topic 6 - family diversity

What is divorce and the patterns

Divorce is the process of terminating a marriage or union

• since 1960s divorce has increased

• The divorce rate peaked in 1993

• Since then numbers have fallen

• One reason for the falls is that fewer are marrying

• More women file for a divorce than men

What is a zombie family

Zombie families (beck) appears to be alive but in reality it is dead people want it to be a haven of security in an insecure world but today’s family cannot provide this because of its own stability

Reasons for divorce

• changes in law - 1969 divorce reform act and legal aid

3 major changes - equal grounds, wider and cheaper

• declining stigma and changing attitudes- goodie 1960s declining in stigma so divorce is more common

• Women’s financial independence - less reliant on husbands women have financial “ freedom”

• Modernity and individualism - becks and gidden - freedom to peruse own interests no longer requirement to remain with one partner for life

• Feminst explantion - dual burden creates strain and unstable relationships divorce is used to liberate women from these relationships

• Secularisations - decline in religious beliefs so church has much less influence

• Rising expectations of marriage - focuses more on love less on economic exchange ( fletcher)

Stacey - postmodern families

she argues that greater freedom and choice has benefited women. It has enabled them to free themselves from patriarchal oppression and to shape their family arrangements to meet their needs

Stacey used life history interviews to construct a series of case studies of postmodern families she found that women rather than men have been the main agents of changes in the family

Neo liberalism and neo conservativism?

Neo liberalism - economic policies that prefer less state intervention and more public services being run privately ( privatisation )

Neo conservatism - belief in traditional values in social institutions such as education

What does giddens argue ( choice and equality)

He argues that in recent decades the family and marriage have been transformed by greater choice the transformation has occurred because:

• contraception has allowed sex and intimacy rather reproductive

• Women have gained independence as a result of feminism and because of greater opportunity in education and work

Families today are free to define their relationships themselves ,rather than simply acting out. For example a couple nowadays does not have to marry to have children

What is the individualisation thesis?

The individualisation thesis was created by beck and gidden who argued that traditional relationships roles and beliefs have lost their influence over individuals

An increase to individualisation have become increasingly inwardly focused and concerned about how society and networks can be used to provide instant gratification for them

Modernism and family life

• individuals have no real choice

• Most will experience a nuclear family

• Behaviour in society is predictable

• Most will marry and have children

• At most people will experience diversity in the type of nuclear family they will experience

• Modernism- wants objective certainty therefore nuclear family is always the best

What does the new right believe about the family

• the underclass exists

• Welfare dependency- people who spend on welfare state

• Murray - single mothers at fault ( no father figure)

• Preference for the nuclear family - housewife, breadwinner and children

• Political ideology that combines Neo liberal economic policies and Neo conservative social policies

Rapoports five stages generational diversity

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

For example - they may have different views about morality of divorce and cohabitation

Rapoports five types of- cultural diversity

Different culture, regions and ethnic groups have different family structures

For example - there is higher proportion of female headed lone parent families among African Caribbean households and a higher portion of extended families among Asian households

What has undermined the traditional nuclear family

• no set family roles ( functions inadequate)

  choice, less consensus

• Less stability ( parsons 2 functions)

• Reproductive function is removed

• Increased in social monogamy

• Views in marriage shifted

What is a negotiated family

Do not conform to traditional family norms but vary according to the wishes and expectations of their members who decide what is best for themselves by negotiation

They enter the family on a equal basis

What does Chester believe ( Neo convential nuclear family)

1. We are part of a life course

2. We experience may different family types

3. Majority of people have been part of a nuclear family or will be at some point

Patterns to back this:

Most people live in a household headed by a married couple

Cohabitation has increased but most marry after this

Rapport 5 types of diversity - social class

Differences in family structures are partly the result of income differences between households of different social class. Likewise there are class differences in child rearing practices

Rapports 5 types- life stage diversity

Family structures differ according to the stage reached in the life cycle

For example - young newlyweds retired couples whose children have grown up and left home and widows who are living alone

Rapports five types of- organisational diversity

Refers to differences in the ways family roles are organised

For example some couples have joint conjugal roles and two ways earners while others have segregated conjugal roles and one wage earners

What is the connectedness thesis

It disagrees with this individualisation thesis it feels we are still in “web of relationships “ so much so that even when a relationship ends we are still connected

What is a pure relationship

A kind of “rolling contact” that can be ended more or less at will by either partner rather than permanent commitment

What happens during divorce

• emotional / psychological impact - destabilising adult personalities

• Breaks down families ( inadequate socialisation)

• Rota - time spent with children

• Solicitors to divide assets ( home and money)