Changing family patterns

• Divorce stats


  40% of all marriages end in divorce
• Reasons for increase in divorce

  Changes in the law

  Declining stigma and changing attitudes

  Secularisation

  Rising Expectations of Marriage

  Womens increased financial independence

  Dual burned

  Individualisation thesis
• OAKLEY


  Dual Burden
• FLETCHER


  Major cause of increased divorce = rising expectations, but there is a high rate of re-marriage showing people don't reject the idea of marriage
• Marriage stats


  in 2012 = 175,000 first marriages
• Reasons for decline marriage

  Changing attitudes

  Secularisation

  Declining stigma

  Changes in position of women

  Fear of Divorce

  Alternatives - Cohabitation
• COAST


  75% of cohabiting couples expect to marry
• Lone parent households stats

  3 in 10 people are in a lone parent household
• DUNCAN + PHILLIPS


  1 in 10 adults are LAT
• Children outside marriage stat

  Nearly 1/2 of all children' are born outside marriage
• Reasons for more women looking after children

  Women hold a traditionally expressive role

  Divorce courts usually give custody to mother

  Men are less willing to give up work for family
• MURRAY


  Lone Parent families = the welfare state are over generous

  'Perceverence incentives' for having children without being able to provide for them
• Black families stats


  Black families have 1/2 of all families with dependant children were lone parent compared with 1/4 population
• MIRZA


  High levels of lone parent families = not disorganization but reflect the high value black women place on independence
• REYNOLDS

  Stats are misleading - lots of support and structure in lone parent families
• BALLARD


  extended families are an important source of support in Asian families