processes work together to make society function smoothly; and
notes manifest functions (which are planned), latent functions (which are unplanned or secondary), and dysfunctions (which undermine stability).
Critique of the Structural-Functional Perspective.
Some ideas put forth by functional theorists are so abstract that they are difficult to test with data. Moreover, functionalism does not explain social changes in society, such as conflict and revolution. It assumes a stable world. As we try to understand the many societal upheavals in the world, from suicide bombings in major cities to economic ups and downs in stock markets and trade relations, it is clear that dramatic social change is possible. The functionalist assumption is that if a system is running smoothly, it must be working well because it is free from conflict. It assumes that conflict is harmful, even though we know that stability may come about because of ruthless dictators suppressing the population. In short, stability is not always good, and conflict signifies tensions in societies.
Thinking Sociologically
Describe a manifest and a latent function of the system of higher education in the United States today. Is the latent function dysfunctional? Why or why not?
Conflict Theory.
In many ways, conflict theory turns the structural-functional theory on its head. Conflict theory contends that conflict is inevitable in any group or society. It claims that inequality and injustice are the source of the conflicts that permeate society. Resources and power are distributed unequally in society, so some members have more money, goods, and prestige than others. The rich protect their positions by using the power they have accumulated to keep others in their places. From the perspective of poor people such as Hector, it seems the rich get all the breaks. Most of us want more of the resources in society (e.g., money, good jobs, education, nice homes, and cars), causing the possibility of conflict between the haves (those who control resources) and the have-nots (those who lack resources). These conflicts sometimes bring about a change in society.
Modern conflict theory has its origins in the works of Karl Marx (1818–1883), a German social philosopher who lived in England during the height of 19th-century industrial expansion. Capitalism had emerged as the dominant economic system in Europe. Capitalism is an economic system in which individuals and corporations, rather than the state, own and control the means of production (e.g., factories). As they compete for profits, some win while others lose.
Marx recognized the plight of workers toiling in factories in the new industrial states of Europe and viewed the ruling elites and the wealthy industrial owners as exploiters of the working class. Marx wrote about the new working class crowded in urban slums, working long hours under appalling conditions, without earning enough money for decent housing and food. Few of the protections enjoyed by many (but not all) workers today—such as retirement benefits, health coverage, sick leave, the 40-hour workweek, and restrictions against child labor—existed in Marx’s time.
Marx maintained that two classes, the capitalists (also referred to as the bourgeoisie or “haves”), who owned the means of production (property, machinery, and other means of creating saleable goods or services), and the laborers working for the “haves” (also referred to as the proletariat or “have-nots”) would continue to live in conflict until the workers shared more equally in the profits of their labor. The more workers came to understand their plight, the more aware they would become of the injustice of their situation. Eventually, Marx believed, workers would rise up and overthrow capitalism, forming a new, classless society. Collective ownership—shared ownership of the means of production—would be the new economic order (Marx and Engels [1848] 1969).
The idea of the bourgeoisie (the capitalist exploiters who own the factories) and the proletariat (the exploited workers who sell their labor) has carried over to analysis of modern-day conflicts among groups in society. For example, from a conflict perspective, Hector in Brazil and millions like him in other countries are part of the reserve labor force—a cheap labor pool that can be called on when labor is needed and disregarded when demand is low, thus meeting the changing labor needs of industry and capitalism. This pattern results in permanent economic insecurity and poverty for Hector and those like him.
Many branches of the conflict perspective have grown from the original ideas of Marx. Here, we mention four contributions to conflict theory, those of American sociologists Harriet Martineau ([1837] 1962), W. E. B. Du Bois ([1899] 1967), Ralf Dahrendorf (1959), and Lewis Coser (1956). As you can see, social conflict has been a major focus of their sociological investigations.
Harriet Martineau (1802–1876), generally considered the first female sociologist, wrote several books that contribute to our understanding of modern sociological research methods and provided a critique of the failure of the United States to live up to its democratic principles, especially as they related to women. She argued that social laws influence social behavior and that societies can be measured on their social progress (including how much freedom they give to individuals and how well they treat the most oppressed members of society). Her work represents the foundation of current feminist and conflict theories (Martineau 1838).
Another early American conflict theorist was W. E. B. Du Bois (1868–1963), the first African American to receive a doctorate from Harvard University. After being denied full-time positions at White universities, Du Bois founded a sociology program in 1898 at Atlanta University, a Black college. There, he established a significant research center and trained a generation of Black social scientists. In 1899, he published The Philadelphia Negro (one of the first truly scientific studies in North America), and in 1903, he completed a classic sociological work, The Souls of Black Folk. His work was truly groundbreaking (Morris 2015).
Du Bois, like other early sociological theorists, believed that although research should be scientifically rigorous and fair-minded, the ultimate goal of sociological work was social improvement—not just human insight. Throughout his life, Du Bois documented and lambasted the status of Black Americans, noting that African Americans were an integral part of U.S. society but not fully accepted into it.
Du Bois helped establish the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). He stressed the need for minority groups to become advocates for their rights—to object loudly when those in power act to disadvantage minorities—and to make society more just (Du Bois [1899] 1967). He was—and continues to be—an inspiration for many sociologists who believe that their findings should be used to create a more humane social world (Mills 1956).
▲ Harriet Martineau (left) published a critique of the United States’ failure to live up to its democratic principles 11 years before Karl Marx’s most famous work, but she was not taken seriously as a scholar for more than a century because she was female—the first feminist theorist. Karl Marx (center) is known as the founder of conflict theory. W. E. B. Du Bois (right) continued the development of conflict theory and was among the first to apply that theory to U.S. society, especially to issues of race.
© Getty/Bettmann/Contributor
© Getty/Bettmann/Contributor
© Photo by Cornelius M. Battey, 1918. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
A half century later, in 1959, Ralf Dahrendorf (1929–2009) argued that society is always in the process of change and affected by forces that