Answer to Question 1
c
Answer to Question 2
Functionalist perspectives are based on the assumption that society is a
stable, orderly system. This stable system is characterized by societal
consensus, whereby the majority of members share a common set of
values, beliefs, and behavioral expectations. A society is composed of
interrelated parts, each of which serves a function and (ideally)
contributes to the overall stability of the society. Societies develop social
structures, or institutions that persist because they play a part in helping
society survive. These institutions include the family, education,
government, religion, and the economy. According to the conflict
perspectives, groups in society are engaged in a continuous power
struggle for control of scarce resources. Conflict may take the form of
politics, litigation, negotiations, or family discussions about financial
matters.
Today, advocates of the conflict perspective view social life as a continuous power struggle
among competing social groups. The conflict perspective encompasses several branches:
(1) the neo-Marxist approach, which views struggle between the classes as inevitable and
as a prime source of social change; (2) the branch that focuses on racial-ethnic inequalities
and the continued exploitation of members of some racial-ethnic groups; and (3) the
feminist approach, which focuses on gender issues. According to symbolic interactionist
perspectives, society is the sum of the interactions of individuals and groups. Theorists
using this perspective focus on the process of interactiondefined as immediate
reciprocally oriented communication between two or more peopleand the part that
symbols play in giving meaning to human communication. A symbol is anything that
meaningfully represents something else. Symbolic interaction occurs when people
communicate through the use of symbols. Symbolic communication occurs in a variety of
forms, including facial gestures, posture, tone of voice, and other symbolic gestures (such
as a handshake or a clenched fist). Symbols are instrumental in helping people drive
meanings from social situations. In social encounters, each person's interpretation or
definition of a given situation becomes a subjective reality from that person's viewpoints.
Symbolic interactionists attempt to study how people make sense of their life situations and
the way they go about their activities, in conjunction with others, on a day-to-day basis.
According to the postmodern perspectives, existing theories have been unsuccessful in
explaining social life in contemporary societies that are characterized by
postindustrializati on, consumerism, and global communications. Postmodern societies are
characterized by an information explosion and an economy in which large numbers of
people either provide or apply information, or they are employed in professional occupations
or service jobs.
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