Family diversity

• The modern nuclear family

  They perform 2 irreducible functions:

  1. The primary socialisation of children

  2. The stabilisation of the adult personalities e.g. emotional stability
• The new right and the family- critical

  Lone parent families are a BAD thing

  Lone mothers cannot discipline their children properly

  Lone parent families leave boys without an adult male role model, resulting in educational failure, delinquency and social instability.
• Zaretsky on family


  The family apparently provides a haven from the harsh, exploitative world of capitalism in which workers can be themselves and have a private life. However, this is largely an illusion- the family 'simply cannot meet the pressures of being the only refuge in a brutal society'. It might cushion the effect of capitalism but it cannot compensate for the general misery it causes
• Criticisms of Marxist perspective

  Feminists argue that there is a focus on class which underestimates the importance of gender inequalities

  Postmodernists- ignore diversity

  Functionalists- ignores the real benefits life offers.
• Feminist view on the family- Liberal

  Liberal feminists= Reformists- gradual change to create equal rights progress, Optimistic view, gender equality can be achieved by 1. political and legal change 2. social and cultural change. The conclusion= The present is an improvement of the past. Everyone has benefitted from the changes. Women from more equality both inside and outside the home. Men have gained from involvement of children and parents. Children have gained from the increased attention they get from smaller families and better standard of living when both parents work
• Feminist view on the family- Marxism

  The main problem remains to be capitalism

  1. It shows that there is equality for some- mostly MC women 'yummy mummys'

  Liberal feminists are seen as overly optimistic. They have a rather cosy view which reflects the experience of white MC professionals, who have good and progressive employers (who don't need to work at all due to wealthy partners

  And the money to pay for cleaners, nannies and labour saving devises, WC women on the other hand continue to face disadvantages- the triple shift
• 3 main factors of Marxist feminists

  1. The production and maintenance of labour power for free- Margaret Bensten- the wife produces new workers by socialising the children to get used to following orders and accept the class and patriarchal hierarchies of society-wives also maintain present workers by attending to their husbands need

  -The capitalist benefit by getting 2 workers for the price of 1- the women's labour is unpaid

  2. Safety valve for capitalism- Fran Ansley 1972 "When wives play their traditional role of takers of shit, they absorb their husbands legitimate anger and frustration at their own powerlessness and opression with every worker provided with a sponge to soak up his personality with a sponge to soak up his possible revolutionary ire, the bosses rest more secure.

  3. Reserve army of labour-they are taken on when extra workers are needed- when no longer required they can return to their primary role of unpaid domestic labour.
• Who is most likely to get divorced

  1. Age- the younger you get married, the more likely: immaturity, financial problems

  2. Class- wc more likely due to financial problems

  3. Ethnicity- Some ethnic minorities are far less likely to get divorced, cultural values against it, religion plays a big part.

  4. Religion- most religions are anti divorce

  5. Status differences- if the difference is big like muslim and christian, more likely to split

  6. Family experience- if parents divorce, kids are more likely to too.
• Other partnerships and non partnerships

  1. Marriage and cohabitation- people less likely to get married if so they will get married later (32 men and 30 women). 30% of marriages are remarriages. Cohabitation- an unmarried couple in a sexual relationship- 80% of people in first marriages cohabit before. Nearly half of all births are outside marriage. Increase in Cohabitation:

  Yes - Andre Bejin 1985​

  Cohabitation is often a conscious attempt to create a more personally negotiated and equal relationship than conventional patriarchal marriage​

  ​

  Shelton and John 1993​

  Women who cohabit do less housework than their married counterparts​

  
  

  No - Robert Chester 1985​

  Cohabitation is part of the process of getting married, a temporary phase, a 'trial marriage'​

  ​

  Try before you buy!​

  ​

  Coast 2006 ​

  75% of cohabiting couples say they expect to marry each other​​

  2. Increase of same sex relationships ​

  Today approximately 5-7% of the population have same sex relationships​

  (Stonewall 2008)

  1970s- casual relationships and promiscuity

  2000s- stable relationships and monogamy

  So a trend towards more stable relationships similar to those dominant among heterosexuals​

  Einasdottir notes that while many gays and lesbians welcome having their partnerships legally recognized others fear that it may limit the flexibility and negotiability of their relationships. (They want something different)

  3. One person households

  There has been a big increase in the number of people living alone.​

  ​In 2013​

  Almost 30% of households​

  (6.8 million people)​

  3 times the amount of 1961​

  40% are pensioners

  Reasons for increase= divorce rates increasing, creative singlehood, later marriage and living apart together

  4. Childbearing

  The statistics​

  47% of children are born outside marriage​

  Women are having children later (28.1 years 2012)​

  Women are having fewer children 1.94 in 2010 (1964 - 2.95) 2001 (1.63)​

  More women are remaining childless (1/4 of those born in 1973 by the age of 45)​

  ​

  The reasons​

  Decline in stigma ( only 28% of 25-34 year olds think marriage should come before parenthood)​

  Women have more options (such as a career)

  5. Lone parenthood

  A big growth (Now 24% of all families with dependent children)​

  90% headed by women (1. Due to cultural views that women by nature are better suited to an 'expressive' role. 2. Due to courts being more likely to award custody to mothers)​

  Majority are now never married mothers​

  Children in LPF's are twice as likely to be in poverty than children in two parent families

  Increase in divorce and separation​

  Increase in never married women having children​

  Decline in stigma​

  Influence of feminism​

  More financial independence (Work or benefits)

  6. Stepfamiles

  Reconstituted​

  10% of all families with children​

  Most have children from the woman's previous relationship​

  Greater risk of poverty​

  Divided loyalties

  7. Ethnic differences

  Black families

  More LPFs​

  51%​

  Reasons​

  Slavery hang over?​

  High male unemployment and poverty?​

  High value place on independence by black women (Mirza)​

  Figures are misleading - Many apparently LPMs ate actually LATs! (Reynolds)

  Asian families

  Larger families​

  More Efs​

  (Important source of support when newly arrived - Ballard)​

  More religious​

  Less divorce
• The extended family today

  Classic extended family almost disappeared (Charles 2008 Swansea)​

  Dispersed extended family has taken over (Geographically separated)​

  Chamberlain 1999 (Caribbean families) DEFs continue to provide support. Calls them 'multiple nuclear families' - close and frequent contact between siblings, uncles aunts and cousins.​

  Bell 1968 Swansea. MC =Financial, WC =Domestic support​

  Brannen 2003 'Beanpole families' Continued close relationships between mother and daughter but decline in both support and contact between siblings​

  Obligations to relatives remain but more is expected of females eg looking after elderly relatives​

  Reciprocity is seen as important so there are no feelings of indebtedness​

  Conclusion= The EF continues to play an important role today for practical, emotional and financial support.
• Late Modernism and increased diversity

  Some sociologists argue that late modernity has led to increased diversity: Some say its significant and positive, some say its not very significant and some say that its significant and negative.

  The Rapporports 1982 argue that in later modern society we have moved away from the traditional nuclear family as the dominant type to a range of different types- this is a positive outcome of more pluralistic society reflecting a greater freedom of choice.

  Organisational diversity

  Cultural diversity: multicultural society, Most EM's more likely to be in position orientated families whilst South Asian families are more likely to be extended. Caribbean families are more likely to be SPF

  Class diversity: WC= Position orientated, MC= person orientated- upper MC have nannies etc.

  Life stages: Different families have different experiences at different stages of life cycle.

  Generational diversity: Older generations have more traditional moral values- more conservative.
• Family types- organisational diversity

  -traditional nuclear family

  -living apart together

  -single parent families

  - beanpole family

  -symmetrical family

  -step/reconstituted family

  -Extended family

  -chosen families

  -polyamory

  -gay and lesbian couples
• The new right perspective on family diversity

  They say that there is 1 correct type of family- the conservative patriarchal nuclear family with a breadwinner husband and a homemaker wife. This is seen as natural and based on biological differences between men and women. Family diversity has caused so many social problems. LPF's are a particular problem as they cannot discipline their children. The lack of an adult male role model leads so educational failure, delinquency and social instability. They are a burden on the welfare state.
• Benson 2006- Cohabitation vs marriage

  This supports Murray

  -He found that the main cause of LPF's is the collapse of relationships between cohabiting couples

  -Analysis of data on the parents of 15,000 babies

  -Over the first 3 years of the babies life the parents were more likely to break up if they were cohabiting (20%) than if they were married (6%)

  -Marriage is more stable as it requires a deliberate commitment to each other, cohabitation allows partners to avoid commitment and responsibility
• Stacy 1998 - Postmodern families

  Stacy studied postmodern families in silicon valley, California using life-history interviews to construct case studies. She found women to be the main agents of change with many of them rejecting the traditional housewife-mother role. They had worked, returned to education as adults ,improved their job prospects, divorced and re-married, often creating new types of families that better suited their needs.
• The divorce extended family

  Connected by divorce rather than marriage!​

  Key members are usually female and may include former in-laws such as the mother and daughter in-law, or a mans ex wife and his new partner.​

  This shows that postmodern families are diverse and their shape depends on the active choices people make about how to live their lives​
• Giddens - Pure Relationships

  Family and marriage has been transformed by greater choice and more equal relationships. Contraception has allowed sex and intimacy rather than reproduction to be the main reason for the relationship's existence. And women have gained greater independence as a result of feminism​

  Couples are now free to define their relationship themselves rather than act out roles that have been defined in advance by law or custom. (They don't have to marry or even live together)​

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  Relationships are pure in that they exist solely to meet each partners needs.​

  Couples stay together because of love or sexual attraction not out of a sense of duty or for the 'sake of the children'.​

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  Relationships become part of the process of 'self-discovery' or 'self-identity'. Trying different relationships becomes a way of establishing 'who we are'​

  Choice however comes with instability - a relationship can be ended at will by any partner.
• Beck - Risk society and the negotiated family

  Beck has a similar view to Giddens.​

  We now live in a 'risk society' where tradition has less influence and we have more choice ​

  Greater gender equality and individualism has lead to​

  Negotiated families​

  These do not conform to traditional norms but vary according to the wishes and expectations of their members - they negotiate to get the best deal for themselves but enter the relationship on an equal footing
• The zombie family


  It appears to be alive but it is really dead​​People look to it to provide a haven of security in an insecure world but today's family can't provide this because of its own instability