Ch. 11-The Family
I.
What is a family?
The family is a social institution found in all societies that unites
people in cooperative groups to care for one another including
children. The family is a primary group of people, usually related by
blood, marriage or adoption, who form a cooperative economic unit to
care for any offspring and each other and who are committed to
maintaining the group over time.
Malinowski’s research on Australian Aboriginals (1913) showed that
the idea of family was more universal than originally thought
Functions of the Family
1. socialization
2. regulation of sexual activity
3. social placement
4. material & emotional security
II.
Theoretical Perspectives
a. Functionalist-functional to society-marriage is a contractual
exchange of services between marriage partners; Structural
functionalists view the family as a structure that benefits society as
a whole. The family is viewed as an efficient and effective
structure that clearly defines expressive (female) and instrumental
(male) roles.
b. Conflict-system of power relations that reflects inequities in
society-property & inheritance; gender inequalities maintained in
family interactions. These issues are based on gender, age, and
power dynamics; along with a division of labor. This leads to
issues of inequality
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c. Symbolic Interactionist- families and relationships are socially
constructed; how people define and understand their family
experience and how they negotiate family relationships
The family is viewed as a setting for a variety of interactions that
occur over time. The family is viewed as a system that negotiates.
When those negotiations break down, stress and conflict result.
Role ambiguity refers to instances where members of a family are
unsure of their role and what they are to do.
Exchange theorists analyze the family from the perspective of
choices made on the basis of rewards and costs. For example,
marriage is viewed as an equal exchange of physical, economic,
and emotional support; when in actuality, men are said to benefit
more.
III.
Family Forms
Marriage-legal relationship usually involving economic cooperation,
sexual activity & childbearing.
a. Endogamy-marriage within one’s social group
b. Exogamy-marriage outside of one’s social group
c. monogamy-most common in industrial societies
d. polygamy: multiple spouses
polygyny: one husband, more than 1 wife
polyandry-rarest form, one wife more than 1 husband
e. nuclear family-parents and offspring
f. extended family-parents, offspring and other kin
IV.
Love, Marriage & Divorce
a. mate selection-functions & dysfunctions of romantic love
b. successful marriages & families-most conflicts about finances &
housework (Hochschild’s Second Shift)
Families in which housework and childcare is shared are more
stable and happy
c. Divorce
Factors: rising life expectancy, increased power for women (less
dependency on men & changing roles, increased value of
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individualism, decreased stigma of divorce-more socially
acceptable, decrease of romantic love
Who divorces:
those who marry young
those who marry after a short courtship
those who marry despite disapproval of family and friends
low income families
those at extremes of educational attainment
urban couples
those where both husband and wife have successful careers
marriages where one or both partners are substance abuser
those who have had a prior divorce
Problems resulting from divorce-emotional turmoil, financial
problems, child support, child custody
V.
Alternatives to the Traditional Family
Recent social changes have resulted in changes to family structure.
a. Single-parent- The United States has the highest rate of single
parent families among developed nations.
b. Blended and Step-FamiliesA step family involves two adults who are married or
cohabitating, where at least one has a child from a previous
marriage.
A blended family involves the cohabitation of children from
previous relationship(s) along with one of more children from the
currently married or cohabitating couple.
c. Remaining single-one in four households
40% of women born in the 1980”s will not marry or bear children.
The number of people living alone has increased from 13% of all
households in 1970 to over 27% in 2011.
d. Cohabitation-now more socially acceptable but have a slightly
higher divorce rate
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Non-family households are those in which a person lives either
alone or with nonrelatives. The number of people living alone has
increased from 13% of all households in 1970 to over 27% in
2011. The reasons for this increase include:
Increasing affluence has made it possible for more people to afford
the greater costs of living alone.
Consistent with the growth of individualism.
The rising status of women and their higher levels of education and
higher-paying jobs, which allows women to marry later, separate,
or divorce.
The communications revolution has allowed people to
communicate with other people, and be entertained, while they are
home alone.
Mass urbanization has made the active social life of the city
available to more people.
The aging of the population and the fact that as people live longer
they are more likely to find themselves alone.