Parsons' Functionalist Account of the Nuclear Family
Parsons (1956) identified two basic and vital functions that all families perform in all societies: primary socialisation and the stabilisation of adult personalities
Primary socialisation
1. Children learn the culture of their society
2. Helps to maintain the stability of society
Personality stabilisation
1. Everyday life outside the family can be stressful for adults
2. Husband and wife support each other emotionally to relieve the pressure
3. Parents can act out the childish elements of their own personality
Emotional support from a spouse may help to relieve the pressures of everyday life
Criticisms of Parsons, Murdock and the Functionalist Perspective
Outdated, unrealistic and sexist
Focuses on American middle-class families and ignores social class, and religious and ethnic diversity
Ignores alternatives to the nuclear family
Gives an idealised view of families that does not match the reality
Marxists see the nuclear family as functional for capitalist society
Feminists see the family as a major source of female oppression
