1.2.8
Sociology & Social Policy
Feminist and Marxist Perspective
Feminist and Marxist Perspective
Feminist and Marxist perspectives on social policy and sociology.
Feminist perspective
Feminist perspective
- Feminists see society as being based on conflict.
- Society is based on patriarchy benefiting men at women’s expense.
- They argue that the state perpetuates female subordination through social policies.
Example
Example
- For example, the state bases its policies on the nuclear family so it offers benefits to married couples.
- This forces women into often exploitative family structures and segregated conjugal roles.
Marxist perspective
Marxist perspective
- They see society as divided by a conflict of interest in which the ruling capitalist class exploits the labour of the working class.
- The state represents the ruling class and its social policies serve the interests of capitalism.
- The state represents the ruling class and they use ideological law-making and selective law enforcement to further oppress the proletariat.
The ’caring face’ of capitalism
The ’caring face’ of capitalism
- They argue that social policy offers create a ’caring face’ of capitalism.
- This means that policies fool the poor into thinking that the state cares about them when in actual fact policies offer a distraction from the exploitation that exists in society.
Example
Example
- For example, the introduction of the minimum wage helps to mask their exploitation by making it appear that the capitalist system cares about the poor.
- This is a way of preventing revolution when class conflict threatens capitalism.
Functionalist and the New Right Perspective
Functionalist and the New Right Perspective
Functionalist and the New Rights perspective on social policy and sociology.
Functionalist view
Functionalist view
- Functionalists see society as being based on value consensus which is free from conflict.
- Durkheim believed that through scientific research we could discover both the problems and solutions to society’s social ills.
- Therefore sociology's role is to provide the state with objective scientific information that they can use to base their policies on.
Piecemeal social engineering
Piecemeal social engineering
- They see the state as serving the interests of society as a whole and policies help society run more smoothly and efficiently.
- Functionalists take a cautious approach, they tend to look at one issue at a time, this is called ‘piecemeal social engineering’.
The New Rights perspective
The New Rights perspective
- They believe the state should have minimal involvement in society.
- They are opposed to state involvement in the family, income support, education, and healthcare.
- They feel that this takes away people’s choices and their feeling of personal responsibility.
The welfare state
The welfare state
- Charles Murray argues that the welfare state gives ‘perverse incentives’ that weaken self-reliance and encourages a dependency culture.
- They want sociologists to come up with alternative policies to the existing ones.
New policy
New policy
- They want these new policies to restore the responsibility that the welfare state has taken away from individuals.
- They want individuals to take responsibility for their own and their family's welfare rather than leaving it to the state.
1Theory & Methods
1.1Sociological Theories
1.2Sociological Methods
2Education with Methods in Context
2.1Role & Function of the Education System
2.2Educational Achievement
2.3Relationships & Processes Within Schools
3Option 1: Culture & Identity
3.1Conceptions of Culture
3.2Identity & Socialisation
3.3Social Identity
3.4Production, Consumption & Globalisation
4Option 1: Families & Households
4.1Families & Households
4.2Changing Patterns
4.3The Symmetrical Family
4.4Children & Childhood
5Option 1: Health
5.1Social Constructions
5.2Social Distribution of Healthcare
5.3Provision & Access to Healthcare
5.4Mental Health
6Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare
6.1Poverty & Wealth
7Option 2: Beliefs in Society
7.1Ideology, Science & Religion
7.2Religious Movements
7.3Society & Religion
8Option 2: Global Development
8.1Development, Underdevelopment & Global Inequality
8.2Globalisation & Global Organisations
8.3Aid, Trade, Industrialisation, Urbanisation
9Option 2: The Media
9.1Contemporary Media
9.2Media Representations
10Crime & Deviance
10.1Crime & Society
10.2Social Distribution of Crime
Jump to other topics
1Theory & Methods
1.1Sociological Theories
1.2Sociological Methods
2Education with Methods in Context
2.1Role & Function of the Education System
2.2Educational Achievement
2.3Relationships & Processes Within Schools
3Option 1: Culture & Identity
3.1Conceptions of Culture
3.2Identity & Socialisation
3.3Social Identity
3.4Production, Consumption & Globalisation
4Option 1: Families & Households
4.1Families & Households
4.2Changing Patterns
4.3The Symmetrical Family
4.4Children & Childhood
5Option 1: Health
5.1Social Constructions
5.2Social Distribution of Healthcare
5.3Provision & Access to Healthcare
5.4Mental Health
6Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare
6.1Poverty & Wealth
7Option 2: Beliefs in Society
7.1Ideology, Science & Religion
7.2Religious Movements
7.3Society & Religion
8Option 2: Global Development
8.1Development, Underdevelopment & Global Inequality
8.2Globalisation & Global Organisations
8.3Aid, Trade, Industrialisation, Urbanisation
9Option 2: The Media
9.1Contemporary Media
9.2Media Representations
10Crime & Deviance
10.1Crime & Society
10.2Social Distribution of Crime
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