Answer to Question #260235 in Sociology for Papino

Question

: Critically discuss whether the conflict theory or functionalist theoretical perspective on health and illness is better suited to understanding the South African context.In your discussion, compare and contrast the two perspectives and use examples from South Africa during the current COVID-19 pandemic to support your argument.

Answer 1

Understanding the South African setting requires a conflict perspective on health and illness. This is because conflict theorists argue that concerns with the healthcare system, like most other social problems, are inherent in a capitalist society. According to conflict theorists, capitalism and the pursuit of profit result in the commodification of health or the transformation of something previously thought of as an abstract object into something that can be bought and sold in a marketplace to generate profit for someone somewhere. As a result, functionalism and conflict theory are two critical perspectives in sociology. These two methods examine how the concept of society is produced and how it functions. The primary distinction between functionalism and conflict theory is that functionalism asserts that each aspect of society serves a purpose and is necessary for the survival of that society. In contrast, conflict theory argues that society is perpetually divided into classes due to resource scarcity and unequal distribution.