Abstract The authors examine the many themes and conflicts that surround the discussion of the family today. They reveal how the definition of "family" that the social elites construct is very different from what reality actually is. They show how economic realities, violence within the home, and discrimination on all levels, affect families in all walks of life. The authors do an excellent job in demonstrating how the division between men's and women's tasks have significantly changed since capitalism has become embedded within the society.
Abstract This essay contains varied responses to issues that concern a sociological study of CanadianFamilies. Included in this paper is a summary of research conducted by the writer (telephone surveys), and summary explanations of general issues that relate to families in Canadian society, such as family income, poverty and single-parent families, effects of stress and family crisis, and at-risk youth.
Abstract This paper reviews the effect that economic change has had on the Canadianfamily structure as a unit. This paper also discusses the influence that the sexual revolution had on this issue which lead to more women starting to work outside of the family home.
From the Paper "Since the 1960s, a change has been occurring in the structure of the family in Canada. This change began with a rising divorce rate in conjunction with economic change when "increased work responsibility of women also tended to bring about changes in the structure of the family" (Vago, 1989, p. 132). Causative and contributing variables have operated in a complex interaction. An escalation in divorce rates, for example, had its origins in other changes such as the sexual revolution and the large-scale entry of women into the workforce."
Abstract Over the last 100 years or so, the idea of what makes up a familyunit has changed over the world. This paper studies the results of the important social changes which have occurred in the United States in the emergence of alternative familyunits. The paper shows that these social changes have affected the relationships between people in families, the communication between these people and the very structure of the families themselves. Two specific changes are discussed: (1) the arrangement of domestic partnerships wherein a man and woman reside together and may share in all of the duties and activities that would be common to a husband and wife, however they choose not to marry; and (2) the gay and lesbian families and how they have altered the societal perceptions of what the word 'family' actually means. While these two relationships do not affect everyone in society, they have changed what society thinks about families and marriage in many ways. Because of this, they are two of the most important societal changes that have come about in recent years and are worthy of discussion.
From the Paper "This change in the term 'family' sometimes helps to pave the way for changes such as domestic partnerships, but it also confuses some of the issues that are important to them because they are not seen as a traditional family unit, and many of the laws are written to protect the traditional 'mother, father, and children' family unit. The forms that a family can take are much broader than they used to be, and although many of them are challenged, more and more of them are beginning to be embraced by society."
An examination of the roles of families in Mesopotamia and Egypt, looking at how family structure determined and ordered everyday life and looking particularly at the role that women had in these different societies.
Abstract The writer explores these ancient civilizations and focuses on the familyunit. The paper shows that women enjoyed a degree of independence and authority within the family. It shows the fashion and artistic tastes of people in this time era as well as the role of women in religion and worship.
From the Paper "Because the classical civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia flourished so many years ago, we might assume that there are no important common links between their own culture and our own. However, while there are obviously vast differences between Sumer and Los Angeles, for example, there are also key similarities between those ancient cultures and our own. This is true in part because our own societies are the inheritors of the accomplishments of the peoples of the classical world, but it is also true because many of the functions performed by the most important institutions are still essential. Children must be raised and educated. Clothes must be made and laundered. The sick must be tended to and the aged helped along. Crops must be planted and reaped and the gods given praise. "
Abstract This paper explains that the condominium market is one aspect of the speculative real estate market that has contributed greatly to the bubble-like behavior of the recent housing boom. The author points out that the condominium component of the housing industry is particularly important to the mortgage loan industry and typifies the significant symbiosis that exists between the housing and the mortgage finance industry. The paper stresses that condominium developers may have a cost advantage in a significantly depressed market because single-familyunit developers are unable to account for land costs across a greater number of housing units as condominium developers are able to do. The paper includes graphs.
Table of Contents:
Overview
Economics of Supply and Demand
The Price Impact on Homes
The Mortgage Loan Industry
Effect on Housing Market
From the Paper "Among the artificial forces that affect supply and demand, the first may be a private enterprise's mandate to lower the number of vacant, month-to-month temporary units by a fixed percentage point in order to control demographic development. This is not a market force but an operating decision to increase revenue on existing units on the part of a given company specializing in housing products; either single units or condominiums. To accomplish this objective a company needs to artificially manipulate equilibrium within the market."
Abstract The paper provides a historical analysis of the evolution of gender roles and the economics of the Canadianfamily over time. The paper shows how this evolution was notably conservative in many respects in perpetuating the sexism and economic gender inequalities of the past.
The paper discusses how women still remain the primary source of domestic labor and male economic predominance continues within most households. The paper stresses that while the social direction points towards greater equity, we must not lose sight of the enduring economic injustices and burdens that women bear in both the domestic sphere and in the paid labor force.
From the Paper "The statement that in Canadian society men are no longer considered the "sole breadwinners" nor women only fit for "domesticity" is an assertion that, upon initial review, appears incontrovertible. After all, the rise of the dual-income family and the increasing prominence of women in the paid labour force is a widely recognized phenomenon in Canada as in most western countries."
"This being said, however, upon closer review it may be argued that the situation in terms of gender roles in the Canadian economy and labour force is not quite as clear as this statement would suggest. As this essay will argue, while men are no long the sole breadwinners, they do retain significant economic dominance in Canadian households as in the labour force as a whole."
Abstract This paper discusses the issue of families in relation to China and the United States. The paper further explores the issue of poverty and the struggle of the familyunit in both countries in relation to economic concerns. A discussion of families in rural and urban areas, as well as the manner in which families live in these locales is examined. The concept of social class is presented and discussed in relation to how social class impacts the familyunit and how societal beliefs exist that create barriers to altering the lives of the poor. Finally, the issue of culture is examined and the differences between China and America with regard to culture and living in the familyunit are explored.
From the Paper "The United States is considered a country that is the leading power in the world, while China continues to experience economic hardships and needed development. In both countries, however, the focus on the family is a concern because the family is believed to be integral to society. The Chinese families that exist in the modern world experience many of the same difficulties that are found by American families in rural and urban areas. This includes poverty, which is the number one social issue that impacts family units in both nations. Additionally, in both countries the issue of social class standing is apparent, with the poor often being outcast from the social order and forgotten. In China there has been a significant push to change the conditions for the poor, however, there are still those families that have been unaffected by governmental programs, which has been the case in the United States for decades. While these similarities exist between Chinese and American families, the greatest factor that separates their place in society is culture. The manner in which families conduct their lives because of social expectations and the beliefs related to gender differences and children impacts families in China differently than in America. However, it is clear that regardless of the cultural variances that affect families in these nations, within both cultures families are consistently attempting to survive and continue the progress of each generation in the hopes that eventually the family will know success."
Abstract This paper examines how the family is a basic unit of society and is usually regarded not only as indispensable but as the key element in socialization processes and in the perpetuation of societal values. It looks at how the family has been the basic unit of society from ancient times to the present and how although different cultures may view the family and certain kinship in a differing light, the basic familyunit is a near-universal social reality, with the nuclear family of parents and children a norm understood by virtually everyone. It evaluates the changing status of the family over the years and analyzes how the nuclear family seems to be disappearing in a world where divorce and unwed motherhood are occurring at high rates.
From the Paper "Many who feel family values are being lost are indeed making a value judgment on the new notion of the family. They see the traditional nuclear family as "the" family and any variation on that as a challenge to family values, thus excluding what Rubin would include--single-parent households, gay and lesbian households, couples without children, people who have children and live together without ever marrying, and members of divorced families, remarried families, blended families, and extended families (Rubin 19). Clearly, one reason people believe family values are disappearing is because they have a narrow definition of what constitutes a family and its values in the first place."
Abstract This paper examines the advantages and disadvantages of the way the core familyunit has changed over the years. It looks at how families in times past were strongly patriarchal, the result of an arranged marriage rather than a love match, how parents were often indifferent to their children, and how childhood was not viewed as any special part of life. In comparison, it explores how it is only in modern times that the nuclear family has developed into a nurturing and child-centered familyunit, even though today's families include remarkable changes. Today's families include single women who choose to be artificially inseminated, gay couples who adopt or use approaches such as artificial insemination or surrogate mothers to have children, and couples who marry later in life and have children despite being well into their forties.
From the Paper "Interestingly, after half a century of rising or stable but high rates of divorce, the Census bureau results that there have been modest increases in the number of nuclear families. In 1991, they reported 51% of the country's children as living with both parents; by 1996 that number had risen to 56% (Blankenhorn, 2002). Nevertheless, this means that 44% of all children live in some kind of non-nuclear, non-traditional family format. However, in considering these statistics, one has to look at how they were gathered. The Census Bureau defined a "traditional nuclear family" as consisting of two biological parents and their children, with no one else. So, if the grandparents lived with the family, they would no longer consider it ?nuclear.?
Abstract This paper discusses the importance and the set up of the familyunit in Pakistan. It discusses the role of the biradari within the family and looks at the way that marriages are arranged and celebrated. It then considers the importance of sons within the familyunit and describes the treatment of women in Pakistani families in the past and during the present times.
Table of Contents:
Abstract
The Role of Families in Pakistan
Marriage in Pakistan
Treatment of Women in Pakistan
From the Paper "The role of the family is important in Pakistan because it is the basic organization in Pakistan. Families often consist of grandparents, parents, siblings, and other relatives who all live in one house with the focus on the male kin or biradari (Pakistan Tradition Kinship 2006). The importance of the family life is seen in how the biradari celebrate different life events including births, deaths, and major holidays. The importance of the biradari cannot be understated because it offers poor family members loans and even provides a dowry for poorer families (Pakistan Traditional Kinship 2006). When parents cannot provide for the family, often the biradari steps in to help different parts of the family. In Pakistan, the elderly are respected and children are considered gifts from God (Family Life 2006). This is especially true of male children. Sons are considered important because they will provide for their mothers, while females are considered a liability and their innocence must be protected (Pakistan Traditional Kinship 2006). When studying the country of Pakistan, it is important to consider the role of marriage and its value to the people."
Abstract This paper discusses the importance of the familyunit and the influence that family has on a child's life. The paper discusses the writer's familyunit. It examines the boundaries, rules, rituals and traditions that apply to the writer's own family through his/her nuclear family and extended family relationships.
From the Paper "Family Assessment Project A child's family is perhaps the single most important influence on his or her life. Children model their future relationships on those they see in childhood. They frequently carry the boundaries, rules, rituals, and traditions that they grew up with into the families that they head in maturity. The things that children carry into maturity can be both positive and negative, continuing on the heritage of a functional or dysfunctional family. This paper will examine the boundaries, rules, rituals, and traditions that apply to my own family through nuclear family and extended family relationships. My family of origin consisted of my mother, my father, one brother and three sisters. We had a close-knit family structure. It was essentially a closed family type, with rigid rules and predictable behavior. We did share affection with each other, but none of us were demonstrative in our affection."
Abstract This essay will argue that the capacity of society to "normalize" exclusion, and ignore the realities of "difference", with respect to the construction of familyunits is reflected in, and reinforced by, state policies. Indeed, it may be argued that the state is the primary player in ensuring the continuing marginalization of "non-traditional" familyunits among gays and lesbians, Aboriginals, peoples of colour and single-parent families.
Abstract This paper will examine the intergenerational communication between parents and children as a sub-system of the larger system of the familyunit. It will be argued that this relationship cannot be understood in isolation from other relationships such as the child's interactions with her peers. In this analysis, it will be seen that only a holistic approach to the topic of communication within the family can hope to pull together the many stands of the family relationship(s).
Abstract This paper discusses how the statistics on divorce are alarming and overwhelming and the quality of the familyunit is deteriorating. Children are being raised in far less stable environments, and the expectation of long-lasting love is a thing of the past. It examines how several ideas have surfaced to help decrease the percentages of divorce and encourage families to remain married and how the establishment of government programs to enhance marriage skills could benefit young couples considering marriage. It looks at how eliminating the "no-fault" legislation could force couples to reconsider divorce and concludes that continuing research on the effects of divorce could help to educate people on the many ways divorce harms adults, children, and society as a whole.
Outline:
Predicting Divorce
Implications
Studies on Divorce
Theory
Conclusion
From the Paper "Many key factors can predict the success or failure of a marriage. Education is one of those key factors. Statistically, the more educated a couple is, the risk of divorce becomes reduced. Also, if an educated couple does divorce their likelihood of living in poverty is far less than those educated minimally. Other determinants for failed marriage include different values and financial inequality. When married couples begin to live with one another differences become more obvious than when only dating. Also, when couples come from different economic backgrounds, their likelihood of staying married is diminished. Accordingly, if a couple cohabitates or becomes pregnant before marriage, the risk of divorce is increased. (Martin 2006)"
