Conflict Theory
Conflict theory states that the society or organization functions so that each individual participant and its groups struggle to maximize their benefits, which contributes to social changes such as changes in politics and revolutions. The theory is mostly applied to explain conflict between social classes, proletarian versus bourgeoisie, and ideologies such as capitalism versus socialism.
The essences of conflict theory is best epitomized by the classic "pyramid structure" in which an elite dictates terms to the larger masses. All major institutions, laws, and traditions in the society are designed to support those who have traditionally been in power, or the groups that are perceived to be superior in the society according to this theory. This can also be expanded to include any society's "morality" and by extension their definition of deviance. Anything that challenges the control of the elite will likely be considered" deviant" or "morally reprehensible." The theory can be applied on both the macro level (like the US or Soviet Russia) or the micro level (a church organization or school club). In summary, conflict theory seeks to catalogues the ways in which those in power seek to stay in power.
The four primary assumptions of modern conflict theory:
1) Competition. Competition over scarce resources ( money, leisure, sexual partneers, and so on) is at the heart of all social relationship. Competition rather than consensus is characteristic of human relationships.
2) structural inequality. Inequalities in power and reward are built into all social structures. Individuals and groups that benefit from any particular structure strive to see it maintained.
3) Revolution. Change occurs as a result of conflict between social class' competing interests rather than through adaptation. It if often abrupt and revolutionary rather than evolutionary.
4) War. Even war is a unifier of the societies involved, as well as war may set to an end to whole societies.
The central institution os capitalist society is private property, the system by which capital( money, machines, tools) is controlled by a small minority of the population. This leads to two opposed classes, the owners of capital and the workers, whose only property is their own labor time, which they have to sell to the capitalists.
Owners are seen as making profits by paying workers less than their work is worth, and thus, exploiting them.
Economic exploitation leads to political oppression, as owners make use of their economic power to gain control of the state and turn it into a servant of bourgeois economic interests. Police power, is used to enforce property rights and guarantee unfair contracts between capitalist and worker. Oppression also takes more subtle forms: religion serves capitalist interests by pacifying the population, intellectuals paid directly or indirectly by capitalists, spend their careers justifying and rationalizing the existing social and economic arrangements. Social institutions, serve to reproduce and perpetuate the economic class structure.
Conflict theory is based upon the view that the fundamental causes of crime are the social and economic forces operating within society. The criminal justice system and criminal law are thought to be operating on behalf of rich and powerful social elites, with resulting polices aimed at controlling the poor. The criminal justice establishment aims at imposing standard of morality and good behavior created by the powerful on the whole of society. Focus is on separating the powerful from who would steal from others and protecting themselves from physical attacks. In the process the legal rights of poor folks might be ignored. The middle class are also co-opted' they side with the elites rather the poor, thinking they might themselves rise to the top by supporting the status quo.
Thus, street crimes, even minor monetary ones are routinely punished quite severely, while large scale financial and business crimes are treated much more leniently. Theft of a television might receive a longer sentence than stealing millions through illegal business practices.
Like functionalism, conflict theory agree that society and culture influences individual behavior. The emphasis on the importance of structure and its influence on the individual does not, lead to stress consensus as the basis of social organisation. In fact, the reverse is true. Conflict stress the extent to which individuals, groups and classes within the society are in competition with each other for whatever people in society consider to be important or worthwhile.
1) it is desirable to convince people that their lack of power, influence, status, wealth and so forth is basically their own fault. If you can encourage people to compete against each other, them some will win and others will lose. If losers can be convinced that the competition is free and fair then their inability to achieve the good things in life can be rationalised as being their own individual fault. This is where cultural institutions such as religion, education and the media are important, since their role is to encourage people to see this way.
2) however, if for whatever reason people fail to be socialised completely into these values, then force is available to make them see the error of this ways. This is the least desirable socialisatione option, mainly because if you force someone to do something against their will you are setting up the conditions for conflict and resistance.
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posted by C-T @ 1:05 AM
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