Question 1(a) · 150 words written
Idea of functional indispensability
Opening · a definition
Within the functional paradigm of sociological study, the idea of functional indispensability holds that as any existing institution contributes functionally to the stability and continuity of the society, therefore, it is indispensible and cannot be replaced or eliminated.
Body · continuous prose
While this idea was never explicitly mentioned it has been accepted as one of the fundamental postulates of functional analysis by sociologists and anthropologists such as Durkheim, Radcliffe-Brown, Malinowski and Parson.
Merton, while attempting to reformulate the functional paradigm, critiques this idea. He argues that some subsystems are more harmful or dysfunctional than functional. Therefore, they may be dispensed with and replaced by functional alternatives.
For example, in modern societies which require specialized knowledge, a lot of the socialization functions performed by extended family are now taken over by the education system.
Close · a summary
Therefore, it is necessary for sociologists to be explicitly aware of their assumptions to avoid the fallacy of functional indispensability.