ROLES IN THE HOME

Question 1

(Functionalism) What are the 2 roles the husband and wife play according to Parsons?

Answer 1

1) Instrumental Role

2) Expressive Role

Question 2

What are the 2 types of conjugal roles within marriage which Elizabeth Bott distinguishes between? And explain

Answer 2

1) Segregated conjugal roles-
where the couples have separate roles A male breadwinner and a female homemaker/ carer, and where their leisure activities were separated

2)Joint conjugal roles – where the couples share tasks such as housework and childcare and spend their leisure time together.

Question 3

Which sociologists identified a pattern of segregated conjugal roles in their study in the 1950’s?

Answer 3

Young and Wilmott

Question 4

What was the demography of Young and Wilmott’s study in the 1950’s?

Answer 4

Traditional Working-class extended families in Bethnal Green, east London.

Question 5

What pattern did Young and Wilmott identify in their study in the 1950’s?

Answer 5

1) Men were the breadwinners. They played a little part in home life and spent their leisure time with workmates in pubs and working men’s clubs.
2) Women were full time housewives with sole responsibility for housework and childcare, helped by their female relatives. The limited leisure women had also spent with female kin.

Question 6

What was the name of Young and Wilmott’s 2 studies that they conducted?

Answer 6

1) 1950’s- The traditional Nuclear family and segregated conjugal roles
2) 1970’s-The symmetrical family and joint conjugal roles

Question 7

What is the view that Yong and Wilmott (1973) take on of the history of the family? And define it.

Answer 7

‘March of progress’ view in which they see the family as gradually improving for all its members, becoming more equal and democratic.

Question 8

What trend did Young and Wilmott find about conjugal roles?

Answer 8

They argue that there has been a long- term trend away from segregated conjugal roles and towards joint conjugal roles and the ‘symmetrical family’.

Question 9

Identify 3 changes which Young and Wilmott found in their 1970’s studies?

Answer 9

1) Women now go out to work, although not identical, are now much more similar.
2) Men now help with housework and childcare
3) Couples now spend their leisure time together instead of separately with workmates or female relatives.

Question 10

In their study Young and Wilmott found that symmetrical family was more common amongst which type of couples?

Answer 10

Younger couples, those who are geographically and socially isolated, and the more affluent
(better off).

Question 11

Young and Wilmott see the rise of the symmetrical nuclear family as the result of 4 major social changes that have been taken place during the past century. Which are?

Answer 11

1) Changes in women’s position, including married women going out to work
2) Geographical mobility- more couples living away from the communities in which they grew up
3) New technology and labour saving devices
4) Higher standards of living

Question 12

What did Talcott parsons say is the reason for instrumental and expressive roles?

Answer 12

These roles are based on biological differences between men and women. Women are naturally more nurturing than men.

Question 13

What is Parsons definition of the ‘Warm bath theory’?

Answer 13

The family is a refuge that men can come home to after a long day at work. It is a place they can relax and refresh themselves.

Question 14

Give a criticism of Young and Wilmotts study?

Answer 14

1) Ann Oakley criticised them as they only conducted 1200 structured interviews asking repeatedly 1 question: “Has your husband helped you in any way at all this week?”

Question 15

What year did Ann Okaley do her research on conjugal roles?

Answer 15

1974

Question 16

What was Ann Oakley’s methodology?

Answer 16

1) unstructured interviews
2) 20 working class women
3) 20 middle class women

Question 17

What were Oakley’s findings in terms of childcare?(2)

Answer 17

1) 25% of men has a high level of participation in childcare

2) Men tended to do the more pleasant aspects of childcare

Question 18

What were Oakley’s findings in terms of housework?(3)

Answer 18

1) only 15% of men had a high involvement in housework
2) There is a strong gender division of labour-men and women continue to do traditional conjugal roles.
3) Middle class families were more equal than working class families.

Question 19

How do feminist sociologists reject the ‘march of progress view’?

Answer 19

They argue that little has changed: men and women remain unequal within the family and women still do the most of the housework. They see this inequality as stemming from the fact that the family and society are male dominated r patriarchal. Women occupy a subordinate and dependent role within the family and in wider society.

Question 20

Which sociologists conducted a study called ‘The trend towards symmetry’?And in what year.

Answer 20

Jonathon Gershunny-

1994

Question 21

What did Jonathon Gershunny say impacted women working?

Answer 21

Wives who work full time outside the home do less housework than those who work part time or not all.

Question 22

What percentage of full time housewives, part time paid employment and full time paid employment did Jonathon Gershunny find?

Answer 22

1) full time housewives=83%
2) Part time paid employment =82%
3) Full time paid employment =75%

Question 23

What did Gershunny say about couples who were symmetrical?(2)

Answer 23

1) Couples whose parents had a symmetrical relationship were more likely to be symmetrical themselves
2) Couples are more symmetrical as social values are gradually changing and increasing numbers of women are working. Parental models of symmetry are key.

Question 24

What did Silver and Schor say why Conjugal roles are becoming more equal?

Answer 24

1)Housework has become commercialised:e.g. working women can now afford products such as food. This reduces the burden of housework on women.

Question 25

What is Dual burden and who states this ideology?

Answer 25

Kate Smith:

Women now work inside and outside the home

Question 26

Define emotion work and which sociologists states this?

Answer 26

Arlie Hoschild-

Women provide more emotional support and nurturing for their partners and children than men do.

Question 27

What is Triple shift and which sociologists stats this?

Answer 27

Duncombe and Marsden-

Women now work inside, in the home outside the home and do the emotion work.

Question 28

Which sociologists said that middle class couples may be equal simple because they can afford to hire working class women to clean their homes?

Answer 28

Gregson and Lowe

Question 29

What are Gender scripts and include the sociologist?

Answer 29

1) Gender scripts are the unspoken expectations or norms that set out the different gender roles that men and women adopt in heterosexual relationships.
2) Lesbian relationships do not operate on gender scripts, and therefore are more equal.

Question 30

What did Stephen Edgehill find out in his research on decision making?

Answer 30

1) He found out that men and women appear to be quite equal and symmetrical.
2) He found the main reason men were more likely to make the key decision is that they tend to make more money than their wives.
3) Therefore, when it comes to big decisions linked into big accounts of money, women tended to let their husbands have the final say.

Question 31

What did Stephen Edgehill do his research on?

Answer 31

Edgehill investigated how middle class professional men and women shared decision making.

Question 32

What were the examples which Edgehill states about who makes the decisions?

Answer 32

1) Small, unimportant decisions(e.g. dinner and clothes to buy for children) were done by the wife
2) Important decisions(e.g. where to send children to school/holidays) were done jointly.
3) very important decisions (e.g. changing jobs or moving houses/which house to buy) were done by the husband alone or jointly discussed with the husband making the final decision.

Question 33

Give a criticism towards Ann Oakley’s methodology on gender roles research?

Answer 33

Only 40 women, which is a very small number as a result it may have not been reliable and can be seen as inaccurate.

Question 34

Give 2 criticisms towards the feminist perspective of gender roles within the home

Answer 34

1) British Social Attitudes Survey (2013) found a fall in the number of people who think it it the man’s job to earn money and the women’s job to look after the home and the family:
- In 1984 45% of men and 4% of women agreed
- 2012 13% of men and 12% of women agreed
2) Different ethnic groups/religions have different perspectives