Family: Trends And Diversity

Question 1

Why the nuclear family could still be seen as dominant?

Answer 1

In 2006 76% of children were living in a couple headed household. As compared to 24% who were living in a lone parent household

Universal - Murdock saw nuclear family as universal whereby it could be found in all countries

Parsons regarded nuclear family as best fit for needs of an industrialised society

Chester - most people will at some point in their life live in a nuclear family structure

Question 2

Rapport and rapport:

Answer 2

Argue that only a minority of families resemble the nuclear family ideal

Argue family life in the UK is characterised by diversity because people live in range of different family types with diverse internal set ups

Family structure someone lives in is not the only way of looking at the nature of family life - people may live in a similar nuclear structure but this does not take account of differences both within and outside that family

Question 3

Rapport and rapport conducted a study on family diversity in the 1980s and identified 5 elements of difference:

Answer 3

Organisational diversity - different structures and how roles divided in house

Cultural diversity - nature of family and relationships vary between different ethnic and cultural groups

Class diversity - differences may be based on class

Stage in the lifecycle diversity - nature of the family can change over the life

Cohort diversity - individuals born at the same time may have similar experiences because of wider social and historical events

Question 4

Eversley and Bonnerjea added a sixth form of diversity to rapport and rapports study:

Answer 4

Regional diversity - suggest that local influences produce different life experiences and so diversity

Question 5

Willmott’s forms of extended family:

Answer 5

Extended family of residence - where members of family live in same household

Local extended family - where 2 or 3 nuclear families live separately but in close proximity in see each other often

Dispersed extended family - nuclear families who see each other reasonably frequently but live further apart

Attenuated extended family - contact between nuclear families is less frequent

Question 6

Cultural diversity:

Answer 6

Refers to the way groups in society have different lifestyles based upon their ethnic or religious background

Question 7

Consider 4 things when explaining changes in the family:

Answer 7

Legal

Ideological

Social

Technological

Question 8

Legal changes:

Answer 8

Refer to changes in law and government policy

Question 9

Divorce reform Act (1969/71)

Answer 9

Before this act needed to be proof that one partner was the ‘guilty party’ and had committed one of 3 ‘matrimonial offences’: cruelty, adultery and desertion - act removed need for this

Question 10

Matrimonial family proceedings Act (1984) and Family Law Act (1996):

Answer 10

Act reduced length of time that a couple needed to be married before filing for divorce down from 3 years to 1 year

Question 11

Equality Act (2010):

Answer 11

Act brought together key anti discrimination policy to protect people against discrimination in the workplace

Question 12

Children Act (2004):

Answer 12

Act aims to make living in UK, as a child, as safe as possible by protecting their welfare and rights

Act allows state to intervene in a family should the welfare of a child be questioned

Question 13

Child Maintenance service (2012):

Answer 13

Requires absent parents to pay maintenance for children they do not live with

Service is used when parents cannot agree on a family based arrangement

Question 14

Civil partnership Act (2004):

Answer 14

Gave legal recognition to the relationships of same sex couples who enter a civil partnership, involving similar arrangements to a legal marriage

Question 15

Marriage (same sex couples) act 2013:

Answer 15

Allows same sex couples to marry on the same basis as opposite sex couples

Question 16

Ideological changes can be defined as:

Answer 16

Increased individualism and an emphasis on personal fulfilment

Increased materialism and a pursuit of wealth

Question 17

Ideological changes:

Individualism

Answer 17

Increased individualism and an emphasis on personal fulfilment (Beck and Beck)

Increased materialism and a pursuit of wealth

Question 18

Ideological changes:

Cohabitation as the norm

Answer 18

Idea of living together without being married is no longer widely regarded as ‘living in sin’ but as the norm

Question 19

Ideological changes:

Changing norms of love

Answer 19

Primary reason given for modern marriage is ‘love’ - Giddens argues people seek confluent love

Less social stigma attached to divorce

Question 20

Ideological changes:

Changing attitudes toward single parent families

Answer 20

Less social stigma toward lone parenthood

Question 21

Ideological changes:

Secularisation

Answer 21

Decline in religious values, has led to influence of religious ideas about ‘till death do us part’ weakened, fewer weddings in church’s and living together and not be married no longer viewed as living in sin

Question 22

Ideological changes:

Increased aspirations of women

Answer 22

Sue sharpe - women’s aspirations have changed between the 1970s and 1990s, with more focus on careers rather than marriage

Question 23

Social issues:

Demographic change

Answer 23

Demographics are the statistical data about a population

Question 24

Social issues:

Life expectancy

Answer 24

Average period that a person may expect to live

Question 25

Social issues:

Brith rate

Answer 25

Number of live births per thousand of population per year

Question 26

Social issues:

Death rate

Answer 26

Ratio of deaths to the population of a particular area or during a particular period of time

Question 27

Social issues:

Globalisation

Answer 27

Has had a significant impact on migration patterns in the UK

Question 28

Social issues:

Migration

Answer 28

Refers to movement of people from place to place - could be within a society or internationally

Question 29

Social issues:

Emigration

Answer 29

When someone moves to another country and this new country becomes their destination of usual residence

Question 30

Social issues:

Immigration

Answer 30

When someone leaves a country and moves to a new country

Question 31

Social issues:

Assimilation

Answer 31

Aim is for immigrants to adopt the language, value and customs of the host culture to make them ‘like us’

Question 32

Social issues:

Multiculturalism

Answer 32

Accepts that migrants may wish to retain a separate cultural identity however the acceptance may only be superficial

Question 33

Technological factors:

Contraception

Answer 33

Influenced family as meant that there were less risks involved when having sex such as possibility of always conceiving a child

Provided more freedom to women

Question 34

Technological issues:

IVF

Answer 34

Medical advances with IVF have enabled couples who may be unable to conceive to have the chance to have a child

Question 35

Technological issues:

Abortion

Answer 35

May have influenced family as medical advancements make it safer for women to have an abortion and therefore reduces family sizes