Changing Family Patterns Flashcards
what are the household patterns/ trends
- divorce rates have increased
- people are marrying later in life
- there are more lone parent families
- more couples are cohabitating
explanations for the increase of divorce: law
Diffcult to obtain, especially for women. Three kinds of changes:
- equalising the grounds for divorce
- widening the grounds (sharp rise)
- making divorce cheaper (legal aid)
what are the other solutions to an unhappy marriage
- desertion: partners leaves but remains legally married
- legal separation: separate financial + legal affairs
- empty shell marriage: live under sane roof but nit together
these solutions have become less common now divorce is easier
explanations for the increase of divorce: stigma
stigma= negative label
in the past. churches condemned divorce, refused to marry divorcees
what did Mitchell and goody say about the stigma against divorce
as stigma declines, couples more willing to give up and resort to divorce
divorce is ‘normalised’ - no longer shameful but a misfortune
explanations for increase of divorce: secularisation
- decline in the influence of religion
- church rates continue to decline
- people less likely to be influenced by religious teachings
- churches softening views on divorce for fear of losing members
explanations for increase of divorce: expectations
- ideology of romantic love: Mr and Mrs right
- Reason to divorce to find true soulmate
- in the past, individuals had little choice who they married, family was a unit of production, duty
- Entered marriage with lower expectations and less dissatisfied
what are the functionalist views on the expectations of divorce
- fletcher= higher expectations make couples
- functionalist take an optimistic view -rate of remarriages shows marriage is still popular.
what are the feminist views on the expectations for divorce
they argue that the oppression of women within the family is the main cause of marital conflict and divorce , but functionalist ignore this
explanations for increase in divorce: independence
-women are more likely to be in paid work, narrower pay gap, girls greater success in education, welfare benefits- women do not need a husband
what did Allan and crow say about independence which leads to an increase in divorce
fewer family firms and no longer a unit of production. separate source of income and no need to tolerate conflicts
explanations for increase in divorce: feminism
- dual burden new source of conflict
- change in the family has been slow and limited
- marriage remains patriarchal, triple shift
- both couples working means less time for ‘emotional’ work
what did Hochshild say about feminism being the cause for the rise in divorce
home compares to work unfavourably-more valued at work
what did Rushton say about feminism being the cause for increase in divorce
dual workers more likely to be divorced than non working mothers, contrasted with cooke and gash, no evidence as working is now the norm
what did Bernard say about feminism being the cause for increase in divorce
radical feminist, more women are becoming aware of patriarchal oppression + doing something about it
what does divorce mean?
legal termination of marriage
name some statistics about divorce
- 40% of marriages will end in divorce
- 65% divorce petitions come from women
- numbers have fallen over the years but that is because less people are getting married
what is the meaning of a high divorce rate (new right)- no
see divorce rate as undesirable because it undermines marriage and the traditional nuclear family, which they regard vital to social stability.
what do the new right argue high divorce rates creates
creates a growing underclass of welfare dependent female lone parents who are a burden on the state and it leaves boys without the adult male role model they need. Also results in poorer health + education
what is the meaning of a high divorce rate (feminists)-yes
see a high divorce rate as desirable because it shows that women are breaking free from the oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family
what is the meaning of a high divorce rate ( post modernists and the individualisation)- yes
see a high divorce rate as showing that individuals now have the freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs. they see it as a major cause of greater family diversity
what is the meaning of a high divorce rate (functionalists)- yes and no
argue that high divorce is not necessarily a threat to marriage as a social institution. it is simply the result peoples higher expectations of marriage today. The high rate of remarriages show people continuing commitment to the idea of marriage
what is the meaning of a high divorce rate (interactionalists)- yes and no
Morgan: cannot generalise meaning of divorce because everyone experiences are different.
Mitchell and Goody: one interviewee said the day her father left was the best day of her life
what are the trends of marriage
- marriage rates are at their lowest since 1920s
- more remarriages: serial monogamy
- people are marriages later (32 Men, 30 women)
- less likely to marry in church
what are the reasons for the change in trends for marriage
- changing attitudes: less pressure to marry, more freedom to choose. Quality of a relationship is more important than illegal status
- secularisation: influence of church declines. 31% of non religious people married in 2012
- declining stigma: cohabitation now acceptable, no ‘shotgun’ weddings
- position of women: better educational career prospects
- fear of divorce: rising divorce rates
what are the trends about cohabitation
- cohabitating with children increasing rapidly
- 1 in 8 adults cohabitating
- 69,000 same sex cohabitating couples
- fifth are ‘serial cohabitants’
what are the reasons for the trends in cohabitation
- decline in stigma, more people agreeing with pre-marital sex
- young are more likely to cohabitate
- women are more financially independent
- secularisation : mom- religious people more likely to cohabitate
what are the trends for one person households
rise in people living alone (3 in 10 households, 40% are over 65) in 20 years, 30% of the adult population will be single
what are the reasons for the trends with one- person households
- increase in divorce
- men are more likely to live without their children
- decline in marriage
- ‘creative singlehood’ - choice
- too few partners available
what is the relationship between marriage and cohabitation
- relationship is not clear out
- cohabitation maybe a step to marriage or permanent solution
what did Chester say about marriage and cohabitation
cohabitating is a proceed before marriage, 75% expect to marry each other
what did Bejin say about trial marriage
cohabitation among young people represents a conscious attempt to create a more personally negotiated and equal relationship rather than a patriarchal one
what did Shelton and John say about trial marriage
women who cohabitate do less house work
what did stonewall say about same sex relationships
5-7% of the population are in gay relationships. However due to the stigma attached, may not be accurate figure
what is said about same sex relationship’s in family patterns
increased social acceptance: decriminalised in 1967, age of consent equalised, opinion polls show more tolerance
social policies treats all couples equally eg same sex marriage in 2014
what did weeks say about chosen families
acceptance for gays creates ,’friendship as kinship’, offer security and stability
what did Weston say about chosen families
‘quasi-marriage’ - gay couples deciding to cohabit compared to the 70s which rejected monogamy
what did Allan and crow say about chosen families
same sex relationships less stable/ more flexible because of the absence of legal frameworks
what did Einasdottir say about chosen families
whilst many gay couples welcome equality, some are worried relationships may lose flexibility
what did Duncan and Philips BSA say about living apart together
1 in 10 living alone but in a relationship
what is said about living apart together
- reflects a trend towards less formal relationships
- constraint also pays a part eg affordability
- However for most it is a choice eg to keep own home
what are the patterns between parents and children
- nearly half of all babies are born outside marriage
- However, nearly all of them are registered by both parents
- More women are having children later, less children remaining childless
what are the reasons for the patterns between parents and children
- declining in stigma/increased cohabitation
- womens careers
- more options for women
what are the patterns for lone parents
- 1 in 4 children are brought up in lone parents households
- 90% headed by mothers
- pre 1990s: divorced women biggest group. post 1990:single women biggest group
- lone parent families children are twice as likely to grow up in poverty
what are the reasons for the patterns in lone parent families
- increase in divorce
- increase in unmarried women
- decline in stigma
why are lone parent families headed by females
- widespread belief that women are more ‘nurturing’
- divorce courts usually give custody to women
- men may be less willing to give up work
what did Cashmore say about single by choice
working class low earner women choose to live on benefits because of abuse
what are the trends for step families
- 10% of all family types
- more common to live with children from a women’s previous relationship
what are the reasons for the trends in step families
- increase of lone parents
2.children more likely to remain with mother - greater risk of poverty because of child support
4tensions may be caused by lack of norms
what did the new right say about poverty
Murray: more lone parents families because of the welfare system
what does perverse incentive mean
rewarding irresponsible behaviour
what does dependency culture
assume state will support them.
name a solution for poverty
abolish benefits
what are the criticisms for poverty
- lack of affordable childcare (60% lone mothers unemployed)
- low benefits
- women earn less than men
- failure of men paying child support
name factors about black families
- higher proportion of lone parent families
- over half, compared to 1 in 9 Asian families
how is the factors about black families explained
- family disorganisation from slavery
2. higher rates of unemployment amongst black men
what did Mirza say about black families
reflects the high value that black women place on independence. Many lone parents in stable home or cohabitating
name factors about Asian families
- majority larger families
-sometimes contains 3 generations - ## higher proportion in childbearing age
what does Charles say about the extended family today
class 3 generations living under one roof now extinct (excepts Bangladeshi)
