Sociological perspectives on the role of the family

1. THE NATURE AND ROLE OF FAMILY
IN SOCIETY 1
The family is one of the most important social groups
for sociology because almost all people experience
living in a family for some of their life.

2. FAMILIES AND HOUSEHOLDS
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A household is a group of people who may or may
not have family or kinship ties.
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A family is a type of household where the people
living together are related. Most commonly a family
is also a kinship group, kinship means being related
by birth or blood.

3. THE MAIN TYPES OF FAMILY
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Nuclear Family: Two generations living together (mother
and father and dependent children).
Traditional extended family: Three or more generations
of the same family living together or close by with
frequent contact between
grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, cousins etc.
Attenuated extended family: nuclear families that live
apart from their extended family, but keep in regular
contact e.g. by phone or by email
Single-parent families: A single parent and their
dependant children
Reconstituted family: New stepfamilies created when
parts of two precious families are brought together

4. FUNCTIONALISTS EMPHASISE THE POSITIVE
ROLE OF THE FAMILY
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Functionalists see every _________ in society as
essential to the _______ running of society. A key
functionalist study by Murdock (1949) concluded
that the family is so ______ to society that it is
inevitable and _________ - in other words, you
can‟t avoid having family units in a society, and
societies everywhere have family units.
Institution
 universal

smooth
useful

5. MURDOCK (1949) – LOOKED AT 250
SOCIETIES IN DIFFERENT CULTURES
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Murdock argued that some form of the nuclear family
existed in all of the 250 different societies he looked at.
He argued the family performed four basic functions
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Sexual
Provides a stable sexual relationship for adults and
controls the sexual relationships of its members
Reproductive
Provides new members of society
Economic
The family pools resources and provides for its
members
Educational
Teaches norms and values of society
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6. THE WARM BATH THEORY
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In the 1950‟s Talcott Parsons argued that the family has
two basic and irreducible functions. These are the
primary socialisation of children and the stabilisation of
adult personalities
- Primary socialisation is the process by which children
learn and accept the values and norms of society.
Parsons described families as “factories” where the next
citizens are produced.
The family stabilizes personalities through the emotional
relationship between the parents. The emotional
relationship gives the support and security needed to
cope in the wider society. It‟s a sanctuary from the stress
of everyday life. Talcott Parsons described the family as
a warm bath, because he believed that the family helps
to relieve stress and tension from work, and helps adults
personalities stabilize, and make the family members
content.

7. HOW CAN YOU CRITICISE THIS APPROACH TO
THE FAMILY?
Idealistic
 Morgan (1975) asserts that Murdock makes no
reference to alternative households or to
disharmony and problems in family relationships
 The functionalist view was dominant in the 19__‟s
 Since then, there‟s been widespread criticism that
neither Murdock or Parsons look at issues of
conflict, class or violence in relation to the family.
 Feminists argue they ignore the issue of
exploitation of women.
 The fact they overlook negative aspects of family
life, makes their position look weak.


8. MARXIST PERSPECTIVE
Marxists also take a structuralist view of the
family, viewing the family as performing essential
functions for modern industrial society.
 The key deifference is that Marxists argue that the
family benefits the minority in power (called the
bourgeoisie) and the economy but disadvantages
the working class majority (____).
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9. MARXISM IS A USEFUL TOOL OF CAPITALISM
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Engels (1884) said the family had an economic function
of keeping wealth within the bourgeoisie by passing it on
as inheritance.
Zaretsky (1976) focused on how the family helped the
capitalist economy. The family is a place where the
proletariat can have power and control. HE is the „king
of his own castle‟.
The role of women as housewife means workers are
cared for and healthy. This makes them more productive
– a great benefit that the capitalist class get for free.
The family household is a unit with the desire to buy
goods produced by capitalist industry. The family buys
the foods for more than they cost to produce and the
bourgeoisie gets the profit

10. CRITICISMS OF MARXISM
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The Marxist view of the family never mentions the
good things!
Marxist sociology is entirely focused on the benefits
to the economy and the benefits to the working
man‟s boss. It ignores other benefits to the
individuals and society.
 Traditional Marxist sociology assumes the worker is
male and that women are housewives
 There is no Marxist explanation as to why the family
flourishes as an institution in non-capitalist or
communist societies, there is little Marxist research
on alternatives to the family.
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11. QUESTIONS
1. What do sociologists define as a household?
 2. What are the key functions of the family
according to Parsons?
 3. Explain the ways in which functionalist and
Marxist perspectives on the family are similar
 4. Explain the ways in which functionalist and
Marxist perspectives on the role of the family are
different?
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12. THE DARK SIDE OF THE FAMILY
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Brainstorm here:

13. WHAT DID YOU MISS?
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Domestic Abuse
Economic dominance
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Child abuse
Incest
Inequality

14. EXAM QUESTIONS
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Q1 Suggest three functions that nuclear families
might perform (6 marks)
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Q2 Examine the view that the family performs the
vital function of maintaining the „status quo‟ in
society