Family Theory

• Murdock argues that the woman plays the expressive role and the man plays the instrumental role
• Murdock's four functions of the family are sexual, reproductive, socialisation and economic
• A reconstituted family is where two families join together after one or both partners have divorced their previous partners
• A single person household is where someone is living alone
• An empty shell family is where the couple has no more sexual or emotional ties while they are still living together
• Living apart together is when couples live apart but still have a sexual relationship
• Fictive kin is a person who is not related to you by blood or marriage but who is considered a member of your family
• Cohabitation is when a couple lives together without being married or in a civil partnership
• Voluntary childlessness is when a couple chooses not to have children
• Parson's functional fit theory means that the family became geographically mobile to fit society
• Parsons' structural differentiation theory means that the family has lost some functions
• Parsons argues the family's functions are primary socialisation and personality stabilisation
• Marxist Engels argues the nuclear family allows property to be inherited to heirs
• Marxist Engels argues that monogamous relationships were favoured so men could know their children are biological
• Marxist Engels argues that women were glorified prostitutes because they produce heir in exchanged for economic security
• Marxist Althusser argues the family is part of the ideological state apparatus
• Marxist Althusser argues that children learns obedience for those in authority so when they grow up, they view the power of their bosses and the ruling class as natural
• Marxist Zarestky argues the family performs a cushioning effect, meaning the frustrations and alienation from work can be forgotten in the home
• Marxist Zarestky argues that the worker is less likely to complain about their working conditions or go on strike because they have to support the family
• Marxist Zarestky argues the family is a unit of consumption
• Marxist Zarestky argues advertisers urge families to keep up with the jones by consuming the latest products
• Marxist Zarestky argues that children use pester power to persuade parents to spend more
• Liberal feminist Somerville argues many feminists fail to acknowledge the progress women have made
• Liberal feminist Somerville argues although men don't completely fulfil their responsibilities, many women still want to live with a man
• Liberal feminist Somerville argues we need to adopt principled pragmatism meaning practical policies are introduced to improve equality
• Liberal feminist Wilkinson argues that the growth of the service sector and the feminisation of the workforce have led to women having more economic pwoer
• Liberal feminist Wilkinson argues that there is a genderquake, which means a change in women's attitudes
• Marxist feminist Benston argues that capitalism exploits women to reproduce and rear the future workforce for free
• Marxist feminist Benston argues women act as a reserve army of labour
• Marxist feminist Ansley argues women are takers of shit because men direct their anger from work onto women
• Radical Feminist Greer argues ‘she sees her job as making him happy, he feels that in marrying her he has done all that is necessary to keep her happy’
• Radical Feminist Greer argues mothers are blamed for problems in society and during childbirth the health of the child is seen as more important
• Radical Feminists Delphy and Leonard argue that women working has created a dual or triple burden
• Radical Feminists Delphy and Leonard argue that time at home for men is leisure and for women is work
• Radical feminist Firestone argues that women should use new reproductive technologies such as IVF to exclude men from families
• Radical feminist Greer argues in favour of matrifocal families
• The New Right argues the father provides tough love and discipline to their children
• New Right thinker Murray argues that benefits encourage single women to have children
• New Right thinker Murray argues that single mothers living off benefits creates a dependency culture
• Difference feminists argue that different women are impacted by the patriarchy in different ways