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Flashcards in Theories Of The Family Deck (41)
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1
Q

what is parsons functionalist fit theory

A

the family will depend on the kind of society in which it is found

2
Q

what two kinds of family structure does parsons distinguish between

A

1) nuclear family: parents and dependent children (industrial society )
2) extended family: 3 generations under one roof ( pre industrial society)

3
Q

what two essential needs does parsons see for industrial society

A

1) geographically mobile- move where there’s work and money

2) socially mobile- move from promotions and also move due to conflict

4
Q

what does loss of functions mean

A
  • pre industrial family was ‘multi function’ unit eg working together…
  • more self sufficient than modern nuclear family
  • according to parsons when society industrialises, the family not only changes but also loses many of its functions eg educated in schools
5
Q

in parsons view as a result of the loss of functions, the modern nuclear family comes to specialise in performing two essential or irreducible functions. what are these functions

A

1) primary socialisation: basic skill and values enable cooperation
2) stabilisation of adult personalities: family is a place where adults can relax and release tensions to return refreshed work

6
Q

what do Marxists argue about ideological functions (Zaretsky)

A
  • family performs ideological state functions by socialising children into accepting hierarchy and inequality are inevitable
  • parental power accustoms them to the idea someone (a man) has to be in charge and accept orders from employers
7
Q

what does ideology mean

A

Marxists mean a set of ideas or beliefs that justify inequality and maintain the capitalist system by persuading people to accept it

8
Q

what did Zaretsky say about ideological state functions

A

family offers an apparent ‘haven’ from harsh world of capitalism, but it is an allusion eg exploitation of women

9
Q

what is unit of consumption

A

capitalism exploits labour of workers: makes a profit by selling products for more than what it costs to produce them

10
Q

how does the family generate profit

A

1) advertisers urge families to ‘ keep up with joneses’ buy buying all of the latest products
2) media targets children ‘pester power’
3) children who lack ‘latest’ clothes/ gadgets marked by peers

11
Q

what are the criticisms of Marxist theories of the family

A
  • functionalist: Marxists ignore the benefits the family provides
  • ignores wider family structure and assumes nuclear family to be dominant
  • feminist: family senses the interest of the man, not capitalism, more gender inequalities than class inequalities.
12
Q

what are radical feminists theory of the family

A
  • all societies are ruled by men; key division of society: 1 men are the enemy and source of women’s oppression
    2 men benefit from women unpaid labour and sexual services
    the patriarchal system needs to be overturned, family must be abolished. Achieved through ‘separatism’
13
Q

what does ‘separatism’ mean

A

women living independently

14
Q

what is ‘political lesbianism’

A

heterosexual relationships are oppressive because involves ‘sleeping with the enemy’

15
Q

what did Greer say about the theories of the family

A

feminist- argues for the creation of all female or ‘matrilocal’ households as an alternative to the heterosexual family.

16
Q

what do liberal feminists argue

A

argue that radical feminists fail to recognise women’s positions have improves considerably eg job opportunities. Somerville also argues that sexual attraction would make separatism difficult

17
Q

what do difference feminist argue

A

Difference feminists argue that we cant generalise women’s experience: lesbian + heterosexual, white + black, middle + Wc women have different experiences. Black feminists view the family positively as a source of support

18
Q

what are the criticism of difference feminism

A

other feminist argue that difference feminism neglects the fact that many women share similar experiences

19
Q

what are the personal life views on beyond ties of blood and marriage

A
  • PLP takes a wider view of relationships based on blood/marriage
  • for example, we may form relationships with non- blood based relatives such as ex partners parents. These may be stronger than blood relatives but we wouldn’t know unless we examined the meaning
20
Q

PLP draws our attention to a range of intimate relationships that are not conventionally deemed as family. These people see relationships as significant and gives them a sense of belonging what does this include:

A
  • relationships with friends- ‘brother /sister ‘
  • fictive kin- people you call ‘aunty’
  • gay/lesbian chosen families- made up of a supportive network
  • relationships with dead relatives who continue to shape identities
  • relationships with pets- tipper found that children frequently see pets as family
21
Q

what is the evaluation of personal life perspective on theories of the family

A

+ illustrates the value of ‘bottom up’ approach in helping us to understand how people define relationships

  • accused of being too broad- ignores what is special about relationships based on blood
  • reflects functionalist view + but does agree family provides the function of belonging
22
Q

what do functionalists argue about society

A

believes society is based on value consensus (all humans working towards the same goal)-set of shared norms and values. It enables society to harmoniously cooperate to meet shared goals.

23
Q

what to functionalists compare society to

A

they compare society to a human body because it is made up of different parts that depend on each other. Each part is vital for the wellbeing of its members

24
Q

what 4 essential functions did parsons argue the family performed in order to meet the needs of society and its members.

A
  • satisfaction and sex drive-same partners, social disruption of “free for all”
  • reproduction-without this society would not continue
  • socialisation- of the young, shared values and norms
  • economic needs- food and shelter etc
25
Q

what are the criticisms of Murdock’s functionalist view

A
  • these functions can be performed equally as well as other institutions or non-nuclear families
  • feminists reject this rose tinted view of the family. IT neglects conflict +exploitation (serving men, oppressing women)
  • Marxists argue that it meets the needs of capitalism and not society as a whole.
26
Q

what did Marxists believe about the family

A

Marxists believe that functions of the family are performed purely for the benefit of the capitalist system. Marxist have identified several functions they see as fulfilling capitalism

27
Q

what do Marxists argue shapes social institutions

A

production ( who owns and controls forces eg raw materials, land. wealth is linked to family

28
Q

what is primitive communism

A

no private property, all members owned the means of production. There was no family but a promiscuous hoard. (Marxism)

29
Q

what happened when forces of production developed

A

wealth increased, private property developed .class of men secured control of production. This brought about the patriarchal monogamous nuclear family.

30
Q

why was monogamy essential (according to Marxism)

A

to be sure of the inheritance of family. Rise of nuclear family represented a ‘world historical defeat of the female sex’. women’s sexuality were under male control and used for reproduction. Women will only be liberated with the over throw of capitalism

31
Q

what do feminists believe the family does to women

A
  • believe that the family oppresses women eg domestic division of labour, violence
  • gender inequality is created by society
  • feminism is a broad term and approaches the family in different ways
32
Q

what are liberal feminists theories of the family

A

(equal pay, discrimination)

  • hold a similar view of ‘march of progress ‘ gradual progress towards gender equality, overcome laws +attitudes, but will need further performs to reach equal aspirations
  • for example men are doing more domestic work, sons/daughters have more equal aspirations
33
Q

what are the criticisms for liberal feminists views

A

other criticise liberals for failing to challenge cause of women’s oppression and believing peoples attitudes will be enough to be bring equality

34
Q

what are Marxist feminist theories of the family

A

believe main form of oppression in the family is not men but capitalism.

35
Q

how does women’s oppression perform several functions for capitalism.

A
  1. women reproduce the labour force through unpaid work labour +socialising the next generation
  2. women absorb anger that would be directed at capitalism. Ansley -‘takers of shit’ who soak up frustration of men
  3. women are a reserve army of cheap labour when extra workers are needed
36
Q

how is oppression of women linked to working class

A

Marxism -equality will only be achieved through a class less society and abolishing family

37
Q

what two weaknesses to personal life theorists argue other theorists suffer from

A
  1. they assume that the traditional nuclear family is the dominant type.
  2. they are all structural theories. interactionalist and post modernists sociologists argue that theories ignore the fact we have some choice in creating our family relationships. we must focus on ‘meanings ‘rather than ‘functions’
38
Q

what is the personal life perspective on families

A

this is a new perspective on families. it is influenced by interactionalists ideas and argues I order to understand families, we must start from the point of view of the individuals + meanings they give to relationships.

39
Q

how does the personal life perspective contrast to the three other perspectives

A

it contrasts as the other approaches take a ‘top down’ structural approach. the personal life theory is a ‘bottom up’ theory- how family members shape actions

40
Q

what did Nordquist and smart find (personal life perspective)

A

-research donor conceived children-
‘what counts as family when your child shares a genetic link with a stranger’
*issue of blood and genes raised a range of feelings +emphasised the importance of sexual relationships

41
Q

personal life perspective: Erin

A

the mother of an egg donor child, defined motherhood as the time + effort she put into raising her child.
however difficult feelings would flare up in terms of identity of the real parent and lesbian couples.