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Sociological Thinkers - Talcott Parsons
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SOCIOLOGICAL THINKERS - TALCOTT PARSONSTalcott Parsons was born in Colorado. Parsons studied biology, sociology, and philosophy as an
undergraduate. He then studied at the London School of Economics and later earned his Ph.D. in economics
and sociology. He became an instructor at Harvard University in the Department of Economics. In 1931,
Harvard’s first sociology department was created and Parsons became one of the new department’s two
instructors. In 1946, Parsons was instrumental in forming the Department of Social Relations at Harvard,
which was an interdisciplinary department of sociology, anthropology, and psychology
The Structure of Social Action, appeared in 1937
in 1951, he published two books, one self-authored, The Social System, the other a collaborative work,
Toward a General Theory of Action.
Parsons drew from the work of his four theorists a picture of social life involving motivated compliance.
Motivated compliance: Social life does work, rather than disintegrating into Hobbes’s war of all against
all. It works not only because people go about their activities in ways that are socially prescribed, but also
because they believe these ways to be right and therefore, they actually want to follow them
Social System
Literature Review:
Parsons reviewed positivistic, idealist and utilitarian theories and concluded that the utilitarian approach
treated social systems as products of rational impulses of human beings (individuals) to integrate their needs
and urges as orderly systems. It doesn’t take values into consideration. Idealism places too much emphasis
on values and ideas and not enough on social practice. According to Talcott Parsons both the idealist and
the utilitarian notions of the social system assume certain characteristics in human impulses in an apriori
manner. By apriori we mean that which is already given or assumed. The positivists go to the other extreme
and insist that true human action is born out of full information of the situation. There is thus a finality and
inflexibility in their scheme for there is only one way to act: the correct way. Consequently, there is no
room for values, error and variations in social action. But Parsons borrows reductional approach from
positivists in his study of social systems.
Parsons concept of the social system is developed in the nature of a general sociological theory which can
be applied for the study of both the simple primitive societies as well as the complex modern industrial
societies. Parsons has developed his theory from the level of action to the social system. his conceptual
scheme is provided to analyze the structure and processes of social system. Parsons formulates his approach
, to the social system through his theory of social action which is an intrinsic element of the social system.
Parsons own APPROACH TO THE SOCIAL SYSTEM IS INTEGRATIVE IN NATURE since he not
only brought out the significance of motivational factors, such as those present in the utilitarian perspective
in the formation of the system, but also that of values.
Action, according to Parson does not take place in isolation. it is not empirically discrete but occurs
in constellations” which constitute system.
The concept of action, according to Parson, is derived from behavior of human beings as living organisms.
As living organisms, they interact (orientate) with outside reality as well as within their own mind.
Behaviour becomes action when four conditions are present:
• it is oriented to attainment of ends or goals or other anticipated affairs,
• it occurs in situations,
• it is regulated by norms and values of society, and
• it involves in investment of ‘energy’ or motivation or effort.
For example, a lady driving an automobile to go to a temple. She is probably going to offer prayers. In this
case then the offering of the prayer is her end or goal to which she is oriented. Her situation is the
road on which she is driving and the car in which she is sitting. Moreover, her behaviour is regulated by
social norms or values in which the offering of prayers is recognized as desirable. In addition, she is
applying her intelligence in the skill of driving which is learnt from society. Finally, the very act of
driving the car implies expenditure of energy, holding the wheel, regulating the accelerator and skilful
negotiation through the traffic on the road. when behaviour is seen in this analytical context, it can be
defined as action.
As mentioned earlier, action according to Parsons does not occur in isolation but occurs in
constellations: THESE CONSTELLATIONS OF ACTION CONSTITUTE SYSTEM. These systems of action
have three modes of organization which Parsons describes as THE PERSONALITY SYSTEM, THE
CULTURAL SYSTEM AND THE SOCIAL SYSTEM.
He proposed that the actual operating life of a society is made up of the following elements:
‘Motivated compliance’ means no more than the drivers being motivated to abide by the rules of the
highway code, but this illustration of the idea draws attention to the way actual situations in society are
made up of three ‘action systems’, as Parsons called them:
• Cultural System—the pattern of ideas, principles, etc. which abstractly specifies how people should
behave;
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