Social Policy

• Cross-Cultural Policies:

  > China - reduce the growth rate of China's population

  > Nazi Germany - increase the number of Aryan marriages and raise the birth rate
• Political Views on Family Policy - Conservative (1979-97):

  > took a New Right view under Thatcher's government e.g. banned the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities (included a ban on teaching homosexuality as an acceptable family relationship) and set up Child Support Agency

  > some policies were introduced that did not support the New Right view e.g. making divorce easier
• Political Views on Family Policy - New Labour (1997-2010):

  > many politicians supported the nuclear family as ideal for child stability

  > took a more positive view of the role of social policy - to accept diversity (giving cohabitating and gay couples the same right to adopt, longer maternity leave) and supporting those who were materially and culturally deprived (benefits, EMA)
• Political Views on Family Policy - Coalition (2010-2015):

  > this divide resulted in a struggle to maintain consistent policy

  > legalising gay marriage in 2014 (liberal democrat influence) vs cutting benefits and tuition fee increase (conservative influence)
• Theoretical Views on Policy - Functionalism:

  > see the state as acting in the interests of society as a whole

  > policies help families perform their functions more effectively

  > Fletcher - the NHS helps the family care for its members when they are sick
• Theoretical Views on Policy - Feminism:

  > policies help to maintain women's subordinate position in the family - policies see the ideal family as a nuclear family with separate gender roles

  > Leonard - policies may be seen to support women, but are actually reinforcing patriarchy e.g. maternity leave and childcare allowance
• Theoretical Views on Policy - New Right:

  > see the nuclear family as the best family type, considering gender roles as natural, but diversity has created a dependency culture

  > Almond - policies, such as divorce and gay marriage, undermine lifelong commitment and the nuclear family

  > support policies such as tighter benefit restrictions, better taxes for married couples and child support agency
• Theoretical Views on Policy - Marxism:

  > the state and its policies serve capitalism e.g. the low level of state pensions could show that once workers are too old to produce profits, they are 'maintained' at the lowest possible cost

  > policies give capitalism a 'caring face' e.g. the NHS, which encourages a false class consciousness
• Theoretical Views on Policy - Donzelot:

  > Donzelot - social policies are a way for the state to control the family

  > uses the ideas of Foucault and surveillance (the idea that in society, we are constantly being watched) and applies this to the family

  > certain professionals (social workers, doctors and police) carry out surveillance for the state - he calls this 'policing' the family