Examine the ways in which social policy and laws influence families and household
Examine the ways in which social policy and laws influence families and household Social policy laws cover areas such as divorce, changes to the benefit system which affect family income, reforms to the education system adoption/fostering and employment. With more strain placed on the family unit than ever before, shifts in policy have been designed to alleviate some of the stress and increase support. In a step away from the conventional support for the nuclear family unit of a married couple and children, the Government pledged to support all families with equal vigor, regardless of the relationship between the mother and father. Almost every policy passed through Parliament will have a degree of influence on at least one member of the family collective. Social policy has a direct impact on family household. For example divorce legislation. It is easier to get a divorce this is a good impact on the family because some marriage do not work out and the family falls apart because more violence and argument happens when the marriage is not working out. But then again this might be a bad thing because in this society they'll be no more perfect nuclear family. Now the divorce law is fair because both sexes can get a divorce now before only the men can divorce. In the UK there is a massive increase on SPFs therefore they would need help with money and work. For example job
Culture & Socialisation
Assignment 1: Culture and Socialisation Use fictional experiences to explain areas where socialisation may take place in an individuals life. Part 1A When I was younger my mother married a man who had grown up in the Jamaican society. Although my immediate family are of Jamaican decent, we have been grown in the western society and so we do not follow the Jamaican culture. When they married I noticed that the norms and values of my mother did not remain the same as before, and she began to incorporate more of the Jamaican norms and values into the household. Previously my mother did not have any issues with me mixing with members of the opposite sex, however in the Jamaican culture the values surrounding this are somewhat different to ours; young girls and boys should not mix unless they are family, and even this is limited. This also stems from the value that parents and family are the most important, and so the norm is that most children do as their parents say and girls and boys do not play together as friends. I had to adopt this principle in order to keep good vibes within the household, although it went against my own norms. It is customary in Jamaican culture to prepare fresh food everyday so it became a norm for me to prepare all the fresh food for my mother to cook and, if my mother was not there then, as the oldest daughter I was expected to assume her role
Using material from item A and elsewhere assess sociological explanations of changes in status of childhood.
Using material from item A and elsewhere assess sociological explanations of changes in status of childhood. The status of childhood has always been changing with time and to this day and age there are many views over the position of children; being confined, disciplined or controlled by the adult authority and socialisation. Others say that they are growing up to fast and the distinction between the adults and children is becoming blurred. Some sociologists believe that childhood is socially constructed, that childhood is dependent on society's cultures, beliefs and laws etc. An example for this theory is Wagg (1992) who believes a single 'universal' childhood; that is experienced by all, does not exist. He says that childhood isn't natural nor is it defined by mere biological immaturity. By this he means that although all children go through life stages and physical development like puberty it doesn't create their position in society and instead the society and its differential culture, religion and laws do. Earlier centuries like the middle ages didn't regard childhood at all and adults and children were almost at equal with each other; work, clothing and playing. As item A describes 'little distinction was drawn between adults and children'. This is a view taken up by the historian Aries where the child entered the wider society on most the same terms as adults and
Boys underachievement in Education
Hypothesis/Aim My hypothesis is 'Boys underachieve in education due to laddish behaviour'. This subject is important for me as I see 'laddish' behaviour in most of my days at sixth form. Its also important as no one knows why boys underachieve so doing this study will help me understand why they do. Another reason for me choosing this area of study is because there is great concern over boy's achievement which show sit is an important area to indentify the reasons for why this is happening in education. Wastage of talents is a big concern for schools currently as so many boys are talented but are scared to do well in case they don't seem 'cool'. (115 words) Context and Concepts My first concept is 'achievement'; this is to succeed in doing or producing something. This is relevant to my hypothesis because I'm trying to find out by boys achievement is low. My second concept is 'laddish behaviour'. This is because I feel this is the reason for boys underachieving as stated in my hypothesis. This concept is important to my study as it's the factor that will essentially be proven or disproven. My first context for the study is taken from Eirene Mitsos and Ken Browne-Boys' underachievement. Mitsos and Browne (1998) believe that boys are underachieving in education, although they also believe girls are disadvantaged. The evidence of boy's underachievement, according to Mitsos
There is a gradual sharing of gender roles within the family.
There is a gradual sharing of gender roles within the family. Explain and discuss this statement with reference to sociological evidence and theories. 1500 Words Functionalism theories argue that society shapes its men and women into different spheres, these differences can be seen as functional to the maintenance of social stability and harmony. Functionalist argue that the traditional view of family in Britain was that of the Nuclear family, this was one in which married women were seen as housewives, they performed the domestic tasks and cared for their children. Their husbands were seen as naturally assertive the dominant male, the bread-winner and perform economically supportive tasks. Edmund Lech (1967) termed this view of the family as The Cereal Pack Norm, and criticised "the lawdry secrets" of the nuclear family. This view of gender roles and the family is a debate shared by many theorists. Young and Willmott (1973) accepted the view of the nuclear family and announced the arrival of the symmetrical family. They suggested that there was a movement towards symmetry, meaning joint conjugal roles, a sense of balance between the duties of gender tasks within the family. Conjugal roles can be jointly carried out, segregated or integrated. Ann Oakley (1974) and other feminists disagreed that conjugal roles were joint but were socially constructed, after the industrial
Assess the view that gender roles and relationships have become more equal in modern family life.
Suggest two reasons why lone-parent families are more likely to be headed by a female. (4 marks) One reason why lone-parent families are more likely to be headed by a female are courts are under the misperception that women are better parents than men. They see the bond between a mother and child as stronger than the bond between a father and child. Another reason is women are more likely to willing to give up work to care for the children than the father. Suggest two reasons why there has been an increase in one-person households. (Item 2A, line 3) (4 marks) One reason for the increase in one-person household is the increasing levels of divorce and the breakdown of traditional family values and structures. These contributed to the rise in single divorcee households as well as single-parent households. Another reason is the trend of young people delaying marriage often in order to achieve career goals. This has led to the rise of young, wealthy one-person households particularly in large urban areas. Using material from Item 2B and elsewhere, assess the view that gender roles and relationships have become more equal in modern family life. (24 marks) There are a variety of sociologists that have different views about whether they think gender roles and relationships have become more equal in modern family life. These are mentioned in item 2B, for example Gershuny. in the
Who Needs Marriage? is a scientific article written in 1988 by Gerald C. Lubenow. The article deals with different views on marriage and how the meaning of being married has changed
Who Needs Marriage? "Who Needs Marriage?" is a scientific article written in 1988 by Gerald C. Lubenow. The article deals with different views on marriage and how the meaning of being married has changed through time. Lubenow circles around the question "who needs marriage?" to figure out why marriage is so important to some people in one part of the world and completely different in another part and likewise less important to the younger generation. To figure out the question of the title he uses Scandinavian exemplifications to show the reader different reasons why people are getting married and furthermore how marriage is in a phrase of development. The use of interviews is to give some credibility to the article. Lubenow has interviewed real people with real problems. The use of quotations is to draw parallels between the receivers and the exemplifications. The fact that the article is posted in a scientific magazine narrow the receivers to be rather informative readers, who are interested in peoples conduct of life around the world. So Lubenow is using quotations of Scandinavia to illustrate other places in the world. The article starts out by mentioning that an increasing number of Scandinavian young couples with children are avoiding marriage. Especially in Sweden are there signs of antipathy to marriage. But why is it that people are kind of afraid of marriage?
To what extent is the family a declining social institution in Britain?
To what extent is the family in Britain a declining Social Institution? There is a growth in the number of lone parents 23% of dependent children now live in a single parent household this compares to 7% in 1972. Some would argue that this increase shows the decline of the family unit. Others argue against this citing that even among never married single mothers in 2 out of 3 cases the mother and father were cohabiting also 85% of the births were registered jointly, both parents' names being put on the birth certificate (these statistics coming from information gathered in 2006). However the majority of lone parenthoods arise from divorce, separation or widowhood. In many of these cases apart from widowhood the absent parent, usually the father, will still play a role in the children's life and the children will still have a sense of a family. The New Right thinkers and politicians are the most likely to suggest an increase in the number of lone parent households means the social institution of the family is declining in Britain. New Right thinkers believe the only functional family set up is the nuclear family unit and so from this point of view they would be right to think the family is in decline but it is a radical point of view and most agree that it is narrow minded and stubborn. Conservative politicians of the New Right will attribute the decline in the family as
Trends in births and deaths in the UK since 1900
Trends in births and deaths in the UK since 1900 There has been a long-term decline in the number of births since 1900. However there have been a number of fluctuations in births with three ‘baby booms’ in the 20th century. The first two came after both world wars in 1914-12 and 1939-45 and it is thought this is because of returning servicemen starting families with their partners that had to be postponed during the wars. In the 1960’s there was another fluctuation and the third baby boom, most probably due to the increase in the usage of drugs and the huge fad of party fever. In the 70’s the birth rates started to fall again because of the new divorce laws enforced around this time, meaning couples didn’t have to stay together to avoid the stigma of divorce and therefore didn’t feel the need to have children. The birth rate then rose in the 80’s. In the 90’s the birth rate fell again-again, probably due to women choosing to work more rather than play the role of ‘stay at home mum’ .As the position of women slowly started to change and they became more equal to men, it was more acceptable for them to be well educated, laws started changing to ensure women were paid just as much as men in same-role jobs and also the ease of access to abortion and reliable contraception allowed women to have more control over their fertility. Meaning the birth rate was
Examine the Effects of Maternal Employment on Infant Development.
Effects of Maternal Emploment on Infant Development The topic of this paper is the debate of whether or not maternal employment has any effect on infant development. Research on this described topic has recently become popular due to the rise of working mothers over the past several decades. Their increasing numbers in the workplace and decreasing numbers as stay at home moms are creating a number of different issues to be studied. The effects of maternal employment are determined by a number of factors that include, the mother's job satisfaction and drive, amount of work, and the mother's opinion of quality versus quantity time with children. The main concept at hand here is the importance of an attachment in the first few years as being vital to a child's later development. One side of the argument backs up this fact saying that it is important for a child to have their mother home with them during this period of development. The other side argues that they are finding that it may be more beneficial for the child to be placed in some form of nontraditional care environment. This paper will examine these different effects on infant development whether they are positive or negative. There are two sides to this argument as expected for any issue in debate. I will discuss these two sides by using the arguments of researchers that have studied this topic and written articles
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