Theories of the family

Question 1

What is a family?

Answer 1

The relationship of people through blood, marriage and living together- can include adoption and pets

Question 2

What is a household?

Answer 2

When a group of people share a living space and address

Question 3

What does Durkheim say about the family?

Answer 3

Everyone has a role and family has a function within society- positive

Question 4

Who is the theorist for the functional fit theory?

Answer 4

Parsons

Question 5

What is an extended family?

Answer 5

When more distant members of the family will be under one roof eg. aunties, uncles and grandparents

Question 6

What is a nuclear family?

Answer 6

When a man and a woman are married and have children together

Question 7

What was the most dominant family in pre-industrial society?

Answer 7

The extended family

Question 8

What function do an extended family perform?

Answer 8

They could provide childcare, healthcare and education within the family

Question 9

Why did the dominant family type switch to the nuclear family?

Answer 9

The industrial revolution meant that there were more jobs and businesses that provided these things so an extended family was no longer needed

Question 10

What is the functional fit theory?

Answer 10

That the nuclear family is the most fit for the economy because they are geographically mobile and socially mobile

Question 11

Define geographically mobile

Answer 11

Easier to move around from rural to urban areas in particular

Question 12

Define socially mobile

Answer 12

Nuclear family avoids tensions due to there might be conflicts within extended families because of a status hierarchy within generations

Question 13

What is the role of the family?

Answer 13

Socialisation
Economic
Reproduction
Sexual regulation

Question 14

What does functionalist Parsons say about primary socialisation?

Answer 14

Family teaches the basic norms and values which integrates them into society

Question 15

What is an example of functionalist primary socialisation?

Answer 15

Teaching children manners

Question 16

Who are the theorists for functionalist family roles?

Answer 16

Murdock and Parsons

Question 17

What does functionalist Murdock say about the economic role?

Answer 17

The man has the instrumental role of being a breadwinner by providing food and shelter for his family

Question 18

What does functionalist Parsons say about the economic role?

Answer 18

The family relieves the stresses of the workplace as it is somewhere that they can relax which helps the economy to run smoothly- safety valve

Question 19

What isfunctionalist Parsons theory called for the economic role?

Answer 19

The warm bath theory

Question 20

What does functionalist Murdock say about the reproductive role?

Answer 20

The family reproduces the next generation for new members to work and keep society running

Question 21

What does functionalist Murdock say about the sexual role?

Answer 21

Monogamous marriages mean that people satisfy their sex drives in a stable manner which prevents social distruption

Question 22

What do marxists generally believe about the role of the family?

Answer 22

The family is there to reinforce social inequalities and exploiting workers which benefits the capitalist system and the ruling class

Question 23

Who is the marxist theorist for socialisation?

Answer 23

Althusser

Question 24

What does marxist Althusser say about the socialisation role?

Answer 24

The family acts as an ideological state apparatus where it persuades people to accept capitalism, this is reinforced by parents having power over their children

Question 25

Who is the marxist theorist for the economic role?

Answer 25

Zaretsky

Question 26

What does marxist Zarentsky say about the economic role?

Answer 26

Myth of the warm bath- the ruling class require women to take the stresses of men due to the exploitation within their jobs and the family is a break from being exploited

Question 27

What is the marxist theory of ‘unit of consumption’?

Answer 27

People are persuaded to buy goods from the ruling class or children may be made fun of for not having the latest ‘gadgets’ which helps the economy

Question 28

What is the marxist theory of reproduction?

Answer 28

The family reproduces the labour force and creates more workers that can be exploited to create profits

Question 29

Who is the marxist theorist for sexual regulation?

Answer 29

Engels

Question 30

What is the marxist theory for sexual regulation?

Answer 30

Capitalism emerged and monogamy came about due to private property staying in the family and being passed down so that society’s wealth would increase

Question 31

What are feminists general view of society?

Answer 31

That the family oppresses women and reproduces the patricarchy

Question 32

What do radical feminists say about socialisation?

Answer 32

It reproduces the norms and values of the patriarchy with stereotypical role models eg, dad is the head of the house while the mum looks after the children and the house

Question 33

What do liberal feminists say about socialisation?

Answer 33

Society is being re-socialised through the family meaning that girls have more opportunities than they previously did

Question 34

What do radical feminists say about the economic role?

Answer 34

Women provide free domestic labour which is low status and no pay and women arent rewarded

Question 35

How does the radical feminist economic role help the economy?

Answer 35

By women doing this work, it releases stress off of the man so that they can continue working and it is no cost to capitalism as women arent paid for their work

Question 36

What do marxist feminists say about the economic role?

Answer 36

Women absorb the anger of men so that he can return the work to be exploited

Question 37

Who is the marxist feminist theorist for the economic role and what does she say?

Answer 37

Ansley- women are the ‘takers of shit’

Question 38

What do radical feminists say about the reproductive role?

Answer 38

Women are expected to bear children which limits their career opportunities

Question 39

What do Liberal feminists generally think?

Answer 39

That there have been many changes within society which have benefitted women and they are being given more opportunities

Question 40

What do liberal feminists say about the reproductive role?

Answer 40

Many women now focus on education and careers before thinking about marriage or children

Question 41

How do women have more choice whether to have a child or not?

Answer 41

The contraception and abortion acts

Question 42

What do radical feminists say about sexual regulation?

Answer 42

Monogamous marriages control women’s sexual behaviour so that women are dominated by their husbands