Family - AQA A-level Sociology

Introduction

• Overview of family topics for AQA A-level Sociology.
• Use of summaries and revision tools available for students.

Topic 1 - Couples

• Domestic Labour:
  • Different sociological opinions on the division of domestic labour.
• Decision Making:
  • Varied opinions on decision-making processes within couples.
• Domestic Violence:
  • Views on causes:
    • Patriarchy (Dobash and Dobash).
    • Stress from poverty (Wilkinson).

Topic 2 - Childhood

• Improvement in Children's Position:
  • Due to laws protecting children's rights.
• Toxic Childhood:
  • Resulting from rapid technological and cultural changes.

Topic 3 - Theories of the Family

• Functionalist Perspective:
  • Family provides functions beneficial to society and individuals.
• Marxist Perspective:
  • Family maintains class inequalities.
• Feminist Perspective:
  • Family as a source of women's oppression.

Topic 4 - Demography

• Improved Quality of Life:
  • Increased life expectancy, decreased birth and infant mortality rates.
• Dependency Culture:
  • Criticism that increased dependency is a societal burden.

Topic 5 - Changing Family Patterns

• Trends:
  • Increase in divorce, decrease in marriage.
• Reasons:
  • Secularisation, decline in stigma, changing women's positions, legal changes.

Topic 6 - Family Diversity

• Increased Diversity:
  • Shift from traditional nuclear family to reconstituted, lone-parent, and cohabiting families.
• Functionalists and New Right Perspective:
  • Nuclear family viewed as the only functional family type for society.

Topic 7 - Family and Social Policy

• Impact of Social Policy:
  • Examples include China's one-child policy and Nazi Germany.
• UK Perspective:
  • Some sociologists see policy as helpful; others view it as oppressive.

Conclusion

• Overview of key sociological perspectives and debates on family topics.
• Importance of understanding these debates for AQA A-level Sociology exams.