Three major perspectives in sociology. Symbolic interactionist, functionalist, and conflict perspective. Sociologists analyze social phenomena at different levels and from different perspectives.
From concrete interpretations to sweeping generalizations of society and social behavior, sociologists study everything from specific events, for example, the micro-level of analysis of small social patterns, to the big picture, for example, the macro-level of analysis of large social patterns. The pioneering European sociologists, however, also offered a broad conceptualization of the fundamentals of society and its workings. Their views form the basis for today's theoretical perspectives, or paradigms, which provide sociologists with an orienting framework. understood more specifically as a philosophical position for asking certain kinds of questions about society and its people. In relation to this, it is important to note that sociologists today employ three primary theoretical perspectives, namely, the symbolic interactionist perspective, the functionalist perspective, and the conflict perspective.
These perspectives offer sociologists theoretical paradigms for explaining how society influences people, and vice versa. Each perspective uniquely conceptualizes society, social forces, and human behavior. Let me briefly discuss each perspective below.
For the video lecture on the contemporary perspectives in sociology, please see the link in the description box below. Symbolic Interactionist Perspective The symbolic interactionist perspective, also known as symbolic interactionism, directs sociologists to consider the symbols and details of everyday life, what these symbols mean, and how people interact with each other. Although symbolic interactionism traces its origins to Max Weber's assertion that individuals act according to their interpretation of the meaning of their world, The American philosopher George Herbert Mead introduced this perspective to American sociology in the 1920s.
According to the symbolic interactionist perspective, people attach meanings to symbols, and then they act according to their subjective interpretation of these symbols. Verbal conversations, in which spoken words serve as the predominant symbols, make this subjective interpretation especially evident. The words have a certain meaning for the sender, and, during effective communication, they hopefully have the same meaning for the receiver.
In other terms, words are not static things. In fact, they require intention and interpretation. Conversation is an interaction of symbols between individuals who constantly interpret the world around them. Of course, anything can serve as a symbol as long as it lasts.
as it refers to something beyond itself. Written music serves as an example. The black dots and lines become more than mere marks on the page.
They refer to notes organized in such a way as to make musical sense. Thus, symbolic interactionists give serious thought to how people act, and then seek to determine what meanings individuals assign to their own actions and symbols, as well as to those of others. Consider applying symbolic interactionism to the American institution of marriage.
Symbols may include wedding bands, vows of lifelong commitment, a white bridal dress, a wedding cake, a church ceremony, and flowers and music. American society attaches general meanings to these symbols, but individuals also maintain their own perceptions of what these and other symbols mean. For example, One of the spouses may see their circular wedding rings as symbolizing never-ending love, while the other may see them as a mere financial expense.
And it is important to note that much faulty communication can result from differences in the perception of the same events and symbols. The functionalist perspective. According to the functionalist perspective, also called functionalism, Each aspect of society is interdependent and contributes to society's functioning as a whole. Here, it is assumed that the government, or state, provides education for the children of the family, which in turn pays taxes on which the state depends to keep itself running.
That is, the family is dependent upon the school to help children grow up to have good jobs so that they can raise and support their own families. In the process, the children become law-abiding, tax-paying citizens, who in turn support the state. If all goes well, the parts of society produce order, stability, and productivity.
If all does not go well, the parts of society then must adapt to recapture a new order, stability, and productivity. For example, during a financial recession with its high rates of unemployment and inflation, social programs are trimmed or cut. Schools offer fewer programs.
Families tighten their budgets, and a new social order, stability, and productivity occur. It must be noted that the functionalists believe that society is held together by social consensus, or cohesion, in which members of the society agree upon, and work together to achieve, what is best for society as a whole. Emile Durkheim suggested that social consensus takes one of two forms, namely, Mechanical solidarity and organic solidarity. On the one hand, mechanical solidarity is a form of social cohesion that arises when people in a society maintain similar values and beliefs and engage in similar types of work. Mechanical solidarity most commonly occurs in traditional, simple societies such as those in which everyone herds cattle or farms.
Amish society exemplifies mechanical solidarity. Organic solidarity, on the other hand, is a form of social cohesion that arises when the people in a society are interdependent, but hold to varying values and beliefs and engage in varying types of work. Organic solidarity most commonly occurs in industrialized, complex societies such those in large American cities like New York and Los Angeles.
The conflict perspective. The conflict perspective, which originated primarily out of Karl Marx's writings on class struggles, presents society in a different light than do the functionalist and symbolic interactionist perspectives. While these latter perspectives focus on the positive aspects of society that contribute to its stability, the conflict perspective focuses on the negative, conflicted, and ever-changing nature of society.
Unlike the functionalists who defend the status quo, avoid social change, and believe people cooperate to affect social order, conflict theorists challenge the status quo, encourage social change, even when this means social revolution, and believe rich and powerful people force social order on the poor and the weak. Conflict theorists, for example, may interpret an elite board of regents raising tuition to pay for esoteric new programs that raised the prestige of a local college as self-serving rather than as beneficial for students. Whereas American sociologists in the 1940s and 1950s generally ignored the conflict perspective in favor of the functionalist, the tumultuous 1960s saw American sociologists gain considerable interest in conflict theory.
They also expanded Marx's idea that the key conflict in society was strictly economic. Today, conflict theorists find social conflict between any groups in which the potential for inequality exists, racial, gender, religious, political, economic, and so on. Conflict theorists note that unequal groups usually have conflicting values and agendas, causing them to compete against one another.
This constant competition between groups forms the basis for the ever-changing nature of society.