Divorce is a major cause of changing family patterns and greater family diversity
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Changing patterns of divorce
there has been a great increase of divorce.
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Explanations for the increase in divorce
change in law, decline in stigma, secularisation,rising expectations of marriage, women's increased financial independance
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Changes in law
changes in the law have made it easier for divorce such as equalising grounds, widening grounds and making divorce cheaper
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Declining stigma and changing attitudes
divorce used to have a negative stigma but it doesnt now
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Secularisation
decline in the influence of religion on society, society becoming less religious means society holds less value on having to stay in a marriage if you are unhappy
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Rising expectations of marriage
higher expectations make couples less willing to work harder for a marriage
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Women's increased financial independance
women now go out to work so not as scared to leave a marriage as they dont have to depend on their husband for income
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Changes in partnerships
fewer first marriages, more divorces, re-marriages and cohabitation
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New right view on high divorce rate
undesirable because it undermines the tradition of marriage and the nuclear family
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Feminist view on high divorce rate
desriable as women are not being oppressed by their husbands and are breaking free from marriages they are not happy in
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Postmodernist view on high divorce rate
shows an individual is free to end a relationship if they are no longer happy in it and is a major cause for family diversity
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Functionalist view on high divorce rate
argue high divorce rate is not necessarily a threat to marriage as it is just showing the higher expectations of marriage and re-marriage is still high which means people are still committed to the idea of marriage
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Reasons for changing patterns of marriage
changing attitudes to marriage, secularisation, change in the position of women, divorce fees
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Reasons for an increase in cohabitation
secularisation, increased career opportunities, not bothered
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Trial marriage?
many see cohabitation as a trial marriage to see if living and being with that person would actually work as a marriage
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Childbearing
nearly half of children are born outside a marriage, most cases parents are cohabitating
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Reasons for the increase in births outside marriage
decline in stigma, less people think that marriage should come before parenthood
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Reasons for the increase in lone parent households
risen due to increase in divorce and separation
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ETHNIC DIFFERENCES IN FAMILY PATTERNS
black families and asian families
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Black families
usually lone parent, usually female headed, theoretically due to back to slavery as when couples were sold separately they stayed with their mother
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Asian families
Usually larger, Ballard believed it was due to in the 1950s and 1960s, he found that the extended family provided an important source of support among asians
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beanpole family
it is extended vertically as it has three of more generations but not horizontally meaning no aunts or uncles etc
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