Family Diversity- Marriage trends

Question 1

Murdock
‘universal social grouping’

Answer 1

Believed that any family structures that diverted from the traditional nuclear form were just ‘extensions or reductions’

Question 2

What is monogamy?

Answer 2

The idea that you are committed to one person

Question 3

What is polyandry?

Answer 3

A woman who has more than one husband
Nyinba- + always one at home to take care of the wife and support the family

Question 4

What is polygyny?

Answer 4

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)

Question 5

What are 2 rising trends to marriage alternatives?

Answer 5

1) Serial monogamy
2) Cohabitation

Question 6

What is serial monogamy?

Answer 6

A series of monogamous relationships
re-marriages

Question 7

What are 5 reasons for a rise in serial monogamy?

Answer 7

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

Question 8

What is cohabitation?

Answer 8

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

Question 9

How has children with unmarried parents changed since 1938?

Answer 9

4% to 51%
people argue it is a ‘nail in the coffin for the nuclear family’

Question 10

Why do the New Right criticise cohabitation?

Answer 10

Based on functionalist ideas who believe that the nuclear family is best and alternative forms are less functional

Question 11

How does Morgan criticise cohabitation?

Answer 11

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

Question 12

What does Murphy suggest about children whose parents live together but are not married?

Answer 12

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)

Question 13

How can Murphy and Morgan be criticised?

Answer 13

Poverty- life experiences, living arrangements, lower social class

Question 14

Why do Beaujouan and Ni Bhrolchain disagree with Murphy and Morgan?

Answer 14

• 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)

Question 15

What are 5 other trends and patterns in marriage in the UK?

Answer 15

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

Question 16

What is the GMR?

Answer 16

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)

Question 17

2) people marrying later

Answer 17

1972- mean age of first marriage was 24.9 for men and 22.9 for women
2012- M = 32.4 W= 30.3

Question 18

3) The social class divide

Answer 18

2012- 66.3% compared to 44.5%

Question 19

4) Ethnic variations in marriage

Answer 19

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

Question 20

5) Same sex marriages

Answer 20

The introduction of the civil partnership act 2005 and the same sex marriage law in 2014 have impacted on the marriage trends

Question 21

Age and gender distribution of same sex marriages UK 2020

Answer 21

• 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

Question 22

Reasons for trends in marriage

Answer 22

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

Question 23

What does Levin say about LATs?

Answer 23

Living apart together
New type of relationship as an alternative to marriage and cohabitation

Question 24

What are LATs?

Answer 24

People who are in long term committed relationships, defined as a couple but d not share a common home
- choose not to

Question 25

Are LATs a pure relationship?

Answer 25

Pursue their intimacy of a relationship whilst still maintaining autonomy and individual identity

Question 26

Why are LATs growing?

Answer 26

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’