Chapter 15 Families In Conflict and Order: Understanding Society, 11th edition This multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law: any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network; preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images; any rental, lease, or lending of the program. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 The Mythical Family in the United States • The family is idealized and mythologized. – The myth of a stable and harmonious family of the past – The myth of the family as a “haven in a heartless world” – The myth of the monolithic family form – The myth of a unified family experience – The myth of family decline as the cause of social problems Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Families in Contemporary U.S. Society • Families are a product of social structure. – The have different connections with institutions that provide resources for family support. – Class and race are important determinants of family life. – The new economy has generated several difficulties for families. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Families in Contemporary U.S. Society • The Changing Composition of Households and Families – The U.S. Census Bureau defines a household as all persons who occupy a housing unit. – A family is two or more persons related by birth marriage or adoption who reside together. – All families comprise households, but not all households are families under the Census Bureau’s definition. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Changes in Marriage and Family Roles • Marriage is still very much the norm, with about 90% of the population eventually marrying. – However, the marriage rate has declined in recent decades. • Married people have better physical and mental health, enhanced sex lives, and more economic resources. • Some marriages are abusive. • Marriage matters but the degree to which it matters is affected by social class, race and gender. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Figure 15.2 – Households by Type: 1970 to 2003 (Percent Distribution) Source: Jason Fields, 2004, “America’s Families and Living Arrangements: 2003.” Current Population Reports, Series P20-553 (November). Washington, DC: U.S. Bureau of the Census, p. 5. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Figure 15.3 – Median Age at First Marriage for the Population 15 Years and Over by Sex 1970 to 2003 Source: Jason Fields, 2004. “America’s Families and Living Arrangements: 2003.” Current Population Reports, Series P20-553 (November). Washington, DC U.S. Bureau of the Census, p. 13. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Changes in Marriage and Family Roles • Same-sex marriage – Supporters of same-sex marriage argue that homosexual couples should have the same rights as heterosexuals. – Opponents argue that making same sex unions legal denigrates marriage and abandons the basic building block of the family. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Changes in Marriage and Family Roles • Divorce and marital separation are not evenly distributed through the population and vary according to social and economic characteristics. • The U.S. has the highest remarriage rate in the world. • About 1/3rd of Americans will marry, divorce, and remarry. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Changes in Marriage and Family Roles • Work and Family Roles – Dual-worker marriages have increased. – The “work-family role system” reinforces traditional division of labor in both work and family. – Employed wives generally have two jobs--work and family--while employed husbands have only one. • Arlie Hochschild calls the additional hours that working women put in doing housework “the second shift”. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Changes in Marriage and Family Roles • Children and Adolescents – 17% of all children in the U.S. live in poverty – Recent changes in family life have altered childhood and adolescence. • The Aged – Aging has produced personal and family relationships that never existed before. – New family and household forms have emerged. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 The Modern Family from the Order and Conflict Perspectives • Order theorists view the family as a source of stability for individuals and society. – The traditional division of labor by sex contributes to the social order. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 The Modern Family from the Order and Conflict Perspectives • Conflict theorists argue that the traditional family supports the economy but individuals and families pay a high price. – The family is a major source of false consciousness and the primary agent by which the system of social stratification is perpetuated. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007 Families of the Future • Trends that are altering families – Stresses on family functions will continue to reshape families. – Economics will continue to drive family changes. – Divorce will continue. – Nontraditional family forms shaped by social and economic changes will proliferate. – An aging society will redefine families. Copyright © Allyn and Bacon 2007