Changing family patterns

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A Level A Level sociology Mind Map on Changing family patterns, created by Livvy Codrington on 11/04/2014.
Livvy Codrington
Mind Map by Livvy Codrington, updated more than 1 year ago
Livvy Codrington
Created by Livvy Codrington over 10 years ago
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Resource summary

Changing family patterns
  1. Divorce
    1. Increase since the 60s

      Annotations:

      • Doubled between 1962 and 71 and doubled again by 72  About 7/10 petitions for divorce come from women in 1946 only 37% of divorce applications came from women as divorce had to be granted by husband
      1. Changes in the law

        Annotations:

        • 1923 - grounds for divorce equalised for men and women 1937 - grounds for divorce widened to include desertion and cruelty  1949 - legal aid available, making divorce more affordable  1969 - Divorce Law Reform Act - made 'irretrievable breakdown' of marriage the sole ground for divorce - unreasonable behaviour, adultery, desertion. 
        1. Declining stigma and changing attitudes

          Annotations:

          • Divorce becomes more socially acceptable and 'normalised' 
          1. secularisation

            Annotations:

            • the traditional opposition of the churches to divorce carries less weight in society and people are less likely to be influenced by religious teachings when making decisions about divorce many churches have begun to soften their views towards divorce
            1. rising expectations of marriage

              Annotations:

              • Fletcher (1966) [functionalist] - couples less likely to put up with an unhappy marriage marriage used to be an economic bond between two families, family a unit of production, now based solely on love 
              1. Changes in the position of women

                Annotations:

                • Women more likely to be in paid work - 47% in 1959 to 70% in 2005 Anti-discrimination laws helping to lessen the pay gap  Girls' greater success in education means they are more likely to want to pursue a career than marry early  welfare benefits means women don't have to rely on husbands for income 
                1. Meaning of high divorce rates

                  Annotations:

                  • New Right - undermines nuclear family, leads to an underclass of welfare- dependent female lone parents which leads to disorder within society 
                  • Feminists - Shows that women are able to leave the oppression of the patriarchal nuclear family 
                  • Postmodernists - individuals have the freedom to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs Cause of greater family diversity
                  • Functionalists - doesn't mean that marriage is failing, just that people have higher expectations, the high rate of re-marriages shows people's continuing commitment to the idea of marriage
                2. Partnerships
                  1. Marriage

                    Annotations:

                    • Fewer people are marrying, less than half the number in 1970  More re-marriages, in 2005, 4/10 marriages were re-marriages People marrying later  Couples are less likely to marry in church
                    • Reasons - Changing attitudes to marriage - less pressure to marry  Secularisation  Declining stigma attached to marriage alternatives  Changes in the position of women  Fear of divorce 
                    1. Cohabitation

                      Annotations:

                      • Over 2 million cohabiting couples in Britain The number of cohabiting couples is expected to double again by 2021
                      • Reasons -  Decline in stigma attached to sex outside marriage  Change in attitudes - attitudes of the younger generation Secularisation 
                      • Relationship between cohabitation and marriage:  Chester (1985) - many see cohabitation as a trial marriage and a step towards it 
                      1. Same-sex relationships

                        Annotations:

                        • Stonewall (2008) - about 5-7% of the adult population today have same-sex relationships  evidence of increased social acceptance - 1967 male homosexual acts decriminalised for consenting males >21 Civil partnerships 2005 Same-sex marriage 2014 
                        1. One person households

                          Annotations:

                          • Big rise in the number of people living alone  2006 - almost 3/10 households contained only 1 person  Half of these are at pension age  pensioner 1 person households have doubled since 1961, non-pensioners tripled men under 65 were group most likely to live alone
                          • Reasons - divorce and separation decline in numbers marrying  'creative singlehood' - Peter Stein (1976)  Older widows 'Living apart together' 
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