Focus
Sociological studies of the family look at:
- Demographic characteristic of the family members: family size, age, ethnicity and gender of its members
- Social class of the family, the economic level and mobility of the family, professions of its members, the education levels of the family members
- What spheres of life are important in and to the family unit
- The effect of social change on the family
- The interactions of the family with other social organizations.
- diversity of family forms in contemporary societies in relation to ideology, gender differences, and state policies such as those concerned with marriage
- Interaction between family members within the family. How they rely on one another. How they work together/rely on the work of someone in the family.
Examples of specific issues looked at include:
- Changing roles of family members. Each member is restricted by the sex roles of the traditional family. These roles such as the father as the worker and the mother as the homemaker are declining. The mother is becoming the supplementary provider and she retains the responsibilities of child rearing. Therefore the females’ role in the labour force is “compatible with the demands of the traditional family”. Sociology studies the adaptation of the males role to caregiver as well as provider. The gender roles are increasingly interwoven.
- Increase in sole occupancy dwellings and smaller family sizes
- Average age of marriage being older
- Average number of children decreasing and first birth at later age
- The historical pattern of fertility. From baby boom to baby bust (instability)
- The ageing population. The trend towards greater life expectancy.
- Rising divorce rates and people who will never marry.
- How the choices of the parents affect their children.
- Same sex couples and marriages
- Children of same sex couples
Read more about this topic: Sociology Of The Family
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