2. Marriage
Is defined in two ways:
First marriage: a marriage in which neither partner
has been married before
Re-marriage: a marriage in which one or both
partners have been married before.
Marriage: the formal union of a man and women
, recognized by the law by which they become
husband and wife.
3. Reasons for cohabitating
Changing attitudes: as society has become
more multi cultural , it has also become more
opinionated therefore people are more willing to
share their own ideologies and others also share
the same views sometimes.
Effective contraception: before contraception
used to be unavailable , but now it is available
all over. You can get hold of it easier because
the NHS takes care of people’s sexual health
and medication is usually free. There are also
different types so people have more of a choice
and can choose the ones they are comfortable
with.
4. Changes in parental control , education and
housing: the way children are brought up has
rapidly changed over time , now children are
brought up many different ways depending on
the parent and how they choose to raise them.
Due to the expansion of higher education it means
that a large number of young people are leaving
home for reasons other than marriage. This results in
them being able to make their own choices and
live a lifestyle of their choice. This could lead to
cohabitation.
5. What is divorce ?
Divorce
is the legal termination of
marriage.
6. Changing patterns in divorce
In the 19th century divorce was not easy to get.
Gradually since then , there has been changes in the
legal system. this is due to women having more rights.
Divorce now is legal and women are entitled as much
as men to have one.
There are 3 types of changes in the law:
Equalising the grounds , legal reasons for divorce
between the two sexes
Widening the ground for divorce
Making divorce cheaper
7. Changes in the position of
women
One reason for women's increased willingness to seek
divorce is that improvements in their economic
position have made them less financially dependent
on their husband and therefore freer to end an
unsatisfactory marriage.
Women today are more likely to be in paid work.
Although women earn less than men , equal pay and
anti discrimination laws have helped to narrow the
pay gap.
The availability of welfare benefits means that women
no longer have to remain financially dependent on
their husbands. These developments mean that
women are more likely to be able to support
themselves in the event of divorce.
8. Other solutions to divorce
Getting a divorce can cause issues to arise which
can then result in long term consequences for
example: a couple who have children go through
court procedures as to why they should be allowed
a divorce. They have two children. The decision of
who gets full time care of the children is discussed
and the father gets full custody. Situations such as
this can happen.
Another solution is desertion, which is when one
partner leaves the other but the couple still remain
by law married.
Legal separation is when a court separates the
financial and legal affairs of the couple , but they
still remain married. The catch is they are not able to
re - marry.
9. Empty shell is when the couple continue to live
under the same roof but again , they are married
only by name.
Because divorce is more available today , the
above solutions are rarely chosen.
10. Reasons for divorce
Singlehood: some people choose to live on their
own and prefer to. They make the choice to
focus on their career or feel that marriage is to
much of a commitment. Some also fail to find a
suitable partner.
in the past being single was seen as a negative
status but now society shares different views. The
singlehood can be seen as a positive thing
because it means stress of relationships or issues of
marriage do not occur.
11. Cohabitation: is when you are living with a
partner but you are not married. It involves
sharing a household.
From 1976 – 1998 more women under 50 were
cohabitating. Studies have shown that couples
tend to be younger and 40% of non married
women aged 25 – 29 chose to cohabitate.
In society today cohabitation is no longer
frowned upon , in fact it has become the norm
for many couples. Some couples see it as a
temporary status and tend to get married , while
others feel comfortable remaining as not
married.
Some are engaged and see it as a test run
before marriage.
12. The rise in divorce
The divorce rate has increased a lot over the
course of 50 years , statistics show that couples
who have been divorced before are more likely
to cohabit. The rise in divorce means that the
view of marriage as a union which is seen as a
scared union has now become mean less.
People see cohabiting as an alternative to
marriage without having the legal commitment
or binds.
In the western society's such as the uk there is
more of an increase in divorce.
13. Family diversity
Definition: Is a range of different family types that
live in society for example: lone parent families or
afro – Caribbean families.
There is more than one type of diversity and you
will find this out on the next couple of slides.
14. Cultural diversity
Definition: cultural diversity refers to differences in
family lifestyles between ethnic and religious
groups.
Ballard (1982) found that extended family
relationships were more common in minority
groups originating in south Asia from Pakistan
, Bangladesh and India. Majority of Pakistani and
Bangladeshi women said their duties required
looking after the household and family. The
traditional ‘cereal packet family’ is most
commonly found in these regions therefore
divorce is not common because of the strong
social disapproval and stress within the
community.
15. African – Caribbean families are often centred
around the mother , who is mainly the
breadwinner among the family. Lone parent
families are more common than any other ethnic
group , over half of afro – Caribbean families with
children are lone parents and there are also low
marriage rates.
This reflects a cultural tradition and a high rate of
male unemployment.
16. Class diversity
Definition: class diversity refers to differences
between middle class and working class families.
For example, extended families are still found in
traditional working class communities and the
nuclear family may be more common in middle
class families.
Differences in income will also lead to differences
in lifestyle.
17. Life cycle diversity
Definition: refers to the way families may change
through life.
For example: partners have children and the
children grow older and prepare to leave home.
Partners separate and form new relationships.
All of these factors mean that the family will be
constantly changing. E.g. levels of family income
will change as children move from dependence to
independence.
This means that there will always be a diversity of
family types at different stages of the family cycle.
