Structural-
Functional
Theory
Structural – Functional Theory
Functionalism, also called structural-
functional theory, sees society as a
structure with interrelated parts designed
to meet the biological and social needs
of the individuals in that society.
Functionalism grew out of the writings of English
philosopher and biologist, Herbert Spencer (1820–1903),
who saw similarities between society and the human body;
he argued that just as the various organs of the body work
together to keep the body functioning, the various parts of
society work together to keep society functioning (Spencer
1898).
The parts of society that Spencer referred to were the social
institutions, the pillars of the human society, and these are
the Government, Economy, Education, Religion, and the
Family.
Among these 5 major institutions, the family is considered
as the most basic and the most important element of the
human society.
What is Social Institution?
Social institution is a complex set of interdependent
social forces that meet basic needs and serve to
reproduce patterns of behavior.
Why is it important?
They're fundamental to survival of the species at
current resource and population levels.
Five Basic Social Institutions
FAMILY - The family provides succession in society and develops
members into adulthood and future families. Home life.
ECONOMY - Production, consumption and distribution of goods
and services.
GOVERNMENT - Governance, Law, social order. Protection
facilitating 1,3,4 and 6.
EDUCATION - Literacy, numeracy, social integration, guidance.
RELIGION - Religion provides a guideline for family living in the
form of morality, rituals for birth, marriage and death and
congregation. guidance.
The above interact and to a greater or lesser degree play
roles in the functioning of human society.
Émile Durkheim, another early sociologist, applied Spencer’s
theory to explain how societies change and survive over time.
Durkheim believed that society is a complex system of
interrelated and interdependent parts that work together to
maintain stability (Durkheim 1893), and that society is held
together by shared values, languages, and symbols.
Alfred Radcliff-Brown (1881–1955) defined the function of any
recurrent activity as the part it played in social life as a whole,
and therefore the contribution it makes to social stability and
continuity (Radcliff-Brown 1952). In a healthy society, all parts
work together to maintain stability, a state called dynamic
equilibrium by later sociologists such as Parsons (1961).
Durkheim believed that individuals may make up
society, but in order to study society, sociologists have to
look beyond individuals to social facts. Social facts are
the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs,
fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern
social life (Durkheim 1895). Each of these social facts
serves one or more functions within a society.
Another noted structural functionalist,
Robert Merton (1910–2003), pointed out that social
processes often have many functions.
Manifest functions are the consequences of a social
process that are sought or anticipated, while
latent functions are the unsought consequences of a
social process. Latent functions can be beneficial,
neutral, or harmful.
Example:
a manifest function of college education, for
example, includes gaining knowledge, preparing for a
career, and finding a good job that utilizes that
education. Latent functions of your college years include
meeting new people, participating in extracurricular
activities, or even finding a spouse or partner. Another
latent function of education is creating a hierarchy of
employment based on the level of education attained.
Social processes that have undesirable
consequences for the operation of society are called
dysfunctions.
In education, examples of dysfunction include getting
bad grades, truancy, dropping out, not graduating,
and not finding suitable employment
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