Sociology Assignment 1

Matthew Christensen
Sociology 1010
April 21, 2016
Out of the three theoretical perspectives (Functionalism, Conflict Theory, and Symbolic
Interactionism) the one I would use if I was a sociologist would be the theory of functionalism.
Functionalism emphasizes the contributions of different structures to society as a whole. Each
group has a function that only it can provide to society and if society no longer needs that group
it will cease to exist. The reason I would choose functionalism is mainly for the idea that a major
change in one group will have an impact on the other structures in society. Sometimes is hard to
understand why certain things are happening in society or why groups of people begin to act in
certain ways. Often sociologist must look beyond the initial assumed causes and they must look
at different structures in society do find a deeper cause for the new behavior they are witnessing.
For example, there may be an increase in violence in a particular neighborhood. At first glance a
sociologist could assume that the increase in violence is due to influence of neighboring gangs.
However if they apply the theories of functionalism and look at a different social structure, say
the family, they may find that families in that neighborhood are struggling with single parent
households, family disagreements, etc. which may be having an influence on this increase in
violence.
The difference between good and bad sociological research is depends greatly upon how
the research is set up. Good research identifies a problem, examines the literature already
available about that problem, develops a hypothesis, has a specific design on how the data will
be collected, collects the data in a few different ways, has a good analysis, and has a thorough
report. Biases are a hindrance to good research and have to be avoided by carefully wording the
questions that will be asked and carefully analyzing the data that is collected. Finally good
research will maintain good ethics and will never inflict and physical or mental harm on the
subjects.
The two agents of socialization that have had the biggest impact upon me are my family
and my school / peer groups. My family has had the greatest influence on my life and I share
most of the same values and beliefs as my family. Religion is very important in my family and
therefore I have adopted a religious attitude and belief as well. However I am guilty of often
treating my church as more of a cultural thing rather than an actual belief and for that reason I
say that my family has had a greater influence upon me than my religion. I am very conservative
and that stems from my family. I was raised in a conservative home and we hold dear many of
our conservative values that have made us happy and successful in our home. Secondly my
schools and peer groups have had a huge impact on my attitudes towards life. Although I myself
am very middle class I went to an extremely wealthy high school. Growing up in that
environment has given me a strong desire to get a good education and have a well-paying job.
On the other hand it also made me grateful for growing up in a middle class family that gave me
a strong work ethic instead of handing me everything. My peers helped me develop a love for
sports and physical fitness. I went to a school that had great sports teams and a strong sense of
Matthew Christensen
Sociology 1010
April 21, 2016
unity within those teams. For that reason I became very passionate about football and still am
today. The way that I dress has also been highly influences by my peers. My friends and I
dressed alike and we still do to this day.
I am a member of many different sub-cultures. The first subculture that I identify with is the LDS
church. The LDS church is considered a sub-culture because it has tons of different terms,
phrases, teachings, and norms that are different from anything else in society but it is not a
counter culture because it still teaches ideals that are common in the United States. The LDS
church values freedom, work, responsibility, and Christian values. I am also a huge fan of
football and am deeply engrained in that subculture. Football fans can be loud and obnoxious but
on most days of the week they are normal members of society that have common beliefs and
ideas as the rest of the country. Football is an interesting sub-culture because during a game fans
act in a way that would be completely unacceptable in most other daily situations.
Skateboarding would be another sub-culture that I identify with because it as well has tons of
different terms and norms that would be hard to understand for people who are unfamiliar with
skateboarding. However skateboarding can often be considered a counter-culture because it
sometimes involves doing things such as trespassing and skating in areas that have banned
skateboards. There is a general attitude among skateboarders of defying authority and being a
rebel in society.

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