Functionalist explanations of social class inequality

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  • Created by: _marxlee
  • Created on: 30-04-17 14:15
what are the 3 functionalist explanations for social class inequality?
role allocation theory, value consensus, inequality protects liberty
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who suggested the role allocation theory?
davis and moore
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what is meant by the role allocation theory?
allocating the right jobs to the right people because not everyone has the same abilities
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who should carry out harder jobs?
those who are more skilled and who train for longer
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who does this benefit?
the individual as the job matches their skill level and society for smooth functioning
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what are the two principles that dictate which jobs are harder and should have the best people allocated to them?
functional uniqueness and the degree of dependence of others
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what is meant by functional uniqueness?
refers to either the shortage of people with innate ability or to the necessity of a long period of job training
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what is meant by the degree of dependence of others?
the most important jobs tend to have other positions dependent on them. those with more dependents will be need skilled people to allocate to the job
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how are davis and moore criticised?
assuming it is possible to identify the 'best' people and then give them the hardest jobs
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how does marxists and other critical theorists criticise davis and moore?
pointed out that those with the highest qualifications and training are frequently the richest or from the more privileged backgrounds rather than those with the most talent
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what does this mean?
davis and moore are wrong to assume that the system works well in placing the best people at the top when many top jobs are allocated on faulty social processes such as those identified by the sutton trust
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how can davis and moore be criticised when discussing dependency?
they assume having others dependent upon you, being higher up in the hierarchy makes a job more difficult and need the best people to be allocated to them
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yet it could be argued...
jobs lower down the hierarchy may just be as important in a moral sense.
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how can they be criticised for neglecting the dysfunctions caused by stratification?
they assume that stratification is functional for everyone but some people benefit more than others and some suffer greatly from stratification
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true or false? davis and moore offers a dismal view of human nature which suggests that people will perform tasks only for monetary or status rewards
true
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what do they overlook?
other motives such as altruism or sense of service or joy in work
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who developed the explanation value consensus and social order?
parsons
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what did he argue?
society is structured so that people are socialised into a value consensus- we share a 'goal attainment'
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what does goal attainment mean?
we agree that those who achieve the common goals should be rewarded financially
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how does being socialised into the value consensus mean that society functions well?
people accept their position in the hierarchy and thus social order is maintained
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why does parsons belive that inequality is functional for society?
because those at the top of the hierarchy create jobs and make decisions which benefit us all
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who's writing supports parson's point and why?
durkheim, beleives that social order will be maintained if the system is seen as just and fair.
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how does marxists criticise parsons?
for assuming there is a general consensus on values, goals and rewards
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true or false? some of the highest rewards go to wealthy people who do not really perform any 'function' at all but simply live of the interest payments on their wealth
true
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true or false? wealthy people make decisions in the interest of the rest of society
false- they rarely do
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what do feminists point out in relation to parsons?
there are gender differences in terms of life goals
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what jobs are women choose/pushed into
caring roles, for their own children or elderly relatives, into caring careers
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what evidence is there to show that these roles not valued enough?
they are not highly paid, yet they are commonly accepted to be important
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what do postmodernists suggest in critique to parsons?
we live in a society of many different values, not just one. the variety of values in our society create a sense of uncertainty, but also opportunity.
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what is the evidence to show that we do not live in a society with a single value consensus?
some people value money and are motivated by that, but increasingly others see value in alternative areas e.g. britons going off to syria to join IS or nurses volunteering to nurse ebola victims in africa at a considerable risk to themselves
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who developed the explanation that inequality protects liberty?
saunders
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what does saunders believe?
davis and moore are correct in saying that stratification serves important functions, however suggest that stratification is based on unequal material reward which is not inevitable
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what does saunders suggest in relation to inequality?
it is the least worst option when compared with repressive regimes such as communism or socialism. thus equality is not desirable but is necessary in terms of wealth and income distribution but that equality of opportunity is desirable
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how can saunders view that societies with inequality will be less repressive be critiqued?
it is undermined by historical evidence. for example, south africa, until relatively recently, a capitalist free market economy=hand in hand with one of the most repressive racist regimes of apartheid which gave black south africans very few opps
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what does wilkinson and picketts book suggest?
more unequal a society is, the more social problems it has. too much inequality is harmful to all members of that society, even those at the top
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

who suggested the role allocation theory?

Back

davis and moore

Card 3

Front

what is meant by the role allocation theory?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

who should carry out harder jobs?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

who does this benefit?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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