According to Parsons for a social structure to persist it must perform which of the following functi...........

Sociology Preliminary Introducing thinker

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According to Parsons, for a social structure to persist, it must perform which of the following functions :

1) Adaptation 2) Social action

3) Integration 4) Socialisation

5) Goal attainment 6) Pattern maintenance

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

1,2,3, and 4

1,3,5 and 6

4,3,2 and 6

1,2,4,5

Explanation:

Here’s the thing: Talcott Parsons laid out four critical functions a social structure needs if it’s going to hang together over time. This is famously known as the AGIL model (kind of a staple in sociology):

- Adaptation (A): Society must adapt to its environment and use resources to survive.

- Goal Attainment (G): It has to define and achieve collective goals.

- Integration (I): Different parts of society must find ways to work together and avoid breakdown.

- Latency/Pattern maintenance (L): Essential values and motivations have to be kept going and passed on (think of this as maintaining cultural patterns).

Now, check the options:

- Social action and socialisation are important concepts, but they’re not the four pillars Parsons named.

- The only option that matches all four AGIL functions—adaptation, integration, goal attainment, and pattern maintenance—is option 2: 1,3,5 and 6.

So, here’s the bottom line:

Option 2: 1,3,5 and 6 is the right answer—these match Parsons’ functions.