Family Flashcards
What is a nuclear family?
Parents and children living together
What is a reconstituted family?
Step families
What is the classic extended family?
All kin living in the same household or near eachother (e.g. Nuclear family and grandparents)
What is a modified extended family
The family living far apart
What is a lone parent family
A parent that lives along with their children
What is a neo-conventional family?
Families without traditional roles
What is a matriarchal family?
Authority held by females
What is a patriarchal family?
Authority held by males
What is a gay or lesbian family?
Same sex couple living together with their children
What is a cereal packet family
Stereotypical heterosexual couple with their children
What is a beanpole family?
Long and thin multigeneral family
What is a single person household
A person living alone
What is a symmetrical family?
Authority and household chores shared equally
What is the difference between a family and a household?
A family is a group of people who are bonded together and a household is where they live
Family changes
People are getting married later in life
Higher divorce rate
Protection (smaller family size)
Wages (smaller family size)
Marxist view of family
Critical - people won’t stand up to the bourgeoisie because of their family commitments and they worry about the impact it will have
Functionalist view on family
Nuclear family performs important functions for individuals and society
Feminist view on family
Link families to gender inequalities
What is cultural diversity
When there is a variety of cultures in a society
Lone parents
When a single parent brings up a family alone
Male and female roles in family
Stereotypically, men were bread winners and women would look after family
Now these roles are changing and women are starting to work so conjugal roles are more common
How has the quality of parenting changed?
Some say for the better, more people are working so better role models and more money for activities
Some say for worse as more childminders are used and there is less quality time being spent as a family
Why are there more divorces?
Reduced influence of religion Rising expectations of marriage Women have more authority Declining stigma Changes in law
How is authority changing in relationships?
Women becoming more authoritative
Feminists
More women working
How are arranged marriages changing?
Women no longer seen as a burden
More opportunities to do what they want
How are the patterns of fertility changing?
Less pregnancies - protection
Laws which have changed children’s lives
Welfare state - no work but education
The Children Act - legal rights
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act - could give evidence in court
Name 4 of the functions that functionalists claim a family fulfills
Reproduction of the next generation and satisfaction of the sex drive
Economic support
Emotional support
Socialisation of the young
The New Right’s view on the family
They believe the nuclear family is best
Homosexuals and lone parents don’t socialise their children correctly
What are conjugal roles?
The roles played by a cohabitating heterosexual couple
