Extended Family Trends/ What do sociologists think? Flashcards
In 2012, what percentage of all households did extended families account for?
1%
Charles (rarity of the 3 generational family)
Classical 3 generational family all living under one roof is ‘all but extinct’ (only exception was in the Bangladeshi community)
Rosser and Harris (commenting on the changes of the role and structure of the extended family)
- nuclear family had become the focus of family life but the extended still had a role
- high levels of individual, social and geographical movement didn’t prevent high levels of contact between extended kin
- use the term ‘modified extended family’ as the nature and function of the extended family has changed
Willmott (reflected the research of Rosser and Harris): where extended families structures still exist, they’re dispersed extended families
Chamberlain (comments on the idea of multiple nuclear families)
(Studied Caribbean families in Britain)
Despite being geographically dispersed, they continue to provide support
- describes them as ‘multiple nuclear families’
Finch (comments on what determines family relationships)
Nature of all family relationships are largely determined by gender, ethnicity, generation and region
Brannen
Describes the ‘beanpole family’
Rosser and Harris have found that high levels of individual, social and geographical mobility and dispersal haven’t prevented high levels of contact between extended kin.
What does individual and social mobility include?
- individual - people moving away
- social - family members moving up and down the social ladder
Overall evidence suggests the extended family structure continues to play an important role for many people today. What does it provide and how does it differ from the classic extended family?
- it provides both practical and emotional support but differs in that the classic extended family worked and lived together and were bound by moral obligations
