Functionalist Perspective of the family

Functionalists see the Family as a functional prerequisite of society.

Murdoch said the family has 4 key functions:

• sexual – expressing sexuality in a way which is socially acceptable
• Reproduction – needed to provide a suitable way to raise children
• Socialization –  “primary socialization” helps teach children socially acceptable behaviour and values of the society (value consensus)
• Economic – provides food and shelter for family members

Parsons argues that there are 2 main functions of the family, Primary socialization of children and stabilization of human personalities.

• Primary socialization of children – Parsons said society would not function if the family did not socialize future generation into the value consensus, culture, language, history and morals of today society.
• stabilization of human personalities – The pressures of modern society can “destabilize personalities”. Parsons said that through the “sexual division of labour” the family can stabilize personalities. Whilst the male plays the instrumental role, the women plays the expressive role, looking after the family and (importantly to this stabilization) looking after the husband. This is the warm bath theory, the women cares for the man, helps stabilize his personality and therefore he is a better worker. 

Criticisms of the functionalist perspective

• Ignoring the “dark side of the family” – Functionalist fail to show the conflict within a family that prevents it from fulfilling the function Murdock and Parsons spoke about, for example child abuse or violence against the mother
• Out of date – A very old-fashioned view. Women nowadays are often the main breadwinners or eat least have paid jobs.
• Ignoring the exploitation of women – Functionalist fail to take into account the way the women feels about her expressive role. Many women don’t want to do this, and when they do this job can cause a lot of boredom and stress.
• Ignoring the harmful effects of the family – Leach said that nuclear families have become so close-knit and isolated from everything else that a lot of emotional stress is caused. This is because family members expect too much from each other.

Marxists don’t see the family as necessary for society to function, however they think that capitalism needs the family to function well (maintain social inequality), this is because the family socialize working-class children to submit to the ruling class.

Engels said that the nuclear family’s role is to pass on private property to heirs, ensuring that the possession go to the ‘right people’. He also said the women’s role in the family wasnt much different to a prostitute; the man put a roof over the women’s head in return for sex and children.

Althusser said that in order for capitalism to survive, the working class must submit to the ruling class. He said the family is one of the key social apparatus, as well as education, mass media etc, that allowed this to happen. This is because families socialize the next generation into the ideology that the ruling class should be above the working class.

The traditional Marxists perspective is a bit old-fashioned. The idea that men only marry and have children to pass on property ignores many other reasons for doing so.

Also many women work so would be less likely to marry men for economic security as they have that themselves.