Structuralism
Basic outline of the key concepts of structural theories
- Created by: Evie
- Created on: 01-05-14 19:16
View mindmap
- Structuralism- Concerned with the overall structure of society and the social institutions
- Favour Positivist methods
- Quantitative data
- Scientific/Objective
- Offical Statistics, Lab experiments etc.
- Consensus Structuralism
- Functionalism- Society as a unit of interconnected parts which fit together to form an integrated whole
- Parsons
- Functional Prerequisites- basics needs or requirements that must be met if society is to survive. (e.g production of food). Social institutions work to satisfy these basic needs
- GAIL model
- Structural differentiation- as society evolves and new needs arise institutions become more specialised and functions they once performed are lost to new institutions
- Durkheim
- People are selfish and anomie would occur if there was not a collective conscience (people sharing common norms and values).
- Functionalists regard social change as occurring when new functions emerge or society needs to adapt.
- Merton
- Dysfunction- a part of the social structure which does not contribute to the maintenance and well being of society but creates tensions and other problems
- There were manifest functions of an institution (intended and recognised consequences) but also latent functions (unintended and unrecognised consequences)
- Parsons
- Functionalism- Society as a unit of interconnected parts which fit together to form an integrated whole
- Conflict Structuralism
- Marxism- The economy was the driving force in society and it was this that determined social institutions and people's values and beliefs
- Marx
- Society is divided into 2 main parts- The economic base or infrastructure, consisting of the means of production and the relations of production, and the superstructure which is determined by the infrastructure.
- Society is divided into two fundamental social classes: the owners of the means of production and the non-owners.
- Workers produce more than is needed and this surplus value provides profit for the employer
- Bourgeoisie and the Proletariat who sell their labour power to the capitalists.
- The dominant ideology was that of the ruling class and the major institutions and superstructure of society reflects those ideas
- The working-class are almost brainwashed into accepting their position and so do not rebel. This is false conciousness
- Believed that one day they would become aware and the two classes would polarize. The working-class would join together and overthrow the bourgeoisie and communism would be created
- Neo-Marxism- Further developed ideas of Marxism
- Gramsci
- Relative autonomy- the idea that the superstructure of society has some independence from the economy, rather than being directly determined by it
- Hegemony- the dominance in society of the ruling class's set of ideas over others, and acceptance of and consent to them by the rest of society
- The main reasons why the working class have never rebelled.
- Althusser
- The structure of capitalist society consists of not just the economic base and superstructure but of 3 levels:
- The economic level- economy and production of material goods
- The political level- The government and the repressive state apparatus
- The ideological level- concerned with ideas, beliefs and values including the Ideological State Apparatus
- The structure of capitalist society consists of not just the economic base and superstructure but of 3 levels:
- Gramsci
- Marx
- Marxism- The economy was the driving force in society and it was this that determined social institutions and people's values and beliefs
- Favour Positivist methods
Comments
No comments have yet been made