1. Sociology
11/21/2018
CHAPTER 12 The Family
Section 1: The Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective
Section 2: The American Family
Chapter 12

2. Objectives: Section 1: The Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective
Sociology
11/21/2018
Section 1: The Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective
Objectives:
Describe the norms that influence the ways in which marriage patterns are organized around the world.
Identify the basic societal needs that the institution of the family satisfies.
Chapter 12

3. Norms & Marriage Patterns Around the World
Four Basic Questions
How a culture or society answers these questions determines the organization of their families
Number of Marriage Partners
Residential Patterns
Descent Patterns
Authority Patterns

4. 1.Number of marriage partners
in industrialized nations marriages are usually monogamous whereas in pre-industrial societies the normal pattern is polygyny

5. 2. Residential Patterns
once individuals are married they must decide where to live
the most important determining factor is the specific type of kinship system.
economic concerns and personal factors are usually of secondary importance

6. Sociology
11/21/2018
Residential Patterns
Patrilocal residence - newlyweds establish their home near or in the groom's father's house. (~69%)
Matrilocal residence - newlyweds establish their home near or in the bride's mother's house. (~13%)
Bilocal residence - newlyweds have the choice of living with or near the groom's or the bride's family. (~9%)
Chapter 12

7. Sociology
11/21/2018
Residential Patterns
Neolocal residence- newlyweds establish their home independent of both sets of relatives.  (~5%)
Popular and common in urban North America today - suits the cultural emphasis on independence. 
Economic hardship can make neolocal residence a difficult goal to achieve
Elsewhere, neolocal residence is found in societies in which kinship is minimized or economic considerations require moving residence periodically.  
Employment in large corporations or the military often calls for frequent relocations, making it nearly impossible for extended families to remain together.
Chapter 12

8. Sociology
11/21/2018
3. Descent Patterns
in some societies people trace kinship through the father’s side of the family (patrilineal), in others descent is traced through the mother’s side of the family (matrilineal) or through both parents (bilineal)
Chapter 12

9. Matrilineal Descent – the Mosuo Tribe
Sociology
11/21/2018
Matrilineal Descent – the Mosuo Tribe
Near the border with Tibet in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces in China
political decisions in the tribe are made by men, almost everything else such as inheritance, business decisions and the final word at the dinner table are often found with women in this tribe.
A unique feature of this tribe is that it does not have a word for ‘father’ and even for ‘husband’ as the concept of marriage does not exist in their tribe.
Women have children through a concept called zou hun (walking marriages) in which the female raise the offspring they beget.
Chapter 12

10. Sociology
11/21/2018
4. Authority Patterns
the three basic types are patriarchy, matriarchy and egalitarian
Translation = harassment by words
Interesting essay on matriarchy
Chapter 12

11. Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Regulation of Sexual Activity
enforce incest taboo which is a norm forbidding sexual relations or marriage between certain relatives

12. Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Sociology
11/21/2018
Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Incest
All U.S. states and most countries bar marriages within the nuclear family, but there is far less agreement about half siblings or first cousins
Legal in France (Napoleonic code)
Preferred form of marriage in some cultures
Some call the laws genetic discrimination
While there is a widespread cultural taboo against incest, there appears to be no modern consensus on whether all such relationships should be banned or how close is too close when it comes to familial relationships. All U.S. states and most countries bar marriages within the nuclear family, but American cultural mores aside, there is far less agreement about half siblings or first cousins.
go.com/TheLaw/story?id= &page=1#.UW4uNbWkpvA
Chapter 12

13. Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Reproduction
societies establish norms governing childbearing and child rearing

14. Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Socialization
children must be taught the ways of the society into which they were born

15. Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Seeing Sociology in Everyday Life Who’s Minding the Kids? Working mothers report that a majority of their young children receive care in the home.
Chapter 12

16. Basic Needs Provided by the Family
Economic and Emotional Security
family acts as the basic economic unit in society and in most cases labor is divided on the basis of gender

17. Objectives: Section 2: The American Family
Explain how American families begin and describe some of the disruptions they might face.
Analyze some of the trends in American family life currently being examined by sociologists.

18. Beginnings of the American Family and Disruptions
Marriage begins with courtship and marriage between either homogamous or heterogamous couples
Disruptions include family violence, divorce, empty nest, return of adult children and death of a spouse

19. Trends in American Family Life
SECTION 2
The American Family
delayed marriage
delayed childbearing
Trends in American Family Life
childlessness
remarriage
dual-earner families
one-parent families

20. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Delayed Marriages – current trend is to marry later in life and being single has become an acceptable alternative to being married
Some effects include:
More children born out of wedlock
Decrease in overall life satisfaction among those waiting later to marry
More excessive drinking & depression among 20 somethings
Decreased divorce rate
(National Marriage Project, University of Virginia)
Chapter 12

21. Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Parental Involvement in Children’s Lives: Cohabiting and Married Parents Marriage increases the odds that parents will share the same household with their child. Source: Phillips (2001).
Chapter 12

22. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
A key part of the explanation for the struggles of today's working and lower middle classes in the U.S. is delayed marriage but not delayed childbearing
58% of first births among mothers without college degrees are now to unmarried women.
Chapter 12

23. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Delayed Childbearing – women are delaying childbirth to complete their education and establish a career
Chapter 12

24. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Childlessness – couples are making the conscious choice to remain voluntarily childless
…according to a study released by the Pew Research Center last week. In "The Decline of Marriage and Rise of New Families," study authors found that nearly nine in ten Americans, approximately 88 percent, said they consider a childless married couple to fit their definition of a family. The presence of children in a household was not a significant indicator of a person's satisfaction with family life. Married adults both with and without children reported around the same level of satisfaction with how their lives had turned out.
Chapter 12

25. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Dual-Earner Marriages – increase in the number of dual-earner marriages due to the increased number of women entering the workforce
As Figure 8 illustrates, America has become a nation of dual-income working couples. While it is clear from the chart that the husband-as-sole-breadwinner stereotypical family of the 1960s was not the norm then, it is even less so today. Moms worked during the 1960s but fewer than half of all married couples during that era were dual-earners. Today, that number has risen to 67 percent, three times the number of sole-earner married couples.
Chapter 12

26. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
One-Parent Families – come about in various ways such as divorce, death of a spouse, births to unwed mothers or adoption by unmarried individuals

27. Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Family Form in the United States, 2005 All racial and ethnic categories show variations in family form. Source: U.S. Census Bureau (2006).
Chapter 12

28. Sociologists Examine Trends in American Family Life
Remarriage – the majority of people who get divorced - about 80%- get remarried, most within 5 years
Subsequent Divorce - the majority of people who get remarried – about 60% – get divorced again

29. Divorce In the US, nine out of 10 people will marry.
Sociology
11/21/2018
Divorce
In the US, nine out of 10 people will marry.
Four in 10 marriages end in divorce. Why?
Individualism on the rise
Romantic love often subsides.
Women are less dependent upon men.
Many of today’s marriages are stressful.
Divorce is socially acceptable.
Legally, a divorce is easier to get.
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

30. Divorce Rate for the United States, 1890-2005
Sociology
11/21/2018
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Divorce Rate for the United States,
Chapter 12

31. Blended Families Remarriage often creates blended families.
Sociology
11/21/2018
Blended Families
Remarriage often creates blended families.
Offer both young and old the chance to relax rigid family roles
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

32. Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse of one family member by another
Sociology
11/21/2018
Family Violence
Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse of one family member by another
Against women
Women are more likely to be injured by a family member than to be mugged or raped by a stranger or hurt in an automobile accident.
All states have marital rape laws; half have “stalking laws.”
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

33. Family Violence Against children
Sociology
11/21/2018
Family Violence
Against children
Child abuse and neglect are most common among the youngest and most vulnerable children.
Abusers are more likely to be women than men.
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

34. Looking Ahead Divorce rates remain high.
Sociology
11/21/2018
Looking Ahead
Divorce rates remain high.
More equality between sexes
All kinds of units will be seen as families.
Men will continue to play a limited role in child rearing.
Many will remain absent from household scenes.
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

35. Sociology
11/21/2018
Looking Ahead
Economic changes will affect families and reform marriage.
Less quality time as work demands more from parents
New reproductive technologies
Ethical concerns about what can and what should be done
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis
Copyright  2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter 12

36. Chapter Wrap-Up CHAPTER 12
1. How are families structured around the world?
2. What four basic questions help to determine how a society or group within a society organizes families?
3. What functions does the family fulfill?
4. How do sociologists explain the high rate of divorce in the United States?
5. Why has the number of married women in the workforce increased?

37. Sociology
11/21/2018
CHAPTER 12 The Family
Section 1: The Family in Cross-Cultural Perspective
Section 2: The American Family
Chapter 12