Three Sociological Perspectives

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Rasmussen College *

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Sociology

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Jun 19, 2024

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Three Sociological Perspectives Three perspectives were theorized to help explain sociological outcomes in society. These theories are Structural-Functional, Conflict Theory, and Symbolic-Interaction. The structural- functional theory explains how society is organized and how this organization is maintained along with the consequences that are wanted or unwanted. Conflict theory explains why stress and conflict occur in society and how they create social change. It also focuses on competition, inequality of power and reward, and social change. Symbolic-interaction theory explains the meaning of human actions and the processes through which people come to develop and communicate, sharing meanings. It also focuses on interpersonal interaction. Emile Durkheim was often called the father of sociology. Works of Durkheim included The Division of Labor in Society (1893), The Rules of Sociological Method (1895), and Suicide (1897). He believed our society was an organism and that every part functions together like our human body. This is what distinguished him for structural-functionalism since he distinguished structure from function. He also saw that society was composed of individuals who worked together instead of the sum of individuals and their behaviors. Our thoughts and actions make changes that affect others' behaviors including our own. If we change something that doesn’t work, then we see negative effects and the opposite is true when we do something that does work. Ralf Dahrendorf’s Conflict theory is based on the idea that social conflict arises from the unequal distribution of power and authority within society. Dahrendorf’s theory was influenced by both Marxist and Weberian perspectives. When someone has more societal power, I believe two things can happen. Another may get envious and try to match that power or make it seem like they’ve achieved it. The other side of that might be they work harder to gain a position alongside their peer with more power and have influence over change as well. This power though can have positive or negative effects on society as we have seen throughout history. Dahrendorf’s works include Class and Conflict in Industrial Society (1959), and Essays in the Theory of Society (1968). While George Herbert Mead never published any of his books, he was known as the founder of symbolic interactionism when a student of his compiled papers and writings by Mead were published in volumes posthumously. His work influenced Herbert Blumer to theorize that humans interact with things based on meanings ascribed to those items and how they are influenced by our interactions with others and society. Especially in specific circumstances that may stick with us for a long period. The collections published for Mead include The Philosophy of the Present (1932), Mind, Self, and Society (1934), and Movements of Thought in the Nineteenth Century (1936). One social issue I think about is gender inequality and inclusiveness. It is a common belief that we accept everyone for who they are and I am a full believer of this. There should be no judgment and room for free expression. One variable that changes with this is everyone’s level of conserveness. I am moderately conservative whereas someone might be more open to
the choice of being different. I was more unique in high school where my mom let me express myself no matter what and I was very different than what you typically saw. This allowed me to understand myself better and mature later in a way that I was comfortable with. My responsibilities now influence me versus my responsibilities then which only consisted of school and volunteering as a waitress. This will look different to everyone and which stage of life they are in and can create conflict with those who either don’t understand or choose to believe they are better than others. This is where we are seeing a fight for equality and inclusiveness. Everyone’s idea about this is also going to be different based on the experiences and emotions that are attached to those for us to interpret. We may never see eye to eye, but I believe the goal is to find a happy medium where people feel valued by themselves and others and no one feels forced into something they may need time to understand or accept. Each generation will also change things based on numerous factors that we cannot see now.
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