According to the Marxist social functioning theory, each aspect of society is independent, and it contributes to the functioning and growth of the entire society. Social functioning theories believe that society is held together by cohesion, where members of the society agree to work together for benefits of the entire society. For example, the government or the state is responsible for the provision of security, social facilities, and a conducive political stability. The families are responsible for paying taxes and taking the children to schools provided by the government. The children have a role of ensuring that they are good citizens and grow up being law-abiding citizens. If all this goes well there is order, stability, and increase in productivity. If the society is not held together by a strong cohesion, then, there is a need of introducing a new order. Social problems weaken the society but do not reflect the main faults in how the society is structured.
Symbolic interaction is a theory of sociology that focuses on the meaning that the human being imposes on objects, events, and behaviors. Symbolic interaction claims that the human being is behaving basing on what they believe and not what is objectively true. People generally interpret one other behavior, this interpretation helps in creating the bond within members of a society. For example, why would young children smoke cigarettes and weed yet they know the medical effects of smoking the two drugs. The answer is because of the definition that people create among themselves. The young people may believe among themselves that smoking cigarette and weed has no harmful effect to them. In symbolic interactions people tend to believes and trust what they think is right to them and not the truth. The smoking of cigarettes and weeds override the actual symbolic facts regarding of the risk factor involved
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"Social Functioning Theories".
Cultural relativism is a widely accepted sociological concept; it views all the ethical beliefs, norms, customs, and morals to be relative within individual social context. This means that there are no universal standards of moral rights and moral wrong. What can be wrong to one individual may be right to another individual? For instance, in some community it is morally wrong to attain adulthood without circumcision of the male child. However in other communities’ circumcisions has no value to them. Cultural relativism ensures that individuals do not judge other because they are of the different culture from theirs. Cultural relativism is related to the ethical relativism, and it views all the cultures to be equal. There is nothing wrong and nothing right when any culture tries to express itself in a unique way. For instance, the ancient Mayans practiced self-mutilation and human sacrifice during the ancient times. Somebody from a different culture may view this as a barbaric and inhuman, but that was a culture of that time.
Ethnocentrism is a human being believes that the culture, nation, or group, which they belong, is superior to others. It involves people looking at their culture as more superior to other people’s cultures. Ethnocentrism people judge other people cultures solely by the values of their own culture. Because people are usually accustomed by their how culture it is difficult for the human being to see other people’s culture without comparing it with theirs. Ethnocentrism is one of the factors that contributed to colonization and wars among different culture of people. Some examples of ethnocentrism include religion believes such as some culture referring themselves as chosen one, others calling themselves God children, God own country, God promised land and others. Early scientist and religious leaders operated from ethnocentrism point of view. They referred to other tribes as primitive’s tribes, which to show how human civilization had taken a progress form.
