family and households - the functionalist perspective Flashcards
What are the two basic functions of the family according to Parsons?
Primary socialization of children and stabilization of human personalities.
Define primary socialization as per Parsons.
Involves the learning and internalization of society’s culture, including language, history, and values.
Why does Parsons argue that society would cease to exist without socialization?
Because the new generation must accept society’s basic norms and values.
How does Parsons describe the role of families in personality development?
Families are factories producing human personalities.
What is the emotional role of the family according to Parsons?
To provide emotional warmth and security.
What does Parsons suggest about the impact of industrial society on personalities?
The pressures of work and life can destabilize personalities.
What are the roles of men and women in the family according to Parsons?
- Women have an expressive role.
- Men have an instrumental role.
What does the expressive role of women provide in the family?
Warmth, security, and emotional support.
What does the instrumental role of men involve in the family?
Being the family breadwinner.
How does the sexual division of labor contribute to personality stabilization?
It relieves stress and anxiety through the support provided by the expressive role.
What family structure has emerged in contemporary British society according to Parsons and others?
The privatized nuclear family.
Define the privatized nuclear family.
A self-contained, self-reliant, and home-centered unit.
What do members of the privatized nuclear family often know more about?
Media soap stars, celebrities, and computer game heroes.
True or False: The classic extended family is still the main family form in modern society.
False.
What term does Parsons use to describe the isolated nature of the privatized family?
Structurally isolated.
