Changing patterns of marriage Flashcards
Life course
Allan and crow
The pattern of family changes that someone goes through during there life time.
Up to the 1960’s (marriage, living together, having sex, having children- institution of marriage and the family bond things together.)
Children would be born to 2 natural parents, finish education, leave home, get married, start own family.
parents would be left to enjoy more leisure time, work, become grandparents.
Levis said life course was compulsory socially determinant norms.
Reasons for changes in families
-people are having fewer children
-More people living as singletons or couples with out children
-Divorce rates are higher
-More people go to uni
-People are living longer
Reasons are families are the same as our parents
-ethnicity/ culture values change slowly
-Social class- people change class values very slowly
-Gender norms- some greater gender norms may remain the same for your generation as for your parents.
marriage-
first marriage-
remarriage-
Traditionally the formal union of a man and woman recognised by the law by witch they have become husband and wife.
A marriage in witch neither partner has been married before
One or both individuals have been married before
Why is marriage declining in uk with statistics
-changing attitudes towards marriage
-secularisation
-declined stigma attached to alternative marriage
-change position on women
-fear of divorce
- from 2020 marries have decreased by 16%
-Decrease of religious ceromans in 2019-18.7% 2020-15%
cohabitation
involves an unmarried couple in a sexual relationship that live together. Number of marriage decrease cohabitation increases. (2.9 million opposite sex 69000 same sex). A firth of those who are cohabiting have done previously before. More younger couple cohabitation
Way cohabitation are seen
-a temporary informal arrangement. Spend a lot of time together and accommodation. Fairly temporary and casual.
-As an alternative or substitute. long term stable committed partners. without legal commitments or patriarchal dimensions or feminist identities associated with marriage.
-as a preparation or trial for marriage. 80% of first time marriages have been predetermined by a period of cohabitation.
Women,
function and
risk increase cohabitation
-The change roll in women. women are ore inderpndant. can finantally support themselves. Spend more time getting a career often do better in education than men. Less likely to accept moth/ house wife role. Spend more time cohabiting with a partner to avoid disagreement with marriage breakdown then result in legal costodies.
-reduced function of the family the family and social institution share these functions. Couples are a less practical necessity
-There is a rising number of couples getting divorce Beck said there is more freedom to chock that also leads to ricks marriage is not a risk worth taking
New right views on cohabitation
C-habitation is less stable than marriage. Couple are less happy, more unfaithful, more abusive, stresses, depressed.
-David Cameron a Conservative said by supporting marriage the government puts family at the heart of there policies.
-Marriage is important only by having strong families can the big society flourish with individuals individual helping society.
-Family is immensely important as children brought up in strong families learn hot to behave and hive and take. They learn responsibilities how how to live humorously with others. Strong families after at the foundation of a strong society
-bad relationships lead to children growing up in poverty, fail in school, unemployed
Opposed view labour, personal life perspective
-ED Millibars say marriage inst for everyone
-stable familes are more important than the institution of marriage
-Government has let down families and young people that make polices that betray the next generation. Who marry later or are less likely to make this legal commitment.
-Pro-commitment married families are more stables than other types. stable families come in different forms
-Marriage should be a choice not a political pressure
Rising divorce rates
And why
Increased number of marriages ending in divorce. The number of divorces has doubled from 1960s to 1970s. Britain has the highest divorce rates. 40% of marriages end in divorce. With the present rates 1 in 4 children will have divorced parents by 16. Because more access due to the divorce reform act, getting married younger, high expectations for marriage when not met people are unhappy and unwilling to stay
3 types of divorce statistics
- total number of divorce petitions per year- people applying fir divorce not nesserally getting divorced.
-total number of decrees absolute granted per year- the number of divorces actually garnered
-divorce rates- the number of divorces each year per thousand married people in the population
What don’t divorce statistics show
Who would / wouldn’t use divorce statistics
- the number of people who are separated by not divorced
- the number of people who live in ‘empty shell’ marriages couples who want to divorce but can’t because of parental roles
- how many unhappy unstable marriages there were before divorce was made more accessible
Polices that increased divorce rates
-The divorce law reform act of 1969- irretrievable break down was the only grounds for divorce. You no longer had to prove your partner was at wrong
-The divorce dissolution and separation act 2020- removed fault based concepts in proceeding for divorce discussions and separation changed how courts looked at divorce applications. Both people didn’t have to agree with the divorce to get one
How did the changing rules of women effect divorce rates
Tow- thirds of divorce are petitioned by women. More women are unhappy in there marriages feminists say this is due to women higher expectations in a relationship. Women will not accept the patriarchal nature if family will not sacrifice there own leisure activities, career and independence for marriage.
How does riding expectations if marriage effect divorce rates parson et al
Parson and fletcher say there are more demands and expectations in relationships (often woman’s) love compassion understanding sexual compatibility and personal fulfilment lead to a successful marriage.
How does the growth in secularisation impact divorces rates
Decline in religious institutions. Marriage is less sacred/ spiritual union more personal and practical commitment can be stopped if faultiest. Less than a 3rd of marriages have religious ceremony. Church has less rigid views on divorce.
How has changing social individualism divorce rates
Growing individualisation all aspects of life are subject to choice, negotiation and decision making. Families choice who dies house hold tasks, finances, desist on making. Less influence from tradition, gender roles, social expectations
The new rights approach to divorce
Moral decline is caused by divorce. Has negative consequences such as eliminating building blocks of society. They doesn’t believe other family types can replace it. Negatively influence children. Rising number of single mother relying on welfare system Charles murry says this creates an underclass dependant culture
Beck post modernists
3 influences
Beck says rapidly chasing past modernist at world where tradition rules and ritual of love romance and relationships are no longer applied. 3 influences
Individualism- less pressure on traditional goals more selfish self set goals
Conflict- more conflicts between men and women who want different things
Choice- culture and economic lead to greater choice in life styles choices
Functionalists approach to divorce
Fletcher says piple have heightened expectations is marriage when these are not met they file for divorce. Women are more willing to leave a marriage that does not meet there needs anymore. Family had lost its function survival of individuals does not rely on family if there bond is a loser bond they will lead to break ups
Consequences of divorce on family 
-Conflict within the family impact children
- Formation of new families we constituent it could bring conflict over parenting styles
-Financial issues loss of second income costs of living apart
Facility right
Childless women
Child free women

-fertility rate- the average number of children a women has in her life
-childless women- not having a child
-childfree women- women who are fertile by do not want children, choose sterilisation without having children before, women who have passed child bearing age who did not have children by where fertile. in 1943 11% childless 1973 23%
What is happening to child bearing patters and why is it changing
-families getting smaller, less births, delaying children till older, choosing not to have children 2018 biggest decrease
-changing role in women
-choice- people delaying children/ not having the age for first child role from 24 to 28 fertility rate of women has risen
-growing individualisation (beck)
births outside of marriage
-nearly half of birth are outside of marriage (48.4% in 2018)
-9/10 parents register child together -3/4 have same living address they are cohabiting no single parents.
robert chester functionalist
against family diversity- Neo conventional family
-family diversity is increasing but the nuclear family is still dominate in a different form
-move from traditional nuclear family to a neo conventional family
-traditional nuclear family (man the bread winner women expressive roll)
-neo conventional family dual career family women still adopt the expressive roll.
-isn’t a negative move or significan
Statistics support Chester
-most children are raised by 2 parents
-most say married till death
-cohabitation has increase but is temporary
feminists, radical and marxists
argument against family diversity
radical feminists
-patriarcal families still exist women are exploited Labour in the home
-women communes are the only communities where exploration can be avoided
marxist feminist
-the nuclear family is still dominant as in meets the needs of the capitalist system reproducing the future work force at a low cost
giddens and the raports post modernist
arguments for family diversity
Godsend- increase in family diversity is decline in tradition, family pressure and increase in divorces. positive now have more pure relationships which are happy and people are no longer tied into empty shell marriages
the rapoports- (counter argument to chester) moved away from tradition nuclear family. we live in a pluralistic society lifestyles and cultures are made more diverse. represents freedom of choice and acceptance of wider culture.
The extended family today
- Parson said pre industrial society- extend family industrial society- family is nuclear
-Charles did a study in swansy that showed often 3 generation lived under one roff now extended. Now decline in extended family but not interlay gone
ethnic differences have change house hold patters
black families- Caribbean and African made up half of lone parent families. most were by female. evidence of
slavery partners were sold separably and women would stay with children. males with no jobs could not provide for family high rates of marriage breakdown. however argues these are mislead that it sows black woman’s independence still stable.
Asian family -Bangladeshi, Pakistani and indian house holds tend to be larger. 3 generation in 1 household. still nuclear not extended. due to high proportion being age bearing age compared to the rest of the population also reflect the value place of extended family in asian culture. as well as assistance and support needs for migration to Britain
