family & households Flashcards
memorise these
what does functionalism say about the family?
A ‘vital organ’ which maintains the ‘body’ of society and is a key building block within society
what are the 4 functions of the family within society - murdock
- sexual
- reproduction
- socialisation
- economic
functions of the family according to parsons?
- socialisation
- stabilisation of adult personalities
criticisms of murdocks theory?
he only focuses on the nuclear family according to feminists and other institutions could provide these functions.
what is the marxist opinion on the family in society?
they perform essential functions for society which benefit the ruling class and economy but disadvantage the working class
criticims of the marxists functions of the family
- ignores any other benefits to society
- assumes only the male has full time employment
- does not explain why the family changes
functions of the family from the marxist’s pov
- inheritance of wealth
- cushioning effect
- unit of consumption
- socialisation
feminist opinion on family in society
emphasise the harmful effects of family life upon women, as it contributes to the continuing oppression and gender inequalities in society
liberal feminist view on the family
culture and norms are reinforced by the family but the family is only sexist as it supports main stream culture and social change is possible if enough pressure is put onto the government and legal system
marxist feminist view on the family
exploitation of women is essential to capitalism as they help produce and care for the next generation of
workers for capitalism
radical feminist view on the family
- housework exploits women but it is down to a patriachal society rather than capitalism
- delphy and leonard = family is a patriachal system where women do the most work whereas men get the most benefits
criticisms of feminist views
- portrays women as passive
- women from different ethnic backgrounds may have different experiences
- ignores gay or lone parent households
what do the personal life perspective argue that the all other theories suffer from ( 2 weaknesses)
- tend to assume that the traditional nuclear family is the dominant family type
- they are all structural theories
what does post modernist giddeons say about the family?
- people have more choice in terms of relationships & family
- Today’s relationships are pure relationships - last as long as they are happy, so cohabitatation and serial monogomy are more common
what does post modernist stacey say about families?
- women have more freedom now to be freed from oppression and and shape family arrangements to meet their needs
- ‘divorce- extended families’ are 2 families which are connected via a divorce
what does the sociology of personal life say about family?
- the family is not in decline and it is just more diverse and complex than before
- it is focused on relationships that are more important but still may not be considered as family eg pets
1 pro & con about sociology of personal life’s theory
pro - helps understand how people construct and define relationships
con - ignores the speciality of blood or marriage relationships
functionalism opinion on social policy
helps families perform their functions more efficiently
new right opinion on social policy
they should avoid undermining the self reliant family
marxist opinion on social policy
policies provide ideological legitimation for capitalism
liberal and radical feminism opinions on social policies
liberal - have helped lead to greater gender equality
radical - policies are not enough to fix gender inequality
1980s-90s conservative
- reforming the relationship between society and the state
- influenced by the new right
- reduce control over lives and enforce rights and responsibilites
- 1984 divorce act allowed couples to divorce within one year of marriage
1997-2010 new labour
- introduced laws and policies to support other types of families
eg; - 2005 civil partnerships - The 1998 supporting families document focused on
- financial benefits such as child benefits and EMA
- tackling issues such as teen pregnancy and truancy
2010 - 2015 coalition
aimed to reduce family break down and get more people into the work place
- domestic violence disclosure scheme
- 2012 welfare reform act introduced universal credit to replace other benefits and cap the amount, alongside bedroom tax
- 2013 gay marriage act
other important policies
-1967 legalisation of contraceptive pill
- 1975 employment protection act allowed paid maternity leave
- 1970 equal pay act
what are the 5 types of family diversity
- C ultural
- L ife course
- O rganisational
- G enerational
- S ocial class
what are the causes of family diversity?
- changing patterns - divorce and single parents are more common
- post modernisisation - more diverse society
- economic factors - increasing wealth = ability to live alone & those who cant afford have multigenerational families
- changing roles - womens having careers mean they are having less children - single person or beanpole households
policies - 1969 divorce act, 1972 equal pay act and welfare benefits
last modernism - not a choice, people are forced due to structural changes
functionalist fit theory; parsons on family diversity
As society changes, the type of family and its family change to suit society.
New right; Murray on family diversity
Nuclear family is under threat due to social policies that change processes in the family
post modernist on diversity in families
Diversity is the new norm in society and people are given more freedom and only have to stay in the relationship as long as their needs are met.
feminist; stacey on diversity in families
women can now create families to suit their needs, including the new extended divorce families.
chester on diversity in families;
a change has been made to a neo-conventional family where the family are dual earners and involve conjugal roles
what is traditionally the mens role in a family?
- instrumental as they tend to be the main bread winner
what is traditionally the womens role in a family?
- expressive as they complete housework and look after children
what is wilmott and youngs march of progress view on family roles?
early industrial family was based on segregated roles but after the industrial revolution, increased gender inequalities made roles more equal and democratic
4 ways which show the change in domestic division of labour has been exaggerated?
- Bayfield; even in dual career families, women had major responsibility for domestic tasks
- Rapoport and Rapoport; career women were still viewed as wives and mothers
- Hochschild; full time working women do around 3 hours of housework whereas ft men only do 17 minutes
Oakley- studied 40 housewives, they were as alienated by their work as factor workers and had similar coping strategies
why are roles in domestic division of labour changing?
- more women are going into work
- paternity leave
- feminism
- technology lessens housework
A reason why the domestic division of labour has not been exaggerated?
- most women are now in full time work so families are more symmetrical - in 1971 53% of women aged 16-64 were in work,but this was 67% in 2013
impact of family life on career and job prospects for women
- before becoming a mother, job prospects would be at an all time high as their time can be focused on their career
- after becoming a mother, most women go on maternity leave or leave their jobs entirely in order to focus on child rearing which negatively impacts their future prospects for work
impact of triple shift on women?
- women have little leisure time and end up very secluded
- the seclusion caused by the triple shift can cause women to feel depressed and lonely
radical feminists perspective on causes of domestic violence?
Dobash/Dobash - marriage often legitimises violence against women, and husbands were often provoked by challenges to their authority.
however - men can be victims too
New rights perspective on causes of domestic violence?
- only occurs in dysfunctional families which focuses in more on working class families
however, it is not limited by class
post modernist perspective on causes of domestic violence?
Giddens; caused by the emotional intensity of family life, and the increasing isolation of nuclear families
However, not all families are violent
Marxist feminist perspective on causes of domestic violence?
Wilkinson; it is the result of stress caused by social inequalities
However, this does not explain why women are more likely to be victims
causes of trends in cohabitation, marriage and divorce?
- changing roles of women
- secularisation
- change’s in societal norms
- legal changes
- economic changes
post modern reasons - no longer a single family structure in society
- changes in family make it less essential for families to function properly.
positive impact due to trend in cohabitation, marriage and divorce?
- greater gender equality
negative impact due to trend in cohabitation, marriage and divorce?
- family is still important for child development
6 reasons why there is a trend in childbearing?
- contraception
- education
- role of women
- infant mortality rate
- changing values
- economic factors
impact of changing fertility rates?
- reduction in labour force
- dependency ratio
- immigration
- growth of the bean pole family
- voluntary childlessness
- decrease in full time mothers
5 reasons why childhood is NOT a social construct?
separateness - pilcher
socially separated - children have a different social status to adults
physical immaturity - they are dressed differently to adults and have products specially designed for them
psychological immaturity - children require protection from the world so are separated from it by family
dominate framework - james and sprout
- children = simple amoral = have no/limited morals
- adults = complex moral = morals that greatly impact behaviour and attitudes.
2 reasons why childhood IS a social construct?
cultural relativity - childhood experiences vary per culture & Wagg argues that there is no single universal childhood so it isn’t natural and should be distinguished from more biological immaturity
Historical relativity - The experiences of childhood have changed over time. Aries - in the middle ages childhood didn’t exist as a separate status - once a child was physically able, they took on adult roles of working and housework
sensible analytical approach
possibility of social construct depends on the age of the child as infants are naturally dependent but from 5+ social construct is more plausible
march of progress view on the status of children
- children lives are far better today than they were 200 years ago
- child labour is now restricted eg 13/14 years old can only work a max of 15 hours a week
- in 1880, the compulsory age to leave school was 10 and was raised to 18 in 2015
- the age rights of children are more central to society
- parents spend more time and money on children’s quality of life and there is an increase of parental bond
conflict view on the status of children
- the march of progress view is wrong as society is based on conflict and inequality
intrachild conflict view on status of children
nationality - 90% of the worlds lowest birth rates are in developing countries
gender - Hillman: boys are more likely to be allowed to cross or cycle on roads, use buses and go out after dark unaccompanied.
ethnicity - Brannen = a study of 15/16 years old found that Asian parents were more likely to to be strict towards their daughters
class - Woodroffe; children of unskilled manual workers are over three times more likely to suffer from hyperactivity than children of professional
child liberationist view on the status of children;
children should be freed from adult control
ways that adult control children;
- neglect and abuse
- control over a child’s space - told to play in some areas but not others
- control over a child’s time - tell children when to wake up, eat and go to bed
- control over a child’s body - how they sit, walk and run
disappearing childhood thesis (postman)
- childhood is disappearing as the gap between childhood and adulthood narrows
- children slowly have the same rights as adults,including similar clothing and children committing adult crimes
- childhood emerged along with mass literacy as it created a division between adults (can read) and children (can’t read)
toxic childhood thesis (palmer)
- a toxic mix of technological and cultural changes is having a negative impact on the development of a growing number of children
1) decline of outdoor play, which is linked to an increase of child poverty
2) commercialisation of childhood as children are exploited by advertisers
3) ‘schoolification’ of early childhood so they are less independent
4) the decline of listening, language and communication skills have led to reduce attention span
5) screen saturation has reduced face to face interactions
6) tests, targets and education have increased anxiety - assumes children are delicate and need protecting
universal childhood
- the western notion of childhood is spreading throughout the world
- there are campaigns for universal education
- charities focus on helping street children and preventing child labour
- now there is globalised TV and media
new sociology of childhood;
- favoured by child liberationist
- mayall; children are treated as socialisation projects and focus on childhood from the child’s perspective
- children are active agents in creating their own childhood
- use unstructured interviews
demographics; birth rate
reason for the trend; women are having children later on/ no children
- reduced infant mortality rate
impact of the trend; smaller work force, ageing population, increasing dependency ratio
demographics; total fertility rate ; decreases
- women having children later or no children
- reduced infant mortality rate
impact of the trend; increased bean pole families, increasing dependency ratio
infant mortality rate; decreases
reason for trend - better health care, less children being concieved
impact of the trend - increases dependency ratio in the short term, but reduces it in the long term
death rate; decreases
reason for trend - better healthcare , longer life expectancy
impact of the trend - ageing population, possible overpopulation
life expectancy; increases
reason for trend; better health care
impact of the trend; larger extended and beanpole families, increasing dependency rates
ageing population; increases
reason for trend; better health care, longer life expectancy
impact of the trend; higher dependency rate, less spare government money as state pensions are needed
why do people migrate out of the UK?
- financial crisis
- retirement
- work
- family
what impact has emigration had on the uk?
- less skilled population
- reduced ageing population
why do people immigrate to the UK?
- financial stability
- family
- work
what impact has immigration had on the UK?
- increasing population
- increased diversity of religions and cultures
- increased pressure on welfare state and housing
- increased pressure on NHS, schools and social services
what impact has globalisation had on families in the UK?
- immigration has led to family diversity
- a shift in manufacturing abroad means less jobs are available in the UK
-globalisation of the media = toxic childhood and paranoid parents - There are more financial crises, including divorce and family diversity
positive functions of the nuclear family?
- primary socialisation - prevents crime & deviance
- caring for the elderly
- emotional and psychological security
- stable sex drive
- production of the next gen
warm bath theory
work is stressful and the home place is a place for workmen to destress which reduces conflict within society
what is the nuclear family?
- favoured by functionalist
- viewed as the traditional family type which is best for socialising children
- where parents remained married in traditional gender norms
beanpole family
where generations dont have many children, leading to a narrow, bean pole like family structure.
- families are child centered
extended family
where multiple generations live as one family
reconstitued
where 2 families join due to parents from different families coming together. parents are connected through their children + ex partners
empty nest
children leave the home for uni and the family home is now empty - can lead to boomerang children - returning home once university is over like a boomerang.
