Theories of the family: The Personal Life Perspective
- Created by: PaigeCardenas08
- Created on: 13-03-22 15:11
View mindmap
- The development of families and relationships is complex
- Theories of the family: The Personal Life Perspective
- Evaluations
- Criticisms
- It takes on a too broad definition of the family
- Positive
- Recognises that people are active in constructing family lives
- Criticisms
- Criticises previous perspectives
- Criticises Functionalism and Marxism for making generalisations about family life which do not fit the realities of the society we live in today
- Their focus on the nuclear family with fixed traditional gender roles does not recognise the complexity of contemporary family life
- Also criticises Giddens, Beck's postmodern theory of influenced by traditions or norms when they make these decisions
- People are not entirely free to decide for themselves how to shape their families, and their family relationships
- Criticises Functionalism and Marxism for making generalisations about family life which do not fit the realities of the society we live in today
- Major contribution: the family is not the only significant relationship in people's lives
- Their identity or senses of belonging comes from other meaningful relationships
- Subcultures/ gangs may be regarded as family
- Dead relatives may be regarded as part of the family
- Gay and lesbian 'chosen' families offer emotional and maybe financial support
- Pets may be seen as more significant than unclear aunts
- Close friends may be trusted as 'Fictive kin'
- Their identity or senses of belonging comes from other meaningful relationships
- Evaluations
- The families and roles that people are constructing have an element of individual choice, but the choices that people are making are maintained by a social construct in three ways:
- Firstly, people are embedded in their past experiences of family history
- Secondly, the expectations of the society they presently live in
- Thirdly, people are subject to structural factors such as social class, ethnic and gender inequalities
- Theories of the family: The Personal Life Perspective
Comments
No comments have yet been made