According to Karl Max’s social conflict theory, conflicts arise due to power differences, race struggles, and historical dominant philosophies. The theory looks at social patterns developed over the years that aggravate and give rise to conflicts amongst people of a given region. In his book, Outliners: The Story of Success, chapter six, MalcolmGladwell tells the story of Kentucky, a small town with a history of family feuds. According to the author, fights between families were often a way of life in the town, it was basically the way things were. The social conflict theory helps understand how and why the fights developed and became a social pattern amongst the families in Kentucky. The tendency of fights could be traced back to their early ancestors.
The pattern of feuds amongst families in Kentucky offers an insight into the behavior, conduct, and ways of life of the people. According to social psychology, the families’ behavior was heavily influenced by their social environment, which has had the pattern of violence and fights over the years.
In chapter seven, the Korean plane crashes further explains why past legacies are important to understanding present situations. For instance, after a careful analysis of past plane crashes, the Korean Authorities started addressing the tragedies that involved their planes. By coming to understand and acknowledge the pattern of tragedies that had bedeviled the airline over the years, it was possible for the management to break away from the air crashes simply by adopting a different approach to the management’s attitude. According to Thomas theorem, a social theory, circumstances defined or considered as real become real in their consequences. Air crashes in Korea had thus become real because the people who involved the management, pilots, and crew believed that it was a pattern within the airline’s operations.