Murdock on the Family

What is Murdock’s view on the family?

• Murdock studied over 250 different societies and found the family to be a universal feature

• Focus primarily on the nuclear family- a unit consisting of husband and wife and their children was most common

• The nuclear family existed in all societies studied by Murdock and performed clear functions for its member and wider society

What are the functions of the family?

• Economic

• Sexual Regulation

• Education

• Reproduction

What are the economic functions of the family?

• The nuclear family fulfils the economic function through the man working and providing for the family

• Their basic needs, such as food, clothing shelter are earned through the labour of the man

• Women provided a more domestic role that met the economic needs- often doing unpaid labour at home

What is the sexual regulation of the family?

• Sexual relationships between men and women within marriage controlled and regulated sexual urges

• Promotion of heterosexuality ensured the reproduction of the next generation of society

• Socialisation into gender-appropriate roles prepares children for adult life

What is the education function of the family?

• Education refers to the function of socialisation by the family of their children

• Children learn the norms and values of society through being taught these by their parents

• These include gendered norms and values and allow children to fit into society and ensure that they can contribute to the harmonious functioning of society

What is the reproduction function of the family?

• Men and women reproduce and these children become the next generation of society

• Gender socialisation prepares children to take on these roles by promoting social behaviours that will allow them to reproduce once in a stable heterosexual relationship

• Without the function of reproduction, society could stagnate and this places strain on older members of society

What are the evaluations of Murdock’s view on the family?

• Feminist criticisms suggest that Murdock’s ideas fail to acknowledge that the most universal unit is mother and children

• Marxists suggest that Murdock ignores the influence of capitalism in reproducing the next generation of workers and controlling the ability of workers to challenge the ruling class

• Outdated- It fails to acknowledge changing gender roles and greater diversity types and gender transitions