Power Relationships - Unit 1
- Created by: Ja11en
- Created on: 05-03-15 09:40
View mindmap
- Power Relationships
- Young and Willmott
- Segregated division of labour
- Men as breadwinners and women as housewives
- The conjugal relationship was becoming more joint or symmetrical
- Segregated division of labour
- Studies of housework and childcare
- Men are more involved in domestic tasks than their fathers
- 92% of women do some housework per day but only 77% of men.
- Women still likely to experience a dual burden or double shift - still expected to be mainly responsible for bulk of domestic tasks
- Decision-Making
- Women's lives change more drastically than men
- Barrett and McIntosh - Men gain more from women's domestic work than they give back in financial support
- Men tend to make the decisions when spending a lot of money
- Pahl, Vogler and Edgell - Inequality in decision making is down to the fact men earn more
- Men tend to make the decisions when spending a lot of money
- Barrett and McIntosh - Men gain more from women's domestic work than they give back in financial support
- Women's lives change more drastically than men
- Division of labour
- Parsons
- Instrumental - The husband works, provides financially for the family
- Expressive - Women focuses on primary socialisation of the children
- Joint and segreated conjugal roles
- Bott - Segregated; where couples have separate roles
- Joint roles - The couple share tasks such as housework
- Young and Willmott - Men were breadwinners and women were full time housewives (1950)
- Parsons
- Y+W - Symmetrical Family
- Symmetrical family is a family type where roles are similar
- 6 Steps of family...
- 1. Women bring in second wage
- 2. Family have more money
- 3. Living
- 4. House becomes more attractive
- 5. Encourages men to stay at home
- 6. Labour saving devices leads to more leisure time
- 5. Encourages men to stay at home
- 4. House becomes more attractive
- 3. Living
- 2. Family have more money
- 1. Women bring in second wage
- Violence in families
- Violence by men against their female partners accounts to a third of all reported violence.
- Many women are reluctant to come forward for the following reasons:
- 1. They love their partners and think they can change them
- 2. They blame themselves in some way for the violence
- 3. They feel they may not be taken seriously
- 4. They are afraid of the repercussions
- 3. They feel they may not be taken seriously
- 2. They blame themselves in some way for the violence
- 1. They love their partners and think they can change them
- Men seem to attack women if they have failed to be 'good' partners or mothers.
- Theoretical explanations of inequalities in power and control in the familes
- 1. Functionalists see the sexual division of labour in the home as biologically inevitable. Women are seen as naturally suited to the caring and emotional role, which Parsons terms the 'expressive role'.
- 2. Liberal feminists believe that women have made real progress in terms of equality within the family and particularly in education and the economy.
- 3. Marxist-feminists argue that the housewife role serves the needs of capitalism in that it maintains the present work force and reproduces future labour-power.
- 4. Radical feminists such as Delphy believe that 'the first oppression is the oppression of women by men'
- 3. Marxist-feminists argue that the housewife role serves the needs of capitalism in that it maintains the present work force and reproduces future labour-power.
- 2. Liberal feminists believe that women have made real progress in terms of equality within the family and particularly in education and the economy.
- Criticisms of these theories:
- 1. These theories fail to explain why women's roles vary across different cultures.
- 2. Feminism may be guilty of devaluing the mother role as a second class role. Some women enjoy working as it gives them a feel of real positive meaning.
- 3. Feminists may underestimate the degree of power that women actually enjoy.
- The fact that women divorce their husbands show that they have the power and the confidence to leave whenever they want if they are unhappy with it.
- 3. Feminists may underestimate the degree of power that women actually enjoy.
- 2. Feminism may be guilty of devaluing the mother role as a second class role. Some women enjoy working as it gives them a feel of real positive meaning.
- 1. These theories fail to explain why women's roles vary across different cultures.
- 1. Functionalists see the sexual division of labour in the home as biologically inevitable. Women are seen as naturally suited to the caring and emotional role, which Parsons terms the 'expressive role'.
- Young and Willmott
Comments
No comments have yet been made