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Agil Paradigm
Biography of Talcott Parsons (born Dec. 13, 1902, Colorado Springs, Colo., U.S.-died May 8, 1979, Munich, W.Ger.) U.S. sociologist.He advocated a structural-functional analysis, a study of the ways that interrelated and interacting units forming the structures of a social system contribute to the system's development and maintenance. He was largely responsible for introducing the work of Émile Durkheim and  Max Weber to American sociologists. He was for many years the best-known Sociologist in theUnited States, and indeed one of the best-known in the world. His work was very influential through the 1950s and well into the 1960s, particularly in America, but fell gradually out of favor from that time on. Parsons served on the faculty of Harvard University from 1927-1973. A central figure first in Harvard's Department of Sociology, and then in its Department of Social Relations (created by Parsons to reflect his vision of an integrated social science), he produced a general theoretical system for the analysis of society that came to be called structural functionalism. Parsons' analysis was largely developed within his major published works. Like many other sociologists he attempted to combine human agency and structure in one theory and was not confined to functionalism.

Adaption
In terms of Adaption a system must adjust to its environment and that, the system must adjust the environment to its needs. Meaning a system must be able to cope with the situational dangers and contingencies.Ritzer pg 68 If a system is to work it cannot have problems with its environment and if it didn’t the likelihood of it not surviving would greatly rise. A great example I found was if a group of farmers found themselves in an environment where the soil was not capable of bearing fruits and vegetables, Its very likely the farmers would die unless they learned how to hunt and fish in order to survive. The system must also adapt the environment to its needs as well. Now the farmers I just told you about could in fact to resurrect the soil and enrich its minerals and nutrients to see if that would help but in the meanwhile, they would have to learn to hunt and fish. Lastly in the adaption system are the external dangers and contingencies that lead to the adaption system working. In other words Parsons is referring to the need of a system to secure sufficient resources form the environment and distribute them throughout. This is commonly accomplished through social institutions which are interrelated systems of social norms and roles that satisfy those needs. If a Social System is going to survive it needs definite structures or institutions to perform the function of adapting to the environment.

Goal Attainment
This involves the need for a system to define and achieve its primary goals. The final goal of any system is to not only survive or stabilize but to also grow bigger, stronger and faster. Another way to look at it is the systems need to mobilize its resources and energies to establish priorities among and attain system goals. Indemocratic societies this would be a problem of concern for political institutions.

Integration
This is the need to coordinate, adjust, and regulate relationships among various actors or collectivities within the system thereby preventing mutual interference and keeping the system functioning. Integration has been the priority of functionalists, since Durkheim, and because of this, it is the central variable of the paradigm. Legal institutions meet the need for social control Wallace and Wolf 1999.

Latency
Also known as the latent pattern maintenance-tension management. This need has two parts. The first is to make certain actors are sufficiently motivated to play their parts of the system or maintain the current values. The second is to provide mechanisms for internal tension management. In America institutions like the family,religion, the media,and educationcater to this need. Parsons same problems face every system, from large social systems to each of their subsystems.

Agil Paradigm in context and the General Action System
Parsons considers these four system needs as the prerequisites for social equilibrium. However, Parsons theory of action, pattern variables, and AGIL model have not gone without criticism. One of the objectives is Parsons failure to deal adequately with role conflict. The pattern variables do not necessarily apply to every specific act within the role as he states according to Robert Mertons Sztompka 1996. Merton gives the example that the role of an elected official is collectivity-oriented but still allows the officials to be self-oriented in choosing among jobs. Yet, the public still expects the official to be collectivity-oriented when making public policy. Parsons system variables trouble some sociologists as well. In his later years Parsons moved from interaction to instead focus on wholes as systems divided up into subsystems according to Nicos Mouzelis 1995. His problem with the shift in focus is these subsystems do not refer to groups or actors. They instead focus on institutionalized norms that are grouped together in regards to one of the social system’s four functional needs. The subsystems themselves refer to institutions rather than actors so that subsystems are divided into sub-subsystems with no place for groups or actors.In the General Action System the AGIL paradigm is in general terms with a few examples,  Parsons wanted this scheme to be considered and used at every level of his theoretical system. This was evident in the sense of the four action systems. The behavioral organism, the personality system, the social system and the cultural system. All can be attributed to action, but each is specifically involved in the performance of one of the four functional imperatives. The behavior organism is the action system that handles the adaption function by adjusting to and transforming the external world. The personality system performs the goal attainment function by defining system goals and mobilizing its resources to attain them. The social system copes with the integration function by controlling its component parts. Finally, the Cultural system performs the latency function by providing actors with the norms and values that motivate them for action.Ritzer pg 71

=====Quote by Talcott Parsons===== “Science is intimately integrated with the whole social structure and cultural tradition. They mutually support one other -- only in certain types of society can science flourish, and conversely without a continuous and healthy development and application of science such a society cannot function properly.”

=====External Links=====


 * 1.http://www2.pfeiffer.edu/~lridener/DSS/Parsons/parsbio1.html
 * 2.http://www.hewett.norfolk.sch.uk/CURRIC/soc/PARSONS/parsons.htm

=====References=====
 * 1.Sztompka, Piotr. edt. 1996. Robert K. Merton: On Social Structure and Science. Chicago, Illinois: The Univ. of Chicago Press.
 * 2.Parsons, Talcott. 1977. Social Systems and the Evolution of Action Theory. New York, New York: The Free Press.
 * 3.Wallace, Ruth A. and Alison Wolf. 1999. Contemporary Sociological Theory: Expanding the Classical Tradition. 5t ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
 * 4.www.Sociology.org Electronic Journal of Sociology
 * 5.Ritzer, George Univerisity of Maryland 2003 Contemporary Sociological Ttheory and its Classical Roots, The Basics, Second Edition