Emil Durkheim Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Emil Durkheim - Essay ExampleA change in any detonate is seen as leading to a certain degree of imbalance, which in turn results in changes in other parts of the system and to some consummation to a reorganization of the system as a whole. The development of functionalism was based on the model of the organic system found in the biological sciences. (Theodorson and Theodorson 1969, page 167)Accordingly, the threesome elements of functionalism are 1) The general interrelatedness, or interdependence of the systems parts 2) The existence of a normal state of affairs, or state of equilibrium, comparable to the normal or rubicund state of an organism and 3) The way that all the parts of the system reorganize to bring things back to normal.In analyzing how social systems maintain and restore equilibrium, functionalists tend to spend shared values or generally accepted standards of desirability as a central concept. Value consensus means that individuals will be morally commit to thei r society. The emphasis on values is the second most important feature of functionalism. As such, it contrasts directly with the other major macro-sociological perspective, the difference theory. Whereas functionalism emphasizes the unity of society and what its members share, conflict theorists stress the divisions within a society and the struggles that arise out of peoples pursuits of their different material interests. (Wallace and Wolf 1999, page 19) The Collective Conscience (later called Collective Representations). Another tonality theory that Durkheim developed was The Collective Conscience. In his testify words -Of the totality of beliefs and sentiments common to average citizens of the same society that forms a determinate system which has its own life, one may call it the collective or common conscience (Durkheim 1893 1947, pages 79-80).People are born into the collective conscience, and it regulates their perceptions and behavior. What Durkheim was denoting with the concept of collective conscience, then, is that social systems curtilage systems of ideas, such as values, beliefs, and norms that constrain the thoughts and actions of individuals. Durkheim was concerned with morality and moral facts. This area is now termed culture.Durkheim was concerned with the systems of symbols - particularly the norms, values, and beliefs - that humans create and use to organize their activities. In the course of his analysis of the collective conscience, Durkheim conceptualized its varying states as having four variables 1) Volume, which denotes the degree to which the values, beliefs, and rules of the collective conscience are shared by the members of a society 2) Intensity, which indicates the extent to which the collective conscience has power to guide a persons thoughts and actions 3) Determinateness, which denotes the degree of clarity in the components of the collective conscience and 4) Content, which pertains to the ratio of religious to purely secu lar symbolism in the collective conscience.Functionalism in action. Functionalism is macro-sociology. An airport is an example of the interrelatedness expressed within the functionalism framework. There are the pilots, maintenance crews, air traffic controllers, baggage handlers, and ticketing and modesty personnel .What could cause disequilibrium of the airport