changing family patterns

• What is one change in family patterns observed recently?

  Increase in divorce
• What has declined in family patterns?

  First marriages
• What is the trend regarding the age of marriage?

  Later age of marriage
• What has increased alongside divorce rates?

  Remarriages
• What family pattern has seen an increase?

  Cohabitation
• What has declined in terms of family patterns?

  Childbearing
• What is a reason for changes in family patterns?

  Changing social attitudes
• How has secularisation affected family patterns?

  It reduces traditional opposition to divorce
• What change in women's position has influenced family patterns?

  Improved economic position of women
• What significant change occurred in divorce law in 1969?

  No guilty party needed for divorce
• What does the decline in divorce rates reflect?

  Decrease in marriages
• What does Sue Sharpe suggest about women's priorities?

  Women focus on careers first
• What is a reason for the increase in single parent families?

  Easier access to divorce
• Why are women more likely to be single parents?

  Courts favor women for custody
• What do the New Right argue about single parents?

  Too easy to become single parents
• How do feminists view single parent families?

  Support independence from men
• What do postmodernists believe about single parent families?

  Result of freedom of choice
• How do Black Caribbean and Black African families differ in structure?

  Higher proportion of single parent households
• What does Heidi Safia Mirza argue about single parent families?

  Reflects high value on independence
• What is the significance of grandparents in modern families?

  Increasingly relied upon for childcare
• What percentage of single parent families are headed by women?

  Nearly 90%
• What is a significant factor in the increase of single parent families?

  Declining stigma around single parenthood
• What is the relationship between cohabitation and childbearing?

  Declining stigma leads to more children born outside marriage
• What does the term 'confluent love' refer to?

  Intimate relationships based on mutual satisfaction
• What is the trend regarding the number of children born outside marriage?

  Nearly half of all children
• What is the significance of the 19th century divorce laws?

  Divorce was difficult, especially for women
• What does the term 'individualisation' refer to in family patterns?

  Focus on personal satisfaction in relationships
• What is the trend regarding the average age of mothers?

  Increasing over the years
• What is the trend in divorce rates in the UK?

  The divorce rate peaked in 1993 and is now at its lowest since 1971
• Why has the divorce rate changed over time in the UK?

  Changes in the law, declining stigma, secularisation, and changes in the position of women
• What was the impact of the 1969 Divorce Reform Act in the UK?

  It made divorce easier to obtain and produced a doubling of the divorce rate
• How has the stigma around divorce changed in the UK?

  As stigma declines, divorce becomes more socially acceptable and couples are more willing to use it
• How has the average age of mothers in the UK changed over time?

  The average age of mothers has increased from 26.4 in 1975 to 30.5 in 2017
• What percentage of children in the UK are born outside of marriage?

  Nearly half
• Why are women more likely to be single parents in the UK?

  Courts are more likely to give custody to women, men are less likely to give up work, and society views women as primary caregivers
• What percentage of families in the UK are single parent families?

  14.9%
• How do the family patterns of different ethnic groups in the UK differ?

  Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian families are less likely to be single parent families, while black Caribbean and black African families have a higher proportion of single parent households
• How have extended families changed in the UK?

  Classic extended families have largely been replaced, but they are still an important source of practical and emotional support
• What is a 'beanpole' family?

  A family that is 'long' because people live longer and 'thin' because fewer siblings are born
• How do the New Right and Feminists view single parent families differently?

  The New Right argue single parents cannot adequately socialize their children, while Feminists support single women's independence from men