Family and Household Diversity

Question 1

family & household diversity - myth of cereal packet family

Answer 1

no longer a typical family/household
changes in family patterns caused range of family types
traditional family life declining as people choose new ways to live their lives

Question 2

family & household diversity - how many households make up the cereal packet family ideology?

Answer 2

5%

shows cereal packet image doesn’t represent how people in Britain live

Question 3

family & household diversity - how many married couples don’t conform to the image? and why?

Answer 3

75%
cohabitating 
same sex
reconstituted 
dual-worker

Question 4

family & household diversity - classic extended family

Answer 4

classic extended family still found in:
traditional working-communities - little geographical/social mobility, children remain in same area creating close-knit community
south-asian communities - large families as important source of strength/community

Question 5

family & household diversity - modified extended family

Answer 5

geographically separated nuclear families maintain regular contact through modern communications and easy transportation

Question 6

family & household diversity - the beanpole family

Answer 6

ageing population, fewer children, smaller nuclear families creates multi-generation extended family that is thin (few aunts,uncles, cousins) but long (people living longer)

Question 7

family & household diversity - cultural diversity

Answer 7

differences in family structure/lifestyles between ethnic groups arises from immigrants

• caribbean families
• south asian families

Question 8

family & household diversity - caribbean families

Answer 8

modern individualisation and commitment in relationship rather than marriage certificate
marriage is lifestyle option that they close based on their circumstance
low rate of marriage (unimportant), high level of lone parenthood (1/2 compared to 1 in 10 white)
reflects high rates of black male unemployment, inability to support family
mixed marriages widely accepted - 1/2 black men with white women, 1/3 black women with white man
very few married to each other

Question 9

family & household diversity - south asian families

Answer 9

extended family relationships common and patriarchal in structure
old-fashioned values; commitment to marriage, tight-knit families, family loyalty, births within marriage, respect for parents, arranged marriages, husband authority over wife, women housewives, large number of children
highest rates of marriage (3/4 married before 25 compared to 1/2 whites)
divorce rates low due to strong social disapproval

Question 10

family & household diversity - social class diversity

Answer 10

modified extended families and privatised nuclear families more common in middle-class
classic extended families remain in working class

Question 11

family & household diversity - regional diversity

Answer 11

people aged 65+ live on coast and older industrial areas
traditional rural communities have more extended families
inner cities have more families in poverty, lone parents, ethnic minority families

Question 12

family & household diversity - how much has households containing one person increased to?

Answer 12

1 in 20 (1901)

1 in 3 (2012)

Question 13

family & household diversity - growth in singlehood

Answer 13

due to rise in divorce, delaying marriage, LAT relationships
caused by growing individualisation
geographical mobility to pursue career easier without a partner

Question 14

family & household diversity - adult kids

Answer 14

men more than women aged 20-24 work but live at home as they can’t afford rent

Question 15

family & household diversity - clipped wing generation

Answer 15

adult kids can’t establish full independent adult identity

Question 16

family & household diversity - kippers

Answer 16

adult kids that stay through choice as its cheaper, easier, more comfortable

Question 17

family & household diversity - shared households

Answer 17

common among younger people due to high costs of rent, education, desire to explore alternative living arrangements
more loyal and closer to fiends than families (families of choice)

Question 18

family & household diversity - life cycle

Answer 18

significant events that individuals experience as they make their way through life

Question 19

family & household diversity - life course diversity

Answer 19

typical family life cycle was a series of standard set stages but is now multiple paths due to growing uncertainty, contributing to more diverse family forms