family diversity Flashcards
What have perspectives such as functionalism and new right been describe as
“Modernists”
This is because they see modern society as having a daily fixed clear cut and predictable structure
Parsons
There is a “functional fit” between the nuclear family and the modern family.
Nuclear family meets needs of modern society for geographical and social mobile workforce
What two “irreducible functions” does the nuclear family perform
Primary socialisation of children
The stabilisation and effectiveness of society
What would functionalist class as a deviant family
Other types are dysfunctional, abnormal and deviant
New right
Oppose family diversity
They believe the only normal family type is patriarchal, married, clear division of labour (expressive and instrumental roles )
Family is a place of refuge contentment and harmony
Oppose gay marriage cohabitation and lone parenthood
What do new right argue about lone parenthood is threat because
- Lone mothers cannot discipline children properly
- Leave boys without a role model
- Likely to be poorer and claim
What do new right believe is the main cause of lone-parenthood
Is the collapse of cohabiting couples
Benson (2012)
Argues that couples are more stable when they are married.
Data of parents of 15,000 babies first three years family breakdown is higher in cohabiting couples
What do new right believe about marriage.
Marriage can only provide a stable environment because it is a commitment to each other
Why new right believe that society is broken
- Laws and policies such as gay marriage undermines conventional Family
- only a return to traditional values will prevent damaging children
Criticisms of new right
- Oakley wrongly roles are fixed by biological
- Feminists nuclear family is an oppression of women
- No evidence that children from single parent families are delinquent
- Cohabitation can be seen as an alternative to marriage
- Cohabitation is more common amongst poorer social groups - poverty could be the reason for the breakground
Chester
Different to New right
Move from traditional nuclear family to dual earner families-neoconventional family (symmetrical)
Neo conventional family
Dual earner family family in which both spouses go out to work and not just the husband
How are statistics on household composition misleading
Because they are merely a snapshot of snap shot of a single moment in time. Most people living in one person household were in a nuclear family at one point
Why does Chester argues that little has changed
- Most people live in a house headed by a married couple
- most adults get married
- Most divorces re marry
- Cohabitation is a temporary phrase
- birth outside are jointly registered
The rappoports
Argue that we have moved away from traditional family types to a range of different types (pluralistic)
The five types of family diversity by the rappoports
- Organisational diversity-single and dual roles/earners
- cultural diversity-different cultural/religious groups have different structures e.gblack lone households
- social class diversity-different in child-rearing practises
- Life stage diversity- young, newleyweds retried
- generational diversity-older generations have different values
living apart single
people who are in a serious relationship but who are not cohabiting or marriage
single person household
household that contains one person who lives alone this can include widowed pensioners
serial monogamy
having several serious relationships one after the another
empty shell marriage
the married couple are only together because of the their children
multi family house holds
three generations living under the same roof
cohabitation
living with a partner
cultural diversity (Rapoport and Rapoports types of family diversity)
different cultural/religious groups have different structures e.g black lone households
class diversity(Rapoport and Rapoports types of family diversity)
different views are often held by different parts of society.
Giddens
argues that individual choice dictates family relationships-he calls this the individual thesis
what does Chester suggest about the nuclear family.
nuclear family is the dominant family structure. Chester also suggested that nuclear family are becoming less traditional and more symmetrical to better fir modern living
what do new right theorist believe family diversity is the result of
a decline is traditional values. new right see it as a threat to the traditional nuclear family and blame it for antisocial behaviour and crime.
Murray (1989)
suggest that single-mother families are a principle cause of crime and social decay, because of lack of male role model authority figure in the home.
perverse incentive
rewarded for doing something bad
may
argues that individualism thesis is based on idealised view of freedom of choice.
week, Donavon
found that there has been an increase in the number of gay or lesbian households since the 1980s, this due to changes in attitudes and legislations
beck
believes many people now live in “negotiated families”-family unites that vary according to the needs to the people in them
“negotiated families”
family unites that vary according to the needs to the people in them
stacey
has highlighted the existence of “divorce extended family stay connected by choice after divorce
Consensus theories
Consensus theories are those that see people in society as having shared interests and society functioning on the basis of there being broad consensus on its norms and values
