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Summary Families and Households Full Revision Notes
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  • Families and Households
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  • AQA A Level Sociology Book One Including AS Level

In this document, I fully in detail explore FH1, FH3, FH4 and FH5 (FH2 will be available soon for free). These notes were what assisted me in getting A's and B's in practice exams and mocks. I am confident that with these lengthy summaries, you will be able to retain the relevant information needed...

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  • October 24, 2022
  • 26
  • 2021/2022
  • Summary

Subjects

  • fh1
  • functionalist theory
  • marxist theory
  • family
  • households
  • families and households
  • paper 2
  • new right theory
  • feminist theory
  • social policy
  • fh3
  • gender roles
  • domestic di
  • perspective views on social policy

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Available practice questions

Sociology Paper Two: Families and Households Questions

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Some examples from this set of practice questions

1.

Define the term \'Symmetrical Family\'

Answer: The roles of husbands and wives are now much more similar. For example, a symmetrical family is where men help women with housework and childcare, and women are given more opportunities to go to work. 

2.

Define the term \'Triple Shift\'

Answer: Women must perform housework, paid work, and emotion work. This includes childcare.

3.

Define the term \'Chosen Families\'

Answer: Individuals create their own family outside of their family members. For example, a boyfriend or girlfriend who you may never marry but cohabit with, could be part of a chosen family. Your parents\' best fried may be referred to as an \'auntie\'/\'uncle\'

4.

Define the term \'Total Fertility Rates\'

Answer: The factors which determine the birth rate are the proportion of women who are of the childbearing age, and it looks at how fertile they are to determine how many children they will be able to have in their lifetime.

5.

Define the term \'Cohabitation\'

Answer: An unmarried couple who are in a sexual relationship and live with one another, but are not married.

Content preview

Sociology Paper two: Topics in Sociology
Families & Households part one
FH 1.1: functionalist theory of the family
Functionalist view (consensus perspective): A01: the organic analogy
Functionalists see the family as a particularly important institution as they see it as the 'basic building block' of society, which
performs the crucial functions of socialising the young and meeting the emotional needs of its members. Functionalism is a
theory which views society as being a system of interconnected parts and they compare society to the human body.
- In terms of the organic analogy, family may be the heart because it is the central/vital function. E.g., the body =
society. Body parts = institutions within society, the family being one of these.
What the family does for individuals:
- It gives emotional and physiological support, unconditional love. It teaches norms, values, and mannerisms, and it provides
financial support.
- Without family, basic survival would be difficult at early age. This is because a young person would have a lack of mental
and physical stability. Thus, they would struggle to form relationships due to a lack of experience or role models such as
parents. Being alone would also mean they must interpret intentions and norms for themselves, which could make it difficult
for them to become socialised.
What the family does for society:
- Through spending, they put money into economies and industries. Furthermore, they populate society (through birthing),
which provides workforce groups.
- The family also creates correctly educated and socialized citizens. Without this integration into society, there would be a
lack of collective thinking, so individualism increases e.g., larger crime and deviance rates.

A02: G.P. Murdock, 1949: the universal functions of the family:
(*From 2013, 35% of the UK is in nuclear families*)
Murdock believed the nuclear family was a universal institution after a comparison of over 250 societies. He further
suggested that it provided four functions considered essential for society. He argues that the family performs four essential
functions to meet the needs of society and its members:
1. Stable satisfaction of the sex drive with the same partner, preventing the social disruption caused by a sexual ‘free-for-all.’
2. Reproduction of the next generation, without which society could not continue.
3. Socialisation of the young into society’s shared norms and values.
4. Meeting its members’ economic needs, such as food and shelter.
G.P. Murdock: the four essential functions of the family:
Economic function Education function
The family acts as an economic unit ensuring the survival of The family provides a stable environment in which children
its members by providing food and shelter. can be socialised into the culture of their society.
Sexual function Reproductive function
The family prevents disruption to society by limiting The family ensures the reproduction of a new generation
sexuality to monogamous relationships, preventing the vital for survival of society.
conflict that might otherwise result from sexual desire.
Evaluation of Murdock…
- Feminists argue that the family does not meet the needs of society but rather the needs of men and oppresses women.
- Murdock suggests the nuclear family is the only way to obtain these needs, and ignores other institutions who can provide
these same functions e.g., adoption centres, counselling etc.
- Marxists argue that the family meets the needs of capitalism rather than the family or society.
- Criticised for suggesting there is a ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ family type.
- Marxists and Feminists reject his ‘rose-tinted’ harmonious consensus view that the family meets the needs of both wider
society and all other members of society.
- Practicality of the nuclear family as a way of meeting these four needs is why it is universal.
- Socially sensitive to modern society, outdated theory, does not consider relationships, like polyamorous.
- The Nayar community (Southwest India) criticises Murdock’s idea that the nuclear family is universal.

T. Parsons, 1955: functional fit theory:
‘Functional fit’ means: the functions that the family performs will depend on the kind of society in which it is found. For
example, the family may perform welfare, military, political or religious functions. The functions that the family must perform
will affect its ‘shape’ or structure.
Parsons argues that there is a link between the type of society and the type of family:

, Type of society Type of family Why?
Modern Industrial Nuclear family: just parents and He argues the nuclear family fits the needs of industrial
their dependent children. society and is the dominant family type in that society.
Traditional Pre- Extended family: of three He argues the extended family fits the needs of pre-
industrial generations living under one room. industrial society.
(Ascribed status). (Earned status).
Geographically Mobile Workforce Socially Mobile Workforce
In TP society: people often spent their lives living In TP society: adults sons live at home in their father’s house, where
in the same village, working on the same farm. the father has a higher ascribed status as head of household.
In MI society: industries constantly spring up In MI society: this is based on constantly evolving science and
and decline in different parts of the country, even technology, so it requires a skilled, technically competent workforce.
different parts of the world. This requires people Thus, it’s essential that talented people are more able to win
to move where jobs are. promotion and take on the more important careers (even if they come
from a humble background).
- An individual’s status is achieved by their own efforts and ability, not
ascribed. This makes social mobility possible. For this reason, Parsons
argues the nuclear family is better equipped to meet the needs of
industrial society.
Parsons argues that it is easier for the compact The nuclear family encourages social mobility as well as geographical
two-generation nuclear family to move, than for mobility.
the three-generation extended family.
The nuclear family is better fitted to the need that
modern industry has for a geographically mobile
workforce.
Loss of functions - why has the family lost so many of its functions?
- The pre-industrial family was a multi-function unit. It worked as a unit of production, which meant family members would
work together e.g., on the family farm. It was a more self-sufficient unit than the modern nuclear family, providing for its
members’ health and welfare. It met most individual and social needs.
- According to Parsons, when society industrialises, the family changes its structure from extended to nuclear, it also loses
many of its functions.
- The family ceases to be a unit of production: work moves into the factories and the family becomes a unit of consumption
only. It also loses many of its other functions to other institutions. E.g., schools and the health service.
In Parsons’ view, these losses of functions mean the modern nuclear family comes to specialise in performing
just two essential or ‘irreducible’ functions:
Primary socialisation of children Stabilisation of adult personalities
Definition: Definition:
Equip children with basic skills and society’s values, The family is a place where adults can relax and release tensions,
to enable them to cooperate with others and begin enabling them to return to the workplace refreshed and ready to
to integrate them into society. meet its demands. This is functional for efficiency of the economy.
Like which Murdock concept? Educational Like which Murdock concept? Sexual
A03: evaluation of the functionalist view of the family:
- A standard criticism of functionalist views of the role of the family comes from conflict theorists like Marxists and Feminists
who argue that this paints too rosy and idealistic a picture of family life. Many people have negative experiences of family
life, and indeed they can cause stress as well as relieve it, for example feminists would argue that adult personalities cannot
be stabilized in a hostile environment of domestic abuse. The Marxist-feminist Fran Ansley offers a different perspective on
Parsons’ warm bath theory when she describes women in the family as takers of shit. By this she means that men coming
home from work may have their stress relieved by the family, but only by dumping it on their wives.
- Parson’s view of the instrumental and expressive roles of men and women is very old-fashioned. It may have held some
truth in the 1950s but today, with many women in paid work, and the blurring of gender roles, it seems that both partners
are more likely to take on both expressive and instrumental roles, this view lacks temporal validity.
- Functionalist view is too deterministic. This means it ignores the fact that children actively create their own personalities.
An individual’s personality isn’t pre-determined at birth or something they have no control in. Functionalism incorrectly
assumes an almost robotic adoption of society’s values via our parents.
FH 1.2: marxist theory of the family
Marxists see society, including families within, based on unequal conflict between the capitalist ruling class (Bourgeoisie) and
the working class (Proletariat). Marxists believe in capitalism, ascribed status, and social class conflict. They believe the

, family functions to benefit the capitalist society.
Marxist views of the family:
Marxists see society as based on an unequal conflict between two social classes: the capitalist class and the working class.
Society is divided into two:
The bourgeoisie = powerful, wealthy, owners… The proletariat = powerless, poor, workers…
How Marxists would view the 'four functions of the family'/How this benefits the Bourgeoisie:
- The economic function: Instead of ensuring survival of family, capitalism takes advantage of this and encourages you to buy
things you do not need, consumerism convinces you that these purchases make you happy. / The family helps the economy
through purchasing extra food, supplies etc. They also add more people (their children) into the economy who will go into
work and help boost the economy.
- The sexual function: A monogamous relationship leads to a stable family that can be exploited.
- The education function: Brainwashes children into accepting capitalist views. / Children are educated so they can go into
work. Better education = greater job = more money will be spent = more help to boost the economy.
- The reproductive function: Produces constant proletariat ready to be exploited. / Bringing in a new generation, new load of
work/jobs. Creating a future workforce.

Friedrich Engels, 1884: “The Origin of the Family, Private Property, and the state” (Inheritance of property)
1 Marxists argue that the key factor determining the shape of all social institutions, including the family, is the mode of production (who
owns and controls society’s productive forces e.g., tools, machinery, raw materials, labour, and land).
Definition: the monogamous nuclear family helped solve the problem of inheritance of private property, whereby men
needed to know who their sons were to pass on the property (men had to be certain of the paternity of their children to
ensure that their legitimate heirs inherited from them). The sons inherited their fathers’ money, assets etc.
Evidence: Family keeps wealth in hands of capitalism, prevents distribution of wealth. Opposite to what Marx called the
classless society, 'primitive communism' where all families used to own fair means of production communally.
- In Engels’ view, the rise of the monogamous nuclear family represented a “world historical defeat of the female sex.” This was because it
brought the woman’s sexuality under male control and turned her into “a mere instrument for the production of children.”
- Marxists argue that only with the overthrow of capitalism and private ownership of the means of production will women achieve liberation
from patriarchal control. A classless society will be established in which the means of production are owned collectively, not privately. There
will no longer be a need for the patriarchal family since there will be no need to have a means of transmitting private property down the
generations.
Functionalist interpretation: Believe in meritocracy, so those that inherit property must deserve it because they worked
hardest for it. They will say inheritance of property is good because it keeps the nuclear family flowing and socialisation.
Evaluation: outdated, assumes all families prefer nuclear types, ignores polyamorous relationships etc. Feminists argue the
family primarily serves the interest of men, not capitalism.

Zaretsky, 1976: (Ideological functions)
2 Marxists argue that the family today also performs key ideological functions for capitalism. By the term ‘ideology,’ Marxists mean a set of
ideas or beliefs that justify inequality and maintain the capitalist system by persuading people to accept it as fair, natural, or unchangeable.
Definition: Children are socialised into blindly accepting authority, to follow norms that the bourgeoisie have created
(Primary Socialisation results in the transmission of ruling class ideology).
Evidence: Family acts as an escape from capitalist exploitation at school and the workplace. However, children are
encouraged to accept parental authority without question in the family which prepares them to accept authority in the
workplace.
- According to Zaretsky, the family also performs an ideological function by offering an apparent ‘haven’ from the harsh and exploitative
world of capitalism outside, in which workers can ‘be themselves’ and have a private life. However, Zaretsky argues that this is largely an
illusion as the family cannot meet its members’ needs.
- One way in which the family does this is by socialising children into the idea that hierarchy and inequality are inevitable. Parental
(especially paternal) power over children accustoms them to the idea that there always must be someone in charge, and this is usually a
male figure. This prepares them for a working life, where they will accept orders from their capitalist employers.
Functionalist interpretation: The family can provide many benefits for the family rather than ideological functions e.g.,
the universal function. Murdock's educational function implies education is not exploitation, it is necessary rules and norms
to ensure children are stable in society and its cultures.
Evaluation: This is too deterministic, implying children cannot think for themselves and that opposing opinions have no
influence, proven wrong by anti-school subcultures and protests. Functionalists argue that Marxists ignore the benefits the
family can provide for its member.

Zaretsky, 1976: (Unit of consumption)
3 Capitalism exploits the labour of the workers; they make a profit by selling the products of their labour for more than it pays them to

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