Скачать или смотреть How Society Holds Together: Understanding Structural Functionalism

Structural functionalism is one of the foundational frameworks in sociology, offering a way to understand how societies maintain stability, continuity, and coordination over time.

In this video, we examine structural functionalism as a sociological lens, rather than as a simplistic “problem-solving” model. Drawing on the work of Émile Durkheim, Herbert Spencer, and Talcott Parsons, we explore how societies function as interdependent systems made up of institutions such as family, education, economy, government, and culture.

Key topics include:

Society as an interdependent system of institutions

Functions, latent functions, and unintended consequences

Social strain, dysfunction, and the concept of anomie

Why stability and continuity matter in large-scale societies

The strengths and limits of structural functionalism


Rather than asking whether social arrangements are morally “good” or “bad,” structural functionalism asks a different question: What functions do social structures serve, and how do they contribute to stability or instability over time?

This approach is especially useful for understanding unintended consequences and systemic ripple effects. But it also has limits, particularly when examining power dynamics. For that reason, sociologists rely on multiple paradigms rather than any single theory.

This video is part of a broader effort to present sociological concepts clearly, carefully, and without ideological shortcuts.

Chapters included for easy navigation.
Subtitles are available.

0:09 Structural Functionalism as a Sociological Lens
0:41 Intellectual Roots
1:56 Society as an Interdependent System
4:48 Functions and Dysfunctions
6:56 Anomie, Social Strain, and Disruption
8:30 Why No Single Lens Is Enough

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