The Theory Of Human Actions, Decisions, Behavior, And External Elements

Sociology is the study the different aspects of humanity and society. It encompasses a very broad and varying range of topics. It can be studied on a large world-wide scale spanning across several countries, which is called Macrosociology. It can also be studied on a small scale looking at only individual families or neighborhoods, which is called Microsociology. Not only does it peer into humans’ interactions with each other but examines why they act the way they do. It considers the environment, as well as how access to different luxuries can contribute to the people that we become. In this fascinating field there are three primary views on exactly what the fundamental driving force behind society is. Symbolic Interactionalism, the belief that symbols and the meaning that they are given, define how we will perceive life, in this philosophy these meanings are influenced by society and the events of individual lives. Functional Analysis, views society as any other organism, in this theory all parts of the whole must work together cohesively to function. Conflict theory takes a somewhat opposite view than Functionalism, this perspective suggests that rather than wanting to work in unison, society’s underlying motive is a power struggle for resources. Over the course of this paper the reader will explore these different perspectives.

Sociologists employ three major theoretical perspectives in sociology today. They are the structural-functionalist perspective, the conflict perspective, and the symbolic interactionism. The structural-functionalist perspective is done at a macro level and its focus is on the relationships between the parts of society. The Conflict perspective is done at a macro level and its main focus is on how the wealthy controls the poor and weak.

In the world of sociology there are many different ways that humans interact with the world. Although we are all human beings, we do not always see the world the same way that others do. Even though not many are aware of the different ways they can see the world, there are three sociological perspectives. Using structural functionalism, the conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism one will be able to decide which view best represents the way they see this world. When asked about my perspective on the world, I view it using the conflict theory due to the examples that society gives us based on events that happen frequently. Even though all three of these theories are socially correct, the conflict theory defines my view of the world more than structural functionalism and symbolic interaction.

Social conflict also focuses on macro-sociology. Symbolic interaction paradigm says society functions well through interactions. Communication is spreaded through symbols created by society. Social interaction is important, because it causes social change. Many variables such as behavior events are explained through social contact with others. The people are the ones who determine what is reality, and what is not reality. Life works in a dramatization point of view. Symbolic interaction paradigm focuses on the small issues that affect communities in society, therefore making it a micro-level orientation. Functionalist paradigm sees society as a well integrated, self-regulating system that meets people’s needs. While Social conflict views society having many groups that are self reliant, with their own goals and needs. Symbolic interaction explains society is shaped, and constructed through interaction, and communication with others.

Sociological perspectives are doubtlessly perceptive. No two individuals are going to share similar views on one particular subject. Provision is found in the YouTube clip, where an intensified debate between Bill O’Reilly and Lamont Hill characterize capitalism and socialism. Structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interaction, are three wide-ranging sociological perspectives. Each and every perspective respectively differentiates from one another, giving each entity a quality in which a person will use to analyze a subject. In the YouTube clip, Bill O’Reilly expresses a capitalist outlook, whereas Lamont Hill defends his socialist beliefs. In this assignment, information provided from the excerpt will be analyzed, for the

Symbolic interactionism, or the symbolic interaction perspective, can be traced to Max Weber 's assertion that individuals act according to their interpretation of the meaning of their world, however, in the 1920s, George Herbert Mead introduced this perspective to American sociology. This perspective relies on the symbolic meaning that people develop and rely upon in the process of social interaction and analyzes society by addressing the subjective meanings that people impose on objects, events, and behaviors. An example of this perspective is young people smoking cigarettes even when all objective medical evidence describes the dangers of doing so. Studies have found that teenagers

In this essay I will be covering Marxist, Interactionist and Functionalist theories of society. I will be examining their strengths and weaknesses. Using the three social theories, the macro approach of Marx that is used to analyse society from a class conflict view between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie, the macro approach that Durkheim used when analysing social systems and populations on a large scale and who’s theory views individual’s issues as reflective of wider social patterns and the micro approach of George Mead who focused on small scale social interaction and who’s theory interprets the behaviour of individuals as significant and a way to interpret how the world is socially constructed.

This theory works on the micro level which is different from the first two theories. Symbolic interactionism looks at society based on a collection of relationships between people which have a common meaning and significance. People view social life as a stage with roles and how there is expected behaviors in the situation. The metaphor of drama and script is a part and they think people create roles in the drama of human life. People are able to relate to one another based on the basis of perceived roles. People imagine how the particular role will think and try to relate, if they are correct, interaction will be smooth. Each has an identity which is called “self”. Self is created with the process of interaction with another. Mead believed that each person had an “I” and a “Me” which is also referred as generalized other. This was a set of collected values and attitudes learned from others. “I” is the subject form and “Me” is the object. Mead’s theory focused on roles and interactions in the social drama. This is not how I view the world with the mindset of roles.

Do you know how your society functions? There are three very different and distinctive theoretical perspectives that can all explain how society sustains itself. The problem is no one knows which of these perspectives best describes how our society functions. Does society function on structure where different groups work together to maintain sustainability of the society, conflict where various struggle to maintain power provoking change within the society, or is it symbolic interactions and relationships between the people in the society that keep the system running smoothly? This paper will discuss the three theoretical perspectives, structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism and why symbolic interactionism is the best perspective to describe how society functions.

Modern sociology is characterized by three main theoretical approaches: symbolic interactionism, functional analysis, and conflict theory. Personally, I believe that symbolic interactionism is the most logically viable approach to understanding modern society due to its understanding of the meaning people ascribe to everyday concepts. As a theory, functionalism fails to mention those who either deviate from the whole or work against society. Concerning Marx’s conflict theory, for now, the time of competing for scarcities has ebbed; there are other, more pressing factors driving society today such as family and an individual’s aspirations. Nevertheless, symbolic interactionism is not without its faults; the very fact that symbols differ in meaning

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

Within the world of sociology there are sociological paradigms that can be applied to human’s perception of the world. The three major sociological paradigms are functional, conflict and symbolic interactionism each playing key different roles when dealing with social issues. These paradigms exist in order to have a basic understanding of how society functions, the role of sociology, and how different things affect social life. Social paradigms have the ability to impact social issues if they are used together in a way that allows them to work at a balance.

There are three theoretical perspectives that sociologists use to see society, which include the perspective of structural functionalism, the conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Structural functionalism was based on by Emile Durkheim. Emile described structural functionalism as, “society is a system of interconnected parts that work together in harmony to maintain a state of balance and social equilibrium for the whole” (Durkheim, 1964). Because societies working together in harmony, it gives the perspective deficiency to deal with social change as well as power. The conflict theory was based on by a man named Karl Marx, who thought of society as a “dynamic entity constantly undergoing change driven by class conflict” (Boundless, n.d.). The conflict theory sees society as brought up in different groups that are in continual battle for gaining power, wealth, and status. Another way to look at the conflict theory is seeing society as a never-ending competition to be the best. Since social stability is nonexistent, society is

Sociology uses three different perspectives, or theories, when looking at human issues. These three theories are known as functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interaction. Functionalism is considered a macro theory and has two different models. The focus will be on Merton’s model of functionalism, which has three parts to it. Conflict theory is also, a macro theory that views society as a place of inequality between two groups. It looks at five inequalities, which are economic, gender, racial, age, and sexual orientation inequalities. The last theory is symbolic interaction and it is the only micro theory. It is a way to analyze how people’s behavior define themselves and the people they interact with. Abortion is the issue that

Chapter four begins with an experience a socioloogist had when spending time with streetcorner men late at night. This experience is used to explain the two levels of sociological analysis: Macrosociological (the approach that functionalists and conflict theorists use) and microsociological. The macrosociological perspective focuses on social structure which refers to the typical patterns of a group and its significance as it guides our behavior. Social structure consists of culture, social class, social statuses, roles, groups, and social institutions. Social institutions are the ways in which a society develops to meet its basic needs. The functionalists see social institutions as means to meet universal group needs, while conflict theorists see it as means for the elite class to maintain their positions of privilege. Social class divides people and each divided person gets ascribed statuses at birth before we add achieved statuses, which are influenced by the groups we are apart of. These are all what work together to maintain the social structure and hold society together. These hold true even as small, intimate communities become larger and impersonal, but that informal means of control represented in intimate communities is replaced by formal interactions, as pointed out by Ferdinand Tonnies. The microsociological perspective focuses on everyday life and the social interaction that takes place in it. This is where symbolic interactionists come in, as they tend to focus