Changes in family structure Flashcards
Parsons on industrialisation (1951): nuclear families became dominant
- in pre-industrial society the extended family is most common
- families live and work together producing goods= cottage industry
- in industrial society, the nuclear family becomes dominant
- increase in individuals leaving the home to work= separating work and home
what is industrialisation?
- process by which production becomes more mechanical and based outside the home and in factories
- people leave the home for work and urban cities are formed
- industrialisation in the UK started in the 18th C
Two basic types of family structure:
- extended
- nuclear
Two basic types of society:
- pre industrial: agricultural work
- industrial society: factories in cities
Parsons: how industrialisation changed the function of the family
- functions of preindustrial family were taken over by industry and the state e.g. healthcare and education
- nuclear family cam focus on socialisation in norms and values
- industrial nuclear= isolated, few times with local kinship so easy to move for work
- family structure adapts to the needs of society
Functionalists: industrialisation changed roles and status in the family
- status for people in pre industrial was ascribed, in industrial status achieved from success outside the family
- A nuclear family is the best to achieve status without conflict, allows for social mobility and people can better themselves
- specialized roles for men and women inside the family: expressive and instrumental most effective for society
- conflict theorists argue these roles come from ideology and power
EVALUATION= Functionalists: industrialisation changed roles and status in the family
- they put forward an idealized picture of history, evidence suggests there was a variety of family norms in the past
- Laslett (1972): nuclear family most common before industrialisation ( parish records)
- Anderson (1971): extended families present in industrial society based of 1851 census
- when people moved for work they lived with extended families
Willmott and Young said families have developed through 3 stages
- studied families in London and Essex in 1950’-70’s
- work tested the theory that the nuclear family is the dominant form in modern industrial society
Willmott and young 3 stages of family development: stage 1- pre industrial
- family works as an economic production unit
Willmott and young 3 stages of family development: stage 2- early industrial
- extended family is broken up as individuals (men) leave to work
- women have strong extended kinship networks
Willmott and young 3 stages of family development: stage 3- privatized nuclear
- family based on consumption, not production
- focused on family relationships and lifestyle
- called the ‘symmetrical family’: husband and wife have joint roles
Willmott and young 3 stages of family development: stage 4- Asymmetrical
(this stage got dropped)
- husband and wife roles become asymmetrical
- men spend more leisure time away from home e.g. pub
what is a symmetrical family?
- idea that both partners work either full time or part time
- their economic contribution is equal
Feminists view on the symmetrical family: Helen Wilkinson
- more women working bc economy moved from male industrial sector to female service sector
- ’ genderquake’: early 1990’s women 16-35 saw work and education more important than having kids
- women have economic influence over family through employment= traditional gender roles are broken down
- 2012 survey of social attitudes found women think men should work full time and women part time= more desireable than having male breadwinner
EVALUATIONS: Willmott and young 3 stages of family development
- assuming family life has got better as structure adapts to modern society= ‘march of progress’ theorists
- ignore negative aspects of the family e.g. domestic violence, child abuse still present
- feminist research found equal roles in ‘symmetrical family’ actually do not exist
