‘Functionalism’ is a broad term. “Culture and Personality.” In Encyclopedia of Anthropology, Vol. 2, edited by R. Jon McGee and Richard L. Warms, 860-861. Since the theory did not emphasize social transformations, it was replaced by other theories related to cultural changes. On the cultural side, Bronislaw Malinowski, one of the earliest functionalist anthropologists, focused his attention on the social and psychological functions of various cultural traits in the reproduction of both individuals and cultures. The second assumption is that societies or cultures are best studied synchronically, in one time period, rather than diachronically, or over time. Culture defines that whole, and it constitutes the entity in which the various functional elements act and are interdependent. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Reference, 2013. Functionalism considers a culture as an interrelated whole, not a collection of isolated traits. This approach had little interest in the individual, which contrasts with the approach advocated for by Bronislaw Malinowski. Lukas, Scott A. Margolis, Maxine L. “Cultural Materialism.” In Theory in Social and Cultural Anthropology, Vol. 3, edited by H. James Birx, 1012-1013. The Functionalists examined how a particular cultural phase is interrelated with other aspects of the … The theory of Functionalism emerged in the 1920s and then declined after World War II because of cultural changes caused by the war. In other words, all constituent parts of a society must be seen as interacting with and influencing all others. West, Barbara. “Social Evolution.” In 21st Century Anthropology: A Reference Handbook, Vol. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Reference, 2013. One of the first ethnographic works written by a professional anthropologist. In turn, functionalism has been criticized and largely abandoned in its purest forms, largely because of its inability to deal with change and history. Structural functionalism was a form of functionalism that arose in Great Britain. Functionalism, in social sciences, theory based on the premise that all aspects of a society—institutions, roles, norms, etc.—serve a purpose and that all are indispensable for the long-term survival of the society. At the same time, the functionalist imperatives of primary fieldwork, holism, and the “anthropological present” have continued to be cornerstones of most social and cultural anthropological research and writing to this day. In its widest sense, it includes both functionalism (narrowly defined) and structural-functionalism. Oxford. Functionalism emerged in reaction to earlier schools of thought in anthropology, primarily those focused on social evolution and the quest for the origins of social institutions and cultural traits, as well as those focused on the spread or diffusion of these institutions and traits. Deriving largely from French sociologist Emile Durkheim’s work, this school of thought saw societies largely through the lens of an organic metaphor, so that societies were believed to be parallel to living organisms, institutions parallel to bodily organs, and individuals parallel to cells. Tucker, Bram. Sullivan, Gerald. Functionalism considers a culture as an interrelated whole, not a collection of isolated traits. Argonauts of the Western Pacific. Two different kinds of functionalist theory emerged in anthropology fairly early on and served as the primary split between British Social and U.S./ American cultural anthropology. A theoretical orientation in anthropology, developed by Bronislaw Malinowski. As a result of their reliance on this organic metaphor, functionalists came to their work with a variety of assumptions. 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