Ch. 12 Marriage and Family Flashcards
What is a family?
people who consider themselves related by blood, marriage, or adoption
What familial themes are universal?
mechanisms for governing mate selection, reckoning descent, and establishing inheritance and authority
What is the functionalist perspective on the family?
Functionalists examine the functions and dysfunctions of the family and how that benefits or negatively affects society
What is the conflict perspective on family?
They focus on inequalities of marriage, specifically power imbalances between husbands and wives
What is the symbolic interactionist perspective on family?
They examine the contrasting experiences and perspectives of men and women throughout marriage.
What are the major elements of the family life cycle?
love and courtship, marriage, child birth, child rearing, and the family later in life
How significant is race/ethnicity in family?
The primary disfunction presents itself in class, not in race or ethnicity. Families of similar social class are going to have similar problems regardless of race
What major changes characterize US families?
postponment of marriage, increase in cohabitation, and conception is occuring later in life
What uis the current divorce rate?
anywhere between 2 and 40%
What is the likely future of marriage and family?
increase in cohabitation, births to unmarried women, and age in marriage
Polygyny
a form of marriage in which a man has more than one wife
Polyandry
a woman has more than one husband
What is a household composed of?
people who occupy the same housing unit
Nuclear family
a family consisting of husband, wife, and 2 kids
Extended family
relatives that live with the parents and kids
Family of orientation
the family in which a person grows up
Family of procreation
family formed when a couple’s first child is born
Marriage
a group’s mating arrangements, usually marked by rituals to indicate status
Endogamy
members must marry within their group
Exogamy
members marry outside their group
System of descent
the way people trace kinship
Bilineal system
society set up to recognize relations on both the mother and father’s side
Patrilineal
society that only recognizes descent only from the fathers side
Matrilineal
society that only recognizes descent only from the mothers side
Patriarchy
men dominate women
Matriarchy
women dominate men
Egalitarian
men and women are equal
Why do functionalists think that family is universal?
They believe all families should fulfill 6 things:
- economic productions
- socialization of children
- care of sick
- recreation
- sexual control
- reproduction
What are the functionalists critique on the nuclear family?
emotional overload may result because there are less people to distribute the problems through
Historically, who has the marital power?
the husband
In modern day, who has more control over decisions in the home?
the wife
What are the key findings of symbolic interactionists?
- women are working more than they have historically
- men are doing more housework
- BOTH women and men are spending more time on child care
- husbands still bring in more income on average
Romantic love
erotic attraction accompanied by the idealization of one another
What are two components of romantic love?
emotional and cognitive
Homogamy
the tendency to marry people with similar characteristics
Why does homogamy happen?
spatial nearness
When did the 2 children average emerge and why?
the 1970’s because of increases in birth control, the sexual revolution, and women working more
Who takes care of the child when the wife is working?
the husband
Who takes care of the children when a single mother is working?
grandparents
What do middle class parents believe about their children?
- need to be tended like a garden
- push them into activities that will develop skills
What do working class parents believe about their children?
- children blossom on their own
- set limits
- let children explore their own interests
Why are US children leaving home later?
higher education and higher establishing household cost
Transitional adulthood
how people become adults
Widowhood effect
death impact is so strong that the survivor tends to die earlier than expected
What are characteristics of black families in poverty?
high birth and divorce rate
What are characteristics of black families in middle class?
focused on achievement and responsibility
What are characteristics of black families in upper-middle class?
children marry later
What are common characteristics of a latino family?
- loyal to extended relatives
- machismo, has declined recently though
What are common characteristics of asian american families?
- more likely to grow up with both parents
- more liekly to use shame and guilt rather than physical means to discipline
What are common characteristics of native american families?
- should they follow tradition or assimilate?
- permissive with their childre nand avoid physical discipline
- elders play an active role
Why is there an increase in one-parent families?
- increase in divorce rates
- take longer to get married
What do couples with no kids do?
pursue careers, travel, and have less stress
Blended families
a family whose members were once part of other families
What are the struggles of same-sex couples?
They have the same problems as heterosexual couples: housework, money, careers, etc.
Where do major distinctions between homosexual and heterosexual come from?
homosexual couples have a societal stigma
How has family shifted as time goes on?
- people get married later
- people have children later
Why are people having children later?
cohabitation
Cohabitation
unmarried couples living together in a sexual relationship
What effect does cohabitation have on children?
they have a negative effect on children because cohabitation relationships tend to be more unstable `
Sandwich generation
people who find themselves responsible for both elders and children
Why is the divorce rate a misrepresentation?
the 1 million divorces rarely are from the 2 million new marriages each year
What effects does divorce have on children?
They are more likely to have behavioral problems, poor grades, and get in trouble with the law
How does relationships with parents effect divorce?
a child with a good relatioship with both parents has a better likelihood of having no issues
Do father’s see their children after divorce?
The most common pattern isthat they see their kids frequently, but there are also similar number of father’s that have little contact
What percent of new marriages constitute atleast 1 member who was previously married?
20%
What are some problems with remarriage?
relationships are hard to define
What are key findings surrounding domestic abuse?
- men and women who are married attack each other at the same rate
- husbands are more liekly to injure wives
What are key findings surrounding child abuse?
2 million reported cases of child abuse, 700,000 WERE child abuse
What are key findings surrounding marital rape?
- 14% of women have reported that their husbands have raped them
- marital rape victims are more likely to not report their SA
What are key findings surrounding incest?
- most likely to occur in families that are isolated
- offenders are mostly 13-15, victims are 12 years or younger
When are couples most happy?
when they spemnd leisure time together, agree how to spend money, and get along with their in-laws
Why should we take the divorce statistic with a grain of salt?
All marriages do not determine your specific marriage. If you believe you marriage will fail, it it more likely to.
