Durkheim's theory of stratification and moral integration
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Answer:
Explanation:
Society Structure & Social Facts
Emile Durkheim was a well-known sociologist famous for his views on the structure of society. His work focused on how traditional and modern societies evolved and function. Durkheim's theories were founded on the concept of social facts, defined as the norms, values, and structures of society.
This perspective of society differed from other sociologists of his era as Durkheim's theories were founded on things external in nature, as opposed to those internal in nature, such as the motivations and desires of individuals. According to Durkheim, collective consciousness, values, and rules are critical to a functional society. In this lesson, we will focus on Durkheim's theories of functionalism, anomie, and division of labor.
Functionalism
Functionalism emphasizes a societal equilibrium. If something happens to disrupt the order and the flow of the system, society must adjust to achieve a stable state. According to Durkheim, society should be analyzed and described in terms of functions. Society is a system of interrelated parts where no one part can function without the other. These parts make up the whole of society. If one part changes, it has an impact on society as a whole.
For example, the state provides public education for children. The family of the children pays taxes, which the state uses for public education. The children who learn from public education go on to become law-abiding and working citizens, who pay taxes to support the state.
Let's look at this example again. The state provides public education for children. But a disruption or disequilibrium in the system occurs - perhaps the education is subpar, and the children drop out and become criminals. The system adjusts to improve the education and attempts to rehabilitate (through jail or other means) the criminals for them to become law-abiding and taxpaying citizens.
Durkheim actually viewed crime and delinquent behavior as a normal and necessary occurrence in the social system. He proposed that crime led to reactions from society about the crime. These shared reactions were used to create common consensuses of what individuals felt were moral and ethical norms by which to abide. These commonly held norms and values led to boundaries and rules for the society.
Division of Labor
Durkheim's concept of the division of labor focused on the shift in societies from a simple society to one that is more complex. He argued that traditional societies were made up of homogenous people that were more or less the same in terms of values, religious beliefs, and backgrounds. Modern societies, in contrast, are made up of a complex division of labor, beliefs, and backgrounds.
In traditional societies, the collective consciousness ruled, social norms were strong, and social behavior was well regulated. In modern societies, common consciousness was less obvious, and the regulation of social behavior was less punitive and more restitutive, aiming to restore normal activity to society.
Answer:
Emile Durkheim's early analysis of structural differentiation and modes of integration is reconciled with his later examination of interaction and ritual. These ideas are reconciled by initially constructing an abstract causal model and then converting various causal paths into general laws of human social organization. It is argued that, despite a number of problems in interpreting Durkheim's analysis of cause and function, it is still possible to construct a general model that summarizes the basic classes of variables in his theory. And, despite Durkheim's failure to analyze power and inequality extensively, the contours of an important ecological theory are nonetheless evident. By converting the causal model into abstract laws, this theory is seen to denote some of the most basic dynamics of the social universe.