Families And Social Policy Flashcards
Chinas one child policy
-get extra benefits eg free childcare, and priority in education for child
- couples who break agreement must pay a fine and re allowances
Nazi family policy
Encouraged aryan race. By restricting access to abortion and contraception. Women biological role.
Democratic societies
Britain- family is private sphere where government doesn’t intervene except when things go wrong
Functionalism view on social policy
State acts in interest of society. Help families perform their functions
Fletcher- intro of nhs, education policies has led to development of welfare state which supports family.
Ao3 of functionalism view on social policy
Assumes all members of family benefit equally
Assumes there is a march of progress- Marxists would argue they can reverse progress by cutting welfare benefits
Donzelot: policing the family
State power and control over families
Doctors and social workers excercise power over client by using expert knowledge to turn them into cases to be dealt with.
Social workers, doctors use knowledge to control and change families.
Surveillance more on poorer families
Condry- parenting orders. Poorly behaved forced to go to court to learn correct way to bring up child
Donzelot ao3
Feminists and Marxists- fails to identify who benefits from policies of surveillance
New right (almond)
Laws making divorce easier
Intro of civil partnerships
Tax laws discriminate against conventional families
Increased rights for unmarried cohabitations like adoption- make it similar to marriage and sends a signal that the state doesn’t see marriage as special
Why does murray argue welfare benefits offer a perverse incentive
If fathers see state will maintain child, abandon responsibility
Providing council housing for unmarried teenage mothers encourages young pregnancy
More lone parent families means more boys without role model (responsible for rising crime rate)
New rights solution to family policy
Cuts in welfare spending and restrictions on who is eligible for benefits
Benefits: taxes reduces, less teen pregnancy
Ao3 of new right view on social policy
Feminists - attempt to justify a return to patriarchal nuclear family
Wrongly assumes nuclear family is natural rather than socially constructed
Cutting benefits - poverty
Conservatives (1979-97)
Banned promotion of homosexuality
Divorce as a social problem (child suppprt agency to enforce maintenance payments by absent fathers)
- gave illegitimate children same rights as children from married couples (new right against this)
New labour (1997-2010)
Parents take responsibility for children by introducing parenting orders.
Women now go to work (rejects new right)
Favoured chesters neoconvenional family
Policies:
Longer maternity leave
Working families tax credit - tax relief on childcare costs
New deal- helping lone parents return to work
-civil partnership
Conservative (2010 onwards)
Hayton- divided into modernisers who recognise family more diverse and reflect this in policies and
Traditionalists- favour new right.
Eg intro of gay marriage and cutting public spending
Feminist view on social policy
State assumes normal families are based on marriage and offers tax incentives to married couples.
Tax and benefits policies- assumes husbands wage earners and women dependant. Impossible for women to claim social security benefits.
Childcare- hard to work full time unless they can afford childcare
Care for sick and elderly- assume family will provide this. Prevents women working.
Maternity leave more generous to women
Feminist social policy ao3
Not all policies directed at maintaining patriarchy. Eg equal pay act, benefits for lone parents, marital rape act
Drew- gender regimes
Social policies in different countries can either encourage or discourage gender equality in family and work
Familistic gender regime- traditional gender division. Greece : little state welfare and public funded childcare
Individualistic gender regime- treated the same. Seperate entitlement to state benefits.
State vs market
Drew- most EU countries moving towards individualistic gender regimes.
