Transcript The System of modern society

Talcott PARSONS
The System of modern society
1971
From the late Eighteenth to the
mid-Twentieth century
Parsons theory… in a table
Subsystems
Structural
components
Aspects of
development process
Primary function
Societal community
Norms
Inclusion
Integration
Pattern Maintenance
Values
Value Generalisation
Pattern
maintenance
Polity
Collectives
Differentiation
Goal Attainment
Economy
Roles
Adaptive Upgrading
Adaptation
The Industrial Revolution
p74-79
• Social changes to be the most crucial to
society
• The extension of the market system
resulted in the differentiation of labourwhich impacted on kinship systems and
led to the nuclear family.
• ‘Occupational role’- money wage (and
access to market), status from job.
• Industrial revolution could only have
emerged from a ‘free market’ system.
This system, rather than socialism is the
future.
The Democratic Revolution
p79-85
• differentiating the ‘polity’ and the ‘social community’.
• DR questioned ascribed social roles, the political power
and privilege of the aristocracy.
• Wanted a community that included all and was free
from privilege- in essence, citizenship.
• Equality of opportunity ,which became institutionalised.
• Equality of membership. Led to a common pattern of
democracy- Universal suffrage, an equal weighting of
votes, formal election procedure, secret ballot.
• French society only partially institutionalised the
democratic pattern. England- achieved pluralisation,
but kept its aristocracy.
• Democratisation became a major component of
European social conflict.
The United States and modernity
p86-94
• The US didn’t have to disassemble the ascriptive
social framework.
• Has a highly differentiated government and
societal community. Evidence of move from
ascription highest government authority is vested
in elected officials, and a highly competitive party
system.
• The social community- not based upon a particular
religion or ethnic group.
• Legal system is highly developed, constitution has a
strong egalitarian emphasis, and political mobility is
achieved via education and wealth.
• Process of inclusion in regards nationality still
incomplete E.g. inclusion of black population.
American and the
Education Revolution
p94-98
• as important as the Industrial and Democratic
revolution.
• the extension of education beyond basic literacy,
and the expansion of secondary education.
• US at the forefront because initiated ER early on
and has extended it further than other countries.
• It ‘synthesized’ the major themes of the industrial
and democratic revolution, equality of opportunity
and equality of citizenship.
• Changed the occupational structure of society.
There is an increasing importance on professions,
and to become competent at one requires formal
education.
Pattern Maintenance, Polity, and the
Social Community
p98-106
Pattern Maintenance
• religion=societal values, the pluralisation of
religion=destruction of moral consensus? Instead a
generalisation of values.
• ER- transmit cultural secular values.
Polity
• Role of office. “When elective office is a compliment of
citizenship…members become the ultimate source of formal
power… and the ultimate beneficiaries of societal
functioning.”
• Huge concentration of power and thus a need for good
leadership.
• Bureaucracy- ‘the hallmark of late modernisation’ solution.
Issue of accountability=responsible to the electorate and
elective officers. This in turn gives lots of power to elected
positions, held accountable via election process.
• Bureaucracy collegial. E.g. Academia
Economy and Social Community
p106-114
• Economy has moved on from the original conception
of Capitalism.
• End of 19th C. US has highest economic growth in world.
Linked to ready work force, economic resources, a
rapid development of commercial banking.
• US pattern of capitalism distinctive- 1)mass production,
2) scientific knowledge in industrial production.
• differentiation between households and employing
organisation, becomes more obvious. the primary
contribution of adult males to the large functional
interests are made in occupational jobs.
• Decline of unskilled work, because of mechanisation.
• ‘massive transfer payments’ (Social Security). ‘floor’
below which ‘no major category of people should fall.
• conspicuous consumption, but declining.
The US continued
p114-122
• America=latest phase of modernisation.
• Ascriptive inequalities egalitarian patterns
=improved national health, free education etc. But
war, social injustice for the black community,
relative depravation.
• Society, in regards power and authority has
become decentralised and associational
• Society is basically composed of equals.
• Main pattern of modern societal development is
towards a new pattern of stratification.
• Society wants high economic productivity AND
equality  need greater accountability and
equality of opportunity.
‘New Europe’
p128-134
• The reformation, democratic revolution and
Americanisation have all been processes of
irreversible change in Western society according to
Parsons.
• Germany- good social security and an active trade
unionism. The Democratic revolution happened
later here, and perhaps as a result, many of the old
elements of ascriptive inequality and diversity exist.
• NW Europe= stable democratic political institutions
Solid legal systems and relative ethnic and linguistic
homogeneity. Highly developed welfare states .
• Europe is moving towards a model similar to the US.
Japan
p134-137
• Japan- “modernised without European culture or
population.”
• “modern type has a single origin”
• It adapted a modernising pattern similar to the
Eastern European system rather than UK/US.
Constitution taken from Imperial Germany.
• Japan selectively borrowed institutional patterns –
its feudally decentralised, and has a a
hierarchical organisation.
• Japan has had industrial, democratic and
educational revolutions- it’s the first major
example of a relatively fully modernisation of a
totally non Western society-raises questions about
the system of modernising and modernised state.
Evolutionary Theory
• Like human beings, society is following an
evolutionary path, with the ‘modern system of
societies’ being at the forefront of development.
• This modern system of societies is the most
developed, Parsons argues, because it has shown
the greatest ‘capacity for adaptation’ (Rocher
1974: 71). Adaptation=differentiation and
integration. The US has a highly differentiated and
complex system, as we have seen, but is also v
stable because of successful integration.
• Process of development, Primitive modern
industrial society. Not the end of development, but
the ‘culminating phase of development is a good
way off-very likely a century or more.’ (pg. 143)
Critique
• history is not ‘unilinear’ (Burke 1992:72). E.g.
France’s democratic history is evidence of
this.
• Doesn’t give enough consideration of
human agency (Delanty and Isin: 41)
• Universally applicable theory? (Lackey 1987)
• Problem of integration in US- evidence that
his theory was designed to fit the culture of
US middle class society? (Lackey 1987:
• Japan’s modernisation
Bibliography
• Burke, P. (1992) History and Social Theory Cambridge: Polity
Press
• Cancian, F, M. (1972) ‘The System of Modern Societies. By
Talcott Parsons’ in Social Forces (51:1)
• Cohen, P, S. (1972) ‘The System of Modern Societies. By Talcott
Parsons’ Man, New Series, (7:2)
• Delanty, G. and Isin, E, F. (2003) (Eds) Handbook of Historical
Sociology London: Sage.
• Lackey, P, N. (1987)Invitation to Talcott Parsons’ Theory Texas:
Cap and Gown Press, Inc.
• Parsons, T (1971) The System of Modern Societies New Jersey:
Prentice-Hall, Inc.
• Rocher, G. (1974) Talcott Parsons and American Sociology
London:Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.