Families And The Economy. Flashcards
What did Talcott Parsons believe about industrialisation in terms of family ?
Led to huge changes in both the structure and role of the family / it’s members
What is the classic sociological theory studied about the link between families and the economy ?
The impact of industrialisation on the family particulary Talcott Parsons theory.
What is industrialisation ?
The process where the economy shifted from being based largely around agriculture to being based on industry and manufacturing.
What process was alongside industrialisation ?
Urbanisation.
What is urbanisation ?
Where people move from rural areas into urban areas such as towns and cities resulting in rapid growth.
How did parsons believe that institutions in society worked together ?
Like the organs in a human body in order for society to be able to function. When there is social change other institutions also have to change to ensure a functional fit.
What did parsons believe that pre industrial society contained in terms of families and why?
Extended families. A functional fit between extended families and the rural economy. The more people to work the land the better. There was no need to be geographically mobile.
What happened to families when urbanisation took place ?
Work and home became separated and families needed to be geographically mobile and so could not take large family numbers / extended family. There also became a clear division of labour as a result of urbanisation.
According to Parsons what did this social change mean for family types ?
Family types moved from being a pre - industrial extended family with many functions to being a privatised nuclear family with fewer functions in an industrial society.
What do nuclear families allow for / have a functional / good fit with in industrial society ?
Geographical mobility, social mobility, specialised roles.
What are specialised roles ? (nuclear families)
Men being instrumental leaders and women being expressive leaders.
What is social mobility ? (nuclear families)
Parsons argued in pre - industrial society your individual status was ascribed (born into) whereas in an industrial society people could achieve a new status through hard work.
What do historians argue is a problem with Parsons theory ?
They don’t believe that the changes in the family described by Parsons match what really happened.
Who was Peter Laslett (1972) and what did he research / discover ?
He found that in pre - industrial society the most common family form wasn’t the extended family but actually the nuclear family. People might of lived close to an extended family and worked together but in terms of household many were made up of just parents and children.
Who was Michael Anderson (1971) and what did he research / discover ?
Looked at Preston in the midst of the rapid industrialisation and urbanisation using the 1851 census and discovered that there has been a significant number of households made up of extended families.
