1. Nuclear family
a. Family core upon which larger family groups are built; typically, a married
couple and their unmarried children living together.
2. Extended family
a. Family in which other relatives live in the same location as parents and
their children.
i. Grandparents, aunts, uncles
1. Polygamy
a. When an individual has several husbands or wives at the same time.
i. Polygyny
1. Form of marriage in which a man has more than one wife at
the same time.
ii. Polyandry
1. Form of marriage in which a woman may have more than
one husband at the same time.
2. Monogamy
a. Form of marriage in which an individual has only one partner
i. Serial monogamy
1. A form of marriage in which one person has several spouses
in his or her lifetime, but only one spouse at a time.
1. Primary kins
a. Nuclear family members define his or her primary kins within the familyfor example husband/wife, mother/daughter
b. There are 8 primary kin
2. Secondary kins
a. those who are directly related to primary kin (primary kin's primary kin)
become one's secondary kin.
b. There are 33 secondary kin
3. Tertiary Kins
a. These individuals reference the secondary kins of our primary kins
i. Brother of your sister’s husband.
Sociological Perspectives
1. Functionalist
a. Family contributes to social stability. Specific roles of family members.
b. William F. Ogburn
c. Six essential functions for a family
i. Reproduction
1. Families allow the human species to survive, since they
replace dying members of a society or culture.
ii. Protection
1. Families have the initial responsibility for protectings and
rasing their children.
iii. Socialization
1. A cultures norms, values, and language are transmitted and
monitored by the family
iv. Regulation of sexual behavior
1. Families define (and often regulate) the societal standards of
sexual behavior
v. Affection and companionship
1. A basic need for all individuals is the need to feel secure,
satisfied, and wanted. Families provide for this.
vi. Provision of social status
1. Parents provide and ascribed status on a newborn and
supports the child in obtaining an achieved status
2. Conflict
a. The family perpetuates inequality. Wealth or poverty continues over
generations.
b. Do not see families as contributing to society as much as contributing to
the unequal distribution of wealth
3. Interactionist
a. Look at families through a micro perspective
i. Focus on the interactions between individuals and family members.
4. Feminist
a. Families are a historical institution that perpetuated inequality
b. Gender roles
c. Reassess female-headed households.
1. Power structures
a. Patriarchy
i. Decision making for a family are dominated by the male
perspective
b. Matriarchy
i. Decision making for a family is dominated by the female
perspective
c. Egalitarian
i. Decision making for a family is shared by both spouses. Spouses
are view as equals.

Families vary from culture to culture and even within the same culture

The structure of the extended family can offer certain advantages over that of
the nuclear family

Societies determine kinship by decent from both parents (bilateral descent),
from the father only (Patrilineal descent) or from the mother only (Matrilineal
descent)

Sociologist do not agree on whether the egalitarian family has replaced the
patriarchal family in the United States.

William F. Ogburn outlined six basic functions of the family: reproduction,
protection, socialization, regulation of sexual behavior, companionship, and the
provision of social status

Conflict theorists argue that male dominance of the family contributes to
societal injustice and denies women opportunities that are extended to men.

Interactionists focus on how individuals interact in the family and in other
intimate relationships

Feminists stress the need to broaden research on the family. Like conflict
theorists, they see the family’s role in socializing children as the primary source
of sexism.

People select mates in a variety of ways. some marriages are arranged; in other
societies, people choose their own mates. Some societies require mates to be
chosen from a certain group (exogamy) or outside certain groups (exogamy).
And consciously or unconsciously, many people look for a mate with similar
personal characteristics (homogamy).

In the United States, family life varies with social class, races and ethnicity.

Currently in the majority of all married couples in the United States both husband
and wife work outside of the home.

Single parent families account for an increasing proportion of U.S families.

Among the factors that contribute to the rising divorce rate in the united states
are greater social acceptance of divorce and the liberalization of divorce laws in
many states.

More and more people are living together without marrying, a practice known as
cohabitation. People are also staying single longer, and some married couples
are deciding not to have children.

The Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision legalized same sex marriage in all 50
states in 2015. As a result, gays and lesbians enjoy legal marriage equality, but
many legal challenges remain.

Unlike many countries all over the world, the US had no laws that mandate family
leave, paid or unpaid, or any other social benefits to families with children.
Adoption In a legal sense, the transfer of the legal rights, responsibilities, and privileges of
parenthood to a new legal parent or parents. (page 280)
Arranged marriage A marriage in which others (often the parents) choose a person’s
marital partner. (277)
Bilateral descent A kinship system in which both sides of a person’s family are regarded
as equally important. (272)
Cohabitation The practice of living together as a male–female couple without marrying.
(288)
Egalitarian family An authority pattern in which spouses are regarded as equals. (273)
Endogamy The restriction of mate selection to people within the same group. (276)
Exogamy The requirement that people select a mate outside certain groups. (277)
Extended family A family in which relatives—such as grandparents, aunts, or uncles—live
in the same home as parents and their children. (271)
Familism (Familismo) Pride in the extended family, expressed through the maintenance of
close ties and strong obligations to kinfolk outside the immediate family. (279)
Family A set of people related by blood, marriage or some other agreed-on relationship, or
adoption, who share the primary responsibility for reproduction and caring for members
of society. (271)
Flexibility stigma The devaluation of workers who seek or who are presumed to need
flexible work arrangements. (287)
Homogamy The conscious or unconscious tendency to select a mate with personal
characteristics similar to one’s own. (277)
Hybrid marriage a marriage in which the son or daughter may identify the prospective
spouse, but the marriage is contingent on the parents approving that choice. (277)
Impression management A term used by Erving Goffman to refer to the altering of the
presentation of the self in order to create distinctive appearances and satisfy particular
audiences. (275)
Incest taboo The prohibition of sexual relationships between certain culturally specified
relatives. (277)
Kinship The state of being related to others. (272)
Machismo A sense of virility, personal worth, and pride in one’s maleness. (279)
Matriarchy A society in which women dominate in family decision making. (273)
Matrilineal descent A kinship system in which only the mother’s relatives are significant.
(273)
Monogamy A form of marriage in which an individual has only one partner. (271)
Nuclear family A married couple and their unmarried children living together. (271)
Patriarchy A society in which men dominate in family decision making. (273)
Patrilineal descent A kinship system in which only the father’s relatives are significant.
(273)
Polyandry A form of polygamy in which a woman may have more than one husband at the
same time. (272)
Polygamy A form of marriage in which an individual may have several husbands or wives
simultaneously. (272)
Polygyny A form of polygamy in which a man may have more than one wife at the same
time. (272)
Serial monogamy A form of marriage in which a person may have several spouses in his
or her lifetime, but only one spouse at a time. (272)
Single-parent family A family in which only one parent is present to care for the children.
(281