Radcliffe-Brown, Alfred Reginald (1881–1955)

English anthropologist. Influenced by Emile Durkheim, he developed the theory of structural functionalism in which aspects of society were analysed in terms of their contribution to the overall social structure or system.

Radcliffe-Brown did fieldwork in the Andaman Islands and in Australia, and held professorships at the universities of Cape Town, South Africa; Sydney, Australia; Chicago, USA; and Oxford, England. He emphasized that all customs have a function to maintain societies as viable systems.

Radcliffe-Brown's works include The Andaman Islanders 1922, Structure and Function in Primitive Society 1952, and Methodin Social Anthropology 1955.