Sociology AS level - Marital Breakdown and Marriage
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Course
Unit 1 - The Family
Institution
CIE
These thorough notes examine the changing patterns of marriage, cohabitation, civil partnership, separation, divorce and child bearing, as well as the cause and consequences of these changes. They're colour coded so that the notes are visually pleasing and easy to interpret, but are still very deta...
Sociology AS - changing patterns of marriage, cohabitation, civil partnership, separation, divorce and child
bearing; the causes and consequences of these changes.
Assess the view that in modern industrial society family life is breaking down. [11]
Discuss reasons for increasing divorce rate in Britain.
‘The modern family is in decline.’ Explain and assess this view.
‘Marriage has less importance in modern industrial societies than it has in traditional
societies.’ Explain and assess this view.
Marriage, marital breakdown and family decline:
Social and political commentators in Western societies have expressed concern about the
supposed decline of marriage and of family life. Many see this as a threat to the family, which
in turn they see as the bedrock of a stable and civilized society.
For example, Brenda Almond (2006) believes that the family is fragmenting which is damaging
to society. She argues that there is an increased emphasis on the needs of individuals and less
emphasis on society’s need for the rearing of children in stable relationships.
Similarly, Patricia Morgan (2003) believes that the family and marriage are in decline. She
argue that increased cohabitation, declining fertility, the decline in the proportion of married
people, the increase in single parenthood and childbirth outside of marriage as all
indicative of this decline. Like Almond, she thinks this is harmful for society. For instance,
cohabiting couples are more likely to split up than married couples, causing problems for
children and for society which may have to provide financial support for the resulting lone-
parent family.
In addition, cohabitation, divorce and the delaying of marriage until later life all contribute to
the low fertility rate. This leads to an ageing of the population, which places a massive
burden on those of working age who need to support the growing proportion of elderly in the
population.
The threat –
The threats to marriage and family life fall into two main categories:
Threats resulting from alternatives to marriage;
Threats resulting from the breakdown of marriages.
Alternatives to marriage:
Marriage Rates In Decline?
Robert Chester noted that marriage rates amongst young adults have declined in many
Western countries. The rate of first marriages in England and Wales fell from 82.3
marriages per thousand single adults in 1981 to 24.7 in 2004.
Social Trends, 2011 pointed out that marriage rates in England and Wales in 2009 were the
lowest since they were first recorded.
There may be a number of reasons for this:
1. The changing role of women:
Women now have more career opportunities, which allows them greater financial
independence. As a result, there is less economic pressure for them to marry and they have
more freedom to choose their relationships. Oswald argues that increased female financial,
career and personal independence means that marriage is now a ‘lifestyle choice’, and women
are less likely to enter a relationship that restricts their ability to work and develop a career.
Women’s expectations of life and marriage have risen during the last century, and they are
less willing to take on the demands associated with the housewife-mother role, which as
feminists point out, still seems to dominate women’s roles in marriage. Evidence suggests that
women in cohabiting relationships carry out less housework than those in married relationships.
2. Secularization:
Secularization refers to the declining influence of religious beliefs and institutions. It has led to
changes in the meaning and significance of marriage. Writers such as Goode and Gibson
argue that it has resulted in marriage becoming less of a sacred, spiritual union and more a
personal and practical commitment which can be abandoned if it fails. Evidence for this lies in
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