Functionalism and the family

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Who belives the family performs 4 cructial fuctions for the running of society and the indivdual
Murdock (1949)
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What's the 1st essential function of the family according to Murdock?
Stabilisation of the sex drive
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What are the benefits of the Stabilisation of the sex drive to society and the individual?
Order to society by marriage as it prevents a sexual free for all
The relationship between the couples reinforces commitment to each other
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What's the 2nd essential function of the family according to Murdock?
Reproduction of the next generation
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What's the benefit to society and the individual of the Reproduction of the next generation ?
New members for the survival of soceity
Having children shows commintemnt to one another stablised married life.
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What's the 3rd essential function of the family according to Murdock?
Socialization of the young
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What is the benefit to society and the indvidual of socialisation of the young?
Culture is reproduced and passed down creating social solidarity
Children learn to conform
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What's the 4th essential function of the family according to Murdock?
Meetings it's members ecomninc needs
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What benefits do meeting its member's economic needs have on society and the individual?
Paid work benefits the economic system and ecoruages children to take their childrens place as good workers
Allows children to be physically dependent on their parents
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Provide a criticism for Murdocks view
He ignores family diversity and assumes that the NF is the univeral norm
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How do Marxists criticize Murdock?
Claim the NF only meet the needs of capitalism not the needs of society
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Who examined family life in the 1959's and argued there are two basic fuctions the family has in all societies?
Parsons (1951)
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What are the 2 basic funtions
Primary socialization and stabilization of adult personalities
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Describe primary socialization according to Parsons
Equit children with basic skills and values so they can intergtate with society. Also gender role socialsation
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What does stablisation of adult personalities mean?
Where Emotional security is achieved within a marital relationship.
A family is a place where adults can relax and release tensions allowing them to return to the workplace refreshed (warm bath theory)
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Provide a criticism of Parsons view
Ignores darker side of the family eg. Radford et al found 25% of children in the UK had experianced domestic violence
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Provide another critism of on Parsons view?
Outdated and based on 1950's home life
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What is parsons functional fit theory?
That the function the family performs will depend on the needs of the society its found in (and parsons claimes these were preindustrail where extended was more of a functional fit and, modern industrail where nuclear was a functional fit)
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Why were pre-industrail societies better suited to extended families?
Only way to ensure survivial it was larger so provided food, clothes, education, healthcare and shelter and worked alongside eachother
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Why are industrial modern societies more suited to NF?
Development of machinery meant jobs were easier so NF fit better because it makes the. family more geographically and socially moblie
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What does geographically mobile mean?
The nuclear family is small and compact so easier to move to find employment
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What does socially mobile mean?
Can take employment on a lower or higher level because in nuclear families it is easier to climb the social ladder because in extended families sons would take over the roles of the father
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Parsons argues the family has a loss of functions as it moved from pre-industrial (extended) to industrial (nuclear) society, what functions does it lose?
- Family ceases to be a unit of consumption
-Family becomes a unit of consumption only
- loses its other functions to other institutions (eg. creating food, clothes)
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Provide 1 criticism for Parsons Functional fit theory
Laslett (1972) found english households 1550-1820 were mostly Nuclear because in a time of short life expectancy it was unlikely to have many extended families
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Provide another criticism for the functional fit theory
Young and Wilmott (1973) argue the nuclear family has emerged due to changes in support eg. living standards, housing rather than industrial changes
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Who believes there is a clear gender division in the family?
Parsons
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What 2 roles did Parsons believe men and women had
Instrumental (work) Expressive (homemaker)
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What differences does Parsons base of the instrumental and Expressive roles?
Biological differences and that it benefits everyone
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Provide a criticism for Parsons view on gender roles
Outdated based off 1950's now symetrical roles
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What is Oakely's criticism of Parsons's view on gender roles?
Women being homemakers was gradual and weren't immediately confined to the home after industrialization so, roles are socially constructed not biological
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What's the 1st essential function of the family according to Murdock?

Back

Stabilisation of the sex drive

Card 3

Front

What are the benefits of the Stabilisation of the sex drive to society and the individual?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What's the 2nd essential function of the family according to Murdock?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What's the benefit to society and the individual of the Reproduction of the next generation ?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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