New Right

Question 1

main idea

Answer 1

neo-liberal view emphasising
two-parent nuclear family - heterosexual marriage - self-reliant and the ‘building block’ of society.
Parental roles are divided by gender.

Question 2

main concern

Answer 2

contemporary family is breaking down. Link changes in family to social problems
e.g. crime, youth subcultures, drink and drug abuse etc.
Increasing number of lone parent families, teenage pregnancies, same-sex relationships and lack of
male role models in families.

Question 3

evidence for non-nuclear families being a problem

Answer 3

1. The rate of family breakdown is much lower amongst married couples (6% compared to
   20%)
2. Children from broken homes are almost five times more likely to develop emotional
   problems
3. Young people whose mother and father split up are also three times as likely to become
   aggressive or badly behaved
4. Lone-parent families are more than twice as likely to live in poverty as two-parent families.
5. Children from broken homes are nine times more likely to become young offenders

Question 4

causes of family decline

Answer 4

Decline of traditional social values about the centrality of the family, feminism, ‘sexual revolution’
since the 1960s
Civil Partnerships and gay marriage, legal changes making divorce much easier, welfare benefits =
perverse incentives - create dependency culture.

Question 5

criticisms of new right

Answer 5

Feminists - New Right ideas as a form of patriarchy - a woman’s place is in the home.
If welfare state is ‘rolled back’, women will pick up the responsibilities. Fundamental assumption that
the patriarchal family is the ‘natural’ family structure is wrong.
Marxists New Right = ideological justification for capitalism. They argue that poverty and inequality
are not the fault of the individual but a result of the way the society is structured.