10 Markers: Marriage Flashcards
Item M There have been many significant changes in family patterns in the last few decades. These include changes in attitudes towards many aspects of family life. At the same time, there have been changes in wider society affecting men and women, for example in the labour market, education and laws relating to the family. Some sociologists argue that relationships have become more unstable as a result of all these changes. Applying material from Item M, analyse two reasons for changing patterns of marriage in recent decades 10 marks]
- Point: One reason for the changing patterns in marriage is
related to the improvement of women’s opportunities.
Explain: The opportunities open to women ‘in the labour
market’ (Item M) and education have improved over time and
this has influenced decisions related to marriages.
Evidence: This is supported by Allan & Crow, they believe
marriage is less embedded within the economic system’.
Analysis: In recent decades, the improved educational
opportunities have gained women access to higher paying
jobs. The family is no longer a unit of production, where
members rely on each other. This means spouses are no
longer reliant on each other economically. As a result, women
don’t have to rely on men financially because they have their
own source of income to support themselves. Therefore, they
don’t feel the need to marry.
Evaluation: But women may still experience a gender pay gap
and discrimination in the workplace and may still need to rely
men financially. - Point: Another reason for the changing patterns in marriage
is related to ‘changes in attitudes’ (Item M).
Explain: There has been a decline in stigma related to divorce
and this may fuel individuals to engage in cohabitation.
Evidence: Sociologists such as Mitchell and Goody point out
that there has been a rapid decline in the stigma attached to
divorce. Analysis: This suggests there is also a decline in stigma
attached to premarital sex and cohabitation. This means that
having children outside of marriage has become more
accepted in society, and conforming to the institution of
marriage is no longer seen as important for many couples. This
may be due to secularisation (the decline of religion’s
influence), and the church’s influence over marriages has
declined and people feel freer to choose not to marrv.
Similarly, the increased career opportunities for women may
mean they don’t desire financial security and are freer to opt
for cohabitation instead of marriage.
Evaluation: However, Chester argues cohabitation is a part of
the marriage process, instead of replacing marriage
Item C Many marriages now end in divorce. This often creates lone-parent families and single- person households. Serial monogamy has also become a common pattern, with many divorced people remarrying. Applying material from Item C, analyse two ways in which changing patterns of marriage and divorce have affected the experience of childhood 10 marks]
Changing patterns in divorce can impact the experience of
childhood. An increase in divorce creates lone-parent
families’ (Item C) and this can negative impacts on children. As
suggested by Womack, Britain’s children are said to be the
unhappiest in the West. This implies that family breakdown in
the form of divorce and lone-parent families is a considerable
cause of childhood angst. This may lead to more children
becoming prone to poor physical and mental health, unstable
relationships with friends/parents, suffer great deprivation and
academic underachievement. In addition, these children may
become more concerned that their parents are not there for
them when they need them, and do not feel loved or cared
for. As a consequence, these children become more
vulnerable to peer pressure, and may undertake drugs,
alcohol, anti-social behaviour, criminal activity and even early
sexual activity. Thus indicating that these children somewhat
experience a ‘early’ adulthood, thereby damaging their
experience of childhood. This unhappiness is heightened by
children’s legal restrictions to work as they have limited
abilities to escape their unhappy lives. However, Jenks would
argue that in a Post-modern society, relationship breakdown
would mean that parents place a higher priority on their
relationships with their children, to combat feelings of
insecurity. Therefore, suggesting that many lone-parent
families may become more child-centred, rather than
encouraging child abandonment, perhaps leading to happier
children as they hold focal point within many lone-parent
families.
Changing patterns in marriage can also impact the experience
of childhood. ‘Serial monogamy has also become a more
common pattern, with many divorced people remarrying’ (Item
C), and this can lead to an increase in stepfamilies, meaning
more children will have step-parents and step-siblings, which
can impact certain family dynamics. Allan et al found that life
in step-families can be complex. For instance, the sense on
unity present in ‘natural families’ between the two natural
parents such as family history, commitments and interests is not
necessarily present in stepfamilies. This may lead to divisions in
the family dynamic, children within the family are likely to feel
loyalties for their own parent rather than their step-parent. As
a result, children are likely to experience more family disputes.
This implies that the boundaries of child discipline are likely to
blur, meaning children may be less likely to accept control and
discipline from their stepparents, thereby causing long-term
damage to children. Similarly, the presence of more step-
siblings can also increase the chances of sibling abuse.
Therefore, step-families can cause a negative experience of
childhood. Even so, critics may argue that the presence of
stepparents and step-siblings can offset a lonely experience
of childhood if the child has no siblings, thus creating a
happier experience of childhood, as children can feel that they
have a strong support system around them.
