Aspects of Family Life in the UK
Introduction
Family life in the UK has undergone considerable change in recent years, in terms of composition, gendered roles, and structures. For example, the number of single-parent families is now at an all-time high, while there has been a rise in working mothers compared to the 1960s, and this has in turn meant a change in gendered roles. This is due to such influencing factors as globalisation, which seems to focus more on the nuclear family as it favours increased mobility and geographical change. Increased societal tolerance has also played a role in the changes seen. The premise of this essay is to identify, explain, and analysis some of the aspects of family life in the UK such as increased divorce rates and reduced marriage rates using functionalism and feminism perspectives.
Functionalism
Giddens and Griffiths (2006) are of the view that the functionalist perspective 'sees society as a set of social institutions that perform specific functions to ensure continuity and consensus' (p. 238). Examples of such inter-related social institutions include the Church, mass media, and family. Murdock and Parsons are two of the leading Functionalist theorists on the family as social institution and in particular, the nuclear family. Murdock views the nuclear family as fulfilling four fundamental roles for society: the economic, sexual, reproductive, and educational roles. However, with the emergence of single families and lesbian and gay families, this idea of a nuclear family as a pillar of society has come under increased criticism. Parsons further developed the Functionalist perspective as it relates to the family, noting that industrialisation has led to an emphasis on the nuclear family in place of the extended family owing to the need for increased social and geographical mobility.
The functionalist perspective views social roles as culturally determined. Accordingly, their adoption ensures that society runs smoothly. According to functionalists, females are best suited to familial roles that entail nurturing, caring, and giving emotional support. These roles are collectively referred to as female expressive roles. On the other hand, functionalists view the male as the breadwinner and hence his male instrumental role in ensuring the family receives financial support (Squire 2006).
Feminism
Nearly all feminists are in support of the socially constructed gender theory, which views gender roles as learned behaviour, and not dependent on biology. Feminists further opine that the family acts as the most suitable and significant institution in terms of the socialisation of gender norms and roles. Feminists view the nuclear family as perpetrating gendered practices that perpetuate female oppression. These include: socialising boys to grow up believing they are superior to girls, socialising girls to embrace unassertive roles in the family; and (ii) socialising women to believe that the "housewife" role is the only acceptable/possible role that they can play. In this way, feminists are of the view that the family, and especially the nuclear family, acts as the perfect ground for perpetuating patriarchal values, which is essential in the development of a patriarchal society.
There are three distinct branches of feminism: radical, liberal, and Marxist. Radical feminists are of the view that the patriarchal concept (a theory that views men as superior to women, and hence their dominance over females), is responsible for the tyrannization of women not just within the family, but also in the wider societal setting (Kirby 2000). Accordingly, radical feminists view sexual assault and rape as evidence of male domination, and that the family unit acts as the very foundation of its maintenance. Liberal feminists advocate for legislative changes to enhance gender equity, as opposed to blaming capitalism or men for the inequalities faced by women and children within the family setup.
Marxist feminists view capitalism as the key source of women's oppression at the family level, as opposed to men. They contend that women's oppression contributes to various roles for Capitalism, such as reproducing the labour force, providing cheap labour, as well as absorbing the anger of their proletariat husbands, who ought to direct such anger towards the Bourgeois, as opposed to their wives.
Aspects of family life in the UK
Families in the UK have undergone drastic changes in observed social trends, such as rates of cohabitation, divorce rates, and marriage rates. Whereas the civil or married partner couple family is by far the most common type of family, the cohabiting couple family has been identified as the fastest-growing type of family. The number of cohabiting couples, without or with children, has been on a rapid increase, as has the number of lone-parent households. At the same time, the number of households consisting of married couples without or with children has been rather stable. These changes are indicative of a growing trend away from marriage and towards enhanced family diversity. Berrington and Stone (2015) report that the rising incidents of cohabitation in the UK could be explained by increased societal tolerance as children born and raised in such families are also more likely to cohabit later in life. Limited financial security has also contributed to an increase in cohabitation which is slowly turning into a formative behaviour.
Divorce rates in the UK have also been on the increase, though the rise in cohabitation has led to a slight reduction in reported figures. For example, a report by the Office for National Statistics )ONS) shows that in 2013, there were 114,720 reported cases of divorce in both England and Wales, which is 2.9% less than the 118,140 divorces reported a year earlier (ONS 2015). At the same time, the number of gay and lesbian relationships has been on the increase. Also, families in the UK are increasingly getting smaller, as the number of women of childbearing age who are without any children increases. This, is even as a higher number of women are getting into marriage well past their childbearing age but also more importantly because society has become increasingly tolerant of a childless lifestyle. These damning statistics are indicating of a changing family structure in the UK. They are also a clear indication that the feminist debate has come full circle. More women are now working mothers compared to the situation a few decades ago.
Socialist feminists have argued that sexism and capitalism are the main causes of the rise in divorce rates observed in society and the general breakdown of the family unit (Harnois 2013). On the other hand, the structural-functionalist perspective identifies the rising cases of single-parent households, same-sex marriages, and high rates of divorce as signs that the family unit is breaking down (Mooney, Knox & Schacht 2012). The change in gender roles from the traditional "instrumental" roles of making important family decisions and earning an income that men perform, and the "expressive" role of women in terms of nurturing the family, providing emotional care, and attending to household tasks, has been led to disrupted family values following the entry of women into the workforce.
Conclusion
Family life in the UK has witnessed considerable changes owing to globalisation and increased tolerance by society. Divorce rates have increased, as has the number of cohabiting families. This has been attributed to limited financial security. There has also been a change in the family structure, such as an increase in the number of childless families as women get into marriage later in life due to work commitments but this is also indicative of increased tolerance for a childless lifestyle.
References
Berrington, A & Stone, J (2015). Cohabitation trends and patterns in the UK. [Online].
Giddens, A & Griffiths, S (2006), Sociology, New York: Polity.
Harnois, CE (2013), Feminist Measures in Survey Research, London: SAGE.
Kirby, M (2000), Sociology in Perspective, Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Mooney, LA, Knox, D & Schacht, C (2012), Understanding Social Problems, Stamford, Mass.: Cengage Learning.
Office for National Statistics (2015). Divorces in England and Wales: 2013. [Online].
Squire, C (2009), The Social Context of Birth, Abingdon, UK: Radcliffe Publishing.
