Unit 1 : Families & Househ

Family

A group of people who are related by kinship ties

Household

A person living alone or a group of people who live at the same address and share living arrangements

Functionalists

See the family as beneficial to society , contributing to a social stability and providing practical and emotional support

Functionalism : Socialising

The family socialises children into shared norms and values leading to social harmony and stability.

Functionalism : The male role

The family helps to maintain a stable society through the sexual division of labour . They perform "instrumental" roles

Functionalism : The female role

The woman should be providing warmth and emotional support

Functionalism : Parsons

Parsons argues the family has lost many of it functions through the process of structural differentiation

Structural differentiation

The way functions are transferred to other specialised institutions such as the welfare state and healthcare

Social mobility

Higher rates of social mobility make it easier to move up or down the social scale

Meritocracy

where success is possible through people’s own efforts and skill, rather than family connections

New Right : Gender roles

They support a traditional heterosexual nuclear family with traditional family values