Solution:The functionalists are arranged in chronological order of their contribution :-(i) Emile Durkheim- As a functionalist, Emile Durkheim's (1858-1917) perspective on society stressed the necessary interconnectivity of all of its elements. Even the socially deviant members of society are necessary, Durkheim argues, as punishments for deviance affirm established cultural values and norms.
(ii) Malinowski- Malinowski believed that human beings have a set of universal biological needs and various customs and institutions are developed to fulfill those needs.
(iii) Radcliffe Brown- Brown, argued that social phenomena constitute a domain, or order, of reality that is independent of psychological and biological facts.
(iv) Talcott Parsons- Functionalism sees society as a system; a set of interconnected parts which together form a whole. Parsons viewed society as a system. He argued that any social system has four basic functional prerequisites: adaption, goal attainment, integration and pattern maintenance.
(v) R.K. Merton- Merton believed that any social structure probably has many functions, some more obvious than others. He identified three main limitations:- functional unity, universal functionalism and indispensability.