This assignemnt includes;
- The role of sociological perspectives in understanding society and health and social care provision
- Functionalism’s contribution to the understanding of society
- Functionalism’s contribution to the understanding of health and social care
- Evaluation of the...
Unit 10 – Sociological Perspectives
In this assignment, I will be explaining the various concepts of health. I will also be
explaining the different sociological approaches to health and ill health. Some sociological
perspectives I will be looking at are, Functionalism, Marxism, Feminism, Post Modernism
and Interactionism.
The role of sociological perspectives in understanding society and health and social care
provision
Functionalism sees the institutions in a society as working in harmony with each other,
making specific and clear contributions to the smooth running of that society.
Functionalism’s contribution to the understanding of society
P2. The functionalist approach to sociology can be best understood by likening society to the
human body. Just as the body functions through the efficient interrelationship of major
organs (such as the lungs, heart, liver and kidneys) and has mechanisms to deal with disease,
so the different institutions in society can each have particular contributions to make. For
instance, the education system, economy, religion, family, NHS health system and UK legal
system. They work together and use methods of social control to deal with deviant members
of groups, to ensure that society functions smoothly and there is value consensus. For
example, the police and the use of prisons. It was Auguste Comte (1798-1857) who thought
you could understand how society functions by comparing it with the functioning of the
human body.
P1. Talcott Parsons (1902-1979) played a vital role in the development of functionalism as a
sociological approach. He saw society as a system made up of interrelated institutions, which
contribute to its smooth running and continuity. He thought that the main role of an
institution was to socialise individuals and ensure that they understood the underlying
values of their society and behaved in acceptable ways. From a functionalist point of view, it
is value consensus that ensures order in society. Value consensus is a general or common
agreement about the values and beliefs of a society.
The consensus theory is the agreement on what is right and wrong, it is the basis of social
life. Functionalists say that without consensus, society would collapse into chaos where
nobody would be able to agree on how people should conduct themselves. Consensus and
having shared values enable us to co-operate with each other, this provides unity. Having
consensus provides harmony amongst society. people being deviant and acting in a deviant
way in society challenges this theory as if they know what is right and wrong
M1. Each social institution has a different function that contributes to the overall function of
society. As an example, the family can be seen as a key institution that contributes to the
order and stability of society, or the social system. The function of the family is important in
the early years of our lives, when we are first born, we are completely reliant on our family
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,Amy Hare
to teach us how to behave, how to do things and a lot more. The role of the family is vital
for our early years however, the older we get the less we rely on them as we become more
independent. George Peter Murdock (1897-1985), in his classic 1949 study of the family,
examined over 250 societies, ranging from small hunter-gatherer communities to large
initialised societies, and found some form of family in all of them. George Murdock found
that the family has 4 main functions; the sexual function for the expression of sexuality in an
improved context, the reproductive function providing stability for the rearing of children,
the economic function (food, shelter, income) and socialisation (the responsibility for
teaching children the acceptable ways of behaving in society). Talcott Parsons is another
individual who has looked into the families function however, he argued that the family only
had two basic and irreducible functions. These functions are the primary socialisation of
children and the stabilization of adult personalities. These functions mean that in a complex,
stressful and demanding world the family provides warmth and emotional security,
especially as Parsons saw the male as the breadwinner. However, a factor that Talcott
Parson has forgotten about is that not every family is the stereotypical family. All families
come in different shapes and sizes, some are one parent families, same sex parent families
and some have step/half-siblings. Parson says the only way for us to have primary
socialisation of children and stabilization of adult personalities is through a traditional
family. This isn’t correct as there are numerous examples that these traditional families
don’t work however, others do.
P1/M1. The main purpose of education is to educate individuals within society, to prepare
and qualify them for work in economy as well as to integrate people into society and teach
them values and morals of society (Fazilah Idrisa.2011). School and education can
contribute to social stability, not least through building knowledge and skills to address
tensions without violence and discrimination, especially when schools are among the few
spaces where children can mingle and experience diversity in the country
(reliefweb.2017).
One of the main prerequisites for social stability is a stable environment in which people can
live together in peace (ScienceDirect.2012). Therefore, the economy links to the stability of
society as people will work to earn money in order to provide a stable environment to live
in.
The legal system is important as it ensures that people who are deviant are punished in the
hope of them learning their lesson and not doing the same thing again, it aims to better
them as an individual. The legal system also aims to prevent other citizens from becoming
deviant by showing them what the consequences will be (a prison sentence). If people know
the consequences it will act as a deterrent for people when committing crimes. Prisons also
help to correct deviancy in people by increasing a prison sentence or making it harsher. To
do this the prison will work together with the police force.
Functionalism’s contribution to the understanding of health and social care
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, Amy Hare
P1. Functionalists believe that good health and effective medical care are essential for a
society’s ability to function. They believe this as they think that ill health impairs our ability
to perform our social roles and if too many people are unhealthy then it will affect the
economy massively and neglect a fit and healthy population. Functionalists also believe that
long term illness is a “poor return” for society so a health and social care system is needed to
prevent/reduce it. Additionally, they believe that poor medical care is dysfunctional for
society, as people who are ill face greater difficulty in becoming healthy and people who are
healthy are more likely to become ill.
Functionalists view on health and social care is that doctors and other health and social care
professionals have an important role in the functioning of society. They control the sick and
legitimise their sickness acting as gate keepers. However, they too have responsibilities and
rights. For instance, professionals undergo long periods of training, have specialised
knowledge and skills, are bound by a code of professional ethics (General Medical Council)
and must be trustworthy in serving the public to ensure their return to health. In return,
health professionals have authority over patients and can examine them physically and ask
personal questions. Also, they are rewarded with high status and matching salaries to attract
only the best. This keeps society functioning as functionalists believe that society is a
meritocracy and talent and hard work results in success. This encourages people to work
hard because they will be aware that their work will positively pay off.
M1. The sick role is a way of explaining the particular rights and responsibilities of those who
are dealing with ill health, as it ensures the smooth functioning of society. Since those who
are diagnosed with a medical condition cannot always fulfil the same duties that a person in
good health can, society adapts to this situation and allows for reasonable amount of
deviation from behaviour that would be viewed as typical of a well person. Sick role is seen
by functionalists as a way of dealing with ill health in society as it ensures the smooth
functioning of society. the rights of an ill person in the UK are that they’re allowed a little
time of work and school when taken unwell for an illness that is not their fault, they have
access to medication to get better, they’re able to be seen by health care professionals such
as a doctor or nurse to receive treatment or be taken care of. Additionally, patients have the
right to some form of exemption from normal social activities e.g., time off work to go on
holiday. Functionalism can be challenged again as it assumes everybody has access to
healthcare or technology, but not everybody does.
The sick role also has some responsibilities. For instance, people who are ill must see being
sick as undesirable and strive to get better and resume their normal social roles. Ill people in
the UK also have a responsibility to not take too much time off work, to get better and not
to spread the illness. Additionally, they must seek professional help and co-operate with the
treatment being provided However, this is not always true as some service users would
prefer to be on the sick then resume to their normal social activities. Also, those with mental
health problems will not be able to resume to work so quickly. A limitation to the sick role is
that some people cannot afford to take time off work for example, they may be self-
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