FAMILIES AND HOUSEHOLDS: FAMILIES AND SOCIAL POLICY Flashcards
comparative views of family policies (outside UK)
-china’s 1 child policy: due to overpopulation limits numbers no. of children per family and wanting boys over girls to carry on family legacy name
-but with less children= increase in ageing population
-nazi family policy: gave incentives for families to increase children bred wthin the Aryan Race (blonde hair blue eyes) = racially pure breeding
what is the functionalists view on social policy?
-functionalists believe policies help families
-Fletcher argues that the introduction of health, education and housing policies in the years since the industrial revolution has of a welfare state that supports the family in performing its functions more effectively
what are 2 main criticisms of the functionalist view of social policy?
-rose-tinted view: some policies create inequality e.g. women aren’t given subsidy from the gov. for childcare
-ignores policies that stop the family from performing functions (backwards view) e.g. austerity= cuts on public spending
what is Donzelot’s view on social policy?
-state of power and control:
-surveilance: Foucault- happens through doctors, teachers and social workers who monitor what goes on in families and report problems
-families are policed by ‘agents’ who use their professional knowledge to control and change the way the family behaves
Condry: preventing orders used to control and regulate families the ‘correct’ way to parent e.g. fines for going on holiday
How does Donzelot’s view differ from the functionalist’s view?
- they reject the march of progress view as social policies= state control
what are criticisms of Donzelot?
- marxists argue that social policies operate in the interests of the capitalist class and feminists argue that men are the main beneficiaries
according to the new right view what are the roles of adults in the traditional family?
-families should be marital and should be based on segregated roles
-support the functionalist view
what are 3 examples of policies that the new right see as threatening to the traditional family ?
-welfare benefits= inc. lone-parent families
marriage act= encourages same-sex couples
-divorce law reform act=inc. lone-parent families
what does it mean by welfare benefits seen as ‘perverse incentives’ ?
-rewards irresponsible behaviour
what are 2 examples where welfare benefits are seen as perverse incentives?
-fathers don’t feel responsible so they can abandon their family
-council housing encourages dependency
in what way can taxes be used to encourage the traditional nuclear family?
-deny council housing to teen mums
-married couples should be given greater tax breaks
the new right view on social policy:
Almond:
-argues that laws make a divorce easier and undermine the idea of marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman
-the introduction of civil partnerships for homosexual couples sends out the message that the state no longer sees heterosexual marriage as superior to other domestic set ups, and tax laws discriminate against conventional families
how do the New Right and functionalism differ in their views of the impact of welfare policies on family life ?
- functionalists see state policies as supportive and encouraging of families
-the New Right see most policies as interfering and damaging to traditional families
evaluation of the new right view:
-feminists argue it is an attempt to justify a return to the traditional patriarchal nuclear family that subordinated women to men and confined them to a domestic role
-wrongly assumes that the patriarchal nuclear family is ‘biologically natural’ rather than socially constructed
-Abbott and Wallace argue that cutting benefits would simply drive many poor families into even greater poverty and make them even less self-reliant
ignores many policies that support and maintain the conventional nuclear family rather than undermine it
GOVERNMENT POLICIES: Conservatives (1979-1997)
-New Right agree: with banning promotion of homosexuality by local authorities
New Right agree with: setting up child support ages
New Right disagree: giving rights to children born outside of marriage
