Family Diversity- Childbearing and life course Flashcards
What is childbearing?
having children
What is childrearing?
raising children
What does Whiting say about childbearing?
The 2 child family remains the most common and has done for 70 years
What does Hirsch say about childbearing?
Each child costs a couple nearly £154,000 by the time they are 18
Key childbearing facts
- over half of all babies are born to mothers over 30
(challenges the view that mothers are getting younger) - more women are childless
- B & A families, more children, larger family
- LC are not more likely to have children, 3 or more, evenly spread among all socio-economic groups
Why are more women choosing to remain childless?
- role of women in society has changed
- pursue careers over family
- contraception-choosing is they want to
- less societal pressure
- rise in individualism
- Craig- ‘the mother/partnership penalty’
Why are more people choosing not to have children?
It is a big responsibility that holds back their career
How does society view this decision?
They say that they aren’t ‘real women’ or against femininity
- viewed as ‘career thirsty’
Sympathy- can’t have children, not your choice
What problems may this cause for relationships?
There are huge clashes in terms of what they want form relationships and their interests
Postmodernist- conflict
What is the life course?
The life course is made up of several stages:
1- birth
2- early childhood
3- infancy
4- childhood
5- adolescence
6- young adulthood
7- adulthood
8- middle age
9- old age
10- death
What does Heath say about the life cycle?
Young people are now less likely to follow the traditional route of living at home, leaving school, going into a job or higher education the settling down into married relationships in their own houses
What are adult-kids?
Most likely to be male
- men and women are still living with their parents who are in their working years and cannot afford to buy or rent
What are kippers?
‘kid’s in parent’s pocket’s’
- erode parents planned retirement savings as it is cheaper to stay at home
What is the clipped wing generation?
Unable to ‘fly the family nest’
- young people consequently unable to establish a full adult identity due to financial issues etc
What are shared households?
More common amongst young people
- living with peers, transitional living arrangements
What are families of choice?
When people choose to live and form relationships with people they are close to rather than their family
What doe postmodernists such as Stacey argue?
That family life is not about living in a static and ideal type of family structure
- a number of life events can change your experiences of family life and create family diversity
What are young people less likely to follow traditional patterns in their family life cycle?
Increase in amount of shared households
- more likely to go onto further education
- shared living arrangements with peers
- more choice
Why is family life fluid, diverse and unresolved?
Younger people are more likely to choose to live with who they are closer to rather than their relatives
