Sociological_Theories

Sociological Theories and the Family Dana Broadnax SOC 101 Rachael Horn May 17, 2010 When it comes to the family setting, the three theories; functionalism, conflict and interactionism, have an impact on the way a family is ran. The functionalism theory is “a sociological philosophy that originally attempted to explain social institutions as collective means to fill individual biological needs. Later it came to focus on the ways social institutions fill social needs, especially social solidarity” (Functionalism). The conflict theory is a theory that “states that society or an organization functions so that each individual participant and its groups struggle to maximize their benefits, which inevitably contributes to social change such as political changes and revolutions. The theory is mostly applied to explain conflict between social classes, proletariat versus bourgeoisie; and in ideologies, such as capitalism versus socialism. While conflict theory successfully describes instances where conflict occurs between groups of people, for a variety of reasons, it is questionable whether this represents the ideal human society” (Conflict, 2008). And the interactionism theory “has become one of the dominant sociological perspectives in the world today. It is a theory based on social interaction, and has grown in the latter half of the twentieth century. It is a theory that studies individuals and how they act within society” (Interactionism, 2010). I believe that the functionalism theory applies to the family setting because each person has a specific role that makes the family run and operate, just like the organs in the body have specific role. In my family, my grandparents are the main supporters of the family; they are the older, wiser ones that everyone comes to them when they need advice. My mother is the caretaker of the family; she lives with my grandparents to help take care of them. Those are the two main roles in our family, and then everyone else has different ways that they support the family. The conflict theory applies to the family setting because every family wants more out of life, and by seeing other families in different social classes, it may inspire your family to achieve more. It also applies to families because everyone has some type of conflict and different ways of dealing with it. The way that the conflict theory has played a role in my family is by each generation doing more with their life. My parents didn’t go to college and worked very hard just to financially survive so I have changed that by attending college so I am able to get a higher paying job and hopefully change my current social status. My younger sister, who is fourteen years younger than me, has taken it a step farther and is planning to go to school to become a doctor. She has dreams and aspirations that are sure to change the social status that she grew up in. And the interactionism theory applies to the family setting by the way that the family interacts with others in and out of the family setting. The interactionism theory has played a huge role in my family setting. As a family, when we would get together we are very loud and don’t really have any manners, but when it comes to being outside of our family setting, that completely changes. My grandmother was very strict when it came to manners while we were out in public or at other people’s homes. It is very important how you act and interact when you are around people that are not in your family setting. First impressions can make a huge impact on your life and your families. As a person that has made my family the most important part of my life, I think it is good to make sure that all of these theories are incorporated into the family structure. It is good to have a healthy balance of all the theories in your families lives. References Conflict Theory (August 2008). Retrieved on May14, 2010 from: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Conflict_theory Functionalism (ND). Retrieved on May 14, 2010 from: http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Functionalism_(sociology) Interactionism (April, 2010). Retrieved on May 15, 2020 from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interactionism Schaefer, R.T. (2009) Sociology: A brief introduction (8th ed.) New York, NY: McGraw Hill.