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Understanding Family Diversity in Sociology

Apr 18, 2025

Sociology: Families and Households

Rappaport's Research on Family Diversity

Key Researchers

  • Ronda and Robert Rappaport: A husband and wife team conducting research in the 1980s.

Context of Research

  • Analyzed changes in family structures during the 1980s.
  • Noticed a shift from conventional families to more diverse forms.
  • Influenced by social changes in the 1960s and evolving social policies.

Five Types of Family Diversity Identified

  1. Organizational Diversity

    • Focus on structure and gender roles within families.
    • Employment status and marital status influence family organization.
    • Types of families: cohabiting couples, reconstituted families, foster families.
    • Roles are often supported by external networks (friends/relatives).

  2. Cultural Diversity

    • Impact of mass migration in the UK post-war period.
    • Ethnic backgrounds influence family structures.
    • Examples:
      • Asian families forming extended families.
      • Caribbean and African families forming supportive local communities.
    • Contrast with privatized nuclear families.

  3. Social Class Diversity

    • Differences between working, middle, and upper-class families.
    • Working-class women more involved in low-paid labor.
    • Middle-class women may have higher career aspirations.
    • Upper-class families often outsource domestic labor.

  4. Life Course Diversity

    • Family structure varies through life stages.
    • Events like divorce, education, and employment impact household types.
    • Examples:
      • Students in shared accommodations.
      • Empty-nest families.
      • Elderly facing isolation.

  5. Cohort Diversity

    • Intergenerational differences in family attitudes and structures.
    • Differences between boomers, Generation X, Millennials.
    • Attitudes towards marriage, parenting, and labor division evolve.

Impact and Criticism

  • Highlighted the growing diversity in family structures.
  • Supported by subsequent societal changes (remarriages, lone parent families, same-sex relationships).
  • Criticism: Subjective interpretations based on existing research.

Conclusion

  • Rappaport's study was influential in understanding family diversity.
  • Validates the ongoing evolution in personal and family life choices.

This overview of Rappaport's findings serves as a foundational understanding of the shift towards diverse family structures and the societal impacts noted in their research.

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