University Essay: Functionalist Approach to Gender Roles in Society

This essay delves into the functionalist approach to gender roles within society, originating from the sociological perspectives of Emile Durkheim and further developed by thinkers like Talcott Parsons. It explains how functionalism views society as a cohesive organism where each institution, including gender roles, contributes to overall stability and productivity. The essay outlines the functionalist perspective on gender roles, emphasizing the division of labor based on perceived differences between masculinity and femininity, as exemplified in Parsons' model of the nuclear family. It also discusses criticisms from feminist perspectives, which argue that the functionalist approach perpetuates inequality and oppression. The essay highlights the decline of the functionalist perspective with the rise of the feminist movement and the emergence of alternative narratives on gender roles and labor division. It concludes by referencing key sociological theorists and their contributions to the understanding of gender roles in society.

Running head: FUNCTIONALIST APPROACH TO GENDER ROLES IN SOCIETY
Functionalist Approach to Gender Roles in Society
Student’s name
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Author’s note

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FUNCTIONALIST APPROACH TO GENDER ROLES IN SOCIETY
Functionalism or functionalist perspective is a fundamental theoretical perspective in the
field of Sociology. T originated from the worldviews of Emile Durkheim, the notable social
thinker whose significant contribution constructed the most comprehensive account of social
order. In accordance to his theory, the concept of structural functionalism was introduced to the
disciplines of sociology and anthropology. Apart from Durkheim, Talcott Parsons, Herbert
Spencer and Robert K. Merton are some other notable social thinkers who developed the theories
of structural functionalism (Turner 2017).
Functionalism dictates that society is more than the summation of its entities, rather it is a
compact organism that operates through its parts, and the stability of the entire system depends
on the performance of its parts. Although each component plays a crucial role, they cannot
function on their own (Srivastava 2017). In accordance to this theory, Durkheim suggests that
society is composed of different social institutions, each designated with tasks to fulfill different
social needs. Government, economy, education, media, religion and family are some of the core
institutions of the society. They serve their respective purposes, and when their necessity
diminishes, they slowly fade away from the social scenario, allowing new institutions to emerge
to meet new social needs. To this end, gender roles, according to Durkheim, has a necessary role
to play in the context of social order. Durkheim was particularly interested in understanding how
social orders contribute to the stability and productivity of the society. He opines that order and
consensus present in the social structure help to maintain the said stability. Subsequently, any
perceived disorganization or deviant behaviour leads to disrupt the stability, as it affects the
functionalities of the other parts (Aron 2018 ).
In this regard, the functionalist perspective describes gender roles as necessary order to
maintain social order. As defined by theorists such as Parsons, Hofestede, Ellis etc. masculinity

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FUNCTIONALIST APPROACH TO GENDER ROLES IN SOCIETY
and femininity have different roles to play in the social context. Masculinity reflect more
dominant position in the social order on the merit of strength, assertiveness, competitiveness and
a keen focus on material success. Femininity, on the other hand, connotes tenderness, care and
concerned with the quality of life. Based on the perceived difference of the two dominant gender
characteristics, the responsibilities assigned to males and females differ significantly (Thompson,
Hickey and Thompson 2016). The functionalist perspective on gender roles most significantly
developed with Parsons’ model of nuclear family, where he suggested that the gender-based
characteristics facilitate a structured division of labour. Women primarily take care of the family,
rear children and nurture them, while men are designated to provide for the family. This division
of labour based on predefined gender roles, according to Parsons, are instrumental to optimize
efficiency and resources. And thus, gender roles, like other social institutions, contributes to the
productivity and stability of the society (Miller 2016).
The view, however, has been criticized by several schools of thought. Most significantly,
the feminists object the functionalist perspective by arguing that it creates a stark inequality,
proliferating oppression and discrimination of women. The underlying rationale of this criticism
states that the responsibilities assigned to men are generally held superior than women, thus
suppressing the women under the family structure (Mascia-Lees and Black 2016). Antonio
Gramsci also argues that the functionalist perspective justifies the status quo and the cultural
hegemony that belittles women’s contribution to the society (Fonseca 2016). Subsequently, the
functionalist perspective started to decline with the rise of feminist movement, allowing a
complimentary narrative of gender roles and division of labour.

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FUNCTIONALIST APPROACH TO GENDER ROLES IN SOCIETY
References
Aron, R., 2018. Main Currents in Sociological Thought: Volume 2: Durkheim, Pareto, Weber.
Routledge.
Fonseca, M., 2016. Gramsci's Critique of Civil Society: Towards a New Concept of Hegemony.
Routledge.
Mascia-Lees, F.E. and Black, N.J., 2016. Gender and anthropology. Waveland Press.
Miller, L.R., 2016. Definition of family. Encyclopedia of Family Studies, pp.1-17.
Srivastava, V.K., 2017. Functionalism, Structural functionalism and Neo-functionalism. IGNOU.
Thompson, W.E., Hickey, J.V. and Thompson, M.L., 2016. Society in focus: An introduction to
sociology. Rowman & Littlefield.
Turner, J.H., 2017. Functionalism. The Wiley‐Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social Theory, pp.1-9.