Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 2: U.S. Families: Historical...

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Chapter 2:U.S. Families: Historical Origins,

Changes, and Contemporary Issues


Images of Families Families we live by—idealized versions presented

by the media, such as a loving two-parent family, with a breadwinner father and stay-at-home mother. Also called prescriptive families.

Families we live with—our actual families, that may bear little resemblance to media images. Also called descriptive families.


Three Forces That Shaped Western European Families

1. The move from agricultural to industrial production.

2. The rise and decline of feudalism.

3. The replacement of a traditional mode of action with a rational mode of action.


Three Stages of European Family Life

1. Pre-Feudal Family Life-Subsistence economy arranged around kinship units.

2. Medieval Family Life-Breakdown in kinship, greater centralization of economic activity, emergence of European marriage patterns.

3. Modernity and the Family-Shifts in larger society created:

1. a cult of domesticity;

2. distinctions between the public and private spheres ; and

3. a shift from the instrumental self to the expressive self.


Characteristics of U.S. Families

Data in this chapter were obtained from United States Census Bureau.

Data Include:– Number of Families and Households– Size of Families– Marital Status– Family Income


Families and Households Family—Two or more persons related by

birth, marriage, or adoption who reside in the same household.

Subfamily—When a married couple

or a parent and child unit live in a household headed by someone else.

Household—All persons occupying a housing unit.


Number of Families and Households

In 2007, there were 116 million households in the U.S. 78.4 million (67.8%) of these were family households.

An increasing number/proportion of people are living alone or with non-family members.


Size of Families Family size refers to the number of persons

who are living together and related by birth, marriage, or adoption.

In 2007, average household size was 2.96 persons and average family size was 3.13 persons.

Family size has continuously declined since 1890.


Marital Status The U.S. Census Includes Four Marital Status Categories:

– Never Married– Married– Widowed– Divorced

Most of the adult population is married (in 2007, 59.9% of males and 56.7% of females were married), and when divorced, most people remarry.

A growing percentage of the population, however, is single at any given time.


Median Age at Marriage (2007)

Males: 27.7

Females: 26


Family Income

Family income refers to the total amount of earnings reported by related family members during a specified time period.

Income includes not only wages and salary, but other funds such as child support, interest, or Social Security.


Family Income In 2006, median family income was

$59,894.– Married couple households earned more

($69,716), followed by single-parent father headed households ($47,078), and single-parent mother headed households ($31,818).

Family incomes differ dramatically by gender, race/ethnicity, marital status, and employment status.


Demographic Changes in the Family(All of the following have increased since 1960)

Labor Force Participation by Females

Employment of Married Women with Children

Smaller Households Numbers of Single

Persons Age at First Marriage Divorce Rates

Interracial Couples Cohabiting Couples Number of Childless

Women Single Parent Households Births to Unmarried

Women Life Expectancy Number of Persons Living

Alone


Contemporary U.S. Families and Other Social Institutions

To understand contemporary families, it is important to consider the links between families and other institutions. These include:– Politics– Community– Economy– Education– Religion– Mass Media


Politics

The state (political system) establishes policies and laws that are enforced by agencies of government.

The state regulates family, as well as supporting families through social welfare programs.


Areas of Family Regulation

Definitions of Marriage and Family Family Rights and Responsibilities Welfare Benefits Immigration Military/International Conflict


Three Types of Welfare States

1. Social Democratic provides benefits based on citizenship alone; everyone is eligible.

2. Conservative views families as providers of support; benefits linked to labor force participation.

3. Liberal places responsibility for family support on a free-market system; benefits are means tested.


Three Types of Communities

Rural

Non-Metro (Suburban)

Metro (Urban)


Ferdinand Toennies Typology

Gemeinschaft—Societies based on agricultural production; relationships are primary and communal.

Gesellschaft—Societies based on industrial

production; relationships are less communal and decisions based on individual need.


Rural Versus Urban Families

In rural communities:– Family is a central institution– Families exhibit high levels of involvement in

all institutions– Families are more conservative– Family norms are stronger– There is more interdependence– Families are more satisfied


Economy

The economy is the social system concerned with the creation, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.

The economic system influences family organization and interaction.


Economy/Family Interaction

Determines economic resources

Family/workplace interfaces create “spillover”

Work involvement affects family life

Increasing female labor force participation


Education Families and educational systems tend to

supplement one another in teaching cultural values, norms and skills.

Success in one area is linked to success in the other.

Quality of family life and the resources of parents can enhance the educational outcomes of their children.

Education creates human, economic, social, and cultural capital.


Types of Capital

Capital refers to accumulated goods or resources that can be used to satisfy human needs.– Economic Capital—accumulated economic resources– Human Capital—skills and abilities– Social Capital—networks of social relationships– Cultural Capital—cultural experiences and knowledge


Religion

Religion and familism have a reciprocal relationship, with each affecting the other.

Differences in behavior are linked more closely to intensity of religious participation than to denomination.


Religious and non-Religious Families Differ in Terms of:

Beliefs

Practices and expressions of faith

Presence of religious community


Dimensions of Religiosity

Cognitive—strength of beliefs and orthodoxy

Affective—emotional attachment to one’s religious identity

Behavioral—enactment of beliefs and rituals; participation


Mass Media The Mass Media Includes:

– Newspapers– Magazines– Television– Radio– Films– Computers– The Internet

The mass media creates stereotypes by depicting groups as not only different, but unequal.


Issues and Changes in U.S. Families

Meanings of marriage and family

Family functions

Same sex marriage and parenthood

Marital and gender role differentiation

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Chapter 2: U.S. Families: Historical...

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