Family Key concepts

Question 1

Expressive leader

Answer 1

Parsons’ term for the female role of mother/housewife. The nurturing, caring and emotional role, often linked by functionalists to women’s biology and seen as a women’s ‘natural’ role in the family.

Question 2

Extended kinship networks

Answer 2

Relationships between family members beyond the nuclear family, e.g grandparents, cousins.

Question 3

Household

Answer 3

A social group sharing a common residence.

Question 4

Instrumental role

Answer 4

Parsons’ term for the male breadwinner. The provider/breadwinner role on the family.

Question 5

Nuclear family

Answer 5

Family groups consisting of two generations, i.e parents and children living in the same household.

Question 6

Sexual division of labour

Answer 6

The division of both paid work and domestic work into men’s jobs and women’s jobs.

Question 7

Symmetrical family

Answer 7

A nuclear family in which partners perform equally important roles

Question 8

Ascribed status

Answer 8

inherited status passed on from parents.

Question 9

Patriarchal ideology

Answer 9

Male dominated ideas.

Question 10

Familial ideology

Answer 10

The view that a particular type of family (e.g the nuclear family) and particular living arrangements (e.g men as breadwinner) are the ideal that people should aspire to.

Question 11

Extended family

Answer 11

A family in which sons and daughters live in the same neighbourhood as their parents, see each other on a regular basis and offer each other various kinds of support.

Question 12

Empty-shell marriages

Answer 12

A marriage in which the partners no longer love each other but stay together, usually for the sake of the children.

Question 13

Monogamy

Answer 13

The practice of only having one partner.

Question 14

Serial monogamy

Answer 14

a series of long term relationships

Question 15

Privatised nuclear family

Answer 15

A home-centered family that has little contact with extended kin or neighbours.

Question 16

Reconstituted family

Answer 16

A family where one or both partners have been previously married and bring with them children from the previous marriages. Also known as step-families.

Question 17

Conjugal relationship

Answer 17

The relationship between married or cohabiting partners

Question 18

Dual burden

Answer 18

Refers to wives taking responsibility for the bulk of domestic work as well as holding down full-time jobs.

Question 19

symmetrical family

Answer 19

A family where the roles of husband and wife or cohabiting partners have become more alike and equal.

Question 20

Child-centered

Answer 20

Treating the needs of children as priority

Question 21

Bean-pole family

Answer 21

A multi-generational extended family in a pet tern that is long and thin, with few aunts and uncles, reflecting fewer children being born in each generation, but people living longer.

Question 22

Modified extended family

Answer 22

A family type where related nuclear families, although living apart geographically, nevertheless maintain regular contact and mutual support through visiting, phone calls, internet etc.

Question 23

Socialisation

Answer 23

The process of learning the culture of any society

Question 24

Cereal packet family

Answer 24

A stereotype of the nuclear family, often portrayed in advertisements. Typical nuclear with mother and father occupying traditional roles of breadwinner and housewife.

Question 25

Emotion work

Answer 25

Refers to the burden on women to smooth the ruffled feathers of family life and take care of everyone’s emotional well-being.

Question 26

Triple-shift

Answer 26

Refers to wives taking responsibility for the bulk of domestic tasks, paid work and emotion work.