History and Evolution of Family and Consumer Sciences

History and Evolution of Family and Consumer Sciences

Morrill Act & Land-Grant Colleges

  • Morrill Act of 1862 established public colleges for common families.
  • Land-Grant Colleges received land to educate common people.

Key Figures in FACS

  • Jane Addams: Pioneer in social work and FACS development.
  • Catherine Beecher: Advocated for women's education in domestic sciences.
  • Ellen Richards: First female MIT graduate and FACS founder.

Core Concepts

  • Domestic Science: Focuses on home management and family welfare.
  • Food Safety: Practices ensuring safe food consumption.
  • Financial Management: Planning and controlling financial resources.
  • Human Development: Study of psychological and physical growth.

Legislation & Programs

  • Smith-Lever Act (1914): Expanded Land Grant mission to public education.
  • Cooperative Extension: Public education programs from Land Grant institutions.
  • 4-H Youth Development: Promotes hands-on learning in agriculture for youth.

UGA FACS

  • Established at UGA in 1919.
  • Creswell: First home economics graduate from UGA.
  • Dawson Hall: Built in 1933, funded by Dr. Dawson.
  • Child Development Center: Established in 1940, first director was McPhaul.
  • Lynda Henley Walter: First PhD awarded in child and family development.

Family Structures

  • Nuclear Family: Traditional unit with parents and children.
  • Extended Family: Includes relatives beyond the nuclear family.
  • Postmodern Family: Acknowledges diverse family forms.
  • Single-parent Families: Led by one parent.
  • Stepfamilies: Formed through remarriage.
  • Cohabiting Couples: Unmarried couples living together.

Marriage Trends

  • Marriage rates declined from 72% to 50%.
  • Average marriage age: 28 (women), 30 (men).

Family Functions

  • Economic Support: Financial and practical assistance.
  • Emotional Security: Support and stability.

Social Services

  • Community-Based Social Services: Adoption and counseling.
  • Health Care Services: Supports family health and prenatal care.

Contemporary Family Trends

  • Cohabitation: Acceptable family form.
  • Fertility Decline: Decrease in birth rates.
  • Nonmarital Birth Rate: 40% of US births to unmarried mothers.
  • Same-Sex Households: Increased significantly.
  • Divorce Rate: Downward trend.
  • Remarriage Rate: Declined recently.

Perspectives on Family

  • Family Decline Perspective: Individualism leads to divorce.
  • Family Change Perspective: Family evolves historically.
  • Social Institution: Patterned behaviors serving social functions.

Biological & Communication Technologies

  • Birth Control Pill: 1960s invention preventing unwanted pregnancies.
  • Assisted Reproduction Technologies (ART): Facilitates family creation.
  • Egg/Sperm Freezing: Allows delayed parenthood.
  • DNA Testing: Identifies genetic relationships.
  • Communication Technologies: Enhances family support globally.

Social and Economic Factors

  • Economic Conditions: Increasing economic inequality.
  • Age Structure: Longer life spans impact family dynamics.
  • Baby Boomers: Born 1946-1964.
  • Digital Divide: Affects family communication.
  • Family Obligations: Diverse views on family responsibilities.

Race and Ethnicity

  • Race: Social construction reflecting societal perceptions.
  • Ethnicity: Cultural distinction based on language and history.
  • Racial/Ethnic Diversity: Increasing variety in U.S. social groups.
  • Familistic Values: Emphasize family togetherness.

Family Policy & Systems Theory

  • Family Policy: Procedures affecting family functions.
  • Family Systems Theory: Views family members as interconnected.
  • Cohesion: Degree of closeness among family members.
  • Enmeshment: Extreme closeness.
  • Disengagement: Lack of closeness.
  • Triangulation: Three-person relationship excluding one member.

Conflict & Biosocial Perspectives

  • Conflict Theory: Analyzes power dynamics within families.
  • Patriarchy: Male dominance in societies.
  • Biosocial Perspective: Biological factors influence family choices.
  • Attachment Theory: Childhood experiences shape relationship styles.

Research Methods

  • Cross-Sectional Research: Data collected at one point in time.
  • Longitudinal Research: Data collected over an extended period.
  • Quantitative Research: Data expressed in numbers and statistics.
  • Qualitative Research: Data expressed through words and narratives.
  • Naturalistic Observation: Studying behavior in natural settings.
  • Focus Group: Qualitative research in group discussions.
  • Informed Consent: Participants agree to research terms.
  • Institutional Review Board: Reviews research for ethical compliance.
  • Scientific Method: Systematic observation and evidence.
  • Objectivity in Research: Eliminating personal bias.

Ecological Model

  • Family Ecology Perspective: Analyzes individual influences and contexts.
  • Microsystem: Immediate environment.
  • Mesosystem: Interactions between microsystems.
  • Exosystem: External environmental settings indirectly impacting the individual.
  • Macrosystem: Cultural and societal influences on individual development.

Family Life Course Development Framework

  • Focuses on transitions across life stages.
  • Developmental task: Challenges individuals face at different life stages.
  • On-time transitions: Life events occurring as expected.
  • Off-time transitions: Life events occurring outside expectations.
  • Social Exchange Framework: Decision-making based on perceived costs and benefits.
  • Principle of Least Interest: Less committed partner has more power.
  • Symbolic Interaction Framework: Meaning derived from interactions within families.

Gender and Sexuality

  • Gender Identity: Self-awareness of being masculine or feminine.
  • Cisgender: Gender identity aligns with assigned sex at birth.
  • Intersexed: Individuals with ambiguous genital anatomy.
  • Transgender: Uncomfortable with assigned gender at birth.
  • Transsexual: Identifies with gender different from assigned sex.
  • Gender Expectations: Societal attitudes linked to sex assignment.
  • Gender Bending: Challenging traditional gender norms.
  • Gender Differentiation: Cultural expectations of male and female behavior.
  • Masculinities: Cultural obligations for men.
  • Femininities: Expectations for women.
  • Dramaturgy: Enacting socially prescribed roles.
  • Doing Gender: Following societal expectations of gender behavior.
  • Gender Socialization: Internalizing societal gender attitudes.
  • Social Learning Theory & Gender Schema Theory: Framework for learning gender roles.
  • Sexual Orientation: Gender of whom one is sexually attracted.
  • Heterosexuals: Attracted to opposite-sex partners.
  • Homosexuals: Attracted to same-sex partners.
  • Bisexuals: Attracted to both sexes.
  • Asexual: Lacks sexual attraction to others.
  • Sexual Identity: Self-identification regarding sexual orientation.
  • Heterosexism: Belief system favoring heterosexual relationships.

Relationship Dynamics

  • Commitment: Willingness to invest in a relationship.
  • Sternberg's Triangular Theory: Love consists of intimacy, passion, and commitment.
    • Intimacy : Close, connected feelings.
    • Passion: Drives leading to romance and physical attraction.
    • Commitment: Decision to love and maintain that love.
  • Mate Selection: Choosing a committed partner.
  • Marriage Market: Individuals bargain for partners based on resources.
  • Endogamy and Exogamy: Marrying within or outside one's social group.

Dating and Breakups

  • Dating Scripts: Behavioral guidelines for initial relationship stages.
  • Stages to Commitment: Hinting, discussing, and engaging in marriage.
  • Wheel of Love: Four stages: rapport, self-revelation, dependency, fulfillment.
  • Breaking Up: Difficult process with potential lingering emotional investment.
  • Open Confrontation: Best breakups involve clear communication.
  • Exchange Perspective: Weighing relationship rewards against costs.

Being Single

  • Being Single Definition: Unmarried status.
  • Social Factors of Being Single: Influences from technology and societal norms.
  • Cohabitation Acceptance: Living together as an alternative to marriage.
  • Marriage Definition Shift: Less emphasis on marriage as permanent.