Structural Functionalism is a broad perspective in sociology and anthropology which interprets society as structure with interrelated parts. Furthermore, psychology is left out of Parsons’ discussion of human behavior. Significantly another criticism of Parsons' structural functionalism was its inability to deal with social changes in the contemporary effectively. Structural functionalism, or simply functionalism, is a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. General Criticisms of the Functionalist Approach As we can see (it’s rather blindingly obvious), the functionalist perspective presents a rather positive picture when dissecting the contribution of religion to society. In so doing, Comte effectively linked sociology with the prestige of biological science. Functionalism traces its roots back to the work of Plato and Hegel. Critics also argue that functionalism is unable to explain social change because it focuses so intently on social order and equilibrium in society. [1] This approach looks at society through a macro-level orientation, which is a broad focus on the social structures that shape society as a whole, and believes that society has evolved like organisms. Criticism of Functionalism. In trying to legitimate the new discipline of sociology, Auguste Comte (1830–1842, 1851–1854) revived analogies made by the Greeks and, closer to his time, by Hobbes and Rousseau that society is a kind of organism. It was particularly very influensive in English speaking countries, especially in the United States of America, since the end of the Second World War. Did You Know? Families are certainly not like that for everyone. Also, Structural- functionalist perspectives emphasized the positive and functional aspects of the modern family, neglecting its dysfunctional aspects, which including conflict and violence that take place in the family, for instance, over 30% to 40% homicides in Hong Kong took place within family. He criticises three key assumptions of Parsons. Structural functionalism says that the society works together as an organism to create and maintain the institutions in the society. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. American sociologist who, as the principal exponent of what is known as structural functionalism, exerted a major influence over social theory in the middle part of the twentieth century. Indispensability – Parsons assumes that everything in society – the family, religion and so on – is functionally indispensable in its existing form.… Parsons Talcott‘s (1902-1979), work continues to have an impact in German sociology, specifically in debates over systems theory (Habermas 1987;Luhmann 1982). Criticisms of Talcott Parsons” Structural Functionalism Talcott Parsons” sociological theory of structural functionalism was a dominant perspective of analyzing society until the 1960s. According to Structural Functionalist perspective, women being subordinate to men allows the wage-earners to function smoothly as everyone in the society knows his or her respective position in the hierarchy. Structural functionalism, or simply functionalism, is a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. With time, criticism of this approach has escalated, resulting in its decline in the early 1970s. 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