Family: Postmodernism

Question 1

Ulrich Beck

Answer 1

Indiviudalisaton - people make up the rules of family life as they go
negotiated family - lot more freedom to negtiate what you want the family to be
Risk society - so many choices in our relationships that we weigh up the risk and make our own decisons. we dont have to follow traditions anymore

Question 2

Giddens - Plastic sexuality

Answer 2

sex has become less associated with child-rearing and marriage. Changed from a duty and obligation to a pleasure. Sex has become a type of leisure pursuit, people fulful their own desires for sex, pleasure

Question 3

Giddens - Pure relationship

Answer 3

romantic love replaced by Confluent love - love only lasts as long as it works for both people, and once the honeymoon phase is over you move on to a new relationsuop.
Pure relationshops based on active choice of partners, until furhter notice.
giddens argyes this is more equal than previous relationships but also acknowledges abuse can occur

Question 4

Fisher

Answer 4

argues serial monogamy is the new norm

Question 5

Jamieson

Answer 5

Disagrees with Giddens - little evidence the pure relaitonship is widespread. Gender inequality still makes it difficult or women to gain equality in sexual relationships with men

Question 6

Beck and Beck-Gernsheim

Answer 6

Normal Chaos of Love - love is increasingly desired to provide security in an unstable world, but it is increasily harder to find and sustain.
The desire to fulfil our individual needs and wants makes it hard to find common ground in a relationshop
Relationshops and marriage are now based on risk and uncertainty - risk society

Question 7

Stacey

Answer 7

No longer one dominant family type - famlies have become so diverse. we need to accept this and not force people to fit a mold
Greater choice has freed women from patriarchal opression

Question 8

Stacey - Silicon valley

Answer 8

Through case studies conducted in Silicon Valley, California she found that women rather than men are the driving force behind changes in the family.
She discovered that many women rejected the traditional housewife role and had chosen extremely varied life paths (some choosing to return to education, becoming career women, divorcing and remarrying).

Question 9

Stacey - Divorce extended family

Answer 9

Divorce extended family - connected by divorce rather than marriage, eg ex in laws, step family

Question 10

Sue Sharpe study

Answer 10

interviewed girls in the 70s and the 90s, and compared how their attitudes to education and their priorities in work and marriage changed.
1976: ‘love, marriage, husbands and career, more or less in that order
But by 1996: ‘Job, career and being able to support themselves’. Girls became more confident, assertive, ambitious and more committed to gender equality.

Question 11

Girl Guide study

Answer 11

found women were more likely to define success as being confident and independent (56%) rather than being married (21%).

Question 12

Stacey - Gay families

Answer 12

Children raised in gay/lesbian families less likely to be bigoted, homophobic. Disocurages intolerance of different families.

Question 13

Rich

Answer 13

Gay and lesbian families allow people more freedom to develop their sexuality free from compulsory heterosexuality

Question 14

Fitzgerald

Answer 14

Found that relationship between parent and child is more important than parents’ sexuality.

Question 15

Redwood

Answer 15

New right disagrees, reactionary, traditonal values are undermined by gay marriage.
Redwood: Natural state is husband, wife and children

Question 16

Cheal

Answer 16

Individuals can choose their own course in life. Family diversity has increased.
Society is no longer predictable
Secularisation of society
Pro same sex parenting.

Question 17

Chester

Answer 17

disagrees with Cheal: most people still choose the nuclear family. argues postmodern sociologists exaggerate family diversity - nuclear family is still domonant and aspirational

only change has been the Neo-conventional family - both spouses play the instrumental role

Question 18

Weeks

Answer 18

highlights increased diversity and difference in the family
pro same sex parenting
family is socially constructed - idea created and given meaning by society

Question 19

Morgan

Answer 19

It is pointless to make large scale generalisations about family, as evrone’’s expeirence is different

Question 20

Murdock

Answer 20

Disagrees with diversity - Studied 250 society of various types and concluded the nuclear family was a universal social unit

Question 21

Robert and Rhona Rapaport

Answer 21

5 tupes of family diversity:
ORGANISATIONAL DIVERSITY - the many different ways in which modern families are organised - instrumental/expressive role, who is the breadwinner

CULTURAL DIVERSITY - different cultures have different family structure eg Asian families tend to have more extended families, Caribbean families more female headed families.

SOCIAL CLASS DIVERSITY - class diffeences in raising children and family: eg working class families tend to be more traditional and male dominated, middle class ones more equal.

LIFE STAGE DIVERSITY - the family changes according to the stage of the family in life eg couples with young children are different to elderly couples whose children have left home.

GENERATIONAL DIVERSITY - younger people are more likely to cohabit and accept same sex relationships than older ones.