Theories of the Family

Question 1

What are George Peter Murdock’s 4 points on Functionalist views on families purpose?

Answer 1

Analysed 250 diff types of societies in his book and proposed universal functions of families in which every family in the world does these things:

• The sexual function: sexual gratification for spouses
• the reproductive function: makes new members for society
• the educational function: socialises members into shared values/norms
• economic function: provides members food and shelter

Question 2

What does Talcott Parsons argue are the two basic functions of the family?

Answer 2

• primary socialsation of children into shared values and equipping then with basic skills to go into society
• stabilisation of adult personalities (warm bath theory): mother creates warm and loving environment allowing family adults to release tensions of outside world

Suggest family provides female and males with specific roles as caregiver and homemaker

Question 3

What are some criitisms of the warm bath theory?

Answer 3

Very patriarchal-women serve man
Outdated-doesnt consider same sex/dual earners
Dark side of the family-abuse to release tension

Question 4

What is Talcott Parsons Functionalist fit on the nuclear family theory?

Answer 4

It has not awlays existed, family adapts itself to society.

Reason it exists now is to meet needs of industrail society as pre-industrial society it was largely extended families.

Family provided employment and education also security and healthcare being unit of production

After industrialisation roles performed by family are now done by society so move away from being unit of production to unit of consumption

Question 5

What do liberal feminists believe?

Answer 5

They believe equality between the sexes does exist but they fight to achieve equality through legal means. laws like the sex discrimination act (1975) are making womens lives better.

Question 6

What does the liberal Feminist Jenny Sommerville believe?

Answer 6

Feminist failed to recognisse progress women have made to equality especially in marriage. New policies should be made which provide equality in relationships, e.g many jobs are still based on idea of male breadwinner.

Question 7

What are some positives of the Liberal Feminist approach?

Answer 7

Supporting evidence that liberal feminist ideas are in society like laws and attitudes, Sommerville also recognises changes over past few decades and suggest how to make feminism more appealing.

Question 8

What are some critisms of Liberal Feminists approach?

Answer 8

Sommervilles ideas are largely based on review of other feminists. Radical feminists would disagree as it ignores men are inhernetly patriarchial. It also does not offer praticcal solution for future change,

Question 9

What is the Radical Feminists approach to society?

Answer 9

They see exploitation of women as result of men dominating society. The patriarhcy leads to subordination of women and children at home, rape and sexual assualt.

Question 10

What are the Radical Feminists Andrea Dworkins views on marriage?

Answer 10

Marriage devolped from rape as a practice and represents ownership of women (eg changing their last name)

Question 11

What are the Radical Feminists Germaine Greers views on Marriage.

Answer 11

Men beneift from marriag more than women. 3/4 of divorces are applied for by women. Motherhood is devalued by society.

Question 12

What are some positives of the Radical Feminists approach to family?

Answer 12

Greers work is very provocatuve and makes important points about women in society. There are also supporting evidence of family being patriarchail like domestic violence stats.

Question 13

What are some critisms of the Radical Feminist approach to family?

Answer 13

Too deterministic make generalisations about all men, other feminists live Liberal feminists would argue it fails to acknowledge the progress women have made.

Question 14

What are Marxists Feminists approach to the family?

Answer 14

Look at how women are exploited and how it beneifts capatalism, e.g when the man is out working women is cleaning the house (unpaid labour)

Question 15

What are the Marxist Feminists Margret Benson views on the family?

Answer 15

The unpaid labour women do in the home supports capatalist system. If man has wife and child to support he becomes bound to his wage labour/weakens the bargaining power to ensure better working conditions.

Question 16

What are Marxists Feminists Fran Ansley’s view on the family?

Answer 16

The emotional support provided by the wife is the safety valve for the husbands frustrtions of working in a capatalist system. “They are takers of shit”

Question 17

What is a positive of Marxists Feminists approach to the family?

Answer 17

Illustrates the link between capatalism and male DV and the role difference in the family and how that serves capatalism (e.g women doing unpaid labour)

Question 18

What are some critisms of Marxist Feminist views of the family?

Answer 18

Too determanistic, assumes women are passively opressed by capatalism and patriarchy, doesnt consider they do fight back agasint these opressions.

Outdated, only applies to women in nuclear familys which is becoming less common.

Question 19

What are Difference Feminists views on the family?

Answer 19

Argue we cant generalise about womens experiences as structalist feminists do. Need to consider Lesbians, different races or ethnicities, ages, scoial classes and not just traditional hetrosexual nuclear family.

Question 20

What would Black Feminists argue about the families role?

Answer 20

Structalist feminists placing source of opression on family ignores black women experiences of racial opression. They view family as positive and support and resitence agaisnt racism.

Question 21

From a survey in 1993, how many women were victims of domestic abuse?

Answer 21

1 in 10 with only 28% reported it to the police.

Question 22

What is the New Rights perspective on the Family?

Answer 22

It is a political stance that says the main reason for societys problems are single parent families and non nuclear families.

Question 23

What Sociological theory is the new right closely linked to?

Answer 23

Functionalism as they both focus on the ‘ideal family’ which is nuclear families which has clear sets of roles and helps society function.

Question 24

What are new right theorist Brenda Almond’s views on State and government policies?

Answer 24

She says they are fragmenting the family by undermining the nuclear family

laws like:
divorce reform law: as it now easier to get divorce and undermines marriage

civil partnerships: led to same sex family

tax allowences: one working parent taxed more than two discouraging women staying at home

Question 25

What are new right theorist Charles Murray’s views on welfare state?

Answer 25

He argues single parents are the ‘most important social problem of our time’ and people dependant on welfare state

Young teenage girls get pregnant to get council housing which is calls ‘perverse incentives’ as they being rewarded for undesirable behaviour

Question 26

What is the Interactionists approach to the family?

Answer 26

They say reality is socially constructed and they look at family in terms of the individual not its role in society. They also argue roles in the family are worked out and not given by society.

Question 27

What are some negatives of interactionists approach to the family?

Answer 27

It ignores wider social structure. Marxists and Feminists would argue roles are constructed in family is reflected in the way power is given in society and not negotiated.

Question 28

What is a ‘risk society’ according to Postmodernists Ulrich Bech?

Answer 28

Were traditon has less influence and people have choice,

people now live in negotiated families which change based on needs of members.

While more equal they are less stable e.g high divorce rates.

Question 29

What does Postmodernists Anthony Giddens argue about family and relationships in todays society?

Answer 29

More choice/equality has transformed family. Contraception has allowed sex to be for intamacy rather than reproduction and feminism allowed women to enter the workplace and become more equal in relationships.

Question 30

What is a ‘Pure relationship’ according to Postmodernists Anthony Giddens?

Answer 30

Where couples deine their relationships based on love, happiness and sexual attraction. Since they are built on feelings they are unstable unlike traditonal marriages.

Question 31

What is a negative of postmodernists approach to the family?

Answer 31

Hard to generalise, idea of ‘pure relationship’ won’t apply to some cultures with arranged marriages or less equality and strict gender roles

Question 32

What is a positive of postmodernists approach to the family?

Answer 32

Offers up to date explanation of family life and accounts for arrnagemnets people have e.g dual earner families.

Question 33

What is the personal life perspective concept of relationships beyond ties of blood and marriage

Answer 33

Family like structures/relationships can be formed by many things

• Friends or pets that are seen as part of the family
• figurative “auntie/uncle” who is actually parents friend
• gay and lesbian chosen families
• relationships with dead families

Question 34

What does my boy Engles say about family?

Answer 34

Nuclear family answered the problem of trying to pass private property down to legitimate heirs

Men knew only their wife’s had their children and so could ensure their wealth would be passed on and not shared with lower classes

Question 35

What does my boy Engles say about women’s postion in bourgeoise family?

Answer 35

Opressed women cause:

• women’s primary role is to produce children
• females economically dependent on husbands

Engles argued women seem as “glorified prostitutes” only sexual function expected and had to remain faithful to husband

Question 36

What does Althusser argue about capitalism and family?

Answer 36

Family performs key ideological functions for capitalism

Capitalist ideology justifies inequality and makes ppl accept it as fair and these values have to be passed down through family and primary socialisation for capitalism to survive

Eg obedience to parents reflected in obedience to bourgeoise

Question 37

What does fletcher say about functional fit of nuclear family and how Institution grew out of it

Answer 37

Unlike Parsons fletcher doesn’t see welfare state as taking away functions rather it specialises them into institutions allows the family to function and carry on their roles of primary socialisation

Eg NHS

Question 38

What does Gittens say about the dark side of the family and when was marital rape become illegal

Answer 38

Gittens says home is most dangerous in pace in modern society and person is more likely to be attacked in home than in street

Marital rape separate criminal offence in 1991 and 1 in 7 women raped by husbands