Functionalist Views

• Everyone has a function in the family
• Father is the breadwinner mother does the housework and looks after the children
• Traditional family type - male and female
• Functions: reproduction, economic, socialisation
• Functionalists believe that the nuclear family is the key institution in society. This is because it performs a number of essential functions for individuals in society.
• Food - the nuclear family meets the needs of food by the breadwinner working and making money to buy the food. Then the female is likely to cook the food and prepare it so the rest of the family can eat a nutritious meal.
• Clothing - the worker/workers in the family will work to make money that is needed to buy clothes that fit for the rest of the family.
• Shelter - the worker/workers in the family will work to make money to be able to buy and pay for shelter as well as the upkeep for it such as cleaning and tidying.
• Socialisation - both parents would raise the children with different norms and values.
• Emotional support - the mother is more likely to do it
• Financial support - the father is more likely to do it
• Organic analogy - the family pumps values around society just like the heart pumps blood around the body