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family Flashcards

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Sociology 101 flashcards
1
Q

main changes in marriage

A

— changes in marriage
— changes to partnership
— changes to children and families

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2
Q

changes in marriage

A

— fewer people are getting married
— people are marrying later in life
— the divorce rate has gone up

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3
Q

changes to partnership

A

— more couples are ‘cohabiting’
— more same sex couples (now legally recognised)
— more people living alone

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4
Q

changes to children and families

A

— women having fewer or no children
— more births outside marriage
— more step families
— more lone parent families

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5
Q

how are modern families diverse?

A

— friends who are non-related who become each other’s family due to estrangement or other issues within their biological family
— same sex or opposite-sex married partners who do not opt to have children
— cohabiting parents with or without children
— single parents who adopt or utilise a sperm donor
— multi-generational family households

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6
Q

causes of change in familial structure (name four)

A

— advancements in and access to birth control
— availability of career opportunities for women
— infidelity or other residential issues that lead to break up or divorce
— remarriage with children involved
― death of a child or partner
— opting to cohabitate instead of marry
— adoption
— creating your own non-blood related family
— legalities that shift
— sperm donor availability and access
— the cultural environment

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7
Q

kinship

A

refers to the patterns of relationship and the sense of duty towards those they see as family

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8
Q

household

A

refers to the people who share a house and its facilities

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9
Q

extended family

A

this refers to the people who surround the parents and children; outside of the immediate family

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10
Q

criticisms of the functionalist view of the family

A

— many nuclear families are not safe places for women and children; the evidence used is the high rate of domestic abuse in many Western countries
— it overlooks alternative sexualities forcing those who are not heterosexual into family roles that do not allow them to express themselves
— women are expected to take on a lesser role and have limited power because the family money is seen as belonging to the male who earned it
— Parsons is seen as having an over-optimistic view of family life
— Parsons focuses on family structure and therefore does not recognise family is more complex in terms of relationships and emotions
— Parsons overlooks the fact that even at the time he was writing, many different family forms existed

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11
Q

debate of family structure

A

― same-sex families are not uncommon
— shared parenting (not living together) is also accepted
— ignores the complicated emotional reality

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12
Q

theoretical debate (Functionalism)

A

nuclear families are the best family structures for society

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13
Q

theoretical debate (Marxism)

A

traditional families support capitalism by oppressing women and mirroring the inequalities of wider society

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14
Q

theoretical debate (Feminism)

A

families operate for the benefit of men and oppress women and children

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15
Q

theoretical debate (Interactionism)

A

families should be studied in terms of relationships, rituals and meanings that bind them together

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16
Q

theoretical debate (Post-modernism)

A

people live in families of choice and sometimes their friends are more important than blood relatives

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17
Q

demography

A

the study of the characteristics of human, such as changes in size and structure over time

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18
Q

beanpole family

A

a multi-generation extended family, with few aunts and uncles, reflecting fewer children being born, but people living longer

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19
Q

reconstituted family

A

a family where one or both partners have been previously married, and bring with them children of the previous marriage

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20
Q

co-parenting

A

the role of undertaken by parents who share equal responsibility for raising children

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21
Q

cohabitation

A

when a couple live together but are not legally married

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22
Q

elective singlehood

A

refers to individuals choosing not to enter a relationship based on their choice or past experiences of relationships

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23
Q

boomerang children

A

young adults or other adult children who move back in with their parents after living independently

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24
Q

demographic familial changes (name four)

A

— people are living and remaining healthy for longer
— women choosing to live longer
— higher rates of divorce
— many children live in a traditional family unit
— people can openly participate in single-sex families
— adult children may remain in the family home for much longer
— migration is changing family patterns

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25
Q

Macionis and Plummer (family)

A

estimated that in 1911, 45% of British workers were employed in manufacturing

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26
Q

Lewis (family)

A

pointed out that there have been government and EU policies aimed at encouraging women into workforce

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27
Q

Flour and Buchanan (family)

A

pointed out that as marriage is no longer economically necessary for women, fewer people are choosing to marry

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28
Q

Drew (family)

A

suggests that as marriage is now a matter of choice, people who have higher expectations, and if those expectations are not met, they can start again

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29
Q

Silva (family)

A

suggested that technology has changed but not damaged family life. She argues that technological change is often a response to social need

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30
Q

Gergen (family)

A

argues that families have become more fragmented as a result of technology

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31
Q

Chester (family)

A

family diversity is exaggerated and a nuclear family is the most common family type

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32
Q

demographics

A

refers to the study of the population and how this changes over time. it involves the analysis of crime, mortality, birth, marriage, divorce rates, and religiosity

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33
Q

emotional division of labour

A

stresses the balance of emotional tasks and expression within the household

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34
Q

position of power

A

depends on factors such as age, gender and economy

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35
Q

symmetrical family

A

coined by Willmott and Young, suggests a trend towards shared roles and increased equality within family houses

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36
Q

birth order theory (Alder)

A

suggests that the order siblings are born in have a major impact on their personality development and interactions

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37
Q

domestic division of labour

A

refers to the split of tasks, roles, and duties within a household

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38
Q

reasons for changes in childhood (name four)

A

— fewer children in families
— laws controlling children
— children are a market for consumer goods
— children are no longer expected to work
— children are legally entitled to education
— laws protecting children
— changes in family structure

39
Q

conjugal role

A

refers to the separation of roles within the household based on the individuals gender

40
Q

segregated conjugal roles

A

those in which the husband and wife a clear differentiation of tasks and a number of separate interests and activities

41
Q

joint conjugal roles

A

where the husband and wife carry out many activities together and within a minimum of task differentiation and separation of interest

42
Q

double burden

A

the workload of people who work to earn money, but are also responsible for significant amounts of unpaid domestic labour

43
Q

triple shift

A

a job, housework, and also looking after the family’s emotional needs

44
Q

decline in marriage: secularisation

A

marriage is no longer a religious ceremony therefore there is no social stigma associated with cohabitation which was originally thought of as ‘living in sin’

45
Q

decline is marriage: divorce rates

A

a dramatic increase in the amount of divorces may put people of getting married

46
Q

decline in marriage: expense

A

the average wedding in the UK costs over £27,000

47
Q

The Pure Relationship

A

Anthony Giddens (1995) wrote about the quest today for the perfect relationship which could put people off if they’re always imagining a better marriage is around the corner

48
Q

secularisation

A

less stigma attached to cohabitation, people may ‘try before you buy’ and marry after a successful period of cohabitation

49
Q

women’s career

A

women have careers and independent financial security and can therefore afford to delay marriage and setting down

50
Q

sociology explanation of marriage trends: religion

A

— only 30% of marriages in the UK are religious ceremonies
— not clear that secularisation has had much impact as most people do not consider weddings as a religious activity

51
Q

sociology explanation of marriage trends: divorce

A

Gidden’s argument in generally used to explain why couples may be less concerned about divorce and remarriage than previous generations, rather than an explanation for not getting married in the first place

52
Q

reasons for changing patterns of divorce

A

— 2018: 90,000 divorces in the UK opposite-sex couples and 428 same-sex divorces
— 1971: 74,000 divorces in the year the Divorce Reform Act came into place
— 1993: number of divorces peaked at 165,000 following rapid rise from 1971 onwards which continued to fall throughout 1990s and early part of the 21st century

53
Q

reasons for changing attitudes to relationships

A

— Giddens: confluent love has replaced romantic love and people are more willing to leave the partners in search of greater fulfilment
— Beck: family is negotiated in late modern society and if conditions placed upon relationships are broken, divorce ensues
— Higher expectations of marriage - while divorces have declined in recent years, so have marriages; people who demand more satisfaction from relationships

54
Q

reasons for reduced stigma and secularisation

A

― the process of secularisation has led to people no longer being guided by morality of church and therefore having their own judgement on relationships
— as the number of divorces has increased, attitudes to divorce as a failed marriage are vanishing
— less social disapproval of divorces (particularly of female divorces) with the rise of feminism

55
Q

increased life expectancy

A

— people are living longer which impacts both the age they marry and likelihood of divorce
— ONS reported increased divorce rates for over 65s in 2018 which increased in males by 23% and females by 38% in previous years
— with longer to live, people are more likely to leave unhappy marriages and seek other partners

56
Q

changing gender roles

A

— the rise of feminism and greater career aspirations have been cited as reasons for the increase in divorce
— 2/3 of divorces are requested by females which reflects a growing dissatisfaction with married life for women
— males’ lagged adaptation to changing gender roles, combined with growing individualism and the crisis of masculinity can also be seen as contributing to divorce rates

57
Q

growing individualism in society

A

― individualism thesis suggests people are increasingly looking to satisfy their own needs rather than sacrifice their needs for the good of the family
― concepts such as confluent love (Giddens) and liquid love (Bauman) are based upon individuals having to satisfy their own needs
— relationships have become a transaction, one that ends when the relationship has fulfilled it’s purpose

58
Q

consequences of divorce for family members (name three)

A

— conflict in the family
— formation of new families
— financial issues for partners

59
Q

reasons for changes in conjugal roles (name four)

A

— less stigma in society
— women are more career focused
— more equal as men and women
— secularisation

60
Q

Parsons (conjugal roles)

A

believed that women could express themselves emotionally through caring for families

61
Q

Wilmott and Young (conjugal roles)

A

suggested that men helped women in the home more

62
Q

Oakley (conjugal roles)

A

saw housework as oppressive and dissatisfying; they described women experiencing boredom and loneliness, combined with excessive workloads

63
Q

Devine (conjugal roles)

A

found that because women were working, men had to take on domestic work

64
Q

Edgell (conjugal roles)

A

found that men made the infrequent important decisions in middle-class families even when women made the money

65
Q

Pahl (conjugal roles)

A

found that men and women made decisions about different matters, so while women make frequent small decisions such as what to have for dinner, men were responsible for bigger, expensive issues such as buying a car

66
Q

Hunt (conjugal roles)

A

said women make more decisions, but not the significant ones

67
Q

Hardhill et al. (conjugal roles)

A

found male domination of family decisions, but noted a shift towards more equal relationships

68
Q

Gershung (conjugal roles)

A

talked about lagged adaptation: as more women were going into work, males were having to change but did this more slowly than women

69
Q

Giddens (conjugal roles)

A

claimed that people only stay together on the grounds that they are both satisfied, rather than staying together out of necesity

70
Q

Catherine Hakim [the New Right] (conjugal roles)

A

said women have less constitutional to work than men. women have erotic capital and can control men through their desire for sex

71
Q

Gillian Dunne (family)

A

studied lesbian households and found that the distribution of domestic responsibilities tended to be equal between the partners

72
Q

Diane Bell (family)

A

suggested that there is an ‘economy of emotion’ within all families and that running this economy is the responsibility of women

73
Q

Duncombe and Marsden (family)

A

found that women in families are often required to do housework and childcare, paid employment, and emotional work — amounting to a ‘triple shift’ of work

74
Q

Weeks et al (family)

A

found that couples tend to pool money in a joint account while keeping some money back in a personal account

75
Q

Carol Smart (family)

A

discovered that same-sex couples don’t link control over money with inequality, but rather organise their money based on what is best for them a a couple. she argued that same-sex couples don’t have the same ideas about gender and money that heterosexual couples traditionally had

76
Q

current status of childhood

A

— society is seen as being child centred with children’s needs being placed above adults’
— sociologists argue that there is excessive control over children’s lives whilst others argue that childhood is disappearing into contemporary childhood

77
Q

why has childhood changed?

A

— compulsory and higher education
— technological changes
— changes to relationships
— media saturation

78
Q

childhood changes: compulsory and higher education (name two)

A

― the extension of compulsory education to 18 in recent years has extended the period of dependency for children on their parents for financial support
― removal of EMA and student grants in favour of loans has increased financial burden on parents
― more children are staying at home to study to reduce costs

79
Q

childhood changes: technological change (name three)

A

― children have increased access to adult world through internet and greater connections to others through social media
― technology has become a tool for parents to use as digital babysitters
― digital surveillance of children through apps and other forms of technology
― increased effectiveness of reproductive technologies > children are results of investments

80
Q

childhood changes: changes to relationships (name two)

A

― changing nature of relationships from economic to romantic leads to children being seen as a product of emotional attachment
― children remain a constant in time of insecurity
― needs of children outweigh the needs of the relationship

81
Q

childhood changes: media saturation (name two)

A

― children are targeted by media as consumers
― children’s media promotes consumption of goods
― children are given higher status in society and will consume more than adults due to physical and emotional changes

82
Q

the functions of the family (pre-industrial society)

A

― unit of production
― caring for the young, old, sick, and poor
― primary socialisation and control of children
― education of children
― the stabilisation of adult personalities

83
Q

functions of the family (industrial society)

A

― primary socialisation: teaching children basic norms and values
― the ‘stabilisation of adult personalities’: providing psychological security for men and women in a stable relationship

84
Q

family as a unit for production

A

― family produced most of the goods it consumed itself before industrialisation
― today, adults go out to work, earn wages, and use them to buy food and clothes from the market
― increase in technologically advanced products means that it would be impossible for the family to self-produce

85
Q

family functions: caring for the young, old, sick, and poor

A

― family used to be the only institution
― today we have a range of different services such as the NHS

86
Q

family functions: education of children

A

― before the 1870 Educational Act, children were not required to go to school
― children learned their trades from their parents with skills for particular trades being passed down from father to son
— today, the vast majority of children go to school from 4 to 18
― most children rely on the education system to give them the specific vocational skills they need for specific jobs

87
Q

family functions: primary socialisation and control of children

A

― the first of Parsons’ ‘irreducible functions of the family’: children learn the basic norms and values of society
― police and social services intervene to attempt to regulate behaviour of young offenders
— parents have less control over children due to the impact of the media; it is harder for parents to monitor and regulate hyperreality

88
Q

George Murdock (Functionalism: families)

A

— educational: children are taught the norms and values of society
― economical: the family provides an economic function to all its members by pooling resources and ensuring all have what they need
― reproductive: produces the next generation of the society
— sexual: ensures that adults’ sexual relationships are controlled and stable

89
Q

Talcott Parsons (Functionalism: families)

A

― primary socialisation: agreed that families taught children social norms and values, but argued it specifically taught older children the norms and values associated with their family/community, while other institutions taught children the universal norms and values of wider society
― stabilisation of adult personalities: argued that families helped prevent adults from behaving in disruptive or dysfunctional ways, instead encouraging them to conform to social norms, especially at times of stress

90
Q

strengths of functionalist views of the family (name four)

A

— recognises the importance of family to people
— sees how family is central to social structure
― explains why people follow social rules
— emphasises the importance of social stability
― shows how the family supports social structure and society
― shows a link between individuals and the whole of society
― the functionalist approach stresses the emotional importance of family life

91
Q

weakness of functionalist views of the family (name four)

A

― idealises the family; says that it is too positive and happy
― it only seems fit to Western family structures
― Marxists say it ignores the ‘dark side; of the family: conflict and abuse
― Feminists say it ignores gender differences in the family
― Post-modernists say it ignores family diversity
― the approach is very positive and overlooks the fact that all families are not all good
― stresses the importance of the nuclear family; it is critical of other types of family
― does not understand that other social structures can take on family roles

92
Q

strengths of marxist views of the family (name three)

A

― Marxists explain the ideological role of families in society and suggest reasons people feel strongly about family structure and organisation
― Marxism offers an explanation of why families first developed in society
― Marxism points out the unpleasant aspects of family life and the inequalities of power within families
― Feminist perspectives have based their analysis on Marxist views of family

93
Q

weaknesses of marxist views of the family (name two)

A

― Marxists are criticised for only looking at the negative side of family life and ignoring the positives
― the family is seen in terms of its economic relationship to society and this is simplistic
― Catherine Hakim and others have pointed out that Marxist views of the role of women in families are dated
― similar to Functionalism in that the female perspective on family life tends to be overlooked

sociology (5 decks)

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