Functionalist theory of the family

Functionalism : is a theory which views society as being a system of interconnected parts and they compare society to the human body :

-the body = society

- body parts= institutions within society, the family, religion, media, school etc.

They see both humans and society to have certain basic needs which must be met in order for society and humans to survive. Social institutions meets these basic needs and therefore for a social institution to be functional it needs to contribute to the survival of the whole society.

Functionalism is a Concessive theory based on social solidarity 

Talcot Parsons ( American functionalist, 1951):  thought that family was based on only two functions:

-primary socialisation of children: how children started to get prepared for the future world from their school since it is the society in miniature.

-specialization of adult personalities: he thought that the men would come home tired after work and  the warmth of their family would make them less tired, he called it "the warm bath theory".

According to him the society is split by the "social division of labour" where the male has the instrumental role as he is the strong one the breadwinner while the female has an expressive role as she is the one who takes care of the children and is the housewife.

Parson says:

• The functionalist view suggests that the nuclear family has become:
• Socially isolated from extended kin
• More reliant on the Welfare state
• Geographically separated from wider kin
• The family is self contained, with little contact with neighbours and the  community. Home leisure via TV, video, internet etc have made the family more home-centred.

Murdock (1949) thought that family was based upon four main functions that are:

-sexual: stable relationship.

-reproduction: in order to continue to have more people in our society.

-economic: to be able to survive within a environment.

-education: to make sure the next generation has the knowledge.

Murdock  studied 250 societies of different cultures, Murdock saw that in each of these societies the nuclear family exists, and all those families provided the same functions.

Evaluation of functionalist theory

Functionalist  are criticised for ignoring negative aspects since they see the family through rose tinted glasses:

-child abuse

-not always looking after the elderly

-lack of money

-the environment you live in

-drugs and alcohol can cause conflict

Downplay conflict: both Murdock and Parson point a rosy picture of family life, presenting it as harmonious and integrated institution.

Being out of date: Parson view of the " instrumental " and "expressive" roles of men and women are old fashioned. It may have held some truth in the 1950s when many married woman were full time housewives, and men were breadwinners in most households. However, this is not the case today.

Ignoring the exploitation of women: functionalist tend to ignore the way women suffer from the sexual division of labour…