Social policy & the family

Functionalist view of policy

• The state and its policies are for the good of all (consensus approach)

• Social policies help families perform their functions more effectively

• Nuclear family policies favour more

• E.g. Fletcher = Policies such as the free NHS, compulsory education and housing policies, all help families take better care of its members

Marxist view of policy

• The state and its policies support capitalism (conflict)

• Policies have an ideological function: despite trying to benefit the working class, they are instead trying to convince them that society is fair (maintains FCC, part of ISA - Althusser)

• Low level of state pension means that once workers are too old to produce profits, they are simply maintained at the lowest possible cost

• Minimum wage - capitalism has a friendly face

• Donzelot - policy is a form of state control over families (doctors, teachers etc. use knowledge to control and change families

• Argue that any improvements for WC families (e.g. free healthcare, pensions) has only been won by class struggle

Feminist views of policy

• Radical: Policies assume family is patriarchal with a male provider and female homemaker (Firestone)

• Universal Child Benefit paid to woman, her role is childcare

• Custody laws, courts often give women custody of children in divorce cases (seen as natural carers)

• Maternity leave looks helpful, but because maternity leave is more generous than paternity leave, assumes children are mother’s responsibility

• Childcare - Gov pays for some, but not enough to allow parents to work full time unless they can meet additional costs themselves

• School timetables, summer holidays, make it difficult for two parents to work full time

• Government policies assume family will provide care for elderly (often falls to middle aged women, prevent from working)

Liberal feminist view of policy

• Legislation and law changes enable greater gender equality e

• Equal Pay Act/Sex Discrimination Act (Equality Act 2010)

• Benefits for lone parents

• Equalising grounds for divorce

New RIght view of policy

• Linked to Conservative party

• Family should be based on heterosexual marriage between two parents (nuclear family is the only strong, secure family type, men and women perform different roles

• Nuclear family needed for effective solution

• All other family arrangements are deviant and a threat to societal stability

• Policies support nuclear family, against family diversity

• Believe family diversity creates welfare dependency - benefit scroungers, not taking responsibility, reliant on government, result in an underclass (Murray)

• Murray: Benefits/council housing etc. encourage dysfunctional family types, a ‘perverse incentive’, reward irresponsible or anti-social behaviour

• Dennis & Erdos: One of society’s biggest issues are fatherless families, women unable to socialise children effectively, boys grow up without a role model, so do not learn how to be effective fathers, creating a cycle of inadequate socialisation

• Nuclear family is best, others lead to benefit dependency and inadequate socialisation (underclass)

Conservative view of policy

• The less the government interferes, the better (i.e. get rid of benefits), policies need to change to reduce reliance on the state

• Child Support Agency: Absent parents had to take financial responsibility for children, discourages family type outside of nuclear

• Community care: Care done by family members rather than state

• Marriage tax breaks: Married couples under a certain income can claim tax breaks, promotes importance of marriage

• Clause 28: Schools prohibited from ‘promoting homosexuality’

New Labour view of policy

• Nuclear is ideal, but other family types can also work, recognising that women now go to work etc

• Policies support nuclear family as well as others

• Maternity leave increased, paternity introduces

• New Deal helped single parents return to employment

• Civil partnerships for same sex couples promote equality

• Unmarried couples and same sex families the same right to adopt as married couples

• Abolished Clause/section 28

Coalition policy

• Difficult to take consistent line on policy: Conservative + Lib Dem

• E.g. Conservatives brought in gay marriage and introduced sharing of maternity leave, allowing men to be main carer of children

• Mostly focused on austerity