How Is Family Life Changing?
Overview
In a single lifetime the family has been quietly transformed. People marry later or not at all, divorce far more easily than their grandparents could, live together before (or instead of) marrying, and have fewer children. People also live much longer, so families now stretch across more generations than ever. None of this happened by accident, and sociology is the study of why.
This note maps the great changes in family life and, more importantly, explains them. You will learn the trends in marriage, divorce, cohabitation and family size, the rise of the ageing population, and how the roles of women, children and grandparents have shifted. You will be able to give clear reasons, from new laws and changing attitudes to secularisation and the changing position of women, and to show how these patterns differ from one society to another. That is exactly the skill the exam rewards.
Objectives
- Family size.
- Birth rates.
- Life expectancy.
- Ageing population.
- Having children in later life.
- Legislation.
- Societal attitudes and values.
- Role of the internet.
- Secularisation.
- Cultural expectations.
- Changes in the status and power of women / female empowerment.
- Cohabitation.
- Singlehood.
- Lone parents.
- Civil partnerships.
- Changing conjugal roles: more diverse family types, segregated to joint conjugal roles, e.g. symmetrical family, dual worker family, the pivot/sandwich generation.
- Changing roles of children: economic burden/cost, child-centredness, boomerang children.
- Changing roles of grandparents: childcare, economic support, wisdom and advice, dependent / a burden.
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Lesson Note
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Lesson Evaluation
Congratulations on completing the lesson on How Is Family Life Changing?. Now that youve explored the key concepts and ideas, its time to put your knowledge to the test. This section offers a variety of practice questions designed to reinforce your understanding and help you gauge your grasp of the material.
You will encounter a mix of question types, including multiple-choice questions, short answer questions, and essay questions. Each question is thoughtfully crafted to assess different aspects of your knowledge and critical thinking skills.
Use this evaluation section as an opportunity to reinforce your understanding of the topic and to identify any areas where you may need additional study. Don't be discouraged by any challenges you encounter; instead, view them as opportunities for growth and improvement.
- The declining influence of religion over people's beliefs and behaviour is called: A. secularisation B. socialisation C. cohabitation D. urbanisation Answer: A
- A long, thin family with several living generations but few members in each is a result of: A. higher birth rates B. longer life expectancy and fewer children C. more arranged marriages D. larger extended families Answer: B
- A young adult who returns to live in the family home, often for financial reasons, is known as a: A. pivot child B. boomerang child C. dependent child D. beanpole child Answer: B
- Which of the following has most directly allowed couples to control the number of children they have? A. secularisation B. reliable contraception C. civil partnerships D. cohabitation Answer: B
- The middle generation caught between caring for their children and for their ageing parents is called the: A. symmetrical generation B. boomerang generation C. pivot or sandwich generation D. dual-worker generation Answer: C
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