POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE OF DAVAO DEL SUR, INC.

Mac Arthur Highway, Kiagot, Digos City

High School Department
Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences XI
Week 2

LESSON 2: DOMINANT APPROACHES AND IDEAS

1. Structural-Functionalism
2. Marxism
3. Symbolic Interactionism
4. Psychoanalysis

OBJECTIVES:

The Learner:
A. Define Structural Functionalism.
B. Explain the importance of social functionalism in understanding the
institutions of the society.
C. Distinguish the latent and manifest function.
D. Analyze social inequalities in terms of class conflict
E. Determine the difference of id, ego and superego.

I. STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM

 Or in many contexts simply functionalism, is a broad perspective in sociology

and anthropology which sets out to interpret society as a structure with
interrelated parts.

 Functionalism addresses society as a whole in terms of the function of its

constituent elements; namely norms, customs, traditions and institutions

 A common analogy, popularized by Herbert Spencer, presents these parts of

society as "organs" that work toward the proper functioning of the "body" as a
whole.
 I.I Social Structure and Social Functions

 Structural functionalism is one of the main perspectives in sociology. This approach

sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity
and stability. Important aspects of this perspective are social structure, social
functions, and manifest and latent functions.
 The focus of this lesson will be on manifest functions, which are those recognized and
intended consequences that people observe or expect in a social pattern or social
institution. Let's examine these concepts further and illustrate them through a few
examples.

I.II Two concepts surrounding structural functionalism

1. Social Structure
 Social structure is any relatively stable pattern of social behavior. Social
structure includes arrangements in society, such as various social classes
(upper, middle, and lower) or various governmental levels (federal, state, and
municipal).
2. Social Function.
 Functionalists also look to social functions, which are the consequences of any
social pattern for the operation of society as a whole. Consider the social
structure of religion - a functionalist would argue it exists to benefit society as a
whole.

I.III MANIFEST FUNCTION AND LATENT FUNCTION

MANIFEST FUNCTION-
 Recognized and intended consequences of any social pattern.
Example:
1. Imagine you are in a school and becoming educated, inculcating new
ideas. These are manifest function of the school.
2. You use social media to connect with a broader aspect of the world.
You can contact with many known and unknown persons. These are
manifest function of the social media.
LATENT FUNCTION-
 Unrecognized and unintended consequences.
Example:
1. But due to being in school, say, you have made a bunch of friends, knowing
the values of friendship. These are the unintended, unconscious yet
beneficial functions imparted by school.
2. Social media is now a great platform for advertisement. This is a latent
function of social media.

 Both manifest functions and latent functions are beneficial. Difference is

manifest functions are conscious, deliberate whereas latent functions are
unconscious, unintended. But manifest dysfunctions are conscious, deliberate
as well as harmful (not beneficial); latent dysfunctions are unconscious,
unintended as well as harmful (not beneficial).

II. MARXISM

 The Marxist theory of classes and class struggle belong to the key problems
both of theory and political practice, strategy and tactics of the working class.

 It makes possible a scientific analysis of each historical stage of social

development, a preliminary condition if the political struggle for the victory of
socialism is to have effective leadership.

II.I The key to understanding Marx is his class definition.

A class is defined by the ownership of property. Such ownership vests a person

with the power to exclude others from the property and to use it for personal
purposes.

 In relation to property there are three great classes of society:

1. The bourgeoisie (who own the means of production such as machinery and
factory buildings, and whose source of income is profit).
2. Landowners (whose income is rent).
3. The proletariat (who own their labor and sell it for a wage).
  Class thus is determined by property, not by income or status. These are
determined by distribution and consumption, which itself ultimately reflects the
production and power relations of classes. The social conditions of bourgeoisie
production are defined by bourgeois property. Class is therefore a theoretical
and formal relationship among individuals.

 The force transforming latent class membership into a struggle of classes is class
interest. Out of similar class situations, individuals come to act similarly. They
develop a mutual dependence, a community, a shared interest interrelated with a
common income of profit or of wages. From this common interest classes are
formed, and for Marx, individuals form classes to the extent that their interests
engage them in a struggle with the opposite class.

 At first, the interests associated with land ownership and rent are different from
those of the bourgeoisie. But as society matures, capital (i.e., the property of
production) and land ownership merge, as do the interests of landowners and
bourgeoisie. Finally, the relation of production, the natural opposition between
proletariat and bourgeoisie, determines all other activities.

 As Marx saw the development of class conflict, the struggle between classes was
initially confined to individual factories. Eventually, given the maturing of
capitalism, the growing disparity between life conditions of bourgeoisie and
proletariat, and the increasing homogenization within each class, individual
struggles become generalized to coalitions across factories.

 Increasingly class conflict is manifested at the societal level. Class

consciousness is increased, common interests and policies are organized, and
the use of and struggle for political power occurs. Classes become political
forces.

II.II Six elements in Marx's view of class conflict.

1. Classes are authority relationships based on property ownership.

2. A class defines groupings of individuals with shared life situations, thus interests.
3. Classes are naturally antagonistic by virtue of their interests.

4. Imminent within modern society is the growth of two antagonistic classes and
their struggle, which eventually absorbs all social relations.

5. Political organization and Power is an instrumentality of class struggle, and

reigning ideas are its reflection.

6. Structural change is a consequence of the class struggle.

 Marx's emphasis on class conflict as constituting the dynamics of social change,

his awareness that change was not random but the outcome of a conflict of
interests, and his view of social relations as based on power were contributions
of the first magnitude.

 Capitalist ownership and control of production have been separated. Joint stock
companies forming most of the industrial sector are now almost wholly operated
by non-capital-owning managers. Workers have not grown homogeneous but are
divided and subdivided into different skill groups.

III. SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM 

 Symbolic interactionism is a micro-level theory that focuses on the

relationships among individuals within a society. Communication—the
exchange of meaning through language and symbols—is believed to be
the way in which people make sense of their social worlds. Theorists
Herman and Reynolds (1994) note that this perspective sees people as
being active in shaping the social world rather than simply being acted
upon.

 Social scientists who apply symbolic-interactionist thinking look for

patterns of interaction between individuals. Their studies often involve
observation of one-on-one interactions.

For example:

While a conflict theorist studying a political protest might focus on

class difference, a symbolic interactionist would be more interested in how
individuals in the protesting group interact, as well as the signs and
symbols protesters use to communicate their message. 
IV. PSYCHOANALYSIS

 Psychoanalysis is defined as a set of psychological theories and therapeutic

techniques that have their origin in the work and theories of Sigmund Freud. The
core idea at the center of psychoanalysis is the belief that all people possess
unconscious thoughts, feelings, desires, and memories.

 Sigmund Freud was the founder of psychoanalysis and the psychodynamic

approach to psychology. This school of thought emphasized the influence of the
unconscious mind on behavior. Freud believed that the human mind was
composed of three elements: the id, the ego, and the superego.

 Psychoanalytic theory is a framework for understanding the impact of the

unconscious on thoughts, feelings, and behavior.

 Conscious- contains those thoughts of which you are currently aware .

 Preconscious- stores all the thoughts of which you could bring into
consciousness fairly easily if you wanted to; thoughts that can be easily recall
without special techniques.

 Unconscious- the material that we have no immediate access to, and we

cannot bring into consciousness except under certain extreme situations.

IV.I The Id, Ego, and Superego

Id:
Freud believed that personality was composed of three key elements. The
first of these to emerge is known as the id. The id contains all of the unconscious,
basic and primal urges.

Ego:
 The second aspect of personality to emerge is known as the ego. This is
the part of the personality that must deal with the demands of reality. It helps
control the urges of the id and makes us behave in ways that are both realistic
and acceptable. Rather than engaging in behaviors designed to satisfy our
desires and needs, the ego forces us to fulfill our needs in ways that are socially
acceptable and realistic. In addition to controlling the demands of the id, the ego
also helps strike a balance between our basic urges, our ideals, and reality.

Superego:
The superego is the final aspect of personality to emerge and it contains
our ideals and values. The values and beliefs that our parents and society instill
in us are the guiding force of the superego and it strives to make us behave
according to these morals.

IV.II BASIC TENETS OF PSYCHOANALYSIS

• The way that people behave is influenced by their unconscious drives

• The development of personality is heavily influenced by the events of early
childhood; Freud suggested that personality was largely set in stone by the age of
five.
• Bringing information from the unconscious into consciousness can lead to
catharsis and allow people to deal with the issue
• People utilize a number of defense mechanisms to protect themselves from
information contained in the unconscious
• Emotional and psychological problems such as depression and anxiety are often
rooted in conflicts between the conscious and unconscious mind
• A skilled analyst can help bring certain aspects of the unconscious into
awareness by using a variety of psychoanalytic strategies such as dream analysis
and free association
References:

https://study.com/academy/lesson/manifest-functions-in-sociology-examples-lesson-
quiz.html#:~:text=Manifest%20functions%20are%20the%20recognized,group%2C
%20community%2C%20or%20society.
https://slideplayer.com/slide/13631498/
https://www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/CIP.CHAP5.HTM#:~:text=One%20of%20the
%20most%20powerful,to%20fit%20well%20with%20history.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/alamo-sociology/chapter/reading-symbolic-interactionist-
theory/
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-psychoanalysis-2795246#:~:text=Psychoanalysis%20is
%20defined%20as%20a,feelings%2C%20desires%2C%20and%20memories.

Prepared by: MRS. MICHELLE M. DUMAGAN, LPT

Subject Teacher

Checked by: MRS. ROSA A. ZOZOBRADO, MAED, MAECON

High School Principal

 POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE OF DAVAO DEL SUR, INC.
Mac Arthur Highway, Kiagot, Digos City
High School Department
Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences XI
Week 2

NAME:______________________________________________________________

GENERAL INSTRUCTION:

This paper contains exercises about the module given. Read carefully each
instruction before answering. Avoid erasures or alteration of answer. Return this to
the teacher on ______________________________. Thank you.

I. STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM

Instruction: You are task to organize a community. On a piece of white cartolina

draw a community comprised with different institutions. Explain below why you
choose the institutions and how they function in the community.

CRITERIA:

Drawing
Creativity and originality-10
Neatness-5
Explanation
Content-10
Organization of ideas-5
30 points
 II. ESSAY

Instructions: Read carefully and answer the following questions below. Limit
your words from 20-50 only.

CRITERIA:
Content-3
Relevance-1
Organization-1
5 points

1. Explain the importance of social functionalism in understanding the

institutions of the society.

______________________________________________________________________

2.How can our personal and social experiences about social inequality help us
understand others and our society as a whole?
3.What do you think are the reasons why social inequalities exist in the society?

4.Does symbolic interactionism affect our daily life? Why?

5.Cite and explain the differences of id, ego and superego.

III.
Instruction: Write a one or two -paragraph essay about the problems that may result
from the existence of social inequalities.
CRITERIA:
Content-5
Relevance-3
Organization-2
10 points