Strengths and Weaknesses of Functionalism Theory

Functionalism can be defined as the ‘Structural-consensus theory’. Functionalism presents the idea that each aspect of society is necessary in regard to the stability of society as a whole. Emilie Durkheim visualised society as an organism, each part in society has its own roles which are very necessary, but they cannot function alone, this is exactly how organs in a living organism work. In functionalism, the various parts of society are made up of several social institutions which are each individually designed to fulfil various needs within society. Economy, Religion, Government, Education, Media, and Family are very important when it comes to truly comprehending the functionalism theory and the institutions that define sociology. An institution can only exist due to the fact that it serves an important role in a functioning society. When that institution no longer serves a purpose, it will wither away and no longer exist. When new needs appear, current institution will be created to meet the criteria. Value consensus can be defined as the shared values, roles, and norms that we learn through socialisation. This also includes shared beliefs about what may be correct or incorrect. Patterned behaviour stems from socialisation. Overall value consensus helps maintain social order in society. According to meritocracy everyone has equal opportunities to achieve and also states that you will be rewarded based on your effort and ability. This also means that individual who obtain the highest rewards do so due to the fact they deserve them because they are the most skilled and diligent.

A strength of the functionalism theory is socialisation and how social order is achieved through it. Through a set of norms and roles accompanied by the existence of a shared culture which is shaped due to the members of a society, social order is therefore achieved. This allows individuals to pursue goals by attaining to the rules and by behaving in a desired manner. This is called the value consensus. Value consensus allows for social order to be possible as it allows individuals to integrate into the social system and thus managing them to meet the needs of the system. For example, when it comes to socialisation in the education system children are taught value consensus alongside roles and shared values. If socialisation were not present in the education system, there would be a lack of social solidarity alongside social order due to society having mixed opinions on what is important when it comes to those things. Overall, it highlights how important the different institutions in society are for example: education, family, religion etc. and the clear structure between them.

A weakness of the functionalist theory is meritocracy. Meritocracy is established on the concept of rewarding an individual’s efforts, by doing that it completely disregards the fact that some people are at a disadvantage due to certain circumstance that is out of their control. Not everyone starts from the same place for example, an individual from a working-class background and an individual from a middle-class background will have different experiences in life just due to their background. In regard to higher education a person from a working-class background may not be able to access the same opportunities someone from a middle-class background can. this is a weakness due to the fact that opportunities are not within the reach of all the members of a society which therefore makes it unfair and biased.