1. Families and Intimate Relationships
Chapter 15
Families and Intimate Relationships

2. Chapter Outline Families in Global Perspective
Theoretical Perspectives on Families
Developing Intimate Relationships and Establishing Families
Child-Related Family Issues and Parenting
Transition and Problems in Families
Family Issues in the Future

3. Traditional Definition of Family
A group of people who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption, live together, are an economic unit, and bear and raise children.

4. New Definition of Family
Relationships in which people live together with commitment, form an economic unit and care for any young, and consider their identity to be significantly attached to the group.

5. How Much Do You Know About Trends in U.S. Family Life?
True or False?
Today, people in the United States are more inclined to get married than at any time in history.

6. How Much Do You Know About Trends in U.S. Family Life?
False.
Census data show that the marriage rate has gone down by about one third since In 1960, there were about 73 marriages per 1,000 unmarried women age 15 and up, whereas today the rate is about 49 per 1,000.

7. How Much Do You Know About Trends in U.S. Family Life
True or False?
Most U.S. family households are composed of a married couple with one or more children under age 18.

8. How Much Do You Know About Trends in U.S. Family Life?
False.
Less than 25 percent of all family households are composed of married couples with one or more children under age 18.

9. Family Structure and Characteristics
Kinship refers to a social network of people based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption. 
Family of orientation is the family into which a person is born and in which early socialization usually takes place.
Family of procreation is the family a person forms by having or adopting children.

10. Family Structure and Characteristics
An extended family is composed of relatives in addition to parents and children who live in the same household.
A nuclear family is composed of one or two parents and their dependent children, all of whom live apart from other relatives.

11. Question
A social network of people based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption is known as:
kinship.
a family.
a clan.
subculture.

12. Answer: a
A social network of people based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption is known as kinship.

13. Question
All things considered, how satisfied are you with your family life?

14. Neither satisfied or dissatisfied
GSS National Data
Marital Status
Married
Widowed
Divorced/separated
Never married
Satisfied
95.3%
85.7%
78.7%
84.5%
Neither satisfied or dissatisfied 2 6
11.1
10.2
Dissatisfied
2.7
8.3
5.3

15. Household Composition: 1970 and 2000
Married couples with children
40.3%
24.1%
Married couples without children
30.3%
28.7%
Persons living Alone
17.1%
25.5%
Other family Households
10.6%
16%
Other nonfamily households
1.7%
5.7%

16. Question The strength of the American family is declining.
Strongly agree
Agree somewhat
Unsure
Disagree somewhat
Strongly disagree

17. Marriage
Legally recognized arrangement between two or more individuals that carries certain rights and obligations.
Monogamy is the only form of marriage sanctioned by law in the United States.
Establishes a system of descent so kinship can be determined.

18. Question If you are currently married:
Taking things all together, how would you describe your marriage? Would you say that your marriage is:
Very happy
Pretty happy
Not too happy

19. GSS National Data Religion Lib. Protestant Con. Protestant Catholic
Jewish
None
Very happy
65%
62.6%
61.2%
64.4%
56%
Pretty happy
32.5 35
35.8
31.3
38.9
Not too happy
2.6
2.4 3
4.3
5.2

20. Patterns of Descent and Inheritance
Patrilineal descent is a system of tracing descent through the father’s side of the family.
Matrilineal descent is a system of tracing descent through the mother’s side of the family- women may not control property.
Bilateral descent is a system of tracing descent through both the mother’s and father’s sides of the family.

21. Power and Authority in Families
A patriarchal family is a family structure in which authority is held by the eldest male (usually the father).
A matriarchal family is a family structure in which authority is held by the eldest female (usually the mother).
An egalitarian family is a family structure in which both partners share power and authority equally.

22. Residential Patterns
Patrilocal residence refers to the custom of a married couple living in the same household (or community) as the husband’s family.
Matrilocal residence is the custom of a married couple living in the same household (or community) as the wife’s parents.
Neolocal residence is the custom of a married couple living in their own residence apart from both the husband’s and the wife’s parents.

23. Question
The custom of a married couple living in their own residence apart from both the husband's and the wife's parents are known as:
isolated residence.
neolocal residence.
neutral local residence.
exogamous residence.

24. Answer: b
The custom of a married couple living in their own residence apart from both the husband's and the wife's parents are known as neolocal residence.

25. Marriage Patterns
Endogamy is the practice of marrying within one’s own group.
Homogamy is the pattern of individuals marrying those who have similar characteristics, such as race/ethnicity, religious background, age, education, and/or social class.
Exogamy is the practice of marrying outside one’s own social group or category.

26. Functionalist Perspective: Four Functions of Families
Sexual regulation
Socialization
Economic and psychological support for members.
Provision of social status and reputation.   

27. Theoretical Perspectives On Families
Theory
Focus
Functionalist
Role of families in
maintaining stability of
society and individuals’
well-being.
Conflict/ feminist
Families as sources of
conflict and social
inequality.

28. Theoretical Perspectives On Families
Theory
Focus
Interactionist
Family dynamics, including communication patterns and the subjective meanings people assign to events.
Postmodernist
Permeability of families.

29. Conflict Perspective
Families in capitalist economies are similar to workers in a factory:
Women are dominated at home the same way workers are dominated in factories.
Reproduction of children and care for family members reinforce subordination of women through unpaid labor.

30. Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
How family problems are perceived and defined depends on:
Patterns of communication.
The meanings people give to roles and events.
Individual interpretations of family interactions.

31. Postmodern Perspective
Families are diverse and fragmented.
Boundaries between workplace and home are blurred.
Family problems are related to cyberspace and consumerism in an age characterized by high-tech “haves’ and “have-nots.”

32. Question
According to functionalists, all of the following are key functions of families, except:
provision of social status.
economic and psychological support.
maintenance of workers so that they can function effectively in the workplace.
sexual regulation and socialization of children.

33. Answer: c
According to functionalists, maintenance of workers so that they can function effectively in the workplace is not a key functions of families.

34. Cohabitation
Cohabitation refers to a couple who live together without being legally married.
Based on Census Bureau data, the people who are most likely to cohabit are under age 45, have been married before, or are older individuals who do not want to lose financial benefits (such as retirement benefits) that are contingent upon not remarrying.

35. Cohabitation and Two-Stage Marriage
Cohabitation somewhat follows the two-stage marriage pattern set out by anthropologist Margaret Mead.
Mead suggested marriage should occur in two stages:
Individual marriage - two people make a commitment to each other but agree not to have children during this stage.
Parental marriage - couple decides to have children and share responsibility for them.

36. Question
Do you agree, disagree, or neither agree or disagree with the following statement
It is alright for a couple to live together without intending to get married?

37. Neither Agree nor Disagree
GSS National Data
Age
<30
30-49
50 and up
Agree
61.9%
50.7%
28.3%
Neither Agree nor Disagree
16.6%
17.3%
23%
Disagree
21.4%
32%
48.7%

38. Domestic Partnership
Household partnerships in which an unmarried couple lives together in a committed, sexually intimate relationship and is granted the same rights and benefits as those accorded to married heterosexual couples.

39. Why People Get Married Being "in love."
Desiring companionship and sex.
Wanting to have children.
Social pressure.
Attempting to escape from their parents' home.
Believing they will have greater resources.

40. Housework and Child-Care Responsibilities
Today, over 50% of all marriages in the United States are dual-earner marriages - marriages in which both spouses are in the labor force.
In 2001 more than 76% of employed mothers with children under age 6 worked full time
The second shift is the domestic work that employed women perform at home after they complete their workday on the job.

41. The Child-Care Class System: Who’s Watching Our Children?

42. Deciding to Have Children
Society's bias is to assume having children is the norm.
Infertility affects nearly five million U.S. couples, or one in twelve couples in which the wife is between the ages of fifteen and forty-four.
44% of pregnancies are intended, 56% are unintended.

43. Question
What do you think is the ideal number of children for a family to have?

44. GSS National Data Age <30 30-49 50 and up 0-1 5.6% 5.1% 3.4% 2 56.7
61.6
56.5 3+
37.7
33.3
40.1

45. Question How important is having children to you? Important
Somewhat important
Not important

46. GSS National Data Age <30 30-49 50 and up Important 54.3% 60.8%
67.8%
Somewhat important 26
20.1
14.9
Not important
19.7
19.1
17.3

47. Primary Reasons for Teen Pregnancy: Microlevel
Many sexually active teens don’t use contraceptives.
Teenagers may receive little accurate information about the use of contraception.
Some teenage males believe females should be responsible for contraception.
Some teenagers view pregnancy as a sign of male prowess or as a way to gain adult status.

48. Myths of Teenage Fathers
They engage in sexual activity early and often.
They sexually exploit unsuspecting females.
They have a need to prove their masculinity.

49. Myths of Teenage Fathers
They have few emotional feelings for the women they impregnate.
They are rarely involved in caring for and rearing their children.

50. Question
If a man and woman have sex relations before marriage, do you think it is:
Always wrong
Almost always wrong
Not wrong at all

51. GSS National Data Age <30 30-49 50 and up Always wrong 17.6% 21.9%
37.1%
Almost always wrong
29.6
28.7
33.4
Not wrong at all
52.8
49.4
29.5

52. U.S. Marital Status:15 and over by Ethnicity

53. Question How successful do you feel in your family life?
Not successful
Somewhat successful
Successful

54. GSS National Data Income Low Middle High Not successful 14..3% 7.5%
4.5%
Somewhat successful
38.9%
40.7%
34.2%
Successful
466.8%
51.8%
61.3%4

55. Single Parenting
42% of white children and 86% of African American children spend part of their childhood in a single parent household.
Lesbian and gay parents are often counted as single parents, however many share parenting with partner.

56. Two-Parent Households
Parenthood in the United States is idealized, especially for women.
Children in two-parent families are not guaranteed a happy childhood simply because both parents reside in the same household.

57. Question
It is better for everyone if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family.
Strongly agree
Agree somewhat
Unsure
Disagree somewhat
Strongly disagree

58. Two Important Facts About Families
For good or ill, families are central to our existence.
The reality of family life is far more complicated than the idealized image of families found in the media and in many political discussions.

59. Characteristics of Those Likely to Get Divorced
Marriage at an early age.
A short acquaintanceship before marriage.
Disapproval of the marriage by relatives and friends.
Limited economic resources.

60. Characteristics of Those Likely to Get Divorced
Having a high-school education or less.
Parents who are divorced or have unhappy marriages.
The presence of children at the beginning of the marriage.

61. Remarriage
In recent years, more than 40% of all marriages were between previously married brides and/or grooms.
Among individuals who divorce before age thirty-five, about half will remarry within 3 years of their first divorce.
Some people become part of stepfamilies or blended families, which consist of a husband and wife, children from previous marriages, and children (if any) from the new marriage.

62. Diversity Among Singles
Among persons age 15 and over, 43.4% of African Americans have never married, compared with 35.3% of Latinos/as, 31.3% of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, and 26.1% of whites.

63. Factors in the Lower Marriage Rate of African American Women
There are more African American women than men as a result of the high rate of mortality among young African American men.
African American males who have been subjected to discriminatory practices and limited opportunities may perceive their only economic options are to serve in the military or participate in criminal activity.

64. Factors in the Lower Marriage Rate of African American Women
A higher rate of homosexuality exists among African American men than among women.
More African American men than women marry members of other racial–ethnic groups.
Working-class African American families often stress education for their children and encourage their daughters to choose education over marriage.

65. Quick Quiz

66. 1. A social network of people based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption is:
family of orientation
a kinship
a family
ethnic group

67. Answer: b
A social network of people based on common ancestry, marriage, or adoption is a kinship.

68. 2. A family composed of one or two parents and their dependent children, all of whom live apart from other relatives is called:
nuclear family
sandwich family
boomerang family
extended family

69. Answer: a
A family composed of one or two parents and their dependent children, all of whom live apart from other relatives is called a nuclear family.

70. 3. The concurrent marriage of one man with two or more women is:
all of the choices
polyandry
polygyny
polygamy

71. Answer: c
The concurrent marriage of one man with two or more women is polygyny.

72. 4. A family structure in which the authority is held by the eldest female is:
a matriarchical family
a patriarchical family
a patrilocal family
a matrilocal family

73. Answer: a
A family structure in which the authority is held by the eldest female is a matriarchical family.

74. 5. Families that consist of a husband, wife, and children from previous marriages and (if any) children from the new is called a:
boomerang family
reconstituted family
sandwich families
blended family

75. Answer: d
Families that consist of a husband, wife, and children from previous marriages and (if any) children from the new is called a blended family.

76. 6. The family one is born into and which early socialization takes place is:
the family of orientation
the family of adoption
the family of procreation
the family of origin

77. Answer: a
The family one is born into and which early socialization takes place is the family of orientation.