C1 SB - Families & Relationships - Topic 1, Key concepts

Question 1

What is the nuclear family?

Answer 1

Nuclear family consists of a father, a mother and one or more children. -typical family in western society until the 1970s. 4.7 million families in 2013 were nuclear families, shown by the ONS.

Question 2

What is the extended family?

Answer 2

Extended family include kin or relatives beyond the direct family. Can be extended vertically (e.g. grandparents) or horizontally (cousins).

Question 3

Young & Willmott (1973) - Symmetrical family

Answer 3

Large scale study they believed showed how relationships are becoming more symmetrical as more men and women share the same roles and both take part in the housework.

Question 4

Beck and Beck Gernsheim (1995) - Individualisation

Answer 4

Individualisation is when individuals choose their own lifestyles and identities rather than following the norms of society. Also decide to stay in contact with extended family or lead more independent lives.

Question 5

Dispersed extended families

Answer 5

This is when the nuclear family is the main living unit but they can rely on extended family for support e.g. through improved technology; social media.

Question 6

Lone parent families

Answer 6

Families where at least one child lives with just one parent. 91% of lone parent families are headed by a mother. In 2013 there were 1.9 million lone parent families with dependent children in the UK - grown from 1.8 million in 2003.

Question 7

Reconstituted families

Answer 7

A couple come together and form a family including at least one child from a previous relationship. In 2011 there 54400 reconstituted families with dependent children in England & Wales.

Question 8

Same-sex families

Answer 8

LGBT people achieving a positive change since 1967. In 2013, same-sex marriage was legalised

Question 9

Non- family households

Answer 9

In 2013, 7.8 million households in the UK consisted of one person living alone.

Question 10

Living apart together (LAT)

Answer 10

Newly emergent form of family which allows people to enjoy the intimacy of being part of a couple without living while continuing to live alone. Haskey & Lewis (2006) - LAT is a temporary phase before cohabitation or possibly marriage.

Question 11

Beanpole families

Answer 11

Britons living longer, divorce rate increasing and couples having fewer children, families are getting longer and thinner. More generations within the family.