Couples Flashcards

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1
Q

How were couples laid out in the 19th century?

A
  • women themselves were considered property
  • upon marrying, a women’s property becomes her husbands
  • access to divorce was unequal
  • very patriarchal
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2
Q

What is the domestic division of labour?

A

Refers to the roles that men and women play in relation to housework, childcare and paid work

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3
Q

What is the instrumental role? Who plays it?

A

-husband

Geared toward achieving success at work so that he can provide financially for the family. BREADWINNER

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4
Q

What is the expressive role? Who plays it?

A

-wife

Geared towards primary socialisation of the children and meeting the emotional needs of the family. HOMEMAKER

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5
Q

Who suggested there was the instrumental and expressive role?

A

Talcott Parsons

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6
Q

What does Parsons argue?

A

The division of labour is based on biological differences, with women ‘naturally’ suited to the butting role and men to that of provider
-he claims its beneficial for both men and women, children and wider society

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7
Q

Who agrees with Parsons?

A

Conservative thinkers and politicians- new right

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8
Q

Who criticised Parsons idea?

A

Michael young & peter willmott
(1962)
Feminist groups

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9
Q

How did Michael Young and Peter Willmott (1962) criticise Parsons?

A

Argue that men are now taking a greater share of domestic tasks and more wives are becoming wage earners

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10
Q

How did feminist groups criticise Parsons?

A

They reject Parsons view that the division of labour is natural. In addition, they argue that it only benefits men

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11
Q

Who distinguishes 2 conjugal roles?

A

Elizabeth Bott (1957)

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12
Q

What are the 2 conjugal roles?

A
  • segregated

- joint

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13
Q

What is segregated conjugal roles?

A

Where the couple have separate roles : a male breadwinner and a female homemaker (Parsons) and they spend their leisure activities separate

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14
Q

What are joint conjugal roles?

A

Where the couple share tasks such as housework and childcare and spend their leisure time together

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15
Q

Who did a study on segregated conjugal roles? Where was it?

A

Young and Willmott (1950s)

A traditional wc extended families in Bethnal Green, east London

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16
Q

What did the study that young and Willmott did find about segregated conjugal roles

A

Men were the breadwinners. Women were full time housewives with sole responsibility for housework and childcare

17
Q

Who distinguishes the symmetrical family?

A

Young and Willmott (1973)

18
Q

What view does young and Willmott take on the symmetrical family?

A

‘March of progress’ view of the history of the family. they see family life as gradually improving for all it’s members, becoming more equal and democratic.

19
Q

How does Young and Willmott explain the symmetrical family?

A
  • women now go out to work, although this maybe part time rather than full time
  • men now help with housework and childcare
  • couples now spend their leisure time together instead of separately with work mates and female relatives
20
Q

Young and Willmott see the rise of the symmetrical nuclear family as the result of major social changes. What are these?

A
  • changes in women’s position
  • geographical mobility
  • new technology
  • higher standards of living
21
Q

How does feminists view housework?

A

Feminist sociologists reject the ‘march of progress’ view. They argue that little has changed:men and women remain unequal within the family and women still do most of the housework. They see this inequality as stemming from the fact that the family and society are male dominated or patriarchal. Women occupy a subordinate and dependent role within the family and in wider society.

22
Q

Who criticised young and Willmott view of the family becoming more symmetrical?

A

Feminist: Ann Oakley (1974)criticises their view. She argues that their claims are exaggerated. Although young and Willmott found that most of the husbands they’d interviewed ‘helped their wives’ at least once a week, this could include small and easy tasks on one occassion. For Oakley, this Is hardly convincing evidence of symmetry

23
Q

What else did Ann Oakley argue about housework?

A

Domestic labour is heavily sex typed: men do diy and gardening, women do everything else. Women continue to do more housework than men, and of the domestic labour men do it tend to involve the ‘more rewarding’ aspects of childcare

24
Q

What did Man Yee-Kan (2001) find about the impact of paid work?

A

Found better paid, younger, more educated women do less housework per week

25
Q

What did Jonathan Gershuny (1994) find about the impact of paid work?

A

-women in full time work did less housework and the more their husbands did
-couples who’s parents had a more equal relationship were more likely to have a more equal relationship themselves
-Gershuny explains this in 2 ways:
•gradual change in society’s values
•changes in parental models
-however, he agreed with Oakley that domestic labour is sex typed

26
Q

What did Rosemary Crompton (1997) find out about the impact of paid work?

A

argued that changes in the domestic division of labour were connected to economic factors

  • as women earn more, so men do more work at home
  • but pay is not equal (3/4 of men’s pay)
  • as long as there is unequal pay, there will be an unequal domestic division of labour
27
Q

What did the British Social Attitudes (2013) survey find out about the impact of paid work?

A

Fall in the number of people who thinks it’s the mans job to be a breadwinner and a women’s job to be the homemaker

28
Q

What is emotion work?

A

Women are often required to perform emotion work, where they are responsible for managing the emotions and feelings of family members, such as handling jealousies and squabbles between siblings, whilst maintaining her own emotions

29
Q

Who suggests a women carries out the triple shift?

A

Jean Duncombe and Dennis Marsden (1995)

30
Q

What does the triple shift consist of?

A

Emotion work
Paid work
Housework

31
Q

What 2 views are there when assessing the impact of paid work?

A
  • march of progress view

- feminist view

32
Q

What is the march of progress view?

A

A ‘new man’ is evolving and is actively involved in domestic labour. Equality is gradually occurring

33
Q

What is the feminist view?

A

Women having to carry the ‘dual burden/triple shift’

34
Q

Who identifies 2 explanations for the unequal division of labour? What are they?

A

Rosemary Crompton & Claire Lyonette (2008)

  • the cultural or ideological explanation of inequality
  • the material or economic explanation of inequality
35
Q

What is the cultural or ideological explanation of inequality?

A

The division of labour is determined by patriarchal norms and values that shape the gender roles in our culture. Women perform more domestic labour simply because that is what society expects them to do and has socialised them to do

36
Q

What is the material or economic explanation of inequality?

A

The fact that women generally earn less than men means it is economically rational for women to do more of the housework and childcare while men spend their time earning money