‘The Group and the Individual in Functional Analysis Bronislaw Malinowski The American Joumal of Sociology, Vol. 44, No. 6 (May, 1939), 938-964. Stable URL: tip inks, stor. org/scisick~0402-9602% 28193905429445%36% 309383 ATGATISE2.0,CO%3B2-S The Amencan Journal of Sociology is currently published by The University of Chicago Press, Your use of the ISTOR archive indicates your acceptance of ISTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at flip: feworwjtor org/aboutterms.htmal. ISTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in par, that unless you fave obtained pcior permission, you may not dowaload an cnt isus of @ journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content inthe ISTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial uss. Please contact the publisher cegarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at bhupsferww.jstoc.org/joumals‘ucpresshtel. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transtnission. ISTOR is an independent not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating and preserving.a digital archive of scholarly journals. For more information regarding ISTOR, please contact jstor-info@umich edu. hup:thwww jstororgy Fri Mar 19 05:21:51 2004THE GROUP AND THE INDIVIDUAL IN FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS BRONISLAW MALINOWSEE ABSTRACT “The Liat of seilagen) theory and research is “ndvidual, group, and thei age depen” Spc nena socifogy cles not merely the ational and ‘eedat th xveserl fuel nd abe eur vencioa i them muse ate si fy nde, Not ony dace the Sn depend spn the group Ih hee ‘Snel ut which, ns een, isan ‘aon ee a sn and ik nails corcesponing Mek catiens of hima, sc reistion mor of the nafcnal ooclaty or the group bat to aplurslty ol paste, Ansiyne of society eto apres and into int tutors mest be cared out simanesxaly i complete Under. Standing of that soetety i cesred. The anaes of cs anpecta as econgmiy eduet= anor chal cantly te political on tees the tyoe and level of the char” fees sxsiten fa ulre, dlelaees the cota of mative, interests, and aloes of the indiviual, ad ves insight tothe whole poses by whic he favicon {soe or elturliy ormed and of Ue oan mechasist of te ‘The asaya Inte ratietionsatves te eorxee pice a the socal organeatton whither. ‘The twofold spproach thous the scidy of the flviduat with his inate tencentes od Ger cultural tansforion and the sty of the group se the ration an cor ‘rsation a indica with relerence to spe, envirenmenty and material equipment It cesmacy. Symbolism, wha an ewence thes meaheadion of the human sepa ‘Heh i fo ant thane ie cu ay may ey Sppearance withthe area appeatance of human evure. Symbols ate neceamay fot ‘Drumunleaton, far the Jncorporation of au elective element Tote a culture, far fs ‘eanassion, wh forthe secognsion of ts wee. 1. PERSONALITY, ORGANIZATION, AND CULTURE Tt might seem axiomatic that in any sociological approach the individual, the group, and their relations must remain the constant theme of all observations and argument. The group, after al, is but the assemblage of individuals and must be thus defined—unless we fall into the fallacy of “group mind,” “collective sensorivm,” or the gigantic “Moral Being” which thinks out and improvises all collec tive events. Nor can such conceptions as individual, personality, self, or mind be described except in terms of membership in a group or groups—unless again we wish to hug the figment of the individual asa detached, self-contained entity. We can, therefore, lay down as an axiom—or better, as an empirical truth—that in field work and theory, in observation and analysis, the leifmotiy “individual, group, and their mutual dependence” will run through all the inquiries. 38GROUP AND INDIVIDUAL IN FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS 939 But the exact determination of what we tean by “individual,” ‘ot how he is related to his “group,” the final understanding of the terms “social organization” or “cultural determinism” presents a number of problems to be discussed. I would like to add that over and above individual mental processes and forms of social organiza~ tion ft is necessary to introduce another factor, which together with the previous ones makes up the totality of cultural processes and phenomena. I mean the material apparatus which is indispensable both for the understanding of how a culturally determined indi- vidual comes into being and, also, how he co-opetates in group life with other individuals. In what follows I shall discuss some of these questions from the anthropological point of view. Most of my scientific experiences in culture are derived from wark in the field. Asan anthropologist Fam interested in primitive as well as in developed cultures. The fusic- tional approach, moreover, considers the totality of cultural phe- nomena as the necessary backgrotnd both of the analysis of man and that of society, Indeed, since in my opinion the relation between idual and group is a universal motive in all problems of sociol- ogy and comparative anthropology, a brief survey of the functional theory of culture, with a special emphasis on our specific problem, will be the hest method of presentation. Funetionalism differs from other sociological theories more definitely, perhaps, in its conception and definition of the individual than in any other respect. ‘The functionalist includes in his analysis not merely the emotional as well as the intellectual side of mental processes, but also insists that man in his ¢ull biological reality has When I speak of “functionaiom" hove I meen the brand which Ihave produced and am culuvating myself. My frend, Professor R. H. Lowie of Berkeley, basin his last book, The History of Heknalogical Peary (2937), Introduced the distinction between “pure” and “tempered” funceienalion—my brand being the pure one. Usually Pro- fessor Radlfe-Brown's name i liked with mine as represeative of the functlonat shoal, Here che cistinction between “plain and “hyphenated” functionalise might bbe introduced. Professor Lawie has, in my opinion, completely misunderstood the ‘essence of pare” fenetionalie. The substance ofthis article may seve asacorective, ProtessarRadelife-Heawn's,as ar as can see, still developing and deepening the views of the French sociologiealgehool. He thus has to neglect the individual and dstegard biclogy. In this attic fenctonatiem "plain and pute” will be briefy outlined with special eeference to the problem ofthe group and the individual.