Functionalist Views Of The Family Flashcards
what is the functionalist view of the family?
saw the family as one of the corner stones of society, performing essential functions which support social stabilty and social cohesion
what do functionalists emphasise?
the traditional family
what was the males role in the family?
the instrumental role – breadwinner, control, natural and biological
what was the female’s role in the family?
expressive role – caring, nurturing, housework, natural and biological
What did Murdock suggest?
that the family has four functions:
-sexual
-reproduction
-economic
-education
what is the sexual function?
married adults enjoy a healthy sex life which prevents them having affairs and ensures the children are raised by their natural parents
What is the reproduction function?
the reproduction of the next generation, without it society cannot continue
What is the economic function?
family provides food and shelter, ideally man will go to work and woman will look after home and children
what is the education function?
children learn socially acceptable behaviour and the culture of their society
What does Parsons argue are the two key functions of the family?
- primary + secondary socialisation
- stabilisation of adult personalities
How does Parsons use the warm bath theory to explain how the home stabilises adult personalities?
He says the home allows the male the ability to soothe the stresses of work by spending time with his family.
it also allows adults to indulge their childish aspects of their personality through playing with their children
How is Murdock criticised?
some argue that the 4 functions could be performed equally well by other institutions
femenists see the family as serving the needs of men and oppressing women
marxists argue that the functions meet the needs of capitalism, not those of the family/society
what is a geographically mobile workforce?
a workforce with the ability to move house to gain work
What is meant by a socially mobile workforce?
parsons argues that the nuclear family is better equipped to meet the needs of an industrial society
What is Parson’s fit theory?
the nuclear family is not universal, the structure of the family changes as the needs of society changes
How is the functionalist view of the family criticised?
- downplays the role of conflict in the family – the family is not always a safe and warm place as suggested by parsons
- outdated – women now go to work and the biological roles set out by parsons no longer apply as clearly
- deterministic – assumes members of the family automatically take on the norms and values
- ignores family diversity – assumes that nuclear families are best however in todays society, there are many different types of family and they all fulfill the same functions
