People are having fewer children and having them later in life.

A clear change in British family life is the decrease in the average number of children people have.

1. People are having fewer children. The average number of children per family was 2.4 in 1971 compared to 1.63 in 2001 (the lowest ever recorded).


2. Women are having children later. The average age of women at the birth of their first child was 24 in 1971 compared to 27 in 2001.


3. More people are not having children at all, 9% of women born in 1945 were childless at the age of 45 compared to 15% of women born in 1955.

Social changes have influenced these trends. Contraception is more readily available and women's roles are changing. Children are expensive and time consuming, and couples may choose to spend their time and money in other ways. The conflict beween wanting a successful working life and being a mum has made many women put off having kids until later.

The UK has one of the highest divorce rates in Europe

1. There's been a steady rise in the divorce rate in most modern industrial societies.


2. The divorce rate is defined as the number of people per 1000 of the population who are divorced. In 2000, Britain's divorce rate was 2.6 compared to the European average of 1.9.


3. Actual divorces in the UK rose from 25,000 in 1961 to 146,000 in 1997.


4. For every two marriages in Britain in 1991, there was one divorce.


5. The proportion of population who were divorced at any one time was 1% in 1971 and 9% in 2000.


6. The average length of a marriage before it ends in divorce has remained about the same - 12 years in 1963, 11 years in 2000.


7. Although the divorce rare is increasing, divorced people are marrying again. In 2001, 40% of all marriages were re marriages.

There are several social, cultural and political factors.

1. Divorce has become easier to obtain.


2. Divorce is more socially acceptable.


3. Women may have higher expectations of marriage, and better employment opportunities may make them less financially dependent on theor husbands.


4. Marriages are increasingly focused on individual emotional fulfilment.


5. The New right believe that marriage is less supported by the state these days.

Just because divorce rates were lower in the past in doesn't mean they were happier. A marriage can break down but the couple stil stays married and living together. This is called empty shell marriage.

Fewer people marry and more people live together instead.

In 2001 the lowest number of marriages took place in the UK since records began.

An increase in the number of adults living with a partner (cohabiting). In 2001-2 quater of all non married adults aged 16-59 were cohabiting.

Social trends statistics show that living with a partner doesn't mean you won't get married- it's often just a delay tying the knot. A third of people who cohabited with a partner went on to marry them.

The majority of people in the UK do marry but the proportion who are married at any one time has fallen.

Reasons why these trends have developed are that men tend to die before women. Elderly widows make up a lot of single person households. There are more old people these days, so this helps explain why there are so many single person households. New right theorists believe that the decline in marriage means a decline in traditional family values. However, evidence suggests cohabiting families actually have similar norms and values to married ones. Postmodern theorists say the role of intimate relationships has changed - the emphasis is less on having kids and more on self-expression and emotional fulfilment. Giddens (1992) says that people are getting more likely to have a series of cohabitations rather than a lifelong marriage, this is known as serial monogomy.

Class, Ethnicity and sexuality

Eversley and Bonnerjea (1982) found middle class areas in the UK have higher than average proportion of nuclear families. Inner city working class areas are more likely to have a higher proportion of lone parent households.

Lesbian and gay families have been hidden from the statistics. The official definition of a couple has only included same sex copules since 1998.

The study of ethnic minorities by Modood et al (1997) found that whites and afro- carribeans were most likely to be divorced. Indians, Pakistanis, Banglaedeshis and African Asians were most likely to be married. Carribean households were most likely to be single parent families.

South Asian families are traditionally extended families, but there are more nuclear family households than in the past. Extended kinship links stay strong and often reach back to India, Pakistani or Bangladesh.

Theres diversity within each ethnic group though.

Social trends indicate more variety of families and households

There's now no such thing as 'the British family' as there are several family structures that exist.
In 2002 there were 24.4 million households in the UK which had gone up sice 1971. The average size of household is getting smaller and the number of households made up of 5 or more has fallen from 14% in 1971 to 7% in 2002. The percentage of households which are nuclear famillies has fallen from 33% in the 1971 to 25% in 2002. Two of the biggest increases have been in single person households and lone parent family households. This explains why the average size of households has got smaller. There has also been an increase in the proportion of families which are reconstituted (also known as step families). There are more step families now that there is more divorce. In 2001-2, 8% of all households were reconstituted families.

There's been an increase in the diversity of families in the UK. There are more different kinds of family. Nuclear families are still the most common type of family, even though the proportion of nuclear families is going down. In 2002, 78% of children lived in nuclear families.

Diversity of the family

Marriage rates are falling in the UK. They differ in relation to ethnicity and class is the UK. The likely hood is that most of us will marry at some stage in our lifestyle.
Cohabitation has become increasingly common in England and Wales. Also having children outside of a marriage has become increasingly common in England and Wales. The UK has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in Europe: however, it is still far lower than in the USA. There has also been a long term trend for increasing divorce rates in England and Wales, although this trend seems to be less certain than before, with recent figures displaying a falling divorce rate. Reasons suggest for this trend include the high value placed on marriage, conflict between spouses in the privatized nuclear family, attitudes and legislation.

Pink - Family portrait

Momma please stop cryin, I can't stand the sound Your pain is painful and its tearin' me down I hear glasses breakin as I sit up in my bed I told dad you didn't mean those nasty things you said

You fight about money, bout me and my brother And this I come home to, this is my shelter It ain't easy growin up in World War III Never knowin what love could be, you'll see I don't want love to destroy me like it has done my family

Can we work it out? Can we be a family? I promise I'll be better, Mommy I'll do anything Can we work it out? Can we be a family? I promise I'll be better, Daddy please don't leave

Daddy please stop yellin, I can't stand the sound

Make mama stop cryin, cuz I need you around My mama she loves you, no matter what she says its true I know that she hurts you, but remember I love you, too

I ran away today, ran from the noise, ran away Don't wanna go back to that place, but don't have no choice, no way It ain't easy growin up in World War III Never knowin what love could be, well I've seen I don't want love to destroy me like it did my family

Can we work it out? Can we be a family? I promise I'll be better, Mommy I'll do anything Can we work it out? Can we be a family? I promise I'll be better, Daddy please don't leave

In our family portrait, we look pretty happy Let's play pretend, let's act like it comes naturally I don't wanna have to split the holidays I don't want two addresses I don't want a step-brother anyways And I don't want my mom to have to change her last name

In our family portrait we look pretty happy We look pretty normal, let's go back to that In our family portrait we look pretty happy Let's play pretend, act like it goes naturally

In our family portrait we look pretty happy (Can we work it out? Can we be a family?) We look pretty normal, let's go back to that (I promise I'll be better, Mommy I'll do anything) In our family portrait we look pretty happy (Can we work it out? Can we be a family?) Let's play pretend act and like it comes so naturally (I promise I'll be better, Daddy please don't leave)
In our family portrait we look pretty happy (Can we work it out? Can we be a family?) We look pretty normal, let's go back to that (I promise I'll be better, Daddy please don'tleave)

Daddy don't leave Daddy don't leave Daddy don't leave Turn around please Remember that the night you left you took my shining star? Daddy don't leave Daddy don't leave Daddy don't leave Don't leave us here alone

Mom will be nicer I'll be so much better, I'll tell my brother Oh, I won't spill the milk at dinner I'll be so much better, I'll do everything right I'll be your little girl forever I'll go to sleep at night

Marxist views on social policy

Karl Marx suggested that there is an inequality between capitalists and the working class.
Marxists focus on the inequalities that exist in society between the bourgeoisieor capitalists (owners of factories and businesses) and the proletariat or working class (everyone else).
The relationship between these two groups is not equal as the working class are forced to sell their labour to the capitalists in return for money. The capitalists make a profit as they pay the workers less than the value of what they produce. For some Marxists social policies such as free education, health care, and welfare state are the result of class struggle. For other Marxists social policies are just 'smokescreens' to make life appear better.

Feminist views on social policy

Feminists support benefits for single parents because most single parents are women. They argue that most women do not want to be single parents but may have been left abusive or empty shell marriages and should be supported by the state. The feminists argue that if benefits for single parents are ruduced then the children will suffer. Feminists are also in favour of divorce laws because they enable women to free themselves from patriarchal control, and would welcome the recent civil partnership law which enables gay couples to gain similar legal rights to hetrosexuals.

Femenists also argue that many social policies are sexist and stereotypical. One example is maternity leave which although on one level is far more generous for women than paternity leave is for men. This includes the assumption that women will want to stay at home and look after their child whilst men will want to go back to work. Child benefit is also normally paid to the women, which assumes they are the primary carer.

New right views on social policy

New right takes a negative view on many social policies as they see them as undermining the traditional nuclear family. The are particularly critical of welfare benefits that are given to single parent families because they believe that it is encouraging young women to get pregnant because they know the state will look after them and their child. They think that single parent families should be discouraged and the nuclear family encouraged. One way to this is to reduce or eliminate the benefits given to single parents whilst making the nuclear family and marriage more financially attractive. They are critical of divorce and think that it is a quick way out instead of fighting for their marriage.

Social policies in other countries

All countries have different laws that affect the family. The laws are always changing to fit in with different circumstances and ambitions of the leaders of the countries. Some will be seen as sensible and worthwhile whilst others will be seen as indefensible.
For example in the 1930's in Nazi Germany the government decided that only the 'racially pure' should be able to have children. Many of those who were not seen as fit to breed, such as the mentally and physically handicapped, were compulsorily sterilised. Also in Romania in the 1980's the government tried to increase the birth rate by restricting contraception and abortion. They also made marriage more financially attractive and restricted divorce. In China they have a one child policy and couples that comply get higher tax allowances and other benefits.

(Information taken from book)

Social policies in the UK and around the world

Social policy refers to laws made by the government. Policies that affect the family include laws made about marriage, divorce, children, welfare, domestic violence and child abuse. They may also influence the structure and roles within the family.
Social policies that affect marriage in the UK include being able to marry only one person at a time and only someone of the opposite sex, although civil partnerships now exist. Social policies also affect divorce these include whether or not divorce is legal, the length you have to stay married before a divorce is possible and who gains custody of any children.
Policies that affect children include children having to go to school between the ages of 5 and 16, not being able to work part time until they are 13 and full time when they are 16. There is also a whole range of laws to do with smoking, drinking, sexual behaviour and even going to the cinema. Social policies affect many different things in the UK and around the world it also affects welfare which include child benefit that all primary carers of children recieve, benefits available to single parents and unemployment, housing benefits and pensions.
Social policies also affect domestic violence and child abuse which protect all members of the family against violence, and give the police and courts the power to intervene within the family and remove violent members and place children into care.

Families

Household: This is a group of people who share a living space together who are not necessarily tied by blood or kin.

Nuclear: Aka the 'cereal package' family is seen to be a socially accepted morm. This will consist of a mother a father and children all living together.

Extended: A family consisting of parents, children living with aunts, uncles and even grandparents.

Re- constituted: This is step families. This is when parents re-marry another partner and the child are brought into the new family.

Lone: Families in which there is just one parent either the mother or father living at home looking after the children.

The family in contempory society

The Family

The family is like a small version or 'microcosm of society' and it is here that we first learn the values and the norms of the culture we are part of through socialisation and it is how we are integrated on the whole.