Family Diversity- Marriage trends Flashcards
Murdock
‘universal social grouping’
Believed that any family structures that diverted from the traditional nuclear form were just ‘extensions or reductions’
What is monogamy?
The idea that you are committed to one person
What is polyandry?
A woman who has more than one husband
Nyinba- + always one at home to take care of the wife and support the family
What is polygyny?
Aman who has more than one wife
Sobtenga + sisters share domestic duties and responsibilities of childcare
- expensive to look after (mainly the rich who have more than one wife)
What are 2 rising trends to marriage alternatives?
1) Serial monogamy
2) Cohabitation
What is serial monogamy?
A series of monogamous relationships
re-marriages
What are 5 reasons for a rise in serial monogamy?
1- less people ashamed (celebrities), less pressure to marry
- more socially accepted (normalised)
2- Secularisation
- less religious influence, values, doesn’t hold people together
3- Marriage less valued
- don’t see commitment
4- Marriage is more valued
- women have higher expectations
5- Easier to leave marriage
- divorce laws
What is cohabitation?
Living with partner, but not being married to, or in a civil partnership with them
- rate had doubled in the last 20 years
- 2.9million heterosexual couples and 69,000 same sex couples cohabitate
How has children with unmarried parents changed since 1938?
4% to 51%
people argue it is a ‘nail in the coffin for the nuclear family’
Why do the New Right criticise cohabitation?
Based on functionalist ideas who believe that the nuclear family is best and alternative forms are less functional
How does Morgan criticise cohabitation?
Refers to it as ‘marriage-lite’
- evidence shows cohabitating couples are less happy and fulfilled than married couples
- more likely to be abusive, unfaithful, stressed, depressed, more likely to split up
What does Murphy suggest about children whose parents live together but are not married?
Get worse results at school, leave education earlier, higher risk of developing a serious illness
- based on analysis data from the ONS (office for national statistics)
How can Murphy and Morgan be criticised?
Poverty- life experiences, living arrangements, lower social class
Why do Beaujouan and Ni Bhrolchain disagree with Murphy and Morgan?
- 80% will cohabitate at some point in their lives
- viewed as a ‘trail run’ before marriage
- 1/2 couples marry after a period of cohabitating
- decline in rates of divorce, ‘screens out’ weaker relations
- those divorced cohabit for children
- financial restraint (can’t afford to marry)
What are 5 other trends and patterns in marriage in the UK?
1) The GMR is in steep decline
2) People marrying later
3) The social class divide in marriage (marriage is a MC institution)
4) Ethnic variations in marriage
5) Same sex marriages
What is the GMR?
General marriage rate refers to the number of men and women who get married in any given year per 1,000 men and women aged 16 and over who are unmarried (single, married, widowed)
2) people marrying later
1972- mean age of first marriage was 24.9 for men and 22.9 for women
2012- M = 32.4 W= 30.3
3) The social class divide
2012- 66.3% compared to 44.5%
4) Ethnic variations in marriage
Berthoud- 3/4 of Pakistani and Bangladeshi women are married by age 25 compared to over 1/2 of half of white women
British African Caribbeans re least likely to get married
5) Same sex marriages
The introduction of the civil partnership act 2005 and the same sex marriage law in 2014 have impacted on the marriage trends
Age and gender distribution of same sex marriages UK 2020
- more W in same sex couples
- highest amount of SS couples range from 25-39
(most popular age category to get married) - no SS couples marrying over the age of 80
- proportion of M;F SS couples increases as the age increases
Reasons for trends in marriage
1- NR social policies put people off
2- Secularisation
3- Value marriage more
4- Improvements in reproductive technology
5- increasing divorce rates deter people
6- W more focused on career
7- W don’t need marriage for financial security
8- rising cost of weddings
9- Feminists believe it is a patriarchal institution, make sure it is equal before they commit
What does Levin say about LATs?
Living apart together
New type of relationship as an alternative to marriage and cohabitation
What are LATs?
People who are in long term committed relationships, defined as a couple but d not share a common home
- choose not to
Are LATs a pure relationship?
Pursue their intimacy of a relationship whilst still maintaining autonomy and individual identity
Why are LATs growing?
Increasing divorce and separation mean less people are willing to commit to living together
- experienced relationship break down and are more cautious
- may be children involved from a previous relationship
- difficulty maintaining a job in the same area as their partner
- modern technology mean closer links can be maintained between ‘apartners’
