Sociology Paper 2

Family and Households

Sociology

The study of society and of people and their behaviour.

Family

A social unit made up of people related to each other by blood, birth or marriage.

Socialisation

The process where we learn how to behave in society; we learn norms & values.

Familialism

The idea that the ideal family to live in is a cereal packet family.

Cereal packet family

A traditional family structure typified by the man as the wage earner and the woman as the housewife.

Social policy

Plans and actions of state agencies such as health and social services, the welfare benefits system, schools and other public bodies.

Norms

Unwritten rules shared by members of a social group about the right way to behave.

Culture

The learned, shared norms, values, beliefs and goals of members of society.

Value

A belief that something is important and worthwhile, right or wrong.

Status

A position in society.

Role

A set of norms which defines appropriate behaviour for a particular status.

Social control

Methods designed to ensure that members of society conform to approved ways of behaving.

Social class

A system of social inequality containing various levels in which people are grouped in terms of income and wealth, power and prestige.

Nuclear family

A family of two generations (parents and children) related by blood or marriage who live together.

Extended family

Any family containing relatives other than parents and children, such as aunts, uncles and grandparents.

Polygyny

When men are permitted to have more than one wife at the same time.

Monogamous nuclear family

A family of parents and children where the adult partners only have sex with each other.

Connectedness thesis

The theory that it is important to understand individuals through the networks of personal relationships they are involved in rather than as isolated individuals.

Functionalism

A sociological perspective that sees society as based on a value consensus and the family as an important subsystem.

George Peter Murdock

Argued that the family performs four essential functions to meet the needs of society and its members.

Criticism of Murdock

Feminists see the family serving men's needs and oppressing women; Marxists argue it meets the needs of capitalism.

Talcott Parsons' Functional fit Theory

Suggests that as society changes, the type of family that fits that society and its functions also changes.

Primary socialisation

The process in early childhood where children are equipped with society's norms and values to enable them to integrate.

Stabilisation of adult personalities

The idea that the family provides emotional security against the stresses of work in a chaotic world.

Criticism for Parsons

His view ignores family diversity and the darker aspects of family life such as domestic abuse.

Marxists

Sociologists who argue that the family supports capitalist values and exploits the working class.

Inheritance of property

The Marxist view that the family was created to ensure that property is passed down through generations.

Private Property

The Marxist argument that the modern nuclear family developed in capitalist society to control inheritance.

Ideological Functions

The argument that family socialises children into accepting inequality and hierarchy.

Unit of Consumption

The term used to describe how families contribute to capitalist society through consumption.

Emotional labour

The process by which individuals manage their emotions in interactions and roles.

Feminists

Critics who argue that the family oppresses women and supports patriarchy.

Liberal Feminism

A perspective claiming women’s oppression is being overcome through changing laws and attitudes.

Marxist Feminism

Argues women’s oppression is a result of capitalism, not men.

Radical Feminism

Believes that patriarchy is the main source of women’s oppression.

Difference Feminism

Argues that women's experiences cannot be generalized, as they differ based on ethnicity, class, etc.

Personal Life Perspective

A viewpoint that considers the meanings and relationships beyond traditional definitions of family.

Fictive kin

Close friends who are treated as relatives.

China's One-Child Policy

A policy aimed at controlling population growth by restricting couples to one child.

Demographic Transition Theory

A theory describing the transition from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates.

Dependency Ratio

The ratio of the economically dependent population (young and old) to the working-age population.

Ageism

The stereotyping and discrimination against individuals based on their age.

Super-diversity

A term describing the increasing variety of different types of migrants and migration experiences.

Hybridity

The presence of multiple identities within an individual or group.

Globalisation

The process of international integration arising from the interchange of world views, products, ideas and other aspects of culture.

Assimilation

Policies aimed at encouraging immigrants to adopt the customs and attitudes of the host culture.

Multiple identities

The idea that individuals may have several influences shaping their identity.

Age Pyramids

Graphs that show the distribution of various age groups in a population.

Cereal packet family

The stereotypical family configuration often depicted in media with a mother, father, and children.