Effectiveness of Perspectives in Social Stratification

This essay hasn't yet been marked by one of our teachers

You can view 5 essays on Sociological Differentiation & Stratification that have been Marked by Teachers

The first 200 words of this essay...

Sociology assignment 4

Unit: social class

Davis and More contend that stratification is a permanent and necessary feature of human society because it is functionally necessary.

Effectiveness of Perspectives in Social Stratification

Functionalist theories of stratification seek to explain the operation of society as a whole. "They argue that all social systems, such as educational or political groups, share certain functional prerequisites which must be met if the system is to survive and operate efficiently." Functionalists assume that these systems are parts of an integrated whole and therefore one group's outcome will be dependent on that of other groups.

The most famous Functionalist theory was presented in 1945 by Davis and Moore, entitled 'Some Principles of Stratification'. This article highlighted the existence of stratification in every human society and tried to explain 'in functionalist terms, the universal necessity which calls forth stratification in any social system,' (Haralambos and Holborne, p4)

Davis and Moore identified one such Functional prerequisite, or need, as 'effective role allocation and performance' and contend that Social Stratification is the mechanism for ensuring this need is met by allocating unequal rewards to different positions within society. This simply means that