The Perspectives of Sociology

In sociology, there are three major perspectives: functionalist perspective, conflict

perspective, and interactionist perspective. The functionalist perspective sees society as a
complex system, comprised of many parts working together to create stability in the society. An
example would be the government, school/education, and households with children. The three
parts keeps an equilibrium that keeps it rolling. The government gives funding to the schools
and as a result, the children gain a better education. The childrens families then pay taxes to the
government, who uses the money for more educational funding and the cycles continues on and
on,
The second perspective is the conflict perspective, where society is not always stable and
inequalities/conflicts generate social change. An example of this is womens right to vote. An
inequality between gender and voting caused uproar throughout the U.S. As a result of this
conflict, it lead to a change and gave women the right to vote.
The final perspective is the interactionist perspective. This perspective assumes that
everyday interactions produce society. An example would be with killing. Killing is not always
seen as criminal, as in the case of war, where being a pacifist would be deemed more deviant.