Understanding Human Behavior and the Social Environment Term Paper

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Functionalism and Interaction Theory to Poverty

Functionalism and interaction theories provide an understanding of various social happenings including poverty. The similarities held by the theories recognize the fact that poverty in our contemporary society occurs due to the influence of different factors, which makes them vulnerable to poverty. Functionalism theory assumes that the social stratification is important to stimulate special intelligence and knowledge to respond to various social problems including poverty. The theory recognizes that the variability in the abilities of individuals to respond to different situations attests to the poverty seen in the society. In addition, functionalism theories also stress that the social stratification and inequality are factors that are inevitable and important to society. The privileges linked to the high status positions in the society contribute to poverty. Individuals considered coming from the high status exploit those of the middle and lower classes; hence, poverty. Cumulatively, functionalist theories hold a belief that poverty motivates the poor to adopt strategies against poverty and provides insights for individuals, not in poverty (Zastrow & Ashman, 1990).

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In contrast, interaction theorists recognize that poverty is socially constructed. Interaction between members of the society result in shared ideas that can either predispose the society to poverty or help them adopt strategies aiming at alleviating poverty. As such, the theory is more concerned with the ways in which the society became a victim of poverty. Theoretical analysis shows that the interaction theorists hold that people become poor because such individuals were never able to create meaning of their world. Such individuals might be poor because they could not identify the prevailing opportunities. They were absent when the desired opportunities were presented to others in the society. Poverty exists in the society because its members saw other struggling and did not adopt similar strategies to improve their situations. Therefore, they never tried to adopt strategies to alleviate their suffering; hence, their inability to eliminate the poverty facing them (Wodarski & Dziegielewski, 2002).

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