FAMILIES & HOUSEHOLDS

• functionalist perspective of the family

  • the family adapts to changes required of it & it benefits both the individual & society
  • durkheim - socialisation & social stability
  • murdock - nuclear family performs four essential functions
  • parsons - functional fit theory & 2 essential needs of industrial society, structural differentiation, 2 functions of the family, gender roles
• durkheim

  • claims that all institutions are interrelated - the organic analogy
  • the family plays a major role in maintaining social stability through socialising children into the norms & values of society
• murdock - argues nuclear family is most practical in performing the functions of the family & so believes it to be universal

  1. stable satisfaction of the sex drive - monogamy prevents social disruption caused by a sexual 'free-for-all'
  2. reproduction of the next generation - allows society to continue
  3. socialisation of the young - teaches children society's shared norms & values
  4. meeting its members' economic needs - provides food & shelter
• murdock evaluation

  • many sociologists argue these functions could be performed by other institutions / family types
  • marxists & feminists reject his harmonious consensus view
  • marxists argue the family meets the needs of capitalism, not family members or society as a whole
  • feminists argue family serves the needs of men while oppressing women
• parsons - functions of the family for society

  • functional fit theory - functions that family performs depends on the needs of the society in which it is found
  • 2 essential needs of industrial society
  • geographically mobile workforce - easier for compact nuclear family to move to where jobs are
  • socially mobile workforce - individual's status is achieved, not ascribed, so there is no binding obligations towards family
  • structural differentiation - family becomes more specialised as other institutions take over its roles, ie of education / healthcare; from extended to nuclear
• parsons - functions of the family for individuals

  • 2 functions of the family
  • primary socialisation of children - equips young people with basic skills & society's values, allowing them to integrate into society
  • stabilisation of adult personalities - warm bath theory where family washes away tensions so that workers can return to the workplace refreshed; functional for efficiency of economy
  • regards gender roles as inevitable & based on biological roles - instrumental male role is the breadwinner & expressive female role is caregiving via housework, childcare, etc
• parsons evaluation

  • ignores the dark side of the family, for example domestic violence
  • feminists argue there is no reason why women should inevitably take on maternal & caregiving roles on basis of their biology; believe the purpose of such roles is to force women into financial dependence on their husbands
  • assumes the nucleur family is dominant, despite family diversity in contemporary society
  • marxists argue that the functions of the family benefit capitalism, not society or the individual
• marxist perspective of the family

  • functions of the family are performed purely for the benefit of capitalism
  • inheritance of property - engels
  • ideological functions - althusser & zaretsky
  • unit of consumption
• engels

  • before private property, there were no restrictions on sexual relationships
  • as forces of production & private property developed, men secured means of production & brought about the patriarchal monogamous nuclear family
  • monogamy became essential due to men wanting to be certain of the paternity of their children to ensure their legitimate heirs inherited from them
  • argues this turned women into a "mere instrument for the production of children"
• althusser

  • argues family is part of the ideological state apparatus, which encourages individuals to conform & accept capitalist ideology
  • family socialises children into the idea that hierarchy & inequality are inevitable
  • parental (especially paternal) power over children accustoms them to the idea that there always has to be someone in charge which prepares them for work in which they will accept orders from capitalist employers
• zaretsky

  • suggests family performs an ideological functions by offering a 'haven' from the harsh & exploitative capitalist society
  • in the family, workers can be themselves & have a private life, away from the alienation of the workplace
  • however, this is largely an illusion as the family cannot meet its members' needs, for example it is based on the domestic servitude of women
• marxist perspective of the family - unit of consumption

  • capitalism exploits labour of workers, making profit by selling products of their labour for more than it pays them to produce products
  • family therefore plays a major role in generating profits for capitalists, since its an important market for the sale of consumer goods
  • for example, the media targets children, who use 'pester power' to persuade parents to spend more
• marxist perspective on the family evaluation

  • assumes nuclear family is dominant, ignoring family diversity
  • feminists argue the emphasis on class & capitalism underestimates the importance of gender inequalities & argue the family primarily serves the interests of men, not capitalism
  • functionalists argue marxists ignore the benefits that family provides for its members
  • marxists accused of being deterministic by assuming the family is inevitably exploitative - in contemporary society, many can shape the family according to their needs (negotiated family)
• feminist perspective of the family - take a critical view of the family & argue it oppresses women due to issues such as unequal division of domestic labour & domestic violence
• liberal feminist perspective of the family

  • argue gradual progress has been achieved
  • evidence of men doing more domestic labour, & girls & boys being socialised more equally
  • however, it is criticised for failing to challenge the underlying causes of women's oppression, which are social structures, & that changes in the law or attitudes are not enough to bring about equality
• marxist feminist perspective of the family - argues the main cause of women's oppression in the family is not men, but capitalism, & women's oppression performs functions for capitalism

  • women reproduce labour force - via unpaid domestic labour & socialising next generation of workers while maintaining & servicing current one
  • women absorb anger - this would otherwise be directed at capitalism; ansley describes women as "takers of shit"
  • women are a reserve army of cheap labour - they can be employed when extra workers are needed & let go when no longer needed
• radical feminist perspective of the family

  • family & marriage are key institutions in patriarchal society
  • men benefit from women's unpaid domestic labour & their sexual services
  • men dominate women through domestic & sexual violence, or the threat of it
  • argue the only way to destroy patriarchy is by abolishing the patriarchal family via separatism where women live independently of men; many argue for 'political lesbianism' as heterosexual relationships are inevitably oppressive because they involve 'sleeping with the enemy'
• intersectional feminist perspective of the family

  • argue that we cannot generalise & neglect the variety in women's experiences
  • different women have very different experiences of the family from one another
  • for example, the black family can act as a source of support & resistance against racism
• feminism evaluation

  • fail to consider the negative impact of family life on men, for example there are many cases of domestic violence by women against men
  • arguably deterministic in that they assume all women feel oppressed as a result of family life
  • things have improved for women & some claim relationships are becoming more equal
• postmodernist perspective of the family

  • life in postmodern society is less stable, but also gives individuals more choice about their personal relationships, resulting in a more diverse family life
  • this means it is no longer possible to generalise about it in the way that modern sociologists, such as parsons, have done
• interpretivist perspective of the family

  • also known as personal life perspective
  • explores how people interpret their family life
  • argues that to understand family today, we must focus on the meanings its members give to their relationships & situations instead of the family's 'functions', & how these shape their actions & relationships
  • focuses on exploring meanings given to decisions about relationships, known as 'life course analysis'
  • family goes beyond blood ties; all kinds of relationships can be significant & give a sense of identity, ie with friends, pets, etc
• interpretivism - life course analysis

  • assumes individuals have free will in shaping their family life
  • an approach in which researchers explore reasons why people chose their particular relationships & family structure over time
• interpretivism evaluation

  • ignores structural issues such as the impact of social class & gender
  • does not make suggestions or offer solutions to issues within the family
  • has been criticised for taking too broad a view on the family by regarding non-traditional individuals as potential members of the family, ie pets or friends
  • however, it helps to understand how people construct & define their relationships rather than imposing traditional sociological definitions of the family
• left-wing views on the family

  • regard the nuclear family as desirable
  • see alternative family structures as acceptable & equally successful in raising children
  • believe the state should play a role in family life
  • support the idea that both parents may work
• right-wing views on the family

  • regard nuclear family as ideal
  • see alternatives to the nuclear family as inadequate
  • see the nuclear family as in decline & in crisis
  • see breakdown of traditional family life as the cause of social problems such as crime
  • argue the state should play a limited role in family life
  • supports the idea of traditional roles in the family
• divorce reform act 1969

  • led to a significant increase in the number of divorces
  • neither partner had to prove 'fault'
  • allowed individuals to leave marriages that were simply unhappy
  • provided greater choice in relationships
• equal pay act 1970

  • made it illegal to discriminate on the grounds of sex in relation to pay, meaning women had greater rights & could aspire to the same working conditions as men
  • means many more women are in employment today
  • impacts the roles & relationships that are established in the family
• conservative party policies (1979-1997)

  • influenced by new right ideas ie murray
  • child support agency - make fathers pay maintenance for children, discourages children out of wedlock
  • benefits cut back - encourage individuals to be responsible for their children & families
  • thatcher banned promotion of homosexuality or teaching it was acceptable
  • married person's tax - incentive to marry, suggests alternatives to be less desirable
  • privatising care of elderly - women in poorer families had to care for them, reinforcing traditional gender roles
• conservative party policies (1979-1997) evaluation

  • feminists argued such policies limited improvements in gender equality
  • criticised for blaming the victim, ie single-parent families, for societal problems such as antisocial behaviour
• labour party policies (1997-2010)

  • accepted family diversity, supporting single-parents & both parents working
  • more generous maternity leave & pay (introduced paternity leave, support both parents working, increased maternity leave to 3 months)
  • the new deal (helped lone parents enter paid work, helped with cost of childcare & training / education)
  • civil partnerships & outlawing discrimination on grounds of sexuality
• labour party policies (1997-2010) evaluation

  • family-friendly policies
  • new right suggested the policies intervened too much in family life, & created a welfare dependency rather than having people take responsibility for themselves & their families
• coalition party policies (2010-2015) & conservative party (2015-)

  • promoted policies that suggested the nuclear family & traditional gender roles are desirable or ideal
  • reintroduced married person's tax (indicates preference & adds incentive for marriage over cohabitation)
  • cutting back / replacing of benefits (replaced by universal credit, which is designed as a way of making people earn more via work rather than claiming benefits to reduce welfare dependency)
• coalition party policies (2010-2015) & conservative party (2015-) evaluation

  • many claim their family policies failed to support alternatives to nuclear family & regarded them as inadequate or inferior
  • feminists argued the policies resulted in greater hardship for women & their children
  • cutting back of benefits negatively affected the poorest & most vulnerable groups, widening the class gap
• family policies from other cultures

  • china's one child policy (1980-2016)
  • communist romania (1980s)
  • nazi family policies (1930s)
• china's one-child policy (1980-2016)

  • population control policy discouraging couples having multiple children
  • couples that complied received extra benefits ie free child healthcare
  • an only child would get priority in education & housing in later life
  • couples that broke the agreement had to repay the allowance & pay a fine
  • resulted in decrease of females in population as families only wanted boys so that they could carry on the family name
  • many babies, especially females, were abandoned
  • families with more than one child were shunned
• communist romania (1980s)

  • introduced series of policies to increase birth rate
  • legal marriage age lowered to 15 & divorce made more difficult
  • abortion & contraception made illegal
  • set up infertility treatment centres
  • unmarried adults & childless couples paid extra on income tax
  • people still maturing at 15, too young to get married
  • forced children onto families that couldn't afford it & many children abandoned
  • increase in population led to rise in homelessness
  • after end of communist rule, orphanages became overpopulated while being understaffed, resulting in poor quality of care for orphans
• nazi family policies (1930s)

  • state wanted to create 'aryan master race' who were racially pure by enforcing traditional roles & preventing individuals that did not fit aryan characteristics from reproducing (led to compulsory sterilisation of 375,000 disabled people deemed unfit to breed)
  • policy sought to keep women confined to 'children, kitchen, church'
  • women with lots of children were rewarded with medals & money
  • women forced out of employment & to be a mother
  • individuals that didn't conform were punished / isolated
  • policies generally ableist, racist & homophobic
• functionalist opinion on social policies

  • see policies as helping families perform their functions more effectively & make life better for their members
  • see state as acting in the interests of society as a whole & its policies being for the good of all
  • fletcher argues introduction of the welfare state helps to support the family in performing its functions more effectively
• functionalist opinion on social policies evaluation

  • assumes all members of family benefit equally from social policies
  • feminists argue policies often benefit men at the expense of women
  • assumes there is a 'march of progress' with social policies steadily making family life better, whereas marxists argue that policies can reverse progress, ie cutting welfare benefits to poor families
• new right opinion on social policies

  • policies encouraging family diversity undermine the nuclear family, which they believe to be naturally self-reliant
  • family diversity causes social problems such as crime
  • believe state should interfere less with families as it wil encourage greater self-reliance & encourage family to meet its members' needs most effectively
  • current policies create a dependency culture, threatening family's functions as parents are no longer self-reliant & good role models