The Functions of Families & Households

• Family


  Can be used in a broad sense (all the descendants of a common ancestor) or in a narrower sense (parents living together with their children as a "unit")
• Household


  A group of people who live together, regardless of whether there are any kinship ties
• Sociological perspectives on the functions of families and households

  • Functionalist
  • Marxist
  • Feminist
  • New Right
• Functionalist views


  • Families and households have important roles to play in the smooth and functional running of society
  • Families have important functions for both society and individuals
• Functions of families identified by Murdock

  • Educational
  • Economic
  • Reproductive
  • Sexual
• Parsons' updated functionalist theory

  • Families have two irreducible functions: primary socialisation and stabilisation of adult personalities
• Functionalist views are criticised for painting too rosy and idealistic a picture of family life
• Marxist views


  • Families perform a role not for everyone in society but for capitalism and the ruling class
  • Families help to preserve capitalism and weaken the position of individual workers in relation to the boss
• Engels' Marxist view


  Families have a clear economic function for capitalism, by ensuring that wealth remains in the hands of the bourgeoisie
• Zaretsky's Marxist view


  Families give proletarian men something they can control and a space where they can be the "boss", which provides a function for capitalism
• Feminist perspectives


  • Liberal feminism
  • Radical feminism
  • Marxist feminism
• Liberal feminist view


  • The family has been a clear source of inequality, but most legal battles for equality have been won, so the focus is now on changing cultural values
• Radical feminist view


  • Men will always oppress women and the family is a vehicle for that oppression, so women should find alternative ways of living
• Marxist feminist view


  • Families help to preserve both capitalism and patriarchy, with women providing unpaid labour that benefits the capitalist system
• New Right view


  The nuclear family is the bedrock of society, but various government policies and social attitudes have undermined it
• Charles Murray's New Right view

  Welfare policies have undermined the nuclear family and given perverse incentives for people to start single-parent families or end their marriages
• Family life has changed over time due to changes in society such as industrialisation, urbanisation and globalisation
• Families are also responsible for passing on cultural values to future generations
• The family is the most important social institution as it provides us with our first experiences of love, care and security.
• Industrialisation led to more men working away from home, which meant they were less involved in childcare and housework.
• Urbanisation led to an increase in the number of households where both parents worked outside the home, leading to increased demand for domestic services like cleaning and cooking.
• Social change can be seen through trends in marriage rates, divorce rates, birth rates and household composition.
• It is where we develop our sense of identity and self-worth.
• Children grow up within the family unit and learn about relationships from their parents.
• Globalisation has led to greater mobility of workers, making it easier for couples to live apart if one partner needs to work abroad.
• Industrialisation led to an increase in paid work outside the home, which meant more money was needed to support a family.
• Urbanisation brought about new forms of housing, including flats and apartments, which were often smaller than traditional houses.
• Urbanisation led to an increase in divorce rates as couples had greater freedom to leave unhappy relationships.
• Globalisation has led to greater mobility of labour, resulting in more women entering paid employment and fewer children being raised by stay-at-home mothers.
• Changes in technology have made communication easier between family members who live far apart.
• In many societies, marriage is seen as an essential part of being a full member of society.
• Changes in technology have made it easier for couples to live apart while maintaining contact through phone calls, emails and video conferencing.
• Globalisation has increased opportunities for women to work outside the home, leading to a decline in traditional gender roles within the family.