Assess the influence of social policies on the family.

by uhwkhdkawjl (student)

Assess the influence of social policies on the family (24 Mark)

Different social policies have influences on the family in different ways, one social policy is maternity and paternity leave, currently women get 26 weeks maternity leave where as men get 2 weeks paternity leave. This shows an unequal balance between men and women, this then portrays the idea that women should be at home looking after the children for longer and the men should be out working. This policy reinforces the ideology of the patriarchal nuclear family, it puts forward that men are the head of the family, they should be out working while the women take on the child care. Feminists disagree with the difference as this puts men and women on an unequal level, feminists belive that they should all be equal so by giving women a larger time to be at home looking after the children influences the family.

A lot of families receive child benefits, it has been seen by the government that for poorer families it is an incentive to have more children as the more they have the more money they are given. The conservative government have put a cap on child benefits at £26.000 as they are trying to limit the number of children in poorer families, murray saw the trend of children in poorer families and how much money they receive and in order to reduce children in poverty they cap it so families cannot claim on benefits. The New Right see's any benefits as a peverse incentive to do what they need to to claim on the benfits, but this would then push a lot of families into poverty.

Marriage tax breaks are awarded to couples who stay married, this was suggested by the conservative party as it shows an incentive to get married and stay married, this would then normaly follow on to having children. The tax break consists of claiming £150 for staying married. The tax break shows that polititians see the nuclear family as the ideal family as they create incentives to create this.

The child support agency chase up absent fathers for maintenace money for the child and mother, the new right think that this would then encourage fathers to be ...

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The child support agency chase up absent fathers for maintenace money for the child and mother, the new right think that this would then encourage fathers to be responsible instead of abandon the family and not support them. The money is given the existing family to help pay for food and bills that they need to live on. This may encourage the family to stay together a lot longer which increases the number of nuclear families.

In 2004 there was a civil partnerships act which means that people of the same sex could have a civil partnership in society, this shows that it has become increasingly accepted into society. The act promotes the acceptance of family diversity, it gives them the same rights as a civil marriage this was put forward by the new right to promote diversity.

There is a smacking parenting order which states that parents are not allowed to smack their children as it is seen as child abuse, this puts a lot of control over the family by telling them how they shouldnt disapline their children. The government now have too much control and surveilance over the family, this especially effects poorer families as the government already have a lot of control of their lives.

Welfare state provides support for families who do not have a lot of money and need a bit of extra help, functionalists view is that they see it as a 'March of progress'. However marxists say that it all benefits capitalism as social policies such as the NHS exist to only benefit capitalism.

Overall the state has a lot of control over the family as each social policy has a different effect on it, some control what they can do and other give an insentive to become what the state see as ideal. In China their state have a lot more control over their popluation and families as when a married couple want a child they have to apply to have one, they introduced a one child policy. A couple are only allowed one child, to make sure that this is happeneing they need a certain ammount of surveilance. In each small village they have 'granny woo's' which monitor each family and tell on them if they do something wrong e.g have another child. From this social policy many repercussions have become of this for example there is a large aging popluation and a high male popluation as families have seen that it is more beneficial to have a male child to support them. This has large effects on the family as if you have a female child then when they marry the parents are left to fend for themselves as the females have to move in and support the males parents.

In conclusion the state controls the family to a certain extent due to social policies that we all adopt, these without our knowledge alter the way see society and how our society is formed.

Michaela Cooper