Changing family patterns

• Changes in family and household patterns in the past 40-50 years


  • The number of traditional nuclear family households has fallen
  • Divorce rates have increased
  • There are fewer first marriages, but more re-marriages
  • People are marrying later in life
  • More couples are cohabiting
  • Same-sex relationships can be legally recognised
  • Women are having fewer children and having them later
  • There are more births outside marriage
  • There are more lone-parent families
  • More people live alone
  • There are more stepfamilies, and more couples without children
• These changes are contributing to greater family diversity
• Divorce is a major cause of changing family patterns and greater family diversity
• Divorce


  The legal termination of a marriage
• Since the 1960s, there has been a great increase in the number of divorces in the United Kingdom
• The number of divorces doubled between 1961 and 1969, and doubled again by 1972
• The upward trend continued, peaking in 1993 at 165,000
• The number of divorces has fallen somewhat since the 1990s, but still stood at 118,000 in 2012 - about six times higher than in 1961
• About 10% of all marriages will end in divorce
• Reason for the fall in the number of divorces since the 1990s

  Fewer people are marrying in the first place and are choosing to cohabit instead
• About 65% of petitions (applications) for divorce now come from women, in contrast to only 37% in 1946
• The commonest reason for a woman to be granted a divorce is the unreasonable behaviour of her husband
• Couples whose marriages are at greatest risk of divorce

  • Those who marry young
  • Have a child before they marry or cohabit
  • Where one or both partners have been married before
• Divorce Law Reform Act (1969)


  The idea of a matrimonial offence or 'guilty party' was abolished, making 'irretrievable breakdown' of marriage the sole ground for divorce
• Changes in the law have given people the freedom to divorce more easily, but this does not in itself explain the rise in divorce rates
• Stigma


  The negative label, social disapproval or shame attached to a person, action or relationship
• An important change since the 1960s has been the rapid decline in the stigma attached to divorce
• Secularisation


  The decline in the influence of religion in society
• Secularisation means the traditional opposition of the churches to divorce carries less weight in society
• Romantic love ideology


  The belief that marriage should be based solely on love, and that for each individual there is a Mr or Miss Right out there
• Higher expectations of marriage today make couples less willing to tolerate an unhappy marriage
• Marriage is increasingly viewed as a relationship in which individuals seek personal fulfilment, and this encourages couples to divorce if they do not find it
• Women's increased financial independence has made them less financially dependent on their husbands and therefore freer to end an unsatisfactory marriage
• Feminists argue that married women today bear a dual burden of paid work and domestic labour, creating a new source of conflict between husbands and wives
• Modernity and individualisation have made relationships more fragile, as individuals become unwilling to remain with a partner if the relationship fails to deliver personal fulfilment
• Sociological views on the effects of a high divorce rate

  • The New Right see it as undesirable because it undermines marriage and the traditional nuclear family
  • Feminists see it as desirable because it shows women breaking free from patriarchal oppression
  • Postmodernists and the individualisation thesis see it as showing individuals' freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs
• Pursuit of self-interest is likely to pull spouses apart
• High divorce rate


  The meaning of
• Views on the effects of today's high divorce rate

  • The New Right see it as undesirable because it undermines marriage and the traditional nuclear family, which they regard as vital to social stability
  • Feminists see it as desirable because it shows that women are breaking free from the oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family
  • Postmodernists and the individualisation thesis see it as showing that individuals now have the freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs
• The New Right believe a high divorce rate creates a growing underclass of welfare-dependent female lone parents who are a burden on the state and it leaves boys without the adult male role model they need. They believe it also results in poorer health and educational outcomes for children
• Rationalists argue that a high divorce rate is not necessarily a threat to marriage as a social institution, but simply the result of people's higher expectations of marriage today. The high rate of re-marriage shows people's continuing commitment to the idea of marriage
• The personal life perspective accepts that divorce can cause problems, such as financial difficulties (especially for women) and lack of daily contact between children and non-resident parents. However, they argue that divorce has become normalised and that family life can adapt to it without disintegrating
• The impact of divorce on children can be found at www.sociologyuk.net
• Marriage rates are at their lowest since the 1920s
• In 2012, there were 175,000 first marriages for both partners - less than half the number for 1970
• In 2012, one third of all marriages were re-marriages for one or both partners
• The average age of first marriage rose by seven years between 1971 and 2012, when it stood at 32 years for men and 30 for women
• In 1981, 60% of weddings were conducted with religious ceremonies, but by 2012 this had fallen to 30%
• Reasons for a fall in the number of first marriages

  • Changing attitudes to marriage - there is less pressure to marry and more freedom for individuals to choose the type of relationship they want
  • Secularisation - the churches' declining influence means people feel freer to choose not to marry
  • Declining stigma attached to alternatives to marriage - cohabitation, remaining single, and having children outside marriage are all now widely regarded as acceptable
  • Changes in the position of women - with better educational and career prospects, many women are now less economically dependent on men
  • Fear of divorce - with the rising divorce rate, some may be put off marrying because they see the increased likelihood of marriage ending in divorce
• Remarriages have increased due to the rise in the number of divorces