AQA A-Level Sociology Family and Households Revision in 90 Minutes

Main ideas & concepts covered (AQA A-level Sociology: Family & Households)

1) Exam focus and structure (Paper 2, optional topic)

• “Family and Households” is an optional topic for AQA Paper 2.
• It contributes 40 marks total:
  • two 10-mark questions
  • one 20-mark question
• It is worth half of Paper 2; the other half is the student’s chosen option (e.g., Media or Beliefs).

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2) Sociological perspectives & theories on the family

Functionalism (e.g., Murdoch, Parsons)

Murdoch: what is a family?

Murdoch describes a family as a social group with:

• common residence
• economic cooperation
• reproduction
• adults of both sexes with at least two maintaining a socially approved sexual relationship
• one or more children (biological or adopted)

Nuclear family claim

• Murdoch studied around 250 societies.
• He argued the nuclear family is universal.
• The nuclear family involves two generations: a man, a woman, and their own/adopted children.

Four nuclear family functions (SEA)

• S = Sex: satisfaction of the human sex drive
• E = Education: transmission of norms and values
• E = Economic: meeting economic needs of the family
• R = Reproduction: producing the next generation

Critiques of functionalist views

• Different aspects of SEA can be supported outside the traditional family, for example:
  • Reproduction: NHS/IVF
  • Finances: welfare state (e.g., child benefit)
  • Education: early years interventions (e.g., Sure Start)
• “Dark side of the family” (negative experiences), including:
  • domestic abuse statistics (e.g., “one quarter of women”)
  • “approximately a woman murdered every 2.5 days” by a partner/ex-partner
  • examples listed: sexual assault, physical assault, emotional manipulation, coercive control, financial abuse
• The argument that nuclear family is not a “one-size-fits-all” model:
  • extended families, single-parent families, etc. can also function effectively.

Parsons: family roles & stability

• Family functions change to fit society’s needs (functional fit theory).
  • Agricultural era: extended multi-generational families support themselves internally.
  • Industrial era: urbanisation increases nuclear families (grandparents left behind due to limited mobility).
• Two additional functions:
  • primary socialization (how children learn society’s norms)
  • stabilization of adult personalities (emotional support for adults)
• Warm bath theory: family life “refreshes” a man after work stress.

Instrumental vs expressive roles

• Roles are presented as gendered:
  • husband = instrumental (breadwinner, discipline, DIY, finance)
  • wife = expressive (nurturing, caring for children, housework)

Critiques of Parsons

• Corporal punishment/physical discipline can harm children.
• Legislation increased women’s employment, including:
  • Equal Pay Act 1970
  • Sex Discrimination Act 1975
• Men can perform expressive childcare roles; women can discipline children too.
• Modern household tools/aids reduce the importance of “physical strength” arguments.

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New Right

Who they are

Politicians/sociologists/researchers who support:

• the nuclear family
• traditional values
• conventional gender roles (men breadwinner; women childcare/household)

Claims

• Nuclear family breakdown harms socialization.
• Single-parent families allegedly lack strong male role models → delinquency/antisocial behaviour.
• Emphasis on:
  • individual responsibility
  • opposition to state welfare
  • concerns about welfare dependency and the “underclass” (e.g., Charles Murray)

Moral panic framing

• Quote attributed to “Patricia Morgan”: single parent families breed delinquents.
• The video argues the “problem” is scapegoating single mothers via:
  • moral panics
  • folk devils

Counterpoints/statistics used

• Only ~1% of UK single parents are teenagers (to challenge “teen single mothers cause collapse” narratives).
• Average age of single parent given as ~39.
• Claims that many single mothers work.
• Single-parent headed families described as common (e.g., “one quarter of families”).
• Children can be happy in single-parent families; toxic relationships may be left.

Media representation

• Media often portrays single parents as argumentative/dysfunctional/chaotic/stressful.
• The video argues this ignores that many single-parent families escape toxic relationships.

Familial ideology & “serial packet” families

• Advertising promotes nuclear family norms (described via cereal-box style imagery).
• Example: Fairy Liquid advert—emphasising gendered roles (and controversy).
• Children are socialised into gender norms through advertising.

Critiques of the New Right

• Morgan’s claim questioned:
  • over 50% of UK prisoners reportedly having been through the care system (used to argue broader causes).
• Redefining marriage (e.g., same-sex couples) challenges assumptions that marriage is essential for gender socialisation.
• “The two Michaels” are mentioned as male political figures arguing for two-parent families (names partially garbled), with critiques:
  • they speak for single mothers without personal experience
  • accused of bias due to privilege (middle-class white males)
• “Dark-side” critique: those trapped in toxic households can be excluded from idealised narratives.

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Feminism

Core claims

• Family life benefits men more than women.
• The family is central to gendered socialization and supports patriarchal interests.

How gender socialization happens

• Canalization: steering children into gender-appropriate behaviours/interests:
  • girls: dolls/kitchens
  • boys: cars/building blocks
• Verbal appellation: language reinforcing gender norms:
  • e.g., “boys will be boys” used to excuse destructive behaviour

Unequal capital and opportunities

Women gain less social/economic/cultural capital because:

• smaller social circles due to expressive (care) responsibilities
• men’s “golf club culture”/work/pubs framed as career-advantage networks
• women more likely in part-time work; historically less inheritance access
• marginalised women may lack knowledge of welfare/education systems

The “triple shift”

• Women do more mundane repetitive housework.
• Women are responsible for emotional well-being (emotion/relationship maintenance).
• The triple shift is linked explicitly to later division of labour.

Power in decision-making

• Men have greater control over some resources:
  • cars, holidays, pets, phones, pocket money

Recognition bias

• Men doing expressive roles may receive praise as unusual (“incredible father”).
• Women doing the same is more expected.

Abuse/exploitation

• Police calls and reporting percentages are referenced to argue that abuse/exploitation is serious within family life.

Marxist feminist contribution

• Fran Ansley (quoted): women “takers” absorb male frustration from lack of power/status at work; men’s control returns at home (linked to “warm-bath” critique).

Types of feminists (4)

1. Liberal feminists

   • focus on sex discrimination and equal rights
   • use legislation/social policy (e.g., 1967 abortion act, 1970 Equal Pay Act, 1975 Sex Discrimination Act)
   • argue progress is gradual (“mark of progress”)
   • critique: may deal with symptoms; rights can be reversed

2. Marxist feminists

   • main cause of women’s oppression is capitalism
   • women support capitalism via labour force/reserve labour
   • critique: may overfocus on capitalism and underplay patriarchal dynamics/differences in family experiences

3. Radical feminists

   • society is founded on patriarchy; men are the enemy
   • family/marriage are key patriarchal institutions
   • argue for separatism and “political lesbianism”
   • critique: may not recognise improvements and individual preferences (women choosing heterosexual relationships)

4. Difference feminists

   • reject treating “women” as one uniform group
   • differences by class/sexuality/ethnicity mean women experience the family differently
   • critique: subcategories might divide women rather than confronting patriarchy

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Marxism

Core claims

• The family maintains capitalist ideology (linked to the idea of the ideological state apparatus).
• Women are treated as commodities controlled within capitalist family structures (men as “property-owners” analogy).
• Marriage/inheritance rules help ruling classes stay wealthy (inheritance described via primogeniture).

Commodity & household labor

• A “commodity” is described as market/exchange value.
• Domestic labour and sex work are framed as paid/valuable services within systems, tying to burdens like the dual burden/triple shift.

Zaretsky’s ideas (as presented)

Family supports capitalism by:

• reproducing the labour force
• acting as a unit of consumption
• providing outlets that cushion class pressures and reduce working-class unity against capitalism

Example: supermarkets enable “pester power” through layout and positioning of sweets/toys.

State involvement through welfare/benefits

• The state ensures families consume (e.g., child benefit, tax credits, maternity pay).
• Critique: nuclear family dominance is no longer as high; class-only focus may overlook gender inequality and patriarchy.

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Post-structuralism & surveillance (Dune / Foucault-like ideas)

• Families are controlled/monitored by the state through:
  • health visitors soon after birth (e.g., weight checks, feeding routines—often critiqued)
  • schools/professionals (attendance officers monitoring attendance; meetings/home visits)
• Surveillance: observing behaviour to shape it.
• Critique: agents are framed as beneficial (support/prevention), not purely oppressive.

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Postmodernism: personal choice & meanings

Core claims

• Reject structural determinism.
• Focus on meanings people give to family relationships.
• Individuals have agency to create relationships.
• Increasing “pick and mix” family formation.

Example

• A woman choosing single motherhood via divorce is framed as agency/escape from a toxic household.

Critique (from the New Right)

• New Right would view single-parent choices negatively and claim only nuclear families produce full happiness.

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3) Personal life perspective (beyond “traditional family”)

• Considers intimate relationships beyond blood/marriage:
  • friends, fictive kin, relationships with dead relatives, pets
  • chosen gay/lesbian couples
• Strength claimed:
  • highlights diverse meaningful relationships even if nontraditional
• Donor-conceived children (Smart mentioned):
  • meanings of kinship can be constructed socially rather than purely genetic

Evaluation (personal life / postmodernism)

• Strength: shows how families are constructed and negotiated.
• Weakness: may be too broad to identify social “facts/laws” and may underplay structural factors (poverty, gender/class/ethnicity).

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4) Division of labour (gender roles in the home)

Types of roles (B. described as “condal” roles)

• Separated roles
  • men/women have separate expressive vs instrumental roles
  • leisure is separate
• Joint conjugal roles
  • couples share domestic tasks and spend more leisure time together

Empirical findings mentioned

• Wilmont and Young
  • roles segregated: men primary wage earners/decision makers; women rely more on husband income
  • men spend leisure with other men
  • women limited decision-making; domestic violence mentioned
• Follow-up (“march of progress,” 1970s):
  • shift toward joint roles → “symmetrical family”
  • reasons for change:
    • mass building of council houses reduced extended family support
    • increased women’s employment (more instrumental role)
    • “white goods” reduced domestic workload
    • contraception (1967) reduced unwanted pregnancy shifting burden

Anna Oakley critique

• Men’s participation claimed to be overstated.
• Women report dissatisfaction and social isolation.
• “More egalitarian than what they do” claim.

Supporting statistics used to challenge “symmetry”

• Craig (2007): women do 50–66% more domestic work.
• Momset (2014): women are “soul organizers” of emotion work (linked to triple shift).
• BBC/other study (2014): young women argue regularly over housework; standard worsens when men do it.
• Diman Thompson (2013): only about 1/10 of men do more housework than women.
• Conclusion claimed: “modern man is a myth” (men not as equal as claimed).

Nuanced claim about men doing more childcare

• Men’s childcare and emergency time off described as increasing since the 1970s.
• Interpretation: men help, but often with “more enjoyable” tasks; women still do more practical chores.

Power within the household

• Edgell (decision-making/power):
  • husbands decide major loans or have veto power; wives decide smaller daily matters
  • key decisions (job move, house change) tend to be joint or influenced by husbands
• Follow-ups suggest little difference today; men justify using instrumental roles.

Emotion work (John Marson mentioned)

• Domestic roles ignore emotion work, which sustains the family.
• Women do emotion work without gratitude; men get recognition for atypical caregiving.
• Reported outcomes:
  • women more unhappy; more likely to want divorce
  • men benefit from marriage more

Gender scripts (Dun, “Duhn” as stated)

• Traditional heterosexual gender scripts: patriarchal norms embedded.
• Study of cohabiting lesbian couples suggests more symmetrical childcare sharing.
• “Capitalism” explanation proposed:
  • people rationally choose fewer domestic chores for the higher earner.

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5) Marriage and divorce

Patterns and explanations (legislation + social change)

Legislative milestones linked to changing patterns include:

• Legal Aid and Advice Act (1949)
• Divorce Reform Act (1969)
• Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act (1985)
• Family Law Act (1996)

Reasons for changing marriage/divorce

• Higher expectations and individualization:
  • people wait longer to find a suitable partner
• Secularization:
  • fewer religious reasons to marry
• Divorce rate increase creates “fatalistic” attitudes:
  • “one in two marriages end in divorce” stated
• Less stigma around cohabitation and divorce:
  • “divancy drives change” (acceptance increases through practice)
• More women not wanting housewife role:
  • less financial dependency on men
  • feminists: marriage as patriarchal
• Demographic shifts:
  • more single-person and lone-parent households
  • cohabitation doubled from 1996 to 2012 to 2.9 million couples

Theoretical perspectives on marriage (quick comparisons)

• New Right / Functionalism
  • two-parent married nuclear family best for:
    • rounded socialization
    • discipline
    • financial support and reduced state reliance
    • harmony and stress stabilisation (warm-bath type idea)
• Marxists
  • nuclear family supports inheritance/private property and capitalism; distracts working class
• Feminists
  • marriage can enable violence/exploitation; marriage benefits men more

Why cohabitation is increasing

• Rational choice theory (Shelton and John mentioned):
  • cohabiting women are more equal in domestic labour
• Risk-aversion / “try before you buy” (Beck/Chetstar mentioned):
  • many cohabiting couples plan to marry
  • women delay until a suitable partner, reducing “left on shelf” shame
• Divorce patterns after cohabitation:
  • people marry later; dual income reduces financial stress
  • legal aid changes reduce access (cut in 2013 mentioned)

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6) Family diversity

Modernist to postmodern shift

Modernism (1950s)

• Life predictable; fixed identities.
• Rigid socialization into class/gender/religious/ethnic roles.
  • Example: women leave paid work, marry young, heterosexual, meet husband needs.

Postmodernism

• “Confusion,” lack of structure, constant choice.
• “Pick a mix society” and fragmented identities.
• Example: stay-at-home fathers reversing expressive/instrumental stereotypes.

Key theories referenced

• Giddens: individualization thesis
  • social change + uncertainty → individuals choose more
  • impacts family diversity, joint conjugal roles, more women in paid roles, smaller families
• Kaden: confluent love
  • relationships based on love/respect; continue while beneficial; replace if not
  • increases cohabitation, single parenthood, divorce, same-sex relationships
• Beck: negotiated families
  • compromise based on members’ wishes; reflexive decision-making
  • risk consciousness reduces marriage; increases cohabitation/divorce
  • gender equality + career-building reduces time for relationships → instability

Evaluation/critique

• Postmodernism exaggerates choice; privileged authors may ignore structural constraints.
• Despite diversity, most people still idealise the nuclear family.

Neoconventional families (Chester as stated)

• New Right/Functionalism exaggerate “diversity increase.”
• Nuclear family remains most desirable; people may move between family types but often return.
• Reconstituted/stepfamilies are mentioned.

“CLOKCS” typology (as presented: acronym “clocks”)

• C = cultural differences
  • ethnicity/religion patterns
• L = life course
  • family form and division of labour vary by life stage
• O = organizational
  • divisions of labour within households (symmetry/dual income/single parent)
• C = cohort
  • generational differences (attitudes, divorce likelihood, etc.)
• S = social class
  • role allocation differs by class (more equal in middle-class than working-class)

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7) Social policy

What social policy is

• State plans/actions by agencies (health, education, welfare) affecting family life.
• Can be:
  • direct: laws on marriage/divorce/abortion/contraception
  • indirect: compulsory education, etc., affecting women’s paid labour participation

Specific policies mentioned

• Divorce Reform Act (1969): increases family diversity; empowers women
• Contraception availability (1967): controls fertility; reduces family size
• Legalisation of same-sex marriage (2014): increases family diversity; 15% of gay couples married (as stated)
• Compulsory education (1944): skills for careers

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