Family Diversity

Single parents/Lone parents

refers to families headed by one parent caring for dependent children

• most commonly single mothers - more likely to receive custody during divorces

Single parents/Lone parents Trends: 1971 & 2014

Since 1971 - the percentage of these families have tripled

By 2014 - about 1 in 4 families with dependent children were lone parent families

Single parents/Lone parents: Multiple Reasons for this Increase

• The changing economic position of women

• Changing social attitudes

• Developments in reproductive technology

• Changes in divorce laws

Reconstituted, Blended, Step Family

at least one adult has children from a previous relationship, and these families form when these adults join together in a new partnership

Reconstituted, Blended, Step Family Trends: 2021, 2011

1/3 of marriages now involve a remarriage

• reflecting the rise in divorce rates

• more men remarry than women: women’s greater dissatisfaction with marriage

• led to more serial monogamy: where individuals divorce and then form new married or cohabitating relationships

2021: 8.8% (1.1 million) of dependent children lived in step-families, a decline from 2011 (9.7%, 1.2 million)

Reconstituted, Blended, Step Family - Allan et al

Pointed out life in stepfamilies can be complex

• sense of unity - two natural parents

• children often to feel more loyalty to their natural parents: can cause disputes

Both parents’ involvement is rarely questioned - a stepparent’s role is less clear

• children may be less willing to accept control and discipline from stepparents

• natural parents may have reservations about the stepparent’s authority

The Extended Family - Functionalist

The classic extended family has largely disappeared in contemporary Britain, as the isolated privatised nuclear family emerges as the form most suited to life in contemporary society

The Extended Family: Functionalist - Willmott

Extended families continue to play a significant role in contemporary society

• often maintain close, supportive relationships

• “dispersed extended family”: frequently involves regular contact and mutual assistance between relatives

The Extended Family: Functionalist - Bell

Working class and Middle class had emotional bonds with kin and relied on them for support

• MC: more financial help

• WC: families had more frequent contact - more domestic help from mothers to daughters

Beanpole Family - Julia Brannen

‘long and thin’

• it is extended vertically through 3 generations: grandparents, parents and children

• not extended horizontally: it doesn’t involve aunts, uncles, cousins, etc

Cultural Diversity: Black Caribbean

Families both in the UK and in the Caribbean has found considerable diversity in their cultural patterns

Cultural Diversity: Black Caribbean - Barrow

1) The Conventional Nuclear Family (‘Christian marriage’): little different from nuclear families - typical of religious or economically successful groups

2) The Common-Law Family: frequently found among the less economically successful - an unmarried couple live together and look after children

3) The Mother Household: mothers or grandmother are the head of the household, contains no adult males - relies on the help and support of female kin living nearby: enable the head of the household to fulfil her families responsivities

British Caribbean Families - Reynolds

Focus on female-headed households among Black Caribbean families in Britain: misleading, emphasizing their diversity and fluidity

• female-headed households dominate in Jamaica

• nuclear families are more common in Barbados and Antigua

British Caribbean Families: Visiting Relationships - Reynolds

Visiting Relationships: increase family diversity - not often still playing an active parental role

• sometimes maintained for social security benefits: step towards stable, cohabiting relationships or marriage

• some women: value the independence these visiting relationships behind

Cultural Diversity: British Asians - Qureshi, Charsley & Shaw

Historically seen as having low rates of divorce, lone parenthood, and separation

• Pakistani families increased from 10% in 1991 to 17% in 2011 - indicate trend towards higher divorce and separation rates

Cultural Diversity: British Asians - Qureshi

First-generation Pakistani migrants: strongly opposed to divorce, often concealing marital issues

Older Migrants: challenges like spousal infidelity and low income - divorce was rare: occurred in cases of domestic violence or fertility

Younger British Pakistanis: Cultural differences and long visa waits causes marital conflict - only men could initiate divorce, eventually women concluded it was possible (Qur’an)

• most parents still support arranged marriages: increase possibility of divorce and remarriage for children

Sexual Diversity - Stonewall

The campaign for lesbian, gay and bisexual rights

• estimates that about 5 to 7% of the adult population today: same-sex relationships

Impossible to judge whether this represents an increase because in the past, stigma and illegality: likely to be hidden

Sexual Diversity: Policies

• Decriminalisation of male homosexual acts (two consenting adults over 20)

• 2001: Age of Consent

• 2002: Adoption and Children Act

• 2004: Civil Partnership Act

• 2014: Same-Sex Marriage Legalised

Sexual Diversity - Weeks

Increased social acceptance may explain a trend towards same-sex cohabitation and stable relationships that resemble those found among heterosexual

• ‘chosen families’ - offer the same security and stability as heterosexual families

Sexual Diversity - Einasdottir

Many gays and lesbians welcome the opportunity to have their partnerships legally recognised

• others fear it limits the flexibility and negotiability of relationships - rather than adopt what they see as heteronormativity

One Person Households Trends: 2013, 2033

2013 - nearly 3 in 10 households were single-person households

2033 - over 30% of the adult population will be single

LAT Trends

More young adults are staying with parents due to increased education years and financial pressures

• decline in marriage rates and people marrying later

• “creative singlehood” - choosing to live alone

• older widows are single - lack of available partners

LAT Trends - Duncan and Phillips

British Social Attitudes survey - found that about 1 in 10 adults are “living apart together”

• reflects a trend towards less formal relationships and personal choice

• public attitudes towards LATs are favourable

Types of Family Diversity - The Rapoports

See family diversity as a response to people’s different needs and wishes

• Organisational Diversity: differences in how family roles are organised

• Cultural Diversity: different cultural, religious and ethnic groups have different family structures

• Social Class Diversity: differences are result of income differences between households of different social classes

• Life-Stage Diversity: family structures differ according to the stage reaches in the life cycle

• Generational Diversity: older & younger generations have different attitudes and experiences - reflect historical periods in which they lived

Functionalism

The nuclear family is the norm, while other family types are considered less capable and thus dysfunctional or deviant

Functionalism - Parsons

Nuclear family fits modern society by supporting a mobile workforce and performing essential functions

• primary socialisation of children

• stabilising adult personalities

The New Right

See the family as ‘natural’ and based on fundamental biological differences between men and women

The New Right - Murray

Traditional nuclear family is the cornerstone of society - growth of family diversity are the cause of many issues in society

• concerned about the growth of lone-parent families: incentivise welfare dependency and discourage marriage

The New Right: Lone-parent families

Harmful to children

• lone mothers cannot discipline their children properly

• leaves boys without an adult male role model

• more likely to be poorer and thus a burden on the welfare state and taxpayers

Lone-parent families result mainly from cohabiting couples’ relationship breakdowns

The New Right: Cohabitation - Benson

Found a higher breakup rate among cohabitating couples

• 20% compared to married couples 6%

Argue marriage provides a more stable environment for children due to its commitment and responsibility

Usefulness of The New Right

• Oakley: wrongly assumes gender roles are biologically fixed

• Feminists: nuclear family oppresses women and causes gender inequality

• No evidence shows lone-parent family children are more delinquent

• Carol Smart: Cohabitation is higher among poorer social groups due to poverty

Neo Conventional Family - Chester

The only important change is a move from the dominance of the traditional or conventional nuclear family to the ‘neo-conventional family’

• Gender division of labour has changed to a Neo-conventional one - dual earners and shared domestic labour

The extent and importance of family diversity has been exaggerated - Chester sees the nuclear family as dominant

Postmodern Views of the Family

There is no longer one single, dominant, stable family structure such as the nuclear family

• instead family structures: fragmented into many different types and individuals have much more choices in their lifestyles

Postmodern Views of the Family: Greater Diversity - Positive

It gives individuals greater freedom to plot their own life course - to choose the kind of family and personal relationships that meet their needs

Postmodern Views of the Family: Greater Diversity - Negative

But greater freedom of choice in relationships means a greater risk of instability, since these relationships are more likely to break up