Family
Today
•
•
•
•
•
Sexuality
Relationships
Family Structure
Parenting
3 theories
“Families are like fudge…mostly
sweet, with a few nuts.”
Sexuality
Workplace
Marriage
Safety
Sexuality and Laws
Many states do not prohibit
employment discrimination on the basis of
sexual orientation and gender identity.
ENDA
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA)
Proposed bill to make it illegal nationally
Marriage recognition
Provides same sex couples:
-employment based health benefits
-right to sue for wrongful death
-ability to make medical decisions
14 states in the U.S. that recognize same-sex marriage (Oct 2013)
36 states in the U.S. that recognize same-sex marriage (2015)
Source: Same-sex marriage in the United States" by
Lokal_Profil. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5 via Wikimedia
Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samesex_marriage_in_the_United_States.svg#/media/File:Sa
me-sex_marriage_in_the_United_States.svg
Same-Sex Marriage Globally 2014
Harassment in Schools
Survey of LGBT students ages 13–20
-64% feeling unsafe, verbally harassed
-38% physical harassment
2010
Hate Crimes
Murder of :
Matthew Shepard college student, Wyoming
1998
2009: federal protection for gay individuals
under hate-crime laws
Hate crimes =
Harsher punishments for crimes motivated
by bias (race, religion)
Extra Credit Power Point (or Prezi.com) Option:
Sociologists to Know Extra Credit
5 minutes
Select a sociologist (sign up in class)
4 points possible
Samples and details on website
Present April 8th
E-mail me PowerPoint by April 7th 11:00pm
Finding your significant other
4 factors sociologists are interested in
1. Propinquity (spatial nearness)
2. Homogamy:
tendency to chose a mate
who is similar to you
3. Heterogamy:
choosing a mate that is
different than you
Factors: hobbies, education, personality traits, spending habits,
age, political beliefs, etc.
4. Endogamy:
choosing a mate of the
same racial, ethnic, or
religious background
5. Exogamy:
choosing a mate
outside of your race,
ethnicity, religion
Defining Family
• Social institution found in every human society
• Two or more people, who consider themselves
related by blood, marriage, or adoption
Defining Family
• Nuclear family:
Parents and their
children
• Extended family:
parents, children,
other kin
What changes do you think have
occurred in the structure of families in
the United States since the 1950’s?
Has divorce increased, decreased,
or stayed the same since the
1980’s?
Number of divorces per 1,000 married women, age 15 and older
Source: The National Marriage Project, State of Our Unions, 2010.
Source: The National Marriage Project, State of Our Unions, 2010.
Pros and Cons of
Changes in Family Structure
Answer questions in groups of 1-4
Changes in structures of U.S. families:
1. Delayed childbearing
•Today 1 in 5 women are
having their first baby after
age 35
What are positive and
negative aspects of this
change?
Changes in U.S. family structures
2. Not having children
14% of U.S. married couples
never have children. Why?
•Expenses
•Career focus
•Unstable relationships
•Inability to have children
Changes in U.S. family structures
3. Increased employment of married mothers
59% of married U.S. couples
depend on two incomes
About one in five children is cared
for in day care centers. What are
positive and negative aspects of this
change?
Nannies have become popular
among upper-middle class parents.
What are positive and negative
aspects of this change?
Cosby Show
Changes in U.S. family structures
4. Increase in the number of
children being raised by
grandparents
6.5 million children are being raised by grandparents or other
relatives
(U.S. Census Bureau)
What are positive and negative aspects of this change?
Changes in U.S. family structures
5. Increased divorce and blended families
Modern Family
Changes in U.S. family structures
6. Increased single-parent families
One on One
(Single dad and
teenage daughter)
Changes in U.S. family structures
7. Older age at 1st marriage
Friends
Sex and The City
Changes in structures of U.S. families:
Older age at 1st marriage
U.S. men and women are staying single longer
1970 average age at marriage
2010 average age at
marriage
Men: 23
Men : 28
Women: 21
Women: 26
Changes in U.S. family structures
8. Increased interracial families
The Willis Family from the
TV Show
The Jeffersons
Changes in U.S. family structures
9. Increased cohabitation-couple living
together that is not married
Grey’s Anatomy
Which states do you think have the
most cohabitation?
least?
Most unmarried partners: California, Alaska
Least unmarried partners: Utah at 4% and Alabama 5%
Changes in U.S. family structures
10. Less people getting married. Why?
1.Marriage must now compete with
school
career
living with a partner
having children outside of marriage
self-fulfillment
2. Less of a need to marry
3. Time and money - children
4. Fearful of commitments and constraints
Other changes U.S. family structure
• Increased births to unmarried women
• Increase in families with same-sex parents
• Increase in families with adopted children
Has teenage pregnancy increased,
decreased, or stayed the same
since 1990’s?
Teenage pregnancy has decreased
Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/hestats.htm
Parenting
Punishment = penalty for misbehavior
Discipline= method of teaching a child right from wrong
View SuperNanny Clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YQpbzQ6gzs
Parenting: Discipline Techniques
1. Be a positive role model.
2. Set rules and consequences.
3. Encourage and reward good behavior.
4. Create charts.
5. Give time-outs.
6. Spanking
Which of these techniques
do you think are effective?
Which do you think are
ineffective?
Parenting
Amy Chua’s article “Why Chinese Mothers are Superior”
Underline 3 points that you agree or disagree with
Underline any parenting techniques that you experienced or use as a parent
1. What did you underline and why
2. Do you agree with the author’s parenting style? Why or why not?
3. What parenting techniques do you think are best?
Chua family
From Ms. Chua's
album: 'Mean me with
Lulu in hotel room...
with score taped to
TV!'
Structural Functionalist Perspective
Family is the back bone of society
– Replenishes population
– Socializes children
– Provides emotional and
physical care
Conflict Perspective
Focuses on power distribution in marriages
• Why do women take husbands last name?
• Why do children take father’s last name?
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Look at social meanings of
divorce, single parenthood, and cohabitation
• “Visitation rights”
• “Single mom”
• “Living in sin”
Coming up
• Family: read assigned textbook pages
• Sign up for extra credit option
• Read article Why Chinese Mothers are Superior
and prepare to discuss 3 points from the article
Papers that earned 15/15:
1. Followed the scoring rubric provided on the website and discussed
in class
2. Answered the question with specific detailed examples (from
research studies, history, news, world events)
3. Did not have errors in spelling, grammar, or punctuation
4. Demonstrated a strong understanding of the concept
5. Introduction had a strong, clear thesis previewing the 3 examples
Choice A: Norms.
Define norms, mores, and folkways as defined in your text.
Research and provide three examples of norms that were
once mores in our society, but over time have become folkways (or
the other way around).
Provide an analysis of why you think this change occurred.
Choice B: Subcultures.
Define sub-cultures and counter cultures.
Research and provide three examples of sub-cultures or counter
cultures in American society.
Why do they fit the definition of a sub-culture or counter-culture?
What are some of the norms and values of each?
Choice C: Race
100 years ago, sociologist W.E.B Du Bois said “The problem of the
20th century is the problem of the color line.”
What is racism?
Why is W.E.B Du Bois an important sociologist?
Research and describe two modern day (recent) events related to
racism.
Choice D: Prejudice:
Describe three of the four sociological approaches to explaining
prejudice (Cultural Transmission, Group Identification Theory,
Personality Theories, Frustration-aggression hypothesis)
Research and provide a real-life example of each (from history,
news, or one from personal experience, be specific and detailed).
Which of these theories do you feel best explains discriminatory
behaviors, why?
Choice E: Illegal Immigration
Research and analyze illegal immigration through each of the
sociological perspectives.
Conflict theory, Structural Functionalism, Symbolic Interactionism
Extra Credit
Important Sociologists
• 5 minute Power Point Presentation
• Select a sociologist. Describe the following: brief background of
their life,
2 major contributions to sociology, how is their work relevant
today?
• 4 points possible
• Choose the sociologist in class today by signing up
About Research Paper
15 points
3 pages typed
Use scoring RUBRIC, this is how I grade the paper
Use the OUTLINES on the website