the state acts in the interests of the whole society & its policies benefit everyone.
policies help the family to perform its functions - socialising children, caring for the welfare of its members etc.
there is a 'march of progress' - policies are gradually improving family life.
Feminists -
see society as based on a conflict of interests between men & women; society is patriarchal.
social policies shape family life in ways that benefit men & maintain women's subordination.
Land argues that policies often assume the patriarchal family to be the norm so can act as a self-fulfilling prophecy, helping to reproduce this family type.
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The New Right
Conservative political perspective:
Opposes state intervention in family life & family diversity; sees lone parent & same-sex families as damaging to children.
Sees the traditional nuclear family as 'natural' & based on biological differences.
If parents perform these roles correctly, the family will be self-reliant, able to socialise children effectively & care for its members.
The problem:
Criticise many welfare policies for undermining the family's self-reliance by providing generous benefits, resulting in a 'dependency culture'.
Murray sees benefits as 'perverse incentives' rewarding irresponsible behaviour & encouraging family diversty.
The solution - cutting welfare spending, thus giving fathers more incentive to provide for their families.
Influence on policies:
Conservatives are divided between modernisers (recognise family diversity in their policies) and traditionalists (favour a New Right view & reject diversity).
New Labour governments see nuclear families as the best way of bringing up children but favour dual-earner neo-conventional family; argue that state intervention can improve life for families; introduced civil partnerships for same-sex couples.
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Gender Regimes
Drew - describes how social policies in different countries can either encourage or discourage gender equality in the family:
Familistic gender regimes - assume traditional gender division between male breadwinner & female nurturer.
Individualistic gender regimes - treat husbands & wives the same.
State vs Market:
Most EU countries are moving towards individualistic gender regimes.
Since the global recession in 2008, women have been encourages to take more responsibility for caring for family members due to cutbacks in government spending.
This has led to a trend towards neoliberal welfare policies in which individuals are encouraged to use the market rather than the state to meet their needs.
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