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Personal Life Perspective - Coggle Diagram
Personal Life Perspective
Social Action and Family Life
Social action theories (such as interactionism) focus on how
individuals shape society through their actions and interactions.
There are two ways in which interactionists criticise the
structuralist perspective of the family ...
Theories such as functionalism, Marxism, and feminism tend to assume that the traditional nuclear family is the dominant type of family. This ignores the increased diversity of families today.
They all assume that families and their members are simply passive puppets manipulated by the structure of society to perform certain functions. For example, Marxists argue the function of the family is to provide the economy with a labour orce, and to serve the needs of capitalism, and radical
feminists argue it is to serve the needs of men.
What Is It?
Personal Life Perspective focusses on the meanings and significance individuals attach to their family relationships, beyond traditional family structures.
People construct "family" based on emotional ties, not just blood relations or marriage (e.g., close friends, pets).
This challenges the traditional nuclear family,recognising that family connections can be complex and formed through personal choice.
This opposes Functionalist, Marxist, and Feminist views that see family as primarily serving the needs of society (social order, capitalism, patriarchy), instead highlighting the subjective experiences within family dynamics.
Carol Smart
Sociologists have focussed too much on the nuclear
family, ignoring other meaningful relationships.
Donor Conceived Children
Carol Smart researched couples who had used donors to conceive. She found that using a donor raised lots of questions about how to define family.
This example challenges traditional ideas of the family,by showing how family dynamics depend on individual choices and experiences, highlighting the importance of personal meaning in understanding family.
She argues that these children often construct their own family identities, based on emotional ties as well as biological ones.
Smart argues that these bonds are often stronger than the bonds we have with blood relatives, and therefore those "traditional" relationships are not necessarily more important
Evaluation
Strengths
Relevant for contemporary society
· Recognises increased family diversity
· Helps us to understand the different interpretations of family life.
Weaknesses
Too broad- should pets, friends etc really be
counted as family?
Diminishes the special bond marriage and blood
relation creates.
Functionalists and the NR Veiw
The nuclear family is the ideal family type-
maintains social order.
Family diversity has been detrimental for society
overall (e.g. lone parents).
Marxists and Feminists Veiw
Capitalism/patriarchy do largely influence and determine our behaviours- it defines family life. . Nuclear family is still dominant, and thus needs to needs to be analysed