What are the main sociological perspectives, and how do functionalism, Marxism, feminism, interactionism, postmodernism and the New Right each explain society?
The main sociological perspectives applied across all components: functionalism (consensus, value consensus), Marxism (class conflict, ideology), feminism (patriarchy, its strands), interactionism (meanings, labelling), postmodernism (diversity, choice) and the New Right; structure versus action and consensus versus conflict.
The core sociological perspectives required across every component of WJEC A-Level Sociology: functionalism and value consensus, Marxism and class conflict, feminism and its strands (liberal, Marxist, radical), interactionism and labelling, postmodernism and the New Right, plus the underlying structure versus action and consensus versus conflict debates.
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What this dot point is asking
Sociological perspectives are not a single topic on the WJEC specification; they run through every component. Whether you are writing about families, crime, education or stratification, you are expected to apply functionalism, Marxism, feminism, interactionism, postmodernism and the New Right, and to understand the underlying debates of structure versus action and consensus versus conflict. This page is the toolkit you reuse everywhere.
The answer
Functionalism: consensus and value consensus
Functionalism is strong on social order and integration but is criticised as deterministic (it treats people as shaped by society with little agency) and as unable to explain conflict, power and change.
Marxism: class conflict and ideology
Marxism is a structural conflict theory. Society is divided into two classes: the bourgeoisie (who own the means of production) and the proletariat (who sell their labour). Institutions form a superstructure that serves the economic base and the ruling class, spreading ideology (ruling-class ideas presented as common sense) to produce false class consciousness. Inequality, not consensus, is the central fact. Marxism is criticised for economic determinism and for downplaying agency, but it powerfully explains inequality and power.
Feminism and its strands
Feminism is a conflict perspective focused on patriarchy (male power). It comes in distinct strands:
- Liberal feminism - inequality can be reduced through gradual reform, changing laws, attitudes and socialisation.
- Marxist feminism - women's oppression is tied to capitalism; women are exploited as unpaid domestic labour and a reserve army of labour.
- Radical feminism - men and patriarchy are the fundamental source of women's oppression, present across all institutions.
Interactionism: meanings and labelling
Postmodernism and the New Right
Postmodernism argues that society has moved beyond the modern era: it is now fragmented, diverse and media-saturated, identity is increasingly a matter of consumption and choice, and the old structural metanarratives (functionalism, Marxism) no longer explain a world of difference. Critics say it exaggerates choice and underplays persistent inequality.
The New Right is a political perspective influential in sociology. It favours traditional institutions (the nuclear family), self-reliance over dependency, a limited welfare state, and free markets. It overlaps with functionalism in valuing consensus and the family, but is distinct in its policy stance.
The underlying debates
Two debates organise the perspectives:
- Structure versus action. Structural (macro) theories - functionalism, Marxism - explain behaviour through social structures. Action (micro) theories - interactionism - explain society through individual meaning and agency.
- Consensus versus conflict. Consensus theories (functionalism) see society as based on shared values; conflict theories (Marxism, feminism) see it as based on division and inequality.
Examples in context
One topic, four readings. Take the family. Functionalists see it performing vital functions (socialisation, stabilising adult personalities) for society. Marxists see it reproducing labour power and the values that serve capitalism. Feminists see it reproducing patriarchy through the unequal domestic division of labour. Postmodernists see family forms fragmenting into diverse, chosen arrangements. The same institution, examined through four perspectives, yields four arguments. This is exactly the analytical move the examiner wants you to make in every option, which is why perspectives belong in your toolkit rather than in one isolated topic.
Try this
Q1. What is the difference between a structural and an action approach? [4 marks]
- Cue. Structural (macro) approaches explain behaviour through social structures; action (micro) approaches explain society through individual meaning and agency.
Q2. Outline the three strands of feminism. [6 marks]
- What the marker wants. Liberal (reform), Marxist (capitalism plus patriarchy) and radical (men and patriarchy as the root cause), each with a distinct explanation.
Q3. Evaluate the view that conflict perspectives explain society better than consensus perspectives. [16 marks]
- What the marker wants. A weighing of Marxism and feminism (inequality and power) against functionalism (order and integration), with action and postmodern criticisms, and a supported judgement.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
WJEC specimen16 marksEvaluate the functionalist view of the role of social institutions in society.Show worked answer →
An evaluation question, so set out the functionalist case and then test it against the conflict and action perspectives before judging.
Explain the functionalist position: society is a system of interdependent institutions that perform functions to meet society's needs, held together by a value consensus passed on through socialisation. Use the organic analogy and the idea that institutions such as the family and education promote social order.
Evaluate with Marxism, which argues institutions serve the ruling class and reproduce inequality rather than meeting shared needs; with feminism, which argues they reproduce patriarchy; and with interactionism, which says functionalism ignores how individuals create meaning. Note that functionalism struggles to explain conflict and change and is often called deterministic.
Conclude with a judgement: functionalism usefully highlights social order and integration, but conflict perspectives offer a more convincing account of inequality and power, and action perspectives a better account of individual agency.
WJEC specimen20 marksExplain and analyse the differences between structural and action approaches in sociology.Show worked answer →
This rewards a clear conceptual contrast plus applied analysis, not two separate descriptions.
Define structural (macro) approaches: functionalism and Marxism see society as a system that shapes individuals from the top down, with behaviour explained by social structures and institutions. Define action (micro) approaches: interactionism sees society as built from the bottom up through the meanings and interactions of individuals.
Analyse the difference: structural theories treat individuals as largely shaped by society (a deterministic view), while action theories stress agency and the way people interpret and create their social world. Use labelling as an interactionist example and value consensus or ideology as structural examples.
A strong answer notes attempts to bridge the divide and ends with a judgement on what each approach captures and misses, rather than simply asserting one is correct.
Related dot points
- Key concepts and processes of cultural transmission (Component 1, Section A): culture, norms, values, roles and status; the nature versus nurture debate; primary and secondary socialisation; agencies of socialisation and social control; and the acquisition of identity by class, gender, ethnicity, age and nationality.
The compulsory Section A content of WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 1: culture, norms, values, roles and status; the nature versus nurture debate; primary and secondary socialisation; the agencies of socialisation and social control (family, education, peers, media, religion, work); and how identity is acquired by class, gender, ethnicity, age and nationality.
- Families and households (Component 1, Section B option): family forms and family diversity in England and Wales; demographic change (marriage, divorce, cohabitation, fertility, life expectancy, singlehood); relationships, roles and power within families; childhood; and perspectives on the family (functionalist, Marxist, feminist, postmodernist, New Right).
The WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 1 option on families and households: family forms and diversity in England and Wales, demographic change in marriage, divorce, cohabitation, fertility and life expectancy, the domestic division of labour and power, the social construction of childhood, and functionalist, Marxist, feminist, postmodernist and New Right perspectives.
- Crime and deviance (Component 3, Section B option): defining crime and deviance; theories of crime (functionalist and strain, subcultural, Marxist, interactionist and labelling, realist, feminist); the social distribution of crime by class, gender, ethnicity and age; the problems of measuring crime; and crime control, punishment and social order.
The WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 3 option on crime and deviance: defining crime and deviance, functionalist, strain, subcultural, Marxist, interactionist, realist and feminist theories of crime, the patterning of crime by social class, gender, ethnicity and age, the problems of measuring crime, and crime control, punishment and the maintenance of social order.
- Education (Component 1, Section C option): the role and functions of education; differential educational achievement by social class, gender and ethnicity (home and school factors); processes within schools (labelling, the hidden curriculum, subcultures); educational policy; and perspectives on education (functionalist, Marxist, feminist, interactionist, New Right).
The WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 1 option on education: the role and functions of education, differential achievement by social class, gender and ethnicity through home and school factors, in-school processes such as labelling, the hidden curriculum and pupil subcultures, education policy, and functionalist, Marxist, feminist, interactionist and New Right perspectives.
- Social differentiation and stratification (Component 3, Section A): systems of stratification; dimensions of inequality (social class, gender, ethnicity and age); theories of stratification (functionalist, Marxist, Weberian and feminist); social mobility and life chances; and the changing class structure.
The compulsory Section A content of WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 3: systems of stratification, inequality by social class, gender, ethnicity and age, functionalist, Marxist, Weberian and feminist theories of stratification, social mobility and life chances, and debates about the changing class structure.
- Methods of sociological enquiry (Component 2): primary and secondary methods (questionnaires, interviews, observation, experiments, official statistics, documents); quantitative and qualitative data; positivist and interpretivist approaches; sampling; and the key concepts for evaluating research (validity, reliability, representativeness and ethics).
The core content of WJEC A-Level Sociology Component 2: primary and secondary research methods (questionnaires, interviews, observation, experiments, official statistics, documents), quantitative versus qualitative data, positivist and interpretivist approaches, sampling, and the concepts that evaluate research, validity, reliability, representativeness and ethics.
Sources & how we know this
- WJEC GCE AS and A Level in Sociology specification — WJEC (2015)