incorrect due to the fact that all three perspectives, functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interaction, are all pieces to understanding global poverty. To fully comprehend these bigger perspectives and how they affect global poverty, sociological concepts for each need to be shown and analyzed. These concepts that most affect global poverty are: illiteracy, race conflict, and social conflict. Using these perspectives and concepts will lead to a better understanding of how to prevent global poverty.

Functionalists look at society in the same way- each part (like the military, the educational, medical, etc.) helps the society function, and the more differentiated the parts, the more difficult it becomes for one part