Topic 5: Changing family patterns.

Question 1

What is divorce?

Answer 1

The formal (legal) ending of a marriage.

Question 2

(AO2) Changing patterns of divorce:

Answer 2

Since 1960s, there has been a significant increase in the number of divorces in the UK:
- The number of divorces doubled between 1961 and 1969, and doubled again by 1972. This continued, peaking in 1993 at 165,000.
- Since then, the numbers have fallen. In 2012, the divorce rate stood at 118,000 about 6x higher than in 1961. This rate means that about 40% of all marriages will end in divorce.
- About 65% of applications for divorces now (contemporary society) come from women. This is almost double the figure in 1946, where only 37% of applications came from women.

Question 3

(AO2) Contemporary divorce stats:

Answer 3

• Divorce rate for heterosexual couples in UK dropped dramatically in 2018 with 90,871 divorces, compared with 101,669 in 2017.
• While divorce rates for same-sex couples increased by more than 1/4 from 2017-2018 - rising from 338 in 2017 to 428 in 2018.

Question 4

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 1. Changes in law.

Answer 4

• 3 kinds of changes in the law: equalising the grounds (the legal reasons) for divorce between sexes, widening the grounds for divorce, making divorce cheaper.
• Although divorce is legal termination of marriage, couples and do find other solutions to the problem of unhappy marriage.
• These include:
  > Desertion - when one partner leaves the other but the couple remain legally married.
  > Legal separation - where court separates the financial and legal affairs of couple but where they remain married and are not free to re-marry.
• ‘Empty shell’ marriage - where couple continue to live under same roof but remain married in name only.
• However, as divorce becomes easier to obtain, these solutions have become less popular.

Question 5

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 2. Declining stigma.

Answer 5

• Stigma refers to the negative label, social disapproval or shame attached to a person, action or relationship.
• Mitchell and Goody (1997) note that important change since 1960s has been rapid decline in the stigma attached a divorce.
• Decline in stigma means divorce becomes more socially acceptable, couples become more willing to resort to divorce as a means of solving their marital problems.
• Now that divorce is more common, this begins to ‘normalise’ it and reduces stigma attached to it. Rather than being seen as shameful, today it’s more likely to be regarded simply as a misfortune.

Question 6

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 3. Secularisation.

Answer 6

• Refers to decline in influence of religion in society.
• Many sociologists argue religious institutions and ideas are losing their influence and society is becoming more secular.
• Because of secularisation, the traditional opposition of the churches to divorce carries less weight in society and people are less likely to be influenced by religious teachings.
• However, many churches have begun to soften their views on divorce and divorcees. Perhaps because they fear losing credibility with large sections of the public and with their own members.

Question 7

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 4. Modernity and individualisation:

Answer 7

• Beck and Giddens (1992) argue in modern society, traditional norms lose their hold over individuals. Led to individualisation thesis.
• Individualisation thesis = when an individual is free to pursue their own self-interest.
• How can individualisation impact relationships? They become more fragile.
• Instead, they seek ‘pure relationship’ (Giddens) - one that exists solely to satisfy each partner’s needs and not other reason such as tradition, children or because they feel obliged to. Led to rise in divorce rates.
• However, rising divorce rate ‘normalises’ divorce and further strengthens that marriage exists solely to provide personal fulfilment.

Question 8

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 5. Rising expectations of marriage.

Answer 8

• Fletcher (1966) argues people have higher expectations because of the ideology of romantic love. This ideology has been dominated over last couple of centuries.
• ‘Romantic love’ - belief that marriage should be based solely on love, and that for each individual there is a Mr/Miss Right out there. If the love dies, then people see it as a justification to get a divorce.
• However, functionalists are optimistic about marriage despite higher divorce rates. This is because marriage is still popular.
• There’s high rate of remarriage, shows individual’s have not rejected marriage just the individual.
• On other hand, feminists are critical of functionalist as they argue they fail to acknowledge why couples are getting divorce. They don’t consider marital conflict and oppression women experience within the family that leads to divorce.

Question 9

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 6. Women’s increased financial independence.

Answer 9

• Women more likely to be in park work. Proportion of women rose from 53% (1971) to 67% (2013).
• Although women generally earn less than men, equal pay and anti-discrimination laws have helped to narrow pay gap.
• Girls’ greater success in education now helps them achieve better-paid jobs than previous generations.
• Availability of welfare benefits means women no longer have to remain financially dependent on their husbands.
• Due to women now earning, they’re no longer financially reliant on a man. Therefore, if marriage has broken down the woman no longer needs to stay in marriage so she can financially support herself.

Question 10

Explanations for the increase in divorce: 7. Feminist explanations.

Answer 10

• Hochschild and Rushton’s study (2007) found that dual burden play role in increase of divorce rates.
• Hochschild (1997) argues for many women, they feel valued at work but not at home. Men’s inability to help around the home is source of frustration and makes marriage less stable.
• Rushton argues mother who have dual burden are more likely to divorce than non-working mothers in marriages with traditional division of labour.
• According to radical feminists, women more likely to file for divorce because many women feel a growing dissatisfaction with patriarchal marriage.
• See rising divorce rate, and fact most petitions come from women, as evidence of their growing acceptance of feminist ideas.

Question 11

Functionalists perspective on divorce rates:

Answer 11

A high divorce rate is not necessarily a threat to marriage as a social institution. It’s simply the result of people’s higher expectations of marriage today. The high rate of re-marriage shows people’s continuing commitment to the idea of marriage and positive functions it ultimately provides for society.

Question 12

Feminists perspective on the divorce rates:

Answer 12

See high divorce rate as desirable because it shows women are breaking free from the oppression of a nuclear family.

Question 13

Personal life perspective on divorce rates:

Answer 13

Accepts that divorce can cause problems, such as financial difficulties (especially for women) and lack of daily contact between children and non-resident parents.

Question 14

The new right perspective on divorce rates:

Answer 14

See high divorce rate as undesirable because it undermines marriage and traditional nuclear family, which they regard as vital to social stability.

Question 15

Postmodernists and the individualisation thesis perspective on divorce rates:

Answer 15

See high divorce rate as showing individuals now have freedom to choose to end a relationship when it no longer meets their needs. They see it as major cause of greater family diversity.

Question 16

Interactionists perspectives on divorce rate:

Answer 16

Aim to understand what divorce means to the individual. Morgan (1996) argues that we cannot generalise about the meaning of divorce because every individual’s interpretation of it is different.

Question 17

Changes in the pattern of marriage:

Answer 17

• Fewer people are marrying: marriage rates are at their lowest since 1920s. In 2012, there were 175,000 first marriages for both partners - less than 1/2 number for 1970.
• However, there is an increase in re-marriages. In 2012, 1/3 of all marriages were re-marriages for one or both partners. For many people, this leads to ‘serial monogamy’: a pattern of marriage-divorce-re-marriage.
• People are marrying later: average age of first marriage rose by 7 years between 1971-2012 when it stood at 32 years for men and 30 for women.
• Couples less likely to marry in church. In 1981, 60% of weddings were conducted with religious ceremonies, but 2012 this had fallen to 30%.

Question 18

(partnerships) Many of the reasons for a fall in the number of first marriages are similar to the reasons for the increase in divorce. They include the following:

Answer 18

• Changing attitudes to marriage
• Secularisation
• Declining stigma attached to alternatives to marriage
• Changes in the position of women
• Fear of divorce.

Question 19

(partnerships) Cohabitation:

Answer 19

When an unmarried couple in a sexual relationship live together.
- While number of marriages have fallen, cohabitating couples has increased.
- Cohabitating couples with children are fast-growing family type.
- 2.9 million cohabitating heterosexual couples in Britain.
- 1 in 8 adults now cohabitating. Has doubles since 1996.
- 69,000 same-sex cohabitating couples.
- 1/5 of all cohabitating couples are ‘serial cohabitants’ who have had one or more previous cohabitations.

Question 20

(partnerships) What are reasons for the increase in cohabitation?

Answer 20

• Decline in stigma: 1989, 44% of people agreed that pre-marital sex was not wrong, by 2012, that rose to 65%.
• Younger people more likely to accept cohabitation.
• Secularisation
• Changes in women’s positions.
• Improved access to contraception.

Question 21

(partnerships) The relationship between cohabitation and marriage:

Answer 21

• Not clear cut.
• For some couples, cohabitation seen as ‘trial marriage’ while for others it’s a permanent alternative.
• Chester argues for most people, cohabitation is part of process of getting married.
• Coast (2006) - 75% of cohabitating couples say they expect to marry each other.
• Cohabitation doesn’t mean the same thing to every couple. Term covers diverse range of partnerships and relationship between marriage and cohabitation is a complex one.

Question 22

(partnerships) Same-sex couples:

Answer 22

• Stonewall (2012) - campaign for lesbian, gay and bisexual rights, estimates about 5-7% of adult population have same-sex relationships.
• But we cannot tell whether or not this is an increase from the past. Because of the stigma attached, and homosexuality was illegal.
• In 2019, there were 212,000 same-sex families in UK, having increased by 40% since 2015.

Question 23

(partnerships) Chosen families:

Answer 23

• Weeks (1999) argues a decline in stigma may explain a trend towards same-sex relationships that resemble those found among heterosexuals.
• According to personal life perspective, same-sex couples create their families based on idea of ‘fictive kin’, friendship becomes a type of kinship network.
• Describes them as ‘chosen families’ and argues they offer same security and stability as heterosexual families.
• Weston (1992) describes same-sex cohabitation as ‘quasi marriage’ and notes many gay couples are now deciding to cohabitate as stable parents. She contrasts this with gay lifestyle of 70s, where they rejected monogamous family life in favour of casual relationships.

Question 24

(partnerships) One-person households:

Answer 24

Fewer people today living in couples.
- Number of people living alone increase 1/5 over last 20 years: from 6.8 million (1999) to 8.2 million (2019). The majority of this increase is driven by growth in numbers of men living alone (72.1%).
- 40% of all one-person households are over 65.
- Men under 65 were group most likely to live alone.
- By 2033, over 30% of adult population will be single.

Question 25

(partnerships) Reasons for the changes of one-person households:

Answer 25

• Increase in separation and divorce has created more one person households, especially among men under 65 because children are more likely to go and live with their mother, father more likely to leave the family home.
• More individuals opting for ‘creative singlehood’ - choosing to remain single/marry later meaning they can live alone. Individuals can now afford to live alone.
• Some people have no choice but to be alone because there are very few available within their age group e.g. older widows.

Question 26

(partnerships) Living apart together.

Answer 26

• Duncan and Phillips for BSA survey (2013) found that 1 in 10 adults are ‘living apart together’.
• ‘Living apart together’ = in a significant relationship but is not married or cohabitating.
• Has been suggested that this may reflect a trend towards less formalised relationships and ‘families of choice’.
• 20% of people see LAT’s as their ‘ideal relationship’.
• Important to note Duncan and Phillips found both choice and constraint play part in whether couples live together.

Question 27

(parents and children) Childbearing.

Answer 27

• 47% of all children are now born outside marriage: over twice as many as in 1986.
• Women are having children later: between 1971 and 2012, their average age at birth of their first child rose by 4 years to 28.1 years. In 2019, average age rose to 30.7 years.
• Women are having fewer children in 20th century, though number increased slightly in early 21st century.
• More women are remaining childless: predicted 1/4 of those born in 1973 will be childless when they reach age 45.

Question 28

Reasons for changes with childbearing:

Answer 28

• Decline in stigma
• Rise in cohabitation
• Late motherhood leads to smaller family sizes.
• Women have more options other than childhood e.g. career and education.
• Threat of unemployment and labour market uncertainty.

Question 29

Lone-parent families:

Answer 29

• Make up 22% of all families with children.
• 1 in 4 children live in lone-parent families.
• 90% of these families are headed by lone mothers.
• Were 2.9 million lone parent families in 2019.
• Until early 1990s, divorced women were biggest group of lone mothers.
• A child living with a lone parent is 2x as likely to be in poverty as a child living with two parents.

Question 30

Reasons for patterns of lone-parent families:

Answer 30

• Number of lone-parent families has risen.
• Due to increase in divorce and separation.
• Due to increase in number of never-married woman having children.

Question 31

Why are lone-parent families typically headed by females?

Answer 31

• ‘expressive role’ believed by society.
• divorce courts usually grant custody to women.
• Men are less willing to give up work to care for children.

Question 32

Single by choice.

Answer 32

• Many lone-parent families are female-headed because mothers are single by choice. May not wish to cohabit or marry, or they may wish to limit fathers involvement with child.
• Renvoize (1985) - found that professional women were able to support their child without the fathers involvement.
• Cashmore (1985) - found some WC mothers with less earning power chose to live on welfare benefits without a partner, often because they had experienced abuse.

Question 33

Lone parenthood, the welfare state and poverty:

Answer 33

• Murray (1984) sees the growth of lone-parent families as resulting from over-generous welfare state providing benefits for unmarried mother and their children.
• Argues welfare has created a dependency culture in which people assume the state will support them and their children.
• For Murray, the solution is to abolish welfare benefits. Would reduce the dependency culture that encourages births outside marriage.

Question 34

Lone-parent families - Critics argue:

Answer 34

• Lack of affordable childcare prevents lone parents from working - 60% of them are unemployed. This is twice as high as among mothers with partners.
• Inadequate welfare benefits.
• Most lone parents are women, who generally earn less than men.
• Failure of fathers to pay maintenance, especially if they have formed a second family they have to support.

Question 35

Step-families (reconstituted families):

Answer 35

• Account for 10% of all families with dependent children in Britain.
• In 85% of step-families, at least one child is from women’s previous relationships.
• In 11% there’s at least one child from man’s previous relationship.
• In 4% of stepfamilies, there are children from both partners’ previous relationships.

Question 36

Step families (AO2):

Answer 36

• Ferri and Smith (1998) - found stepfamilies are very similar to first families in all major respects and the involvement of step-parents in childcare and childrearing is positive one. However, they found stepfamilies are greater risk of poverty.
• Allan and Crow (2001) - found stepfamilies may face particular problems of divided loyalties and issues such as contact with non-resident parent can cause tension.
• Mcarthy et al (2003) - conclude there’s diversity among these families and so we should speak of ‘stepfamilies’ plural rather than ‘stepfamily’. Some have few tensions, while for those that do, the tensions aren’t so different from those in ‘intact’ families.

Question 37

Reasons for patterns in stepfamilies:

Answer 37

• Stepfamilies are formed when lone parents form new partnerships. Thus, factors causing increase in number of lone parents are also responsible for the creation of stepfamilies.
• More children in stepfamilies are from women’s previous relationship than the man’s because, when marriages and cohabitations break up, children are more likely to remain with their mothers.
• Step-parents are at greater risk of poverty as they are often more children and because the stepfather may also have to support children from previous relationship.
• Some of the tensions faced by stepfamilies may be result of lack of clear social norms about how individuals should behave in such families.

Question 38

Ethnic difference in family patterns:

Answer 38

Immigration into Britain since 1950s has helped to create greater ethnic diversity. Analysis of the 2011 Census shows that:
- 86% of UK population were white. Or the 14% belonging to an ethnic minority, the main groups were:
> Asian and Asian British (7.5%)
> Black and Black British (3.3%)
> Mixed (2.2%)
- How might this impact the family? Greater ethnic diversity has contributed to changing family pattern in the UK.

Question 39

Ethnic differences: black families and lone-parent families.

Answer 39

• Black Caribbean and Black African people have higher proportion of lone-parent households.
• In 2012, 1/2 of families with dependent children headed by a black person were lone-parent families. Compared with 1 in 9 Asian families and just under 1/4 of population as a whole.
• High rate of female-headed, lone-parent families has been seen as evidence of family disorganisation that can be traced back to slavery, or more recently to high rates of unemployment’s among black males.
• However, Mirza (1997) argues the higher rate of lone-parent families among blacks is not the result of disorganisation, but rather reflects the high value that black women place on independence.
• Reynolds (2010) argues the stats ae misleading, in that many apparently ‘lone’ parents are in fact in stable, supportive but non-cohabitating relationships.

Question 40

Ethnic differences: Asian families.

Answer 40

• Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian households tend to be larger than those of other ethnic groups.
• Such households sometimes contain 3 generation, but most are nuclear rather than extended.
• Large Asian households also to some extent reflect the value of places on the extended family in Asian cultures. However, practical considerations, such as need for assistance when migrating to Britain, is also important. Ballard (1981) found that extended family ties provided an important source of support among Asian migrants during 1950s and 1960s.
• In early period of migration, houses often shared by extended families. Later, relatives often lived nearby. There was frequent visiting, and kinship networks continued to be source of support.
• Today, Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus are still more likely than other ethnic or religious groups to live in extended family units.

Question 41

Willmott (1988) - ‘dispersed extended family’.

Answer 41

• Extended family was dominant family type in pre-industrial society, but it was replaced by the nuclear family.
• Charles (2008) study of Swansea extended family living under one roof is now ‘all but extinct’. Apart from the city’s Bangladeshi community.
• Willmott (1988) argues the extended family exists as a ‘dispersed extended family’.
• What do you think Willmott means by ‘dispersed extended family’? Where relatives are geographically separated but maintain frequent contact through visits and phone calls.

Question 42

Chamberlain’s (1999) study of Caribbean families in Britain.

Answer 42

Chamberlain’s (1999) study of Caribbean families in Britain found that, despite being geographically dispersed, they continue to provide support. She describes them as ‘multiple nuclear families’ with close and frequent contact between siblings, uncles, aunts and cousins, who often bring contribution to childbearing.

Question 43

Bells (1968) - WC and families had emotional bonds with kin and relied on them for support.

Answer 43

Bells (1968) found that both WC and MC families had emotional bonds with kin and relied on them for support:
- Among the MC, there was more financial help from father to son.
- WC families had more frequent contact (they lived closer) and there was more domestic help from mothers to daughters.

Question 44

The ‘beanpole family’:

Answer 44

Bell’s findings suggest the importance of so-called ‘beanpole’ family. The beanpole family is a particular type of extended family, which Brannen (2003) describes as ‘long and thin’:
- It’s extended vertically (up and down) through three or more generations: grandparents, parents and children.
- But it’s not extended horizontally (sideways) it doesn’t involve aunts, uncle, cousins etc.