functionalism

• what family type is universal according to Murdock?

  The nuclear family.
• what four functions did Murdock think the family provides?

  -sexual regulation

  -reproduction

  -economic

  -socialisation/education
• sexual regulation - Murdock

  The family teaches controlled, regulated sexual relationships between married men and women.

  This promotes heterosexual relationships and prepares children for gendered roles.
• reproduction - Murdock

  Men and women reproduce to create the next generation. This tells children that they should reproduce when they are older to help society function/grow - without reproduction society could stagnate.
• economic - Murdock

  In a nuclear family the man works and provides for his wife and children. Basic needs of the family are earned through the man. Women have a more domestic role in the family.
• socialisation/education - Murdock

  Children learn the norms and values of society through the parents/family. They are taught how to behave in society which allows them to function in society. Gendered roles are also taught through the family. Socialisation allows children to contribute to society.
• evaluations of Murdock (AO3)

  -marxists would say that Murdock ignores the influence capitalism has in reproducing the next generation of workers.

  -Murdock's ideas are outdated - his theory is over 70 years old.

  -Murdock's work is ethnocentric since it only looks at one culture (white people).

  -Murdock only looks at how the family socialises children, he ignore institutions like schools.
• what is Parsons functional fit theory?

  The function of the family changes depending on which society it is found in.

  
  

  (This is different to Murdock as Murdock thought the functions of the family were universal.)
• what two functions did Parsons think the family provided?

  -primary socialisation

  -stabilisation of adult personalities
• primary socialisation - Parsons

  This is the early period in someones life when they are taught norms and values of society. During primary socialisation the children learn through experiences and interactions.
• stabilisation of adult personalities - Parsons

  This is emotional security that is achieved through a marital relationship. The family provides comfort and stability especially for the man. Parsons created the warm bath theory because of this.
• warm bath theory - Parsons

  When the man gets home from work and sees his family he immediately feels comfort, relaxation and happiness. This theory depicts the family as getting into a warm bath.

  
  

  (use Zaretsky's cushioning effect to evaluate this)
• what two basic types of society did Parsons look a?

  -pre-industrial society

  -modern industrial society
• pre-industrial society - Parsons

  Before the industrial revolution the most common/significant family type was the extended family. This is because the extended family worked best in a pre-industrial society. People would stay in the same place they were born, typically the same house they were born in and normally work on a farm. Extended families were good for this society as the parents could work on the farm and the grandparents could socialise the children - children would then work on the farm.
• modern industrial society - Parsons

  After the industrial revolution the most common/significant family type was the nuclear family. The nuclear family works best in a modern industrial society. After the industrial revolution people were moving to different areas for work; it is easier to move a nuclear family than an extended family which is why the ideal family type changed.
• a geographically mobile workforce - Parsons

  In modern societies industries are in different areas of the country instead of one place. This means that people have to be prepared to move for work - moving a nuclear family is easier and favoured.
• a socially mobile workforce - Parsons

  Industries are always evolving because of the increase in technology and science; because of this, workers need to be skilled and technically competent. In a modern society someones status is achieved by their effort and ability not their family background (this was different in a pre-industrial society).
• structural differentiation - Parsons

  Society has adapted and other institutions can now perform the role of a family (school). After Britain became a modern industrial society the functions of the family outlined by Murdock were lost.
• Parsons on the nuclear family

  He said that the nuclear family is still essential to society and that men should adapt the instrumental role whereas women should adapt the expressive role. The nuclear family is still universal but has become isolated and privatised.
• evaluations of Parsons (AO3)

  -feminists would argue that Parsons takes a stereotypical view on the role of women within the family (expressive).

  -Parsons view is outdated - there is now research that shows a decrease in the functions of the family.

  -ethnocentric view (American ideals).

  -not all families became nuclear after the industrial revolution - working class families had to turn to the extended family for help (Anderson 1980).

  -Wilmott and Young say that the extended family was not dominant prior to the industrial revolution - it was the nuclear family.
• what did Wilmott and Young look at?

  Extended families and kingship in East London.
• what did Wilmott and Young find?

  -extended families were still common in 1960s Britain.

  -in 1960s British working class communities were rehoused in council houses and new towns.

  -families no longer needed to rely on each other for economic help; the state could help them.

  -the symmetrical family had become the norm.
• principle of stratified diffusion - Wilmott and Young

  Norms and values wealthier classes have will pass down into lower classes.
• stages of the family - Wilmott and Young

  -stage one = pre-industrial family

  -stage two = early industrial family

  -stage three = symmetrical family

  -stage four = asymmetrical family

  (sage four has yet to happen)
• pre-industrial and early industrial families - Wilmott and Young

  -pre-industrial = unit of production.

  
  

  -early industrial = unit of consumption.
• symmetrical and asymmetrical families - Wilmott and Young

  -symmetrical = men and women share leisure time, there are joint conjugal roles, both men and women are employed.

  
  

  -asymmetrical (yet to happen) = leisure time is spent separated, segregated conjugal roles.
• evaluations of Wilmott and Young (AO3)

  -feminists would argue that women experience the triple shift.

  -Wilmott and Young only looked at families in East London - does not include family diversity.

  -there has been social and economic changes that has made the nuclear family isolated and privatised.