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Flashcards by Ellie Khanna, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by Ellie Khanna
over 7 years ago
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| Question | Answer |
| What is a household? | One person who lives alone or a group of people who live at the same address and who share one meal a day or facilities in the home |
| What is a nuclear family? | A mother, father and children living as a unit, contains only two generations and sometime called a 'cereal packet family' |
| What is an vertically extended family? | Three generations (children, parents and grandparents) living together, sometimes called a 'beanpole family' |
| What is a horizontally extended family family? | A nuclear family but with other relatives of the same generation such as two brothers, their wives and children living together |
| What is a lone-parent family? | One parent with their child or children usually as a result of divorce or being widowed, also called a single parent family (SPF) |
| What is a reconstituted family? | A family where one or both partners have been married previously and bring children from another relationship |
| What is an empty nest family? | Originally a nuclear family, but the children have grown up and left home |
| How do functionalists believe society works? | Based on value consensus - a set of norms and values which society socialises its members enabling them to work together and achieve shared goals |
| What is the organic analogy? | Functionalists believe that the sub-systems of society work together (family, education, health etc..) just like in a human body and help meet needs of society |
| What four functions does the Functionalist George Murdock (1949) argue the family performs? | 1. Stable satisfaction of the sex drive 2. Reproduction of the next generation 3. Socialisation of the young 4. Meeting its members economic needs |
| What did Murdock find after studying 250 societies? | That some form of the family existed everywhere (it was universal) and the nuclear family was so practical at meeting the four needs |
| What are some criticisms of Murdock? | The view is to 'rose-tinted' and ignores the dark side of the family. Also any institution or non-nuclear family structure could perform 4 functions |
| What is the 'functional fit' theory from Functionalist Talcott Parsons (1955)? | The particular structure (nuclear or extended) and functions of a family will 'fit' the needs of society in which it is found. Parsons saw two types of society: pre-industrial and modern industrial |
| Why does the extended family suit a pre-industrial society? | The family would have been a workforce used on the farms so geographically less mobile if larger too, it was a unit of production and more self-sufficient (providing healthcare and education), pre-industrial social status was ascribed |
| Why does the nuclear family suit modern industrial society? | The smaller unit is more geographically mobile to go to different jobs over the country, they are socially mobile (status achieved through hard work) and as society industrialises has a loss of functions |
| What does Parsons believe the two essential functions are? | 1. The primary socialisation of children 2. The stabilisation of adult personalities (warm bath theory) |
| What is the warm bath theory? | The family is a place where adults can relax (nurturing mother acts as a warm bath for workers), enabling them to return to the workplace refreshed and ready to meet its demands - functional for the efficiency of the enconomy |
| Criticisms of Parsons? | 1. Young and Willmott (1973) found the pre-industrial family was nuclear 2. In industrial society extended family grew more popular as needed for childcare |
| How do Marxist sociologists see society? | A conflict between two classes: the ruling class (bourgeoisie) and the working class (proletariat) |
| What is false consciousness? | When people think they understand what is going on but they are wrong |
| How Marxists see institutions in society? | They help maintain class inequality and capitalism, including the family |
| How do Marxists see the family? | They contribute to false consciousness through socialisation and parental power gets children used to being ordered when in work |
| Name three ways the family benefits capitalism? | 1. The inheritance of property keeps wealth in within the bourgeoisie (Engels 1884) 2.Ideological functions: beliefs that justify inequality persuading people its unchangeable 3. Unit of consumption: exploits workers then makes them buy products which give ruling class profit |
| How does Zaretsky (1976) believe the family offers a haven that benefits capitalism? | Family is a haven from harsh capitalist world and to have a private life, nurtures workers ready to sends them back into work to be exploited again |
| Criticisms of Marxism? | They ignore other family types believing nuclear family is most common, ignore real benefits family provides (socialistaion etc) |
| Strengths of Marxism? | Highlights importance of economic influences on the family and raises possibility that family benefits some more than others |
| What is a liberal feminist? | Believe there are a few inequalities in society but will be ironed out through law (maternity pay, free childcare etc) |
| What is a radical feminist? | Believe patriarchy is a barrier to women's freedom: housework is slavery, equality is a myth |
| What is a Marxist feminist? | Inequalities for women is capitalism's fault: socialising children into dominant ideas, refueling workers and domestic violence |
| What is patriarchy? | Where men hold power |
| What year did women get the right to vote? | 1918 if they were over 30 and married but not until 1929 it was equal to men |
| How did the birth control pill (1966) give women control? | They got to have more power and choice in when/if they wanted children, it gave them sexual freedom and the ability to focus on career |
| What group of politicians typically uphold the New Right view? | Conservatives (prominent in Margaret Thatchers time as prime minister) - they are traditionalists |
| What do the New Right believe is the main reason for societies problems? | Single parent families and families that are not nuclear as they believe nuclear family is the cornerstone of society |
| How is the single parent family a problem for society? | As most SPF are headed by a women it leaves boys without a clear leader and they will turn to crime. |
| How does the New Right believe SPF are encouraged? | Generous welfare benefits encourage SPF and stops people working as they believe they can live off the state (perverse incentives) created a dependency culture |
| In a nuclear family who is the instrumental leader and who is the expressive leader? | The instrumental leader is the male father (breadwinner) and the women is the expressive leader, meant to take on the role of the housewife and looking after the children - roles are biologically determined |
| How do the New Right view cohabitation and divorce? | They undermine the family stability - rate of family breakdown is higher in people who have cohabited causing SPF |
| How do they view working women? | They disapprove of working women as they believe women should put looking after their children as the first priority |
| What are criticisms of New Right view? | They are outdated views and fail to recognise that lots of people don't choose to be SPF (death, abuse etc...) |
| What do postmodern thinkers believe about the family? | That we now have a greater choice about our relationships which has increased family diversity so we no longer talk about a single 'best' type |
| What is a postmodern era (key concepts)? | A time of change, freedom, fluidity, globalisation and uncertainty. A digital age, with more 'danger' and secularisation |
| How have those concepts changed family life? | Women are in less gendered roles (they can work etc), premarital sex and cohabitation are accepted, men's roles are not clear cut, same sex and childless marriage is also accepted |
| What is the personal life perspective? | A new perspective on families - to understand families we must start from the point of view of the individuals concerned and the meanings they give to their relatioships |
| How does the personal life perspective differ from functionalism, marxism and feminism? | PLP takes a 'bottom up' approach whereas the others take a 'top up' approach (looking at the families functions as opposed to looking at the meaning the family has for individuals) |
| 'Bottom up' approach in more detail.... | PLP takes a wider view of relationships than traditional blood family e.g you may be closer to your friends than sister and consider them to be family. Chosen family: fictive kin, pets, gay/lesbian and dead relatives |
| What did sociologists Nordqvist and Smart find? | The issues that can be raised from donor conceived children - what counts as family when your child shares a genetic link with a stranger? A mum can be considered the person that puts in the time and effort |
| Who were the first sociologists to identify a range of family diversty | Rapoport & Rapoport (1982) - they celebrate the fact that people now have freedom and choice and no longer have to live in a certain type of family |
| What 5 types of family diversity did they find in Britain? | 1. Organisation and Structural 2. Cultural diversity 3.Class diversity 4.Life course 5. Generational |
| What is organisational and structural diversity? | diversity in terms of family structure, household type, division of labour etc |
| What is cultural diversity? | diversity in the family due to religious and ethnic influences |
| What are trends in an Asian British family? | !/4 are extended and nuclear families often have close relationships with extended kin. Marriage rates are high and divorce rates low |
| What are the trends in an afro-caribbean family loving in England? | 50% of families are SPF which could be because there is a high rate of black unemployment (economic deficit rather than asset), traditionally women in charge of household and increased teenage pregnancies with short-term boyfriends |
| What is class diversity? | Differences beteen middle and working class in terms of adult relationships (MC likely to share same social life and WC more home centered) and the socialisation f children |
| What is life-course diversity? | Different stages in the families life generate different patterns of structure eg when young likely to be nuclear then empty nest as children more out |
| What is generational diversity? | Specific periods of time through which the family has passed through which might have a direct effect on structure eg recession means children might return to living at home |
| What des Robert Chester (1985) believe about family diversity? | That fundamental changes have been exaggerated and although many people are not currently living in a nuclear family they may have/will do in their life, most people still marry |
| What is a neo-conventional family? | Where the husband is not the sole breadwinner and women have more involvement in the labour market |
| When did divorce rates peak? | 1993 at 165,000 a year |
| What percent of marriages end in divorce? | 40% |
| What types of marriages are more likely to end in divorce? | Young couples, people who have a child before marriage, people who cohabit first and people who have married previously |
| What are 3 changes that have happened to divorce laws making it easier to obtain? | Equalising the grounds for divorce, making it cheaper and widening the reasons for divorce |
| What are other options to divorce? | Legal separation, desertion (leaving but staying married) and an empty shell marriage |
| Why have divorce rates increased? | Decline in stigma (instead of shameful it is seen as a misfortune), secularisation (religion has less influence), and high expectations of marriage mean couples are less likely to tolerate an unhappy marriage |
| How do feminists view divorce? | Believe it is desirable if women a liberated from a patriarchal marriage or where they share a dual burden. Women are more finacially independent and can live without men |
| How do the New Right view divorce? | It undermines the nuclear family and will lead to a higher crime rate as there will be more SPF and boys without male role models and more women dependent on welfare. Divorce causes social disintergration |
| How do functionalists view divorce? | Not necessarily a threat to marriage as a institution but is just a result of peoples higher expectations of marriage |
| How do Postmodernists view divorce? | They have a positive view that people have choice so can pick which partners they want for love rather than economic dependence - choose to end relationships when it no longer meets their needs |
| How do interactionists view divorce? | we cannot generalise about divorce because every perspective is different |
| How does the personal life perspective view divorce? | Accepts that divorce causes problems but believes every family can cope and it is not always a bad thing |
| What are four important trends of marriage in recent years? | 1. Fewer people are marrying 2. People are marrying later in life 3. There are more re-marriages (2012 one third of all marriages were re-marriages) 4. Couples are less likely to marry in church (1981 60% of weddings, 2012 30%) |
| What are reasons for these trends? | 1.Changing attitudes to marriage 2. Secularisation 3. Fear of divorce 4. Changes in the position of women 5. Declining stigma in alternatives |
| How have attitudes to marriage changed? | Less pressure to marry and more freedom to choose relationship type. A belief that the quality of a relationship is more important than the legal status |
| How has secularisation had an impact on marriage? | Churches influence has declined and so people do not feel obliged to marry |
| What are alternatives to marriage? | Cohabitation, remaining single and having kids outside of marriage are accepted. |
| How has the position of women in society changed and how has this affected marriage trends? | Women are more financially independent giving them more freedom to choose not to marry |
| What is cohabitation? | An unmarried couple in a sexual relationship living together |
| How many couple cohabit? | 3.1 million heterosexual couples and 84,000 same sex couples |
| What are reasons for the increase in cohabitation? | 1. Decline in stigma to sex outside marriage 2. Increased career opportunities for women mean less likely to need financial stability of marriage 3. Secularisation 4. Seen as a trial marriage |
| What percent of cohabiting couples get married? | 75% |
| How have same sex couples been treated more equally in the law? | 2002 cohabiting couples had same rights to adopt as married couples, 2004 civil partnership act gave same legal rights as married couples, 2014 are able to marry |
| Trends of one person households? | 2013 7.7 million people lived alone, 40% of all one person households are over 65 (doubling since 1961), by 2033 30% of adult population will be single |
| How does the new right view cohabitation and marriage? | They are against it as believe they are more likely to split and if they have children lead to SPF which causes social disitergration but they like marriage as it is the cornerstone of society |
| How do feminists view cohabitation and marriage? | Cohabitation gives a trial marriage. Not against marriage but tend to see it as favouring men and inequality in division of labour |
| What are conjugal roles? | Roles within a marriage |
| What are segregated conjugal roles? | Separate roles for males and females as well as separate leisure patterns (this is what functionalist Parsons suggested that roles are biologically determined for males and females) |
| What are joint conjugal roles? | Housework and childcare shared, leisure time is spent together and equality within a relationship |
| How can the division of labour be split? | Division of power (decision making), childcare and housework |
| What is a dual burden? | Where one gender (normally women) have to take on both childcare and housework |
| What is a triple shift? | Taking on the dual burden but women also work full or part time |
| In a heterosexual relationship which person does the most childcare? | Men usually take credit for the good parts such as bath time whereas women do the 'emotional work' like when the child is sick and the main caring. Only 1 in 25 men are the main carers for their children |
| Which gender does more of the decision making? | The power of the household usually lies with the men (money and big decisions) whereas women will make smaller decisions like what to have for dinner etc... |
| What are the two approaches to financial matters found by Pahl and Volger (1993)? | 1. Pooling: where both partners have access to joint bank account 2. Allowance system: where men give their wives an allowance and keep the rest |
| How have these financial approaches changed? | Pooling is up from 19% to 50% and allowance is down from 36% to 12% |
| How have feminists changed the division of labour? | The increase of feminism has led women to taking on more work than they were doing previously as men are not taking equal responsibility for housework |
| What generation are more likely to have an equal division of labour? | The younger generation are less likely to conform gender roles |
| How is divison of labour split in same sex couples? | More equally as they are technically making up their own rules as to who should do what jobs. They have no gender guidelines to follow |
| Why is domestic abuse difficult to define? | There are different types of violence, is it still domestic if it happens to children? Some cultures don't recognise it (Nigeria seen as love) and definitions change over time |
| What are the trends of domestic abuse? | Class: working class more common but are middle class less willing to report or because more financially secure can they leave? Gender: 1/6 males in Scotland victims and women more likely to strike the first blow |
| Why is domestic violence difficult to document how common? | People are not willing to confess. in 1980 there were 1000 rapes per year and 1990 4000 a year. Did the behaviour really change or just societies idea? |
| How has Mirlees Black estimated domestic violence? | A study of 10,000 individuals, 1 in 4 have been assaulted and 1 in 8 repeatedly. Multiply that by the nation and 6.6 million domestic assaults a year |
| What do radical feminists believe causes domestic abuse? | Patriarchy- Domestic violence reinforces male power and all males benefit from it as it keeps women weaker |
| What are social policies? | Plans and actins of the government agencies (health, social services, welfare etc). Policies are usually based on laws made by the government that provide the framework which this agencies operate. |
| Why are social policies important? | They regulate family life and decide what is and is not possible (domestic abuse, marriage, divorce, welfare and children) and they may influence the structure and roles within a family |
| How do functionalists view social policy? | Take a positive view. The welfare state takes a lot of pressure off of the family and allows them to focus on socialising and nurturing |
| How do the New Right view social policy? | Often take a negative view as they undermine the nuclear family. Welfare benefits encourage SPF. Also dislike divorce laws and make divorce to eeasy to obtain |
| How do feminists view social policy? | They support benefits for single parents as often they are women. Support divorce an domestic abuse laws too as free women from patriarchy. |
| How do Marxists view social policy? | They take different views. Some believe policies like free education and healthcare show working class have won but others believe they are a smokescreen just to make life appear better |
| Identify a social policy that affects marriage? | You can only marry one person at a time in the UK |
| Identify two social policies that affects children? | They cannot work part time until they are 13 and they have to stay in educations until they are 18 |
| What is demography? | The study of population |
| What 3 things cause a change in population? | 1. Births 2. Deaths 3. Migration |
| What has caused an increase in life expectancy? | Better health care, scientific break throughs, Better conditions of living |
| What has changed the age women have children (average used to be 20's now early 30's) | Contraceptive pill, higher divorce rates, women more financially independent and want to focus on career, secularistaion |
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