Changing Family Patterns Flashcards
What percentage of all marriages end in divorce?
40%
What percentage of petitions for divorce come from women?
65%
How has changes in the law led to an increase in divorce?
Equalsisnmg the grounds for divorce between the sexes
Widening the grounds for divorce-when ‘irretrievable breakdown’ was brought in petitions doubled over night
Making divorce cheaper
What other solutions are there instead of divorce?
Desertion
Legal separation
‘Empty shell’ marriage
How has declining stigma and changing attitudes caused the increase in divorce?
Divorce was stigmatised in the past. As it becomes more socially acceptable, more are willing to resort to divorce
How has secularisation caused the increase in divorce?
Religion is losing its influence. People are less likely to be influenced by religious teachings when making their decisions
How does rising expectations so marriage cause increased divorce?
Functionalists like Fletcher argue that the higher expectations people place on marriage today means they are less willing to tolerate an unhappy marriage. The ideology that marriage should be based solely on love, unlike in the past when it had economic reasons and duties.
Fletcher points to the the continuing popularity of marriage with a high rate of remarriage
How does women’s increased financial independence cause increased divorce?
Women are no longer financially dependent on men so are free to end an unsatisfactory marriage
How do feminists explain the cause for higher divorce?
Married women have a dual burden, creating a new source of conflict in marriage, causing divorce. At work women feel valued, at home men’s continuing refusal to do housework causes frustration and an unstable marriage. The fact that both partners work leaves less time end energy for emotion work in the marriage.
what does Beck and Giddens say about the cause of rising divorce?
In modern society, the idea to remain with the same partner your whole life no longer has a hold over individuals. They are free to persue their own self interest. This is called the individualisation thesis. Relationships become more fragile because become unwilling to remain if it fails to deliver personal fulfilment. They seek a pure relationship- one that exists solely to satisfy needs and not out of duty or tradition. This results in higher divorce rate.
What the new right think about the high divorce rate?
Undesirable because it undermines marriage and the traditional nuclear family which is vital to social stability. High divorce creates an underclass of welfare dependent female lone parents that are a burden to the state and leave boys without a male role model.
What do feminists think about the high divorce rate?
Desirable because it shows women are breaking free fro oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family
What do postmodernists and the individualisation thesis think about the high divorce rate?
Shows that individuals have the freedom to end relationships if it doesn’t not fit their needs. Major cause of greater family diversity
What do functionalists think about the high divorce rate?
Not a threat to marriage as a social institution, simply higher expectations. Remarriage shows people still like the idea of marriage
What do interactionists think about the high divorce rate?
Aim to understand what divorce means to the individual. We cannot generalise
What does the personal life perspective think about the high divorce rate?
Accepts that divorce can cause problems, financial difficulties and lack of contact with children. However divorce has become normalised and family life can adapt to it
What changes in the pattern of marriage have there been in recent years?
Fewer people are marrying
More remarriage - ‘serial monogamy’
People are marrying later
Couples are less likely to marry in church
What are the reasons for changing patterns of marriage?
First marriages-
Changing attitudes to marriage- less pressure
Secularisation
Declining stigma attached to alternatives to marriage
Changes in position of women
Fear of divorce
How many couples are cohabiting?
One in eight
Why has cohabitation increased?
Decline in stigma
Increased career opportunities mean women have financial security to cohabit
Secularisation
What has changed for same sex relationships?
Homosexual acts decriminalised
Age of consent equalised
Able to marry
What are chosen families?
Families created on the idea of ‘Friendship as kinship’
Popular with homosexuals
What has happened to the amount of people living alone?
Big rise
Three in ten households contained only one person
What has caused more one person households
The increase in separation and divorce
People remain single
What is happening to childbearing rates?
More children are now born outside of marriage because of less stigma and increased cohabitation
Women are having children later
Women are having fewer children
Women are remaining childless because now have more options than just motherhood
How many children live Ina lone parent family?
1 in 4
Nearly all headed by women
More likely to live in poverty
Why is there more lone parent families?
Increased divorce
Never married women having children
Why are lone parent families always headed by a woman?
Belief that women are suited to the expressive role
Divorce courts usually give custody to the mother
Men may be less willing to give up work to care for children
Some may be single by choice
What does Charles Murray think of lone parents?
Resulting from an overgenerous welfare state
This has created a ‘perverse incentive’- it rewards irresponsible behaviour like having children without being able to provide for them. The welfare state creates ‘culture of dependency’ in which people assume the state will provide for them
What’s the solution for Murray?
Abolish welfare benefits. This would reduce the dependency culture that encourages births outside marriage
Why are lone parents more likely to be in poverty, criticising Murray?
Lack of affordable childcare prevents mothers from working
Inadequate welfare benefits
Most lone parents are women who earn less than men
Failure of fathers to pay maintenance
What ethnicity group has a high proportion of lone parent households?
Black Caribbean and African
Why do some argue black female lone parent families are high?
Family disorganisation from slavery- couples were sold separately and children stayed with the mothers. This established a pattern of family life that persists today.
Unemployment means black fathers are less likely to provide for their family, resulting in martial breakdown and desertion
Mirza disagrees with this, arguing it is the high value women put on independence
What did Willmott argue about extended families?
They continue to exist as a ‘dispersed extended family’. Relatives are geographically separated but maintain frequent contact through visits and phone calls
What is a beanpole family?
Through 3 or more generations but not including aunts and uncles etc
What are beanpole families the result of?>
Increased life expectancy
Smaller family sizes
