Document Type

Post-Print

Publication Date

2008

Abstract

The term functionalism has been used in at least three different senses in the social sciences. In the philosophy of mind, functionalism is a view about the nature of mental states. In sociology and anthropology, functionalism is an approach to understanding social processes in terms of their contribution to the operation of a social system. In psychology, functionalism was an approach to mental phenomena which emphasized mental processes as opposed to static mental structures.

Editor

William A. Darity

Publisher

Macmillan Reference USA

City

Detroit

ISBN

9780028659657

Publication Information

International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 2nd Edition

Included in

Philosophy Commons

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