changing family patterns- Divorce

Question 1

divorce

Answer 1

the legal termination of a marriage

Question 2

how many marriages were there in 1971?

Answer 2

459,000

Question 3

how many marriages were there in 1991?

Answer 3

350,000

Question 4

how many marriages were there in 2015?

Answer 4

239,000

Question 5

what does this show?

Answer 5

marriages are declining

Question 6

how many divorces in 1971?

Answer 6

74,000

Question 7

how many divorces in 1991?

Answer 7

158,000

Question 8

how many divorces in 2015?

Answer 8

101,000

Question 9

According to the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS), in 2019 there was how much increase in divorces between heterosexual couples in England and Wales, compared to 2018?

Answer 9

18.4% increase

Question 10

reasons for an increase in divorce

Answer 10

-changes in law
-rising expectations
-secularisation
-decline in stigma
-changing position of women

Question 11

changes in law
(1857)

Answer 11

-before 1857 divorce didn’t exist, a special act of parliament only way you could get one
-1867- men were only able to divorce wives, only if they had been unfaithful. It was also very expensive

Question 12

1923

Answer 12

-1923 women were given same rights as men
Grounds for divorce were equalized in Britain.

Question 13

1969

Answer 13

The Divorce Reform Act included ‘irretrievable breakdown’ as a ground for divorce. It made it possible for a couple to get a divorce, even if only one person desired it.

Question 14

1966

Answer 14

the ‘family law act’ allows divorce by agreement after a ‘period of reflection’

Question 15

rising expectations
(fletcher - 1966)

Answer 15

-functionalist sociologist fletcher argues that the higher expectations people place on marriage today is a major cause of rising divorce rates
-higher expectations make couples less likely to tolerate an unhappy marriage- leads to increasing divorce rates

Question 16

expectations of marriage 1950s

Answer 16

-people did not expect much from marriages in the 1950s
-most people had little choice over who they married
-location, work and money were important factors
-romance was a ‘bonus’ but not an expectation

Question 17

what do allan and crow believe are the fundamental components of a successful marriage?

Answer 17

love,satisfaction and commitment

Question 18

Fletcher (1966)

Answer 18

people have started to expect their partners to be perfect lovers, parents, and counsellors, all at the same time. These expectations are difficult to meet.

Question 19

David R. Gibson (1994)

Answer 19

argues that people in modern capitalist society regard marriage as a product. If it does not meet their needs anymore, or something better comes along, they can easily decide to ‘get rid’ of it.

Question 20

secularisation

Answer 20

the declining influence of religion in a society
-led to marriages becoming less sacred and important, divorces are more widely accepted

Question 21

consequences of divorce (religion)

Answer 21

-less people belive that getting divorced will sentence you to an eternity in hell, so more people will go through with a divorce

Question 22

how many marriages involve a religious ceremony?

Answer 22

less than 50% of marriages now involve a religious ceremony

Question 23

decline in stigma
what sociologists speak about this?

Answer 23

Mitchell and Goody (1977) since the 1960s there has been a declining stigma attached to divorce

Question 24

what does sociologist Wilson (1966) argue this reduction in stigma is a result of ?

Answer 24

secularisation - the declining religious influence in a contemporary society

Question 25

attitudes towards the effect of divorce on children shifted

Answer 25

-in the past couples remain together for the sake of the children (empty shell family) but now it is more commonly thought that children are better of if parents are split so are not exposed to parental conflict.

Question 26

the reduced stigma of divorce means

Answer 26

couples less likely to remain together in order to keep up appearances, divorce has moved from being something abnormal to normal

Question 27

Changes in the private sphere affecting divorce and marriage
(privatisation)

Answer 27

Privatisation of the nuclear family: there can be more stress and tension between the partners as they experience less support in their daily lives from the extended family.

Question 28

Changes in the private sphere affecting divorce and marriage
(life expectancy)

Answer 28

Higher life expectancy: there is more time for problems to arise in a marriage.

Question 29

changing position of women

Answer 29

Women have more work opportunities, so they are no longer dependent on their partners financially- and more likely to go through with a divorce
Spouses have separate wages, so divorce does not have to mean poverty for women.

Question 30

changing the position of women
(better rights under divorce law)

Answer 30

-increased job opportunities and provision of state financial support enhance the bargaining position of women in conjugal relationships

Question 31

The role of feminism in the changes of the position of women
(domestic abuse)

Answer 31

Domestic abuse; sexual assault in a marriage was not considered a criminal offence in England until 1992

Question 32

Anthony Giddens(1992)

Answer 32

claims that women without children (or with fewer children) are freer to leave marriages.

Question 33

evaluations

Answer 33

-divorce still expensive (£500)
-patronising to people, many couples know marriages aren’t perfect
-religion is actually increasing globally
-women still are not equal

Question 34

divorce used to be seen as unacceptable as marriage used to be viewed as sacred. What does Goode argue?

Answer 34

Goode argues that marriage is less sacred today so there is less stigma around divorce

Question 35

what does sociologist Ronald Fletcher argue?

Answer 35

people attach more value to marriage nowadays
-people are more ‘demanding’ , if marriage does not meet their expectations,they are more likely to want divorce
-high expectations channeled and developed through the media e.g in magazines and soap operas