Bio: (1908-1997) American sociologist. Kingsley Davis received his doctorate from Harvard University, where he came into contact with Talcott Parsons. He later became one of the greatest proponents of Parsons' functionalism. Within the sociology of the family, he studied the social and normative bases of illegal sexual behavior, marriage, and divorce in modern society, marriage between members of different castes in a caste society, as well as the position of children in the family. Davis also contributed to the development of social demography. He studied the demographic transition of the world's population, as well as the demographic development of India and Pakistan.

In his works, Davis connected social structure with demographic patterns. He believed that fertility in third-world countries would not decline with the simple availability of contraception. There is a demographic boom in these countries due to reduced mortality, while fertility remains at a similar level. To reduce fertility, it is necessary to establish gender equality and increase economic and educational opportunities and opportunities for women. Davis also contributed to the development of the sociology of the city, and he studied the origin and expansion of cities, on all continents, throughout history.

Davis is best known for his contribution to macrosociology within the functionalist paradigm. In his book Human Society (1949a), he explores the problem of the functioning of human social systems - what are the functional preconditions, and which structures are created to meet these preconditions. The book also examines the universal characteristics of all human societies, as well as the most important variations between different societies. In the article "Some Principles of Stratification" (1945), published by Davis in collaboration with Wilbert Moore, the authors give the most famous defense of the functionalist approach to social stratification.

The basic question that the authors want to answer is why different positions bring different levels of reputation. In every society, whether static or dynamic, people who occupy certain social positions are constantly changing, if not for other reasons, then at least due to the natural cycle of birth, aging, and dying. For the most important positions to be occupied by individuals who are most suitable for certain positions, society must provide a system of rewards that corresponds to the importance of the position itself. Awards have several motivating roles: to make the most talented individuals want to take a position, to motivate an individual to undergo training for a position, and finally, to motivate an individual to continue to perform that position to the best of their ability. In that sense, the distribution of awards becomes part of the social position and the basis of stratification.

The economic rewards that accompany a position are not a source, but a consequence of the importance and reputation that a position carries with it. Religion serves as a source of common goals and values, including the understanding that different positions deserve different rewards. Hence, religion has a positive effect on the increased integration of society. Although the authors believe that, for the most part, stratification has been functional throughout history, they acknowledge that ownership of the means of production allows control of the human labor force (slavery is the most extreme example). This type of ownership serves as the basis of stratification, but it is not functional for society.

Main works

Youth in the Depression (1935);  

“The Sociology of Prostitution”, in American Sociological Review (1937);  

„Some Principles of Stratification", in  American Sociological Review (1945); 

Human Society (1949);

Modern Society (1949);

A Structural Analysis of Kinship (1960);

Population Policy and Economic Development. Stanford Research Institute (1961);

The Population Impact on Children in the World's Agrarian Countries (1965);

California's Twenty Million (1971);

World Urbanization 1950–1970 (1972);

Cities: Their Origin, Growth and Human Impact (1973).