Marriage & the Family
Chapter 1
- Defining Family
- Making Choices
- A Family of Individuals
- Marriages and Families: Four Themes
*
Defining Family
- Law and Science
- People related by blood, marriage or adoption.
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Two or more persons who share a household and who are related by blood, marriage or adoption.
*
Which of These Is a Family?
- A husband and wife and their offspring.
- A single woman and her three children.
- A 52-year-old woman and her adoptive mother.
- A man, his daughter, and the daughter’s son.
- An 84-year-old widow and her dog, Fido.
- A man and all of his ancestors back to Adam and Eve.
*
Which of These Is a Family?
- Two lesbians and their children from a previous marriage of one woman and a previous relationship of the other woman with a male friend.
- Two children, their divorced parents, the current spouses of their divorced parents, and the children from previous marriages of their stepparents.
*
Which of These Is a Family?
- Two adult male cousins living together.
- A 77-year-old man and his best friend.
- A childless husband and wife who live 1,000 miles apart.
- A divorced man, his girlfriend, and her child.
- Both sets of parents of a deceased married couple.
- Six adults and their 12 young children, all living together in a communal fashion.
*
American Households, 2000
*
Facts: U.S. Families Today
- Fewer people are currently married.
- People are postponing marriage.
- Cohabitation has emerged as a lifestyle intermediate between marriage and
singlehood. - Some cohabitants maintain gay and lesbian domestic partnerships.
*
Facts: U.S. Families Today
- The number of people living alone is substantial.
- Many adult children live with their parents.
- A much higher proportion of older men than older women are married.
*
Facts: U.S. Families Today
- Parenthood is increasingly postponed and fertility has declined.
- More births are to unmarried mothers than in the past.
- There are now fewer children and more elderly.
- Divorce rates have stabilized, but remain high.
*
Facts: U.S. Families Today
- Remarriage rates have declined, but remain high.
- Most children live in two parent households.
- Over the last five years the proportion of children living in singleparent families has stabilized.
*
Facts: U.S. Families Today
- There is considerable variation in children’s living arrangements.
- Children are more likely to live with a grandparent today than in the recent past.
- Most parents are working parents.
- Children are more likely than the general population or the elderly to be living in poverty.
*
New Definition of Family
- Any sexually expressive or parent–child or other kin relationship in which people related by ancestry, marriage, or adoption:
Form an economic unit and care for any young.
Consider their identity to be significantly attached to the group.
Commit to maintaining that group over time.
*
Marriages and Families:
Four Themes
Personal decisions must be made throughout the life course.
Decision making is a trade-off; once we choose an option, we discard alternatives.
No one can have everything.
The best way to make choices is knowledgeably.
*
Marriages and Families:
Four Themes
People are influenced by the society around them.
Cultural beliefs and values influence our attitudes and decisions.
Societal or structural conditions can limit or expand our options.
*
Marriages and Families:
Four Themes
We live in a changing society, characterized by increased ethnic, economic, and family diversity; by increased tension between familistic and individualistic values; by decreased marital and family permanence; and by increased political and policy attention to the needs of children.
- This situation can make personal decision making more difficult and more important.
*
Marriages and Families:
Four Themes
Personal decision making feeds into society and changes it.
- We affect our social environment every time we make a choice.
- Making family decisions can mean choosing to become politically involved in order to effect family-related social change.
- Making family choices according to our values gives our family lives greater integrity.
*
