Changes in family life since the 1970s Essay

Outline round of the major changes that capture taken place in family vitality since the 1970s and discuss the concerns arising from these changes.In the medieval many families were similar, as traditional atomic families were the excepted average of society. Since the 1970s a amount of major changes confound taken place in family life. The traditional nuclear family is no longer seen as the norm as many otherwise types of specialist families puddle genuine to best suit the contains of the pack within them. Family life is very complex and in new-fangled years sociologists start out sort to find new ways to understand it. How incessantly with these changes there check excessively been a egress of concerns, which may suggest that not all changes have improved family life. unitary way in which the family unit has changed since the 1970s is the change in marriage rates. While marriage in the UK is still the majority among families, there has been a decline in the number of marriages, the age in which great deal argon choosing to marry and the duration of marriages. In 1971 1% of all marriages in the UK ended after ii years. In 1996 this figure improverd to 9%. (Mark Kirby, 2000, p. 58). This suggests that marriage less eventful than it once was. There ar a number for reasons as to why there is a change in marriage. It is argued that because wo manpower directly have to a greater extent freedom of choice than they did in the chivalric, they may be choosing simply not to marry. Others suggest that women are instantaneously choosing to put off marriage till a later date so that they fecal matter focus on their careers and education.Another reason for the change in marriage could be overdue to the undermining of the need to marry, now that it has shape socially acceptable to cohabit or be single, many people lease not to marry. As easily as this women are no longer dependant on men to be a bread winner and provide for them. Lorraine Hard ing (1996) argues that the main decline in marriage occurred or so the 1970s due to greater levels of unemployment. Strain may have been put on the breadwinner to support the family make the break checkmate of the marriage. On this basis it could be argued that it is not the decline of the conventional family since 1970 that should need explaining, exclusively quite a its unusual touristedity between 1945 and 1970. (Mark Kirby, 2000, pp. 69-70)Another major change that has taken place in family life since the 1970s is the increase in the number of divorces. In 1970 80,000 couples got divorced in the UK, that figure has rise to 125,000 in 2003. (Scott, 2007, p. 466) It is argued that this increase is due to the 1969 disarticulate Reform Act which made getting a divorce lots easier. Women had more chance to work and therefor they were less dependent on men. State benefits gave women greater chance of expiration a marriage. (Scott, 2007, pp. 467-469). However with divorce there are a number of concerns that shadower arise in family life. It is conceptualised that divorce is the main contributor to l champion upraise families who are considered to be at higher lay on the line of poverty.This is considered an unhealthy environment to bring up boorren as they may feel unsettled. Children may lose refer with the other advert and gain step parents. This in extension service potty set up socialisation, education and their family life in the future. Some sociologists in any case argue that nestlingren whose parents have had a divorce are more believably to get a divorce when they are older. Giddens found that two-fifths of all marriages in the UK now end in divorce. The number of marriages has fallen while the number of divorces has risen. (Giddens, 2009, pp. 350-351)Cohabitation has increased sharply in re cent years. It is seen as a prelude to marriage or an alternative and in some cases it replace marriage al unneurotic. In 1986 11 per cent of no n-married men under the age of 60 were in cohabiting kinds, but by 2004 this figure had risen to 24 per cent. The comparable figures for women were 13 per cent in 1986 and 25 per cent in 2004 (Social Trends, 2006) This goes to show that cohabitation is mavin alternative to the traditional nuclear family that people are choosing to take. In the UK today 73 per cent of women submit they live with a man before they are married. However with cohabitation there have been a number of concerns suggested by sociologists. Some sociologists argue that because there is less commitment within a cohabiting family hence they are less stable and more probably to break down. This could lead to poverty for the women and children involved. As well as this a cohabiting couple are more likely to seek state benefits and put a strain on the economy.Antony Giddens argues the idea of a pure relationship. He believes thatcouples in Modern society tell apart now not to marry for have sex and intimacy but to cohabit and have a relationship that best suits them. He believes that in the past couples were bound by the contract of love and it would practically be difficult to get and divorce and end a relationship. Giddens argues that divorce is increasing due to people having much more choice in their lives. If a relationship no longer continues to suit the interests of the people within it then it is easy to simply leave. Giddens says What holds the pure relationship together is the acceptance on the part of for each one quisling, until further notice, that each gains a significant benefit from the relationship to make its continuance worthwhile. (Holborn, 2004)The love within the relationship is governed by the amount of venerability the other is prepared to show. Giddens also saw that in the past families would have been headed by a single male breadwinner who provided for the whole family while the wife stayed at home. This has now changed and men and women have become more equal within contemporary society. This therefor suggests that men and women have also become equal within relationships. Pure relationships are quickly becoming more popular as our self-centred society develops. Within contemporary society we have more choice this has now adapted the way we look at traditional till-death-us-do-part marriages and traditional nuclear families. (Elliott, 2008)Living apart together is a term that is used for a family where one of the partners may live away for work or simply to maintain their independence. This follows on from the idea of a pure relationship as it is more causal for the people involved and it meets everyone needs. A problem that may arise from LAT families is that it could be disruptive for children as they would not have a single home. It also shows a lack of commitment from the couple to remind in together and get married. Although LAT families are becoming increasingly commonplace, they may still often be not seen as the best way to live as a family.Lone parents families are becoming increasing common within the UK today. There have been significant increases in lone parent families since the 1970s. This could be due to higher rates of divorce and cohabitation break down. Lone parents also have a reduced likelihood for marriage in the futurewith lone parent on the job(p) class men having the lowest chance to marry. In 2004 73 per cent of lone mothers and 50 per cent lone fathers had dependent children. (Giddens, 2009, p. 355) This composes a concern with lone parents as it is believed that lone parents are more likely to be in poverty and dependant on state benefits.It is argued that the child from a lone parent household is less likely to do well in education and is more likely to become a lone parent in the future. With less sentence to get an education it is also common for a lone parent to have low or no qualifications and poor pay. Lone parents can get caught in a poverty trap as they do not have the time to earn good money and improve their education. Some lone parents may wait until their children have adult up, and go into higher education at a later date.With the increasing number of divorces and remarriages there has also be an increase in reconstituted families. Reconstituted families often bring two families together that have divorced parents. These types of family can generate some concerns as in many cases it is difficult for the children of the family to accept new relationships. In extension to this within reconstituted families there is a higher rate of child abuse. This could be due to the sometimes overpower environment of two families living together. They are also more likely to face economic hardship. Divorce rates in reconstituted families are higher than that of first marriages.Same sex partnerships have received a lot of media attention in recent years. This is due to the very idea of sexuality being a topic of interest within society. It is only since De cember 2005 that gay and lesbian couples could get a accomplished partnership. If they wish to have children then they have to drive from adoption, artificial insemination, fostering or if they had a child from a past heterosexual relationship. This can be good for the child as they may choose to counteract patriarchy.However on the other hand there are many aspects of a homogeneous sex partnership that could raise some concerns. For example the very nature of such a relationship challenges strongly held values and norms within society. This could therefor create conflict with other members of society. If there is a child involved this may not be the best environment to bring them up. In 2009 Elton John and his partner DavidFurnish were looking to adopt a child from the Ukraine. They faced problems when EveryChild, an international childrens charity, said_it was concern by the singers announcement that he and partner David Furnish wanted to adopt a 14-month-old boy called Lev. T he organization said that while it praised Johns help in raising cognizance about children affected by HIV in Ukraine, it said the answer did not lie in international adoption, arguing that more children might be left in childrens homes as a result of another celebrity adoption._ (Press Association, 2009)As well as this many people believe that it is inappropriate to bring a child up with same sex parents. It is believed that this exit have an force-out on their sexuality without giving them a fair choice. With society becoming more multicultural some people from other religions may condemn the idea of same sex couples. This could leave them marginalised on the leap of society. In some extreme cases there have been Honour Killings from some families in order to defend their image.With an increase in same sex couples there has also been more of a demand for fertility and reproductive technology. These men and women are looking to artificial insemination to help them to have a c hild. On the other hand however heterosexual men and women, may also require such technology if they have a problem with conception. This has helped women whom have put off parenthood in order to focus on their careers and education. As women get older their fertility rate falls, 1 in 5 women will pass water the end of their fertile life childless. This new technology can help families to have children whereas in the past they may not have been able. There has also been an increase in jr. women becoming transposition mothers for older women who can no longer have children.Another technology that has had a large effect on family life is contraception. In the past, families often had many more children than in contemporary society. This was so their children could go to work and provide for the family, but also because they didnt have the technology. Contraception has become increasing important over recent years with youthculture of today Drugs, Sex, Rock and Roll. In parentage to this idea, there has been an increase in teen parents over recent years, suggesting that more could be done to reveal such families.Other generations within the family are increasingly having a greater influence. In the past due to poor healthcare many children would never have met their grandparents as they would have died at a younger age. In modern society grandparents and great grandparents are now increasingly part of the family. This can create tensions between caring for the older members of the family and the younger ones. It can also have a structural military issue as the older generations of the family may become a burden if there is a break down in the relationship or a divorce.In conclusion there are a number of changes that have taken place in the family since the 1970s. Not all of these changes have had positive effects. There have also been a number of negatives. With such a large change within society concerns will arise, it is how these concerns are dealt with t hat will determine the future of the family unit. There are some sociologists that believe that the family is still clean as strong as it has always been even with the loss of traditional families._Family living also offers an opportunity for intimacy, a word with Latin roots meaning share-out fears. That is, as a result of sharing a wide range of activities over a long period of time, members of families forge emotional bonds. Of course, the event that parents act as authority figures often inhabits their communication with young children. But as young people reach adulthood, kinship ties typically open up as family members recognise that they share concern for one anothers welfare_ (Plummer, 2002, p. 441)This suggests that it does not matter what shape or size a family is, but if it teaches the people within it to become good adults and care for others then it will have fulfilled its purpose. With the ever changing and diverse nature of the society in which we live families have simply become more specialised, and the people within them are no longer bound by what issocially acceptable.