Conversation so far:
What is taught in sociology?
Sociology is the study of the collective behavior, development, structure and functioning of social institutions and organized groups. Courses in this discipline offer useful skills in topics such as group behavior, cross-cultural relations and ethical issues.
What is the main contribution of Auguste Comte to sociology?
He defined sociology as a positive science. Positivism is the search for invariant laws of the natural and social world.“
What is the role of positivism in sociology?
Positivism describes an approach to the study of society that specifically utilizes scientific evidence such as experiments, statistics, and qualitative results to reveal a truth about the way society functions.
What is Herbert Spencer known for in sociology?
Spencer's volumes on biology, psychology, and sociology were all intended to demonstrate the existence of natural laws in these specific disciplines.
How is Herbert Spencer's work related to Comte?
Spencer differed from Comte in believing it was possible to discover a single law of universal application which he identified with progressive development and was to call the principle of evolution.

Question: What is the functionalist theory
Self-contained rewrite: What is the functionalist theory in sociology?