SAGE Reference - The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia

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Functionalist Theory

By: Jacki Fitzpatrick
In: The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia
Edited by: Marilyn J. Coleman & Lawrence H. Ganong
Subject:American Studies, Family Studies (general)
Keywords:children; family; family functioning; functionalism; husbands; structural functionalism; structural theory

Functionalist theory, also known as structural functionalism, commonly focuses on the roles and central tasks that family members should engage in. According to this theory, families with the proper structure were more likely to (1) be healthy, and (2) raise children ...

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  Fitzpatrick, J. (2014). Functionalist theory. In M. J. Coleman, & L. H. Ganong (Eds.), The social history of the American family: An encyclopedia (Vol. 1, pp. 592-592). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n250
  
  Fitzpatrick, Jacki. "Functionalist Theory." In The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia, edited by Coleman, Marilyn J., and Lawrence H. Ganong, 592-592. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n250.
  
  Fitzpatrick, J. 2014. Functionalist Theory. In: Marilyn J. Coleman and Lawrence H. Ganong Editors, 2014. The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. pp. 592 Available at: <http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n250> [Accessed 11 May 2021].
  
  Fitzpatrick, Jacki. "Functionalist Theory." The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia. Edited by Marilyn J. Coleman and Lawrence H. Ganong. Vol. 1. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014, pp. 592-592. SAGE Knowledge. 11 May 2021, doi: http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n250.
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