Family Life

The Social Construction of Family Life

Families differ significantly across time, societies, and cultures. These differences may exist, for example, in family relationships; forms of marriage; expectations about family roles, responsibilities, and duties; and how “family” is defined (culturally, legally, politically). Your task in this assignment is to compare the definition of family and the family relationships in your own society (or your own culture, or the present time) with that of another society (or another culture or another time), using one of the three core sociological perspectives.

In your assignment, please specifically identify the two societies, cultures, or times that you will be comparing in your essay, and then choose one of the following three options:

Option 1: Structural Functionalism

1. As part of your introductory paragraph, identify the two societies, cultures, or times that you will be comparing, as well as which theory you will be using.

2. Briefly describe how the “typical” family is defined in each of the two societies/cultures/times.

3. Identify one key function or role of the family in each of the two societies/cultures/times (i.e., a total of two functions/roles).

4. Explain how a functionalist theorist might explain the importance of these roles/functions for society.

5. As part of your conclusion, write a self-reflection on how your own family fulfills or does not fulfill the two functions/roles that you have identified.

Option 2: Conflict Theory

1. As part of your introductory paragraph, identify the two societies, cultures, or times that you will be comparing, as well as which theory you will be using.

2. Briefly describe how the “typical” family is defined in each of the two societies/cultures/times.

3. Identify a key problem (economic, social, political, and/or technological) that families face in each of the two societies/cultures/times (i.e., a total of two problems).

4. Explain how a conflict theorist might explain why these problems exist for families.

5. As part of your conclusion, write a self-reflection on how your family, or another family that you know, has confronted one or both of the problems that you have identified.

Option 3: Symbolic Interactionism

1. As part of your introductory paragraph, identify the two societies, cultures, or times that you will be comparing, as well as which theory you will be using.

2. Briefly describe how the “typical” family is defined in each of the two societies/cultures/times.

3. Identify at least one characteristic of parent-child relations and/or spousal relations in each of the two societies/cultures/times.

4. Explain how a symbolic interactionist might explain these characteristics of interactions within families.

5. As part of your conclusion, write a self-reflection on how your own family life matches or differs from the parent-child and/or spousal relations that you have identified.

Your assignment should include at least two Learning Resources from our course.  In addition, you may use other authoritative resources for information and insights. Be sure to use APA-style citations when relying on/quoting from your sources (including the Learning Resources) and include a Reference List at the end of your assignment.

 

Learning Resources

Amato, P. (2014). Why study families? Retrieved from

https://www.ncfr.org/ncfr-report/past-issues/summer-2014/what-family

Crash Course. (2017). Major sociological paradigms: Crash course sociology #2. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbTt_ySTjaY

Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia. (2018). Family (Sociology). Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/log

Crash Course. (2017). Theories about marriage & family: Crash course sociology #37. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaeiCEro0iU

Esher Sociology. (2017, August 10). Changing family patterns: Marriage and divorce [in Great Britain]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPoL4sYYDi4&list=PLMDNOsVq3VQY59Pr6TeaOLMuGIrgO2Jps&index=3

Asia Society. (2020). Indian society and ways of living: Organization of social life in India. Retrieved from https://asiasociety.org/education/indian-society-and-ways-living 

Asia Society. (2020). The value and meaning of the Korean family. Retrieved from https://asiasociety.org/education/value-and-meaning-korean-family

Geiger, A. W., & Livingston, G. (2019, Feb. 13). 8 facts about love and marriage in America. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019

New Yorker. (2019, June 27). Esther Perel explains why wedding vows evolved with society. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7oWM07jA0c

Real Families. (2018, Feb. 12). Parenting around the world. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmazdu2L64E&t=10s

Harmon, A. (2020). Marriage. Salem Press Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct