Topic 4 : Contemporary Perspectives On The Role Of The Family Flashcards
What is modernism?
Assumes that the social world is fixed and can be studied by looking at rigid structures
What is Postmodernism?
Assumes that traditional structures have broken down and that society is more fluid and is characterised by choice, variety and diversity
PM suggest that we cannot talk about one, hegemonic type of family, but must talk about the diverse nature of families and the fact that families have become fragmented
What is a postmodern society characterised by?
Diversity and fragmentation (shift from a hegemonic culture to a diversity of subcultures - creation of identity)
Rapid social change (new technology that dissolves barriers of time and space - making life less predictable)
Giddens: the pure relationship
Families are more diverse due to the increased ‘reflexivity’ = people can now choose their own path in life
Couples define their own relationships rather than have them forced upon them. This creates pure relationships based on love and care as opposed to tradition and duty.
= people now use their reflexivity (the ability to reflect upon your life and make choices about the best way forward)
How has reflexivity led to plastic sexuality?
Reflexivity made people question the idea of marriage and the reasons behind it. Led to plastic sexuality - sex becomes leisure pursuit rather than having it to have children
Giddens - confluent love
Love which only lasts as long as it provides satisfaction
Why does Giddens see reflexivity as key?
People can now construct their own identities, and not as confined by fixed social structures(like functionalism and Marxism argue)
Reflexivity extends into the creation of self identity. People can now choose who they want to be, and not stuck with the roles into which they were born or told to follow from tradition
Evaluation of Giddens (AO3)
Strengths:
His theory helps explain the increasing rate of divorce and relationship breakdown and the greater variety of family forms as people are now searching for the pure relationship
His theory also explains why marriage rates remain popular
Weaknesses:
Jamieson (fem) - little evidence that the pure relationship has become widespread - gender inequalities make it difficult for women to gain equality in sexual relationships
He ignores wider structures such as patriarchy
Beck and Beck-Gernsheim on Giddens
Disagree with Giddens:
They name Giddens’ ‘late modernity’ as the ‘second modernity’
Rather than it coming around due to reflexivity, they say its due to individualisation
Individualisation - beck
Individuals are expected to make their own decisions rather than relying on tradition and social norms
Beck: risk society
We now live in a risk society where tradition has less influence and people have more choice
As a result we are more aware of risk because having choice means we spend more time calculating the risks and rewards of our decisions
Beck: the negotiated family
The traditional patriarchal family has been undermined by two trends:
- Greater gender equality
- Greater individualism
These trends have led to the negotiated family
Negotiated family does not conform to the traditional family norm, bit vary according to the wishes of their family members - they enter a relationship on an equal basis
However, the negotiated family may be more equal, but it is less stable, because it is characterised by greater equality
= leads to more lone parent families, one person households, remarriages etc.
Evaluation of Beck (AO3)
Strengths:
- May be right to suggest that greater choice over relationships can create problems in making them work = high divorce rates
Weaknesses:
- May = criticises the individualisation thesis for exaggerating the decline of traditional norms and values
= eg class differences still shape family life and marriage (Mx)
= eg gender inequality = do women really have a choice (Fem)
- Smart - questions the idea of individualisation = people are still connected to each other in various ways (connectedness thesis)
Judith Stacey (PM) general view on the family
- changes in family types due to the movement away from the dominant NF (agreeing with Beck and Giddens)
- elements of traditional family life might be preserved but they often exist alongside new features
Stacey: Postmodern Families
- women have more freedom to shape their family to meet needs and free themselves from patriarchy
- case study in Silicon Valley - she found that women rather than men are the driving force behind changes in the family
- she discovered that many women rejected the traditional housewife role and had chooses varied life paths (education, career, divorce etc)
- Stacey identified a new type of family : “the divorce extended family”
- members are connected by divorce rather than marriage (eg former in-laws, or former husband’s new partners)
Judith Stacey - case study (AO2)
Pam and Dotty
Pam:
- unhappy marriage
- got divorced
- went to uni and pursued a career
- remarried into an egalitarian relationship
- unconvential family network - formed a close relationship with her ex-husband’s new partner
Dotty:
- unhappy marriage (victim of DV)
- got divorced
- decided to take him back after he had a serious health issue
- husband had to help out more
Judith Stacey - gay and lesbian couples
1980s - rise in children being looked after by gay and lesbian couples
This is a positive thing = children becoming tolerant of families who are different - this is crucial in a world of increasing family diversity
Evaluation of Stacey (AO3)
Strengths:
- shows that there is greater diversity and unlikely that we will ever move back to the NF being dominant
Weaknesses:
- exaggerates the extent of change
- (Functionalist and NR argue) the belief that the traditional family is the best family form remains strong
- feminists = women are still oppressed ‘ don’t have freedom and choice
Hareven - life course analysis
There is no point in talking about fixed families as there is flexibility throughout people’s lives - one person could live in several different types of families and households
It considers individual choice rather than just how families are shaped by wider society
Outline and explain two ways in which postmodernists argue that increase choice for individuals has affected patterns of family life
(3 points)
- Beck - negotiated family
- Giddens - pure relationship
- Stacey - divorce extended family
Smart and May v Beck
They criticise Beck’s individualisation thesis
May - he exaggerates the decline of traditional norms and values
(EG class differences and gender inequality shape family life)
Smart - we are still connected (connectedness thesis)
Personal life perspective - Smart and May
- May = personal relationships are not confined to families
- Smart = we should understand the meanings that people give to these relationships
(Interpretative approach)
The personal life perspective VS structural theories
Criticise functionalism, Marxism and feminism as they tend to assume that the NF is the dominant family type
Personal life perspective is strongly influenced by interaction it’s ideas = understanding meanings people give to relationships
Main features of personal life (smart)
- people may try to shape their personal life, but they cannot do what they want
- people’s agency is always constrained by their relationships with other people
- people now create ‘families of choice’ = families of people we feel closest to whether they are family or not
Personal life perspective on Beck and Giddens
Smart and May agree that there is now more family diversity, but disagree with Beck and Giddens’ explanation of it
Criticise individualisation thesis:
1. Exaggerates how much choice people have about family relationships today - traditions still influential
2. Wrongly sees people as having complete agency from social structures - ignores importance of class inequality and patriarchal gender norms in limiting and shaping our relationship choices
May criticises their view as not everyone has the same ability to exercise choice about relationships
The connectedness thesis
Smart:
We live within networks of existing relationships, and these influence our choices in relationships
EG Finch and Mason - there is an obligation to relatives. This challenges the notion of the pure relationship as people cannot always put their self interest first
Connectedness thesis : class and gender
Class and gender limit our choices about the relationships and families we can create for ourselves
EG
After a divorce, women usually keep child = may limit opportunity to form new relationships. Men are more free
Men are generally paid better than women = greater freedom and choice in relationships
Personal life perspective summary
Does NOT see increased diversity as a result of greater freedom of choice as Beck and Giddens do
Emphasises the importance of social structures in shaping the freedoms many people now have to create more types of families
Thus, although there is a trend towards greater choice and diversity, the personal life perspective emphasises the continuing importance of structural factors such as patriarchy and class inequality in restricting people’s choices and shaping their lives
Evaluation of Smart (AO3)
Strengths:
Demonstrates the limitations of theories of individualisation such as Beck and Giddens
Weaknesses:
Relatively narrow focus of research based approach can lose sight of wider patterns of social change - lacks a clear focus as a result
Morgan - family practices
Adds to the life course analysis (Haraven) by highlighting how different families have different practices depending on the attitudes and values that individuals hold
eg some individuals will have traditionalist views while others will be more liberal / some families will be more child centred than others
