Talcott Parsons: Systems Levels, Action Theory and Pattern Variables

I have attempted, in this paper, to explain three of Parsons' important contributions to the field of sociology, and more precisely to the theory of functionalism. Parsons had a career that spanned from anthropology to medicine, economics, and sociology. I have chosen System Levels, Theory of Action, also called Action Theory, and Pattern Variables because they are recognized as being some of his greatest contributions to the social sciences. For the majority of the paper I used three books by Parsons. The first book is The Social Systems, the Second book is Social Systems and the Evolution of Action Theory, and the third book is Action Theory and the Human Condition. In helping me to "decipher" Parsons works I used the book Talcott parsons today: His theory and legacy in contemporary sociology, by Javier Trevino, and TheSociological Imagination by C. Wright Mills.