Functionalism: Interdependent Systems for Society's Success - Essay Sample

Introduction

Functionalism theory is the credo that for the society to function correctly, all the different systems in the community must work interdependently, each with its role to play, for the greater good of the organization. The functionalism approach emphasizes that a social unit is considered essential because of its purpose and not its composition (Anthony, 2019). The functions performed by one social party contributes to the overall function of the whole society and is necessary for its success. Therefore, to maintain order in society, the different elements in the community must depend on each other. An action by a social unit will have an indirect effect on the well-being of the social life. A functionalism view promotes the idea of solidarity of the members of the community. For an action to remain significant in the society, it must have people willing to perfume it. However, not all functions done by a sub-group in the community leads to the greater good of the whole society. Likewise, not all services of the entire organization have positive effects on the individual functions of the subgroups.

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Family as a Social Institution

The family institution is the most basic social institution because it is an institution in which members of the society acquire their original identity. A family is made up of people bound by blood, adoption, or marriage whose primary purpose is to support the younger ones as they grow. A family unit usually share duties and responsibilities among themselves. For example, the role of taking care of children is shared by all members of the family. People in the same family usually share the same residency. Family members are expected to provide both economic and psychological support to other members of their family. Family members also have to protect each other economically, socially, or physically.

Social Problem Related to Family Institution

Generally, the society expects every person to get married and have children in order to be considered successful. It is a norm in the community for people to start their own families, either for the sake of procreation or for companionship. Therefore, when individuals prefer to remain unmarried, society does not understand them, and they regard these people as unhappy. Such persons are under intense pressure from the community to start their own families. The society is usually very persuasive in making sure that everyone gets in a union of marriage or courtship. The unwritten ‘rule’ that every person should get married and have a family of their own is not only detrimental to the mental well-being of the people who prefer to remain unmarried but also afflict the whole family institution.

Unlike in the nineties’ more people are willing to remain unmarried, yet society continues to give them pressure to get married. A majority of the young people below the age of 30 years are eligible. Both men and women face pressure from society to get married, but unmarried women are subjected to more stress than unmarried men. Unmarried women are usually seen as unhappy by the community, mainly because society assumes that they could not find men to marry them.

Visibility

The unmarried people are more likely to feel vulnerable, especially when given attention. Because of the expectation from society to get married, the community makes eligible people feel as if they are losers for not getting married (Mukaddam, 2017). Therefore, unmarried people will avoid large gathering, which make them as if they have already done something wrong to someone. These individuals always have to justify to people, including their families, why they are not married. The society does not provide a cultural narrative for people who prefer not to have a family of their own and so the need to explain why they have taken that path not expected by the society.

Life Review

Life reviews enable people to evaluate past experiences in their lives and interpret their experiences in order to understand the meaning of their lives. It is the process through which people self-examine their lives. However, since society has already flagged them as unsuccessful, these people may feel like failures for not having families of their own (Band-Winterstein, & Manchik-Rimon, 2014). Whereas the individuals without family are comfortable with their status, the people in their lives end up making them feel as if they are missing an essential cycle in their lives for not having a family of their own. The single person will end up feeling unwanted in the society when they review their lives. However, as these individuals grow old, they are more likely to accept their status by looking at things other things in their lives, which they excelled at doing.

Old Age

From a functionalist perspective, all the members of the institution of family protect and help each other. The old people protect and teach the children on the norms of their community. When these children grow up, they are expected to have their own families. It is also their responsibility to take care of their parents, who are old by then. So when some of the members of the family institution break this cycle, an imbalance is created. Therefore, people who may prefer to remain unmarried fear that they will have no one to take care of them. They are afraid that they will not have people to rescue them from financial and health difficulties which they may face in their old age.

From a functionalist perspective, each social unit plays a role in the well-being of the social life of the whole community. A family institution is the most fundamental institution, and it where people first identify themselves. From a functionalism view the society expects everyone to have a family of their own. Therefore, individuals who are not willing to get married are faced with pressure from the community to get married and have children to maintain the law in the society. The pressure from society is detrimental to the people who choose not to follow to have their families.

References

Anthony, Izuogu. (2019). A CRITIQUE OF FUNCTIONALISM AS A THEORY OF THE CONTEMPORARY NIGERIAN SOCIAL SYSTEM. 17. 21.

Band-Winterstein, T., & Manchik-Rimon, C. (2014). The experience of being an old never-married single: a life course perspective. International journal of aging & human development, 78 4, 379-401 .

Mukaddam, F. (2017). The Institution of Marriage: A Case Study on Social Pressures Surrounding Marriage in Muslim Indian Communities in Johannesburg. Alternation Journal, 24(1), 107-126. Retrieved from https://journals.ukzn.ac.za/index.php/soa/article/view/733