Theories of the family

Created by

Cerys

Cards (95)

What is serial monogamy?
a series of relationships
What is monogamy?
1 husband and 1 wife
What is arranged marriage?
Arranged by parents for their children
What are civil partnerships?
Same sex relationships
What is polygamy?
More than 1 partner
What is polygymy?
1 husband and 2+ wives
What is polyandry?
1 wife and 2+ husbands
What is a household?
A person living alone or a group of people living together
What do functionalists believe society is based on?
Value consensus
What is value consensus?
A set of shared norms and values
What is organic analogy?
Society as being like a body with different parts working together
How does families fit into organic analogy?
They see families as the ‘heart’ of society
What are the similarities between society and the human body?
(1) interdependent (2) have functions (3) have needs
who has 4 functions to meet the needs of society?
George Murdock
what are the 4 functions Murdock says society needs?
(1)stable satisfaction of the sex drive (2)reproduction of the next generation of workers (3) socialisation of the young (4)meeting its members economic needs
what does Murdock see as universal?
the nuclear family
what are the criticisms of Murdock?
(1)nuclear family is no longer universal (2)he has a very harmonious view of the family (3)he ignores how oppressive the nuclear family is for women
what is the nuclear family?
parents and children (2 generations)
what is the extended family?
nuclear family and beyond
what is the classic extended family?
extended family sharing the same household or live very close by
what is a patriarchal family?
authority in the family is held by men
what is a matriarchal family?
authority in the family is held by women
what is a symmetrical family?
authority and tasks shared between male and female partners
what is a reconstituted/step family?
1 or both parents previously married with children of previous marriages
what is a lone parent family?
lone parent with dependant children
what is a beanpole family?
extended family with intergenerational relationships as the norm
what are gay/lesbian families?
same sex couples living together with children
what are single person households?
an individual living at home
who came up with the 'functional fit' theory?
Talcott Parsons
what 2 family types does Parsons distinguish between?
Extended and nuclear
what are the 2 types of societies Parsons argue we have?
(1)traditional pre-industrial society (2)modern industrial family
what are the 2 needs the modern industrial society have?
(1)a geographically mobile workforce (2)a socially mobile workforce
what does Parsons believe happens when societies industrialise?
the family changes from extended to nuclear and it loses many of its functions
what are the 2 irreducible functions?
(1)the primary socialisation of children (2)the stabilisation of adult personalities
what is a primary socialisation of children?
it teaches children the basic norms and values of society
what is the stabilisation of adult personalities?
where family provides stability and emotional security
who plays the expressive role in the family?
females
who plays the instrumental role in the family?
male
how does Wilmott and Young criticise Parsons?
(1) the pre-industrial family was nuclear not extended (2) the extended family has not disappeared (3) the gender roles are not biologically suited and they are socially constructed (4) families have become more symmetrical
how does Oakley criticise Parsons?
the gender roles are not biologically natural and are pushed into them by: manipulation , different activities , verbal appellations and canalisation