Home > Talcott Parsons

Parsons worked at the faculty of Harvard University from 1927- 1973. A central figure in Harvard's Department of Social Relations , he produced a general theoretical system for the analysis of society: this came to be called structural functionalism. It was , which he developed in his major publications:

• The Structure of Social Action ( 1937Events January January 1 Anastasio Somoza becomes President of Nicaragua January 11 The first issue of Look magazine goes on sale in the United States. January 19 Howard Hughes sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours,),
• The Social System ( 1952Summary of notable events in 1952 . Events January events January 8 West Germany has 8 million refugees inside its borders. January 24 Sudden heavy snowfall in Algeria. January 24 Vincent Massey sworn in as first Canada-born Governor-General of Canada.),
• Structure and Process in Modern Societies ( 1960Events January-February January 1 Independence of Cameroon January 9 Aswan High Dam construction begins in Egypt January 11 Chad declares its independence. January 14 Ralph Chubb, the gay poet and printer, dies at Fair Oak Cottage in Hampshire. January 23),
• Sociological Theory and Modern Society ( 1968Events Undated Booker Prize for Fiction is established by Booker plc. 1968 is known as the year of the Prague Spring and also the year of the Paris riots. The ASCII character code is standardized as ANSI Standard X3. Nauru adopt his national anthem of the),
• Politics and Social Structure ( 1969For other uses, see Number 1969. For the movie, see 1969 (movie). Events January January 1 Australian media baron Rupert Murdoch purchases the largest selling British Sunday newspaper The News Of The World January 5 The Derry Riots leave over 100 people i).

Parsons was an advocate of "grand theory," an attempt to integrate all the social sciences into an overarching theoretical framework. His early work (The Structure of Social Action) reviewed the output of his great predecessors, especially WeberThis article is about the economist and sociologist. For the Swiss Federal Councilor, see Max Weber (politician); for the American cubist painter, see Max Weber (artist). Maximilian Weber ( April 21, 1864 June 14, 1920) was a German economist and sociolog, Pareto, and Durkheim, and attempted to derive from them a single "action theory" based on the assumptions that human action is voluntary, intentional, and symbolic. Later he ranged over an astonishing range of fields, from medical sociology (where he develeoped the concept of the sick role ) to psychoanalysis (he underwent full training as a lay analyst) to anthropology to small group dynamics (working extensively with Freed Bales), to race relations to economics and education.

Parsons is also well known for his idea that every group or society tends to fulfill four "functional imperatives." The first of these is adaptation, adaptation to the physical and social environment. The second is goal attainment, which is the need to define primary goals and enlist individuals to strive to attain these goals. The third is integration, the coordination of the society or group as a cohesive whole. The last is latency, maintaining the motivation of individuals to perform their roles according to social expectations.

Parsons' late work focused on a new theoretical synthesis around four functions common (he claimed) to all systems of action, from the behavioral to the cultural, and a set of symbolic media that enable communication across them. This attempt to span the world with four concepts was too much for many American sociologists, who were then undergoing a retreat from the grand pretensions of the 1960s to a more empirical, grounded approach. Parsons' influence waned rapidly in the US after 1970. Nevertheless, many of his students, including Robert K. Merton, Neil Smelser , and Clifford Geertz, remain among the most important figures in the social sciences. His son Charles Parsons is a distinguished figure in philosophy of mathematics.

Perhaps the most noteworthy theoretical contributions from Parsons were the formulations of pattern variables, the AGIL Paradigm , and the Unit Act .

Parsons wrote President Dwight Eisenhower's bon mot that freedom means the freedom to fail as well as to succeed.

Parsons had a seminal influence and early mentorship over Niklas Luhmann, pre-eminent German sociologist, originator of systems theory.