The selected social phenomenon is racism. Racism is a set of beliefs that different inherent traits in specific racial groups deserve discrimination. It is the belief and behavior that forms a primary determinant of human capabilities such as bias or prejudice. A group of people from a given race forms a feeling that a specific race is inherently inferior to others and thus create a bias. It concerns the belief that certain individuals should be treated differently based on the classification of their race. The act of prejudice and bias may be practiced individually, but the behavior is learned from within the community. Racism is, therefore, a social construction that a group of people from a community learn from each other over time ( Shih et al., 2007). Society plays a crucial role in nurturing the behavior of an individual because behaviors are learned from social interaction with the members of the community. As a child grows up, he/she learns through interaction that a particular race is inferior and needs a different treatment. Throughout the process of interacting with the community members, children learn the behaviors and habits which they then inherit. Racism is therefore learned as a result of social interaction in the community.
Structural Functionalism
This perspective is based on the idea that every society is interdependent and contributes to the functioning of the society as a whole. The functionalists hold a belief that the society is held together by the social consensus and cohesion which the members of the community have agreed upon ( Parsons , 2017). As members of the society, people come into agreement on what is best for the society through social consensus and every individual work in adherence to these agreements. According to Emile Durkheim, social consensus can take two forms which include mechanical or organic solidarity. The mechanical solidarity occurs when the members of the society hold and maintain similar beliefs and values while at the same time engaging in related activities. In contrary, organic solidarity is a form of social consensus that arises when individuals in the society are interdependent but at the same time holding different values and beliefs. Despite the European functionalists focusing on the need to explain how social order works in the society, American functionalists focused on the need to understand the functions of human behavior. Sociologists such as Robert Merton divide the functions of human into manifest and latent functions. According to Merton, manifest functions are intentional while latent functions are unintentional.
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Functionalists argue that for the race and ethnic relations to be functional in a manner that can lead to harmonious practices and stability in the community, the minorities have to assimilate into the society. Assimilation occurs when the minority racial groups become socially, culturally and economically absorbed into the dominant community. As members of the society reach a social consensus on practices of the society, they influence the behaviors of other members of the community. A common belief that a specific race is inferior and needs different treatment can be socially spread to all other members of the society such that when people grow, they learn precisely what the communities believe against a particular racial group. Unless the minority race decides to get assimilated into the culture of the dominant society, racism against the minority continues to exist from one generation to the next as it is socially constructed through interaction. Harmony is only achieved when the minority race gets assimilated and agrees to work together with the dominant community.
Conflict Theory
Conflict theory focuses on the tension and conflicts that exist in the society when the resources, power, and status are unevenly distributed among different groups in the society. Such a conflict can act as an engine for social change within the community. Karl Marx focused on the causes and consequences that can result between the owners of the means of production and the proletariat. He mentioned a system in the society where there are an influential minority group and the oppressed majority class ( Ritzer & Stepnisky , 2017). This creates a conflict due to the interests of the two groups that is rejuvenated by the unjust distribution of the resources. Unlike other theories which tend to defend status quo and oppose social change, the conflict theory is for social change in the society, even if it means using going to social revolution.
Racism occurs when there is a group of the minority which the dominant group feels inferior or unfairly controlling resources within the society. Class-based conflict is inherent and usual in the social interaction within the society. The existence of a class conflict can be one of the significant factors facilitating race conflict in the community. When the minority group tends to control many resources in the community such that the dominant group feels it is unjust, class conflict arises. The emergence of class conflict eventually ignites racial and ethnic conflict. As the dominant group tends to believe that the minority group unfairly own resources within the society, they form a belief that the minority deserve to be discriminated and this behavior continues from generation to generation. As long as the racial and ethnic conflict remains tied to the class conflict, theorists believe that class inequality has to be managed to reduce the racial conflict in the community. Some theorist has however argued that class conflict is more significant in bringing social change and harmony in the community. Every person is socially located in between race and class, and therefore these two will always interact to bring about racism and class conflict.
Symbolic Interactionism
This theory focuses on symbols in people’s everyday lives as well as their interaction and the meaning of the symbols. According to this theory, people usually attach meanings to symbols and then behave according to their interpretation of the symbols ( Rose , 2013). The conversation occurs from the interaction of symbols between the individuals who are in the constant analysis of the world around them. Every community has various ways of communicating, and these symbols used during communication are well known to the members of the community. The symbolic interactions between the society members, therefore, provide severe thoughts on how individuals behave and then seek to understand the meanings that individuals assign to their actions as well as that of others. Specific symbolic acts such as dresses have particular meanings that are specific to a given community. It addresses the subjective meanings that individuals impose on the objects, events, and behaviors.
Racism occurs in the society when one group perceives the other as inferior or when there is an existence of inequality between the two groups. Each group has its symbols and interpretation of the meanings of the symbols. Symbolic interaction tackles the issue of social interaction in minimizing racism and ethnic hostility while at the same time examining how racism and ethnicity are socially constructed. It explores what happens when people from different races come together through social interaction and how such social interaction impact on racism. Because each racial group has its symbols for communication and interpretation of the meanings of these symbols, racism and ethnic conflict can only be reduced if the social interaction between groups of different races takes place under the same status platform. There must be norms that favor equality if prejudice is to be decreased.
Social Exchange Theory
Social exchange theory interprets the society as a series of interactions that occur between people based on the rewards or punishments that is expected. The punishment determines the kind of interaction that exists in the community, or the reward one expects to receive and is usually evaluated using the cost-benefit analysis. The theory is based on the idea that social interaction can elicit an approval or disapproval from another person ( Cook et al., 2013). When one expects approval from interaction, it is more likely that the person will repeat the interaction.
Racism is learned through social interaction in the society. As children grow, they learn new behaviors which become part of their lives. When one receives approval for racism, that person is more likely to continue with the behavior expecting approval another time. However, receiving disapproval for being racist can discourage the reoccurrence of the practice. The social interaction theory, therefore, comes up with the idea of the need to promote approvals for racial interactions which will encourage harmonious living in the society. However, it advocates for the need to achieve equality for all people if prejudice is to end.
Conclusion
Sociological perspectives are essential in broadening one’s perception by helping in the understanding of the how societies interact and the outcome of their interaction. The perspectives also help in understanding and the analysis of the social phenomena to gain a more comprehensive interpretation of the social phenomena. The most useful perspective in racism as a social phenomenon is the conflict theory. This is because unlike other approaches, it advocates for the need to achieve a social change that will ensure there is equality in the society. It argues that racism and racial conflict are mainly due to the existence of class-conflict in which one group feel that the other group unfairly controls more resources. The perspective, therefore, proposes the need to bring equality and end status quo if racism is to be reduced.
References
Cook, K. S., Cheshire, C., Rice, E. R., & Nakagawa, S. (2013). Social exchange theory. In Handbook of social psychology (pp. 61-88). Springer, Dordrecht.
Parsons, T. (2017). The present status of “structural-functional” theory in sociology. In The idea of social structure (pp. 67-84). Routledge.
Ritzer, G., & Stepnisky, J. (2017). Modern sociological theory . SAGE Publications.
Rose, A. M. (2013). Human behavior and social processes: An interactionist approach . Routledge.
Shih, M., Bonam, C., Sanchez, D., & Peck, C. (2007). The social construction of race: Biracial identity and vulnerability to stereotypes. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology , 13 (2), 125.
