The Role of Couples in the Family

Question 1

Which functionalist believe men and women are equal but different?

Answer 1

Parsons (1955)

Question 2

What did Parsons mean by saying men and women are equal but different?

Answer 2

Men and women have clearly defined roles. The man is the instrumental leader, meaning he provides for his family by acting as a breadwinner. The women is the expressive leader, meaning she is responsible for providing the families domestic and emotional needs.

Question 3

Why do men and women have different roles in the eyes of Parsons?

Answer 3

Men and women are biologically programmed to take on roles.

Question 4

How are men biologically prepared for his role?

Answer 4

Men are historically the providers

Question 5

How are women biologically prepared for her role?

Answer 5

Women have maternal instincts making them better suited for care giving.

Question 6

Evaluation of Parsons and the functionalist perspective on the roles of couples?

Answer 6

• presumptuous that all families are nuclear families, there are more single parent and same sex families
• the idea men and women perform different roles is outdated, men and women swap roles more frequently now

Question 7

Which sociologist believed couples can adopt different approaches to their conjugal roles?

Answer 7

Bott (1957)

Question 8

What are the two different types of conjugal roles according?

Answer 8

• joint

- segregated

Question 9

Explain couples that perform segregated conjugal roles?

Answer 9

Couples see their roles to be completely separate - similar to Parsons.

Question 10

Explain couples that perform join conjugal roles?

Answer 10

Couples share jobs. This can include domestic chores and support financially. Women are likely to be in paid employment and men are likely to perform jobs around the house. More likely to spend their leisure time together too.

Question 11

What type of conjugal roles were performed by working class families?

Answer 11

Segregated conjugal roles

Question 12

Evaluation of the joint and segregated conjugal roles theory?

Answer 12

• feminists disagree, they believe that joint conjugal roles don’t exist, instead women have a dual burden
• fails to consider the man his more power in segregated roles

Question 13

Which sociologist theorised the March of Progress view about the role of couples?

Answer 13

Young and Willmott (1973)

Question 14

What do Young and Willmott describe the family as today (March of Progress)?

Answer 14

Symmetrical

Question 15

Men that are more hands on as parents are described as what (March of Progress)?

Answer 15

The new man

Question 16

What 4 reasons do Young and Willmott give for a more symmetrical family (March of Progress view on couples)?

Answer 16

• geographical mobility
• educational opportunities for women
• higher standards of living
• household technologies

Question 17

How has geographical mobility made the family more symmetrical (March of Progress view on couples)?

Answer 17

Families need to travel further and further for work. This means that families now do not live as close to family relatives as they did. This means the couple is more dependent on one another for support.

Question 18

How has educational opportunities for women made the family more symmetrical (March of Progress view on couples)?

Answer 18

With a higher education for women, women are pursuing careers of their own. Therefore men have to help out more with housework and childcare.

Question 19

How has a higher standard of living made the family more symmetrical (March of Progress view on couples)?

Answer 19

Families want to spend more money on luxury goods such as; cars, houses, technology and material goods. For families to afford this, they need two sources of income meaning both the man and women will be in paid employment

Question 20

How has household technology made the family more symmetrical (March of Progress view on couples )?

Answer 20

Technology has made domestic labour quicker and more efficient. Before, labour required a specific skill set which men didn’t have. Now, with technology, both the man and the women can perform domestic labour jobs easily

Question 21

Evaluation of the March of Progress Theory view on couples?

Answer 21

• only refers to the nuclear family, doesn’t explain how non nuclear families split up domestic labour
• ignores the working class
• feminists argue that the women still does the majority of the house work, dual burden

Question 22

What 3 areas do feminists believe about the roles of couples in the family?

Answer 22

• women still do most of the housework
• women still do most of the childcare
• women get less leisure time to themselves.

Question 23

What does Oakley (1974) believe about women still doing most of the housework?

Answer 23

Despite change since the 1980s, women still see domestic labour as a full time job which is time consuming and somewhat demeaning

Question 24

What did the British Social Attitudes Study (2012) tell us about women still doing most of the housework?

Answer 24

Challenged the theory of the “new man”. Even with both adults in full time employment, men did 8 hours of housework, and women did 13 hours of housework on average.

Question 25

What do Warde and Hetherington (1993) believe about women doing most of the housework?

Answer 25

Couples tend to “sex-type” their chores depending on whether they were masculine or feminine. Women more likely to do housework whilst men are more likely to to do DIY and clean the car

Question 26

Evaluation of of the claim that women still do most of the housework?

Answer 26

• ignore the fact women may enjoy doing the housework

- men are more suited to doing DIY, they are on average stronger.

Question 27

What does Hoschchild (1989) believe about women doing most of the housework?

Answer 27

Coined the term “dual-burden”. Women are expected to contribute financially as well domestically

Question 28

What do Ferri and Smith (1996) believe about women doing most of the childcare?

Answer 28

Found that in only 4% of families, men are the primary giver, 96% women are. Implies little has changed through the expectation of women being the primary caregiver.

Question 29

What do Dex and Ward (2007) find about women doing most of the childcare?

Answer 29

78% of fathers regularly played with their children, however when their child is sick, 1% stepped in to provide care

Question 30

What do Braun et al (2011) find about women doing most of the childcare?

Answer 30

Men continue to see themselves As the provider for the family. In a study of 70 men, only 3 saw themselves as the main care giver. Meaning the other 67 saw themselves to help out the women when needed.

Question 31

What do Duncombe and Marsden (1995) believe about women doing most of the housework?

Answer 31

Describe something as the triple shift. Women are expected to take responsibility for paid work, domestic work, and then the emotional support for her family.

Question 32

Evaluation of the claim that women doing most of the childcare?

Answer 32

• practically it is more sensible for women do to more of the childcare as they do less hours
• women may prefer to do more of the childcare as they have more of an emotional bond with their child

Question 33

What does Southerton (2011) believe about women having less leisure time than men?

Answer 33

Found that women had the responsibility for organising family events. In terms of leisure time, men have leisure time that is strictly their own whereas women have leisure time that includes the plans of her children

Question 34

Evaluation of the claim that women have less leisure time than men?

Answer 34

• men tend to work longer hours, meaning they deserve uninterrupted hours
• services such as childminding allows women to have time to herself

Question 35

What does the cultural perspective seek to understand about the roles of couples?

Answer 35

The seek to understand changes in social attitudes and behaviour over time

Question 36

Evidence from the cultural perspective to suggest there is a movement towards greater equality?

Answer 36

Gershuny (1994) found that couples whose parents had an equal relationship were more likely to be equal themselves. Social attitudes are changing over time

Question 37

Evidence from the cultural perspective to suggest inequality continues to exist?

Answer 37

Dunno (1999) found that lesbian coupes were more likely to be in a more equal relationship than their straight peers

Question 38

What does the material perspective seek to understand about the roles of couples?

Answer 38

They are interested in the relationship between the earning power of the man and the impact this has on equality

Question 39

Evidence from the material perspective to suggest there is a movement towards greater equality?

Answer 39

Kan (2001) found that every extra £10,000 more a women works, they do 2 hours less housework a week
Sullivan (2000) found that as women access full time employment, their domestic responsibilities reduce.

Question 40

Evidence from the material perspective to suggest inequality continues to exist?

Answer 40

Ramos (2003) found that in couples where the women was the breadwinner, and the man was unemployed, they still do 50/50 of the housework
Arber and Ginn (1995) found that middle class families often spend money on cleaners and nannies meaning these families are not sharing responsibility, instead outsourcing it

Question 41

What 5 theories are there into the role of coupes in nuclear families?

Answer 41

• functionalist perspective
• march of progress perspective
• feminist perspective
• cultural perspective
• materialistic perspective

Question 42

What 2 theories are there under the distribution theory?

Answer 42

• distribution theory

- decision making

Question 43

What 2 theories are there that explain domestic violence?

Answer 43

• radical feminism

- materialistic perspective

Question 44

Which feminist sociologists/theories talk about women doing most of the housework?

Answer 44

• Oakley (1974)
• British Social Attitudes Survey (2012)
• Warde and Hetherington (1983)
• Hoschschild (1989)

Question 45

Which feminist sociologists talk about women doing most of the childcare?

Answer 45

• Ferri and Smith (1996)
• Dex and Ward (2007)
• Braun et al (2011)
• Duncombe and Marsden (1995)

Question 46

Which feminist sociologists talk about women having little leisure time to themselves?

Answer 46

-Southerton (2011)

Question 47

Which 4 studies concern over the division of childcare in the family?

Answer 47

• research into 70 fathers, only 3 acted as the main care giver
• 4% of men are primary care givers
• triple shift
• 78% of men play with their children, 1% step into provide care when sick

Question 48

Which 4 studies are concerned with the division of domestic labour in the family?

Answer 48

• men do 8 hours of housework, women do 13 hours
• even since 1980s, women still see domestic labour as a full time job
• couples sex type their chores
• dual burden