AQA A-level Sociology- Families and households

What is the functionalist view of the family?

The family meets the needs of society by socialising children into shared norms and values

Who says that men and women perform the instrumental and expressive roles?

Parsons

What does Parsons believe to be two 'essential and irreducible' functions of the family?

Primary socialisation and the stabilisation of adult personalities

What is the instrumental role?

The breadwinner and disciplinarian of the family usually the male.

What is the expressive role?

The emotional and caring role, usually performed by the mother

What are some criticisms of the functionalist approach?

Critics would say that is outdated and assumes that the family is a happy and harmonious institution and ignores the reality of conflict and domestic abuse.

Ignores the exploitation of women.

What is structural differentiation?

Where institutions become more specialised as society becomes more complex and industrialised

What do The New Right theorists believe about the family?

The best family is one made of of two natural parents with the division of instrumental and expressive roles

What do The New Right believe about welfare state polices?

They support relationships outside of the conventional nuclear family. This undermines personal responsibility and creates social problems

What do Marxists think about the family?

It reproduces, nurtures and maintains a workforce to support capitalism

What does Althusser think about that family?

It is part of the ideological state apparatus (ISA)

What does Engels argue?

That monogamous marriage is important for passing down private property

What are some criticisms of the Marxist view of the family?

Out-dated and portrays the family too negatively

What do feminists believe about the family?

It is patriarchal

What do radical feminists believe about the family?

The family reproduces inequality and benefits only men.

Men exercise power and control over women, sometimes supported with physical violence

Who claims that 'the family is a private place where worker can be valued as individuals'

Zaretsky

What do Marxist feminists believe?

That women are doubly expoited

What are some criticisms of the feminist view?

The role of women is now changing and so they now have more independence.

More women file for divorce than men.

Who claimed that the family acts as a safety valve where women provide a sanctuary for men, helping to prevent frustration at work spilling over into unrest?

Delphy and Leonard

What are some of the different family types?

Nuclear.

Beanpole.

Extended.

Lone-parent.

Same-sex.

Reconstituted (step-family)

What theory is Murdock associated with?

Functionalism

What are the four functions that Murdock believes that the family performs for society?

Reproductive

Sexual

Economic

Educational

Why was the nuclear family more suited to industrial times than the extended family?

It became a unit of consumption and geographically mobile. The workforce became socially mobile

What is Peter Laslett's criticism of Parsons view?

Using parish records he found that in pre-industrial times the nuclear family was actually the most popular

Why does Zaretsky think that the family is a prop for capitalism?

It relieves alienation of the exploited worker.

It produces future generation of workers.

It is a unit of consumption.

Reduces the bargaining power of the proletariat

What does Sommerville argue?

Women are still disadvantaged in families but progress has been made in some ways e.g women have more choice as to whether they get married or not. However, she still campaigns for better childcare and more flexibility in jobs.

What does Germaine Greer argue?

Marriage is a patriarchal institution where women remain subservient to their husbands. She suggests 'political lesbianism' and 'separatism'.

What is political lesbianism?

The idea that sexuality is a choice- it is about rejecting heterosexuality and men

What does Benston believe?

Women are used by men and capitalism to produce cheap labour. They make up a 'reserve army of labour'

What is a reserve army of labour?

they come into the workplace int times of economic growth but are the first to be let go when the economy shrinks again

What do difference feminists believe?

Not all women are equally exploited. They emphasis the difference between women in terms of ethnicity, social class or age

What does Nicholson believe?

Women are better off outside the traditional nuclear family. All family types and households should be socially accepted as they suit women in different circumstances.

How are women oppressed within the family?

Domestic division of labour.

Segregated conjugal roles.

Dual burden.

Triple shift.

Gender role socialisation.

Domestic violence

Who believe that inadequate socialisation leads to 'latch-key kids'

The New Right

What do New Right theorists believe about lone-parent families?

They cannot socialise children correctly.

Creates an underclass which becomes reliant on the Welfare state.

Creates 'latch-key kids'

Leaves boys without a male role model- this can lead to delinquency

According to Benston, why is marriage preferable to cohabitation?

She believes that couples are more stable if married due to the commitment to eachother.

What are some criticisms of the new right view of the family?

There is no evidence to say that children from lone parent families are any more delinquent than other children.

Feminists would say that is wrongly assumes fixed biological roles.

Some people choose not to marry out of poverty, not because they don't want to

What is the personal life view of the family?

Families should be looked at on a case to case basis and what works for one family may or may not work for another

What does the personal life perspective believe that we are controlled by?

External forces

What do Nordqvist and Smart study?

Donor-conceived children

What do Nordqvist and Smart say about donor conceived children?

A the idea of the mother is based on whichever woman gives their time and effort to raise it, not the woman the egg came from. However, differences in the physical appearance of the non-genetic child may raise questions

What is primary socilaistaion?

The learning of norms and values that are taught in the early years of life (the family)

What is the stabilisation of adult personalities?

the emotional security

What is the Bourgeoisie ideology?

The ideas/norms and values of the middle class

What is monogomy?

the act of being married to only one person at a time

What is primogeniture?

The right of inheritance to the first born son

What is cohabitation?

Living together without being married

What is secularisation?

the decline in the influence of religion in a society

What are empty-shell marriages?

Marriages without love but the spouses are still together

What is an irretrievable breakdown?

Clause in the 1969 Divorce Reform act which meant you did not have to find the other person guilty of a matrimonial offence

What is serial monogamy?

the practice of engaging in a succession of monogamous sexual relationships.

What is kinship?

Family ties

What is a commune?

An alternative to the family when people live and work together in a large group

What is divorce rate?

The number of divorces per 1000 married couple per year.

What are conjugal roles?

Parts played by the married or cohabiting couple within the home

What are joint conjugal roles?

When marital roles are shared equally between the couple

What are segregated conjugal roles?

Where the couple has separate roles and have separate activities.

What is the dual burden?

Mothers have to do housework and paid work

What is the triple shift?

Women have three roles- housework, paid work and the emotionally supportive role

What is industrialisation?

The growth of industries and factories, which began in Britain the in the late 18th century

What is the isolated nuclear family?

A type of small private family that has evolved as a result of industrialisation

Who identified the isolated nuclear family?

Parsons

What is the symmetrical family?

A family with joint conjugal roles

Who identifies the symmetrical family?

Willmott and Young

What is the Principle of Stratified Diffusion?

The prediction that the working class will eventually become like the middle class in terms of attitude and behaviour

Who identified the Principle of Stratified Diffusion?

Willmott and Young

What is geographical mobility?

Being able to move around the country with ease

What is regional diversity?

The variety of family types that are found in certain locations of the country

What is a neo-conventional family?

The nuclear family has been adapted to fit modern society- the family is now usually dual worker families

What is an economic asset?

Something that is productive and a source of money

What is the infant mortality rate?

The number of babies that dies before their first birthday, per 1000 live births

What is a social construct?

Something that is created and defined by society

What is meant by the family as a unit if consumption?

When members of the family are wage earners and buy consumer goods

What is meant by the family as a unit of production?

When family members work and live together

What is meant by the birth rate?

The number of live births per 1000 of the population per year

What is the fertility rate?

the average number of children a woman of childbearing years would have in her lifetime

What is the death rate?

The number of deaths per 1000 people per year

What is life expectancy?

The estimate of how long people can be expected to live

What is an ageing population/

The average age is getting higher

What is demography?

The study of population

What was introduced as part of the 1969 Divorce Reform Act?

An 'irretrievable breakdown' was the only grounds needed for a divorce

What is family diversity?

Refers to the variety of family structures and roles there are in Britain today

What are the five types of family diversity?

Cultural, life-course, organisational, generational and social class

What is meant by organisational diversity?

Refers to the way that conjugal roles are organised in the family

What is cultural diversity?

Explain how different ethnic groups have different family types

What is social class diversity?

differences in family structure are partly the result of income differences between households of different social classes.

What is life course diversity?

the stage in the family life cycle that a particular family has reached

What is generational diversity?

Older and younger generations have different attitudes and experiences that reflect the historical periods in which they have lived

What did Bhatti (1999) find?

Asian families place a large amount of importance on the idea of family loyalty

Who identified regional diversity?

Eversley and Bonnerjea

What did Eversely and Bonnerjea have to say about the coastal areas of Britain?

They contain disproportionate number if single elderly people and retired couples- they coined them the 'geriatric wards'

Who identified the term the 'neo-conventional' family?

Chester

Give two reasons why there has been an increase in cohabitation

Decline in stigma

More career opportunities means that women do not need the financial security of marriage

Why has there been an increase in the number of single person households?

After a divorce, the mother is more likely to get custody of the children, leaving the father alone.

Many people remain single as there are no suitable partners in their age group

Why has there been an increase in the number of births outside of marriage?

Decline in stigma

Many women seek a career before they get married

Why is the extended family still important today?

they can provide financial support and help with childbearing

Why are most lone-parent families headed by the mother?

It is believed that by nature, women are more suited to the 'expressive role'.

Divorce courts are more likely to give custody to mothers

What is the New Right view of divorce?

Undermines the traditional conventional family

Creates latch-key kids

What is the feminist view of divorce?

It allows women to break free from a patriarchal institution

What is the Marxist view of divorce?

Getting a divorce breaks people from the ISA. This gives the proletariat more bargaining power and makes them more likely to rebel