9 terms in 3.4
Beliefs in society
Functionalists argue religion serves essential functions: creating social cohesion through shared beliefs, providing mor
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Durkheim's groundbreaking work showing religion is fundamentally about creating social solidarity and collective identit
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Bronislaw Malinowski's functionalist theory that religion functions to reduce anxiety in unpredictable situations, enabl
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Marx famously described religion as 'opium of the people' — it provides false comfort and acceptance of exploitation, ma
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Gramsci's neo-Marxist refinement: religion maintains capitalist hegemony (cultural dominance) by winning consent, not ju
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Max Weber's influential thesis that Protestant religious beliefs (especially Calvinism) created cultural values (hard wo
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
The long-term decline in religious belief, practice, and influence in society as rationalisation, science, and modernisa
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Steve Bruce argues secularisation is real and ongoing in modern Britain: declining belief in God, declining church atten
Beliefs in society
Beliefs in society
Grace Davie's theory that religion is not declining but CHANGING: people may not attend churches but still hold religiou
Beliefs in society