Perspectives on the role of the family

Paper 2 – Theories of the Family and Social Change

Objective: Perspectives on the Role of the Family (Cambridge IGCSE/A‑Level Sociology 9699)

This note set follows the Cambridge syllabus requirement to:

• Explain the four major sociological perspectives on the family (functionalism, Marxist/conflict, feminist, post‑modern/interactionist).
• Identify a range of contemporary family forms and discuss gender‑equality and age‑related experiences.
• Link each perspective to current UK family policy and to debates about social change.

1. Overview of Required Sub‑topics

The syllabus expects candidates to cover:

• Perspectives on the role of the family: functionalism, Marxist/conflict, feminist, post‑modern/interactionist.
• Diversity and social change: nuclear, single‑parent, cohabiting, same‑sex, blended/step, multigenerational, and chosen families.
• Gender equality & experiences of family life: division of labour, emotional labour, mental‑health impacts, caregiving burden.
• Age and family life: ageing, inter‑generational households, later marriage/childbearing.

2. Functionalist Perspective

Functionalists see the family as a social institution that performs essential functions which maintain social order and continuity.

• Core Functions
  • Socialisation – primary site for transmitting norms, values and culture to children (e.g., ONS Child Development Survey 2022 shows 86 % of children acquire basic literacy skills by age 5 within the family).
  • Emotional support – provides affection, security and a sense of belonging (often described as a form of social control that regulates behaviour).
  • Economic cooperation – sharing of resources, division of labour and material support.
  • Regulation of sexual behaviour – establishes socially recognised patterns of marriage and reproduction.
• Classic Theorists – Talcott Parsons, George M. Goode, Davis & Moore.
• Strengths
  • Explains why families remain a stable institution across societies.
  • Links micro‑level family functions to macro‑level social order.
• Criticisms
  • Over‑emphasises consensus and harmony; downplays conflict, inequality and change.
  • Assumes a universal “nuclear” model that may not fit diverse contemporary families.
• Relevance to UK Policy
  • Welfare‑reform narratives (e.g., Universal Credit) stress the family as a “first‑line” safety net, echoing functionalist ideas of social support.
  • Family‑court reforms that promote “family stability” assume intact families best fulfil functional needs.

3. Marxist / Conflict Perspective

From a conflict angle, the family is viewed as an institution that reproduces class inequality and serves capitalist interests.

• Key Arguments
  • Reproduction of labour power – families raise and socialise future workers (Marx, 1844).
  • Economic dependency – women’s unpaid domestic labour subsidises capitalist profit (Engels, 1884).
  • Inheritance of wealth – property and capital are passed down, perpetuating class divisions (Bourdieu’s concept of cultural reproduction).
• Classic Theorists – Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx, Pierre Bourdieu.
• Strengths
  • Connects family life to wider economic structures and class relations.
  • Highlights mechanisms that sustain inequality across generations.
• Criticisms
  • Deterministic – can under‑estimate individual agency and cultural variation.
  • Focuses heavily on class, sometimes neglecting gender, race and sexuality.
• Relevance to UK Policy
  • Debates on inheritance tax and wealth transmission reflect Marxist concerns about inter‑generational inequality.
  • Precarious employment (e.g., zero‑hour contracts) forces families to adapt to unstable labour markets, illustrating the reproduction of labour power under capitalism.

4. Feminist Perspective

Feminist theories foreground gender relations within the family and examine how patriarchy is reproduced.

• Core Themes
  • Patriarchal structure – the family is a site where male dominance is normalised.
  • Division of labour – women’s domestic work is undervalued, often invisible, and unpaid (2022 Time‑Use Survey: women perform ~60 % of unpaid housework).
  • Emotional labour – women disproportionately manage the affective and relational work of the household (e.g., caring for children’s emotional needs).
  • Power and control – domestic violence, reproductive rights and decision‑making authority.
• Major Strands & Theorists
  • Radical feminism – Sheila Rowbotham.
  • Socialist feminism – Heidi Hartmann (combines Marxist class analysis with gender).
  • Liberal feminism – Catherine Holland (advocates equal rights within existing structures).
  • Intersectional feminism – bell hooks (adds race and class to gender analysis).
• Strengths
  • Illuminates unpaid labour, domestic violence and the gendered division of work.
  • Links gender inequality to broader social structures.
• Criticisms
  • Early feminist accounts sometimes overlook class and race; intersectional approaches address this but are less represented in the syllabus.
  • May focus heavily on women’s experiences and under‑represent men’s roles in reproducing patriarchy.
• Relevance to UK Policy
  • Shared Parental Leave (2020) aims to redistribute caring responsibilities, directly addressing the feminist critique of gendered labour.
  • Domestic Abuse Act 2021 recognises power‑based violence within families, reflecting feminist advocacy.
  • Free childcare for 3‑year‑olds (2024) seeks to reduce the “mothering penalty” and promote gender‑equal labour market participation.

5. Post‑modern / Interactionist Perspective

Post‑modern and symbolic‑interactionist scholars argue that the family is a fluid, socially constructed set of relationships continuously negotiated through everyday interaction.

• Key Ideas
  • Family as a social construct – definitions vary across cultures, time and personal experience.
  • Symbolic interactionism – meaning is created through communication, rituals and shared symbols (e.g., “family dinner”).
  • Plural families – cohabitation, same‑sex families, blended families, “chosen families” among friends or LGBTQ+ networks.
• Classic Theorists – Anthony Giddens (structuration), Judith Stacey (post‑modern family), David Morgan (family as a social institution).
• Strengths
  • Accounts for the diversity and agency evident in contemporary family forms.
  • Emphasises the role of everyday interaction in constructing family meanings.
• Criticisms
  • Can be relativistic, offering limited macro‑structural explanation of why families persist.
  • May underplay the material constraints (economic, policy) that shape family choices.
• Relevance to UK Policy
  • Legal recognition of same‑sex marriage (2014) and civil partnerships reflects the post‑modern view that family forms are socially negotiated.
  • Local‑authority support for “chosen families” in care provision (e.g., extensions to Carers’ Allowance) acknowledges non‑biological support networks.

6. Comparative Matrix of Perspectives

7. Family Diversity – Syllabus Sub‑topic

Cambridge expects candidates to identify and explain a range of contemporary family forms.

• Nuclear family – two parents (hetero or same‑sex) and their children.
• Single‑parent family – one parent raising children; 2022 UK data: 23 % of families with dependent children.
• Cohabiting family – unmarried partners living together with or without children; 2021 Census: 1.2 million cohabiting couples.
• Same‑sex family – two same‑sex partners, with or without children; 2020 survey: 5 % of UK households include a same‑sex couple.
• Blended/step family – families formed after divorce or remarriage.
• Multigenerational family – three or more generations living together; rising due to housing costs and elder‑care needs (15 % of households in 2023).
• Chosen family – networks of friends or community members who provide emotional and practical support, common in LGBTQ+ and migrant communities.

8. Gender Equality & Experiences of Family Life

Key trends shaping the gendered division of labour and lived experiences in the UK.

• Women’s labour‑force participation – 2023: 72 % of women aged 16‑64 were employed (ONS).
• Dual‑earner households – 2022: 53 % of couples where both partners work full‑time.
• Policy drivers
  • Shared Parental Leave (2020) – up to 50 % of leave can be taken by the secondary caregiver.
  • Free childcare for 3‑year‑olds (2024) – reduces the “mothering penalty”.
• Continuing gaps – women still perform ~60 % of unpaid housework (2022 Time‑Use Survey) and report higher levels of mental‑health strain linked to caregiving responsibilities.
• Experiences of inequality
  • Higher prevalence of domestic abuse among women (Domestic Abuse Act statistics: 1.6 million women victims in 2022).
  • Gender pay gap persists (2023: women earn 17 % less than men on average).

9. Age and Family Life

How ageing and life‑course stages affect family structures and responsibilities.

• Elder care – rising demand for informal care; 2021: 1.4 million adults provided unpaid care for an older relative.
• Inter‑generational households – 15 % of UK households contain at least one grandparent; driven by housing affordability and cultural expectations.
• Later marriage and childbearing – average age at first marriage 34 (men) / 31 (women) in 2022; first‑birth age rising to 30.5 years (women).
• Policy response
  • Adult Social Care reforms – increased funding for “senior hubs” and support for informal carers.
  • Housing initiatives targeting multigenerational living (e.g., “Extra Care” schemes).

10. Current UK Family‑Policy Context (Brief Bullet List)

• Universal provision of free childcare for 3‑year‑olds (2024).
• Family Justice Review (2023) – proposals to improve outcomes for children in separating families.
• Debates over extending Universal Credit to better support lone parents.
• Housing policy encouraging multigenerational homes to address affordability crises.
• Ongoing discussion of a “Family Carer Tax Credit” to recognise informal elder care.

11. Implications for Social Change

Each perspective predicts a different route for family transformation.

• Functionalist: Change is gradual; new forms must still fulfil core functions.
• Marxist / Conflict: Fundamental change requires alteration of the economic base (e.g., more equitable wealth distribution).
• Feminist: Gender‑egalitarian policies (parental‑leave reform, affordable childcare) can reshape power relations within families.
• Post‑modern / Interactionist: Cultural shifts and increased acceptance of diverse family forms continuously redefine what counts as “family”.

12. Key Terms for Revision

• Socialisation
• Patriarchy
• Division of labour
• Emotional labour
• Reproduction of labour power
• Cultural reproduction
• Social control
• Intersectionality
• Chosen family
• Structural functionalism
• Conflict theory
• Symbolic interactionism
• Family diversity
• Gender equality
• Inter‑generational household

13. Suggested Exam Questions (Cambridge Style)

1. Evaluate the extent to which the functionalist perspective explains the continuing relevance of the nuclear family in contemporary Britain.
2. Discuss how Marxist and feminist perspectives complement each other in analysing gendered divisions of labour within the family.
3. Analyse the impact of post‑modern family forms on traditional sociological understandings of the family’s role.
4. To what extent does social change challenge or reinforce the functions identified by functionalist theory?
5. Explain how recent UK policies on shared parental leave and the Domestic Abuse Act reflect feminist analyses of the family.
6. Compare the ways in which the functionalist and conflict perspectives would interpret the rise of multigenerational households in an ageing society.

14. Suggested Diagram for Revision

Comparative Matrix Diagram: A grid that places each perspective (rows) against four columns – “Core View of Family”, “Key Functions/Arguments”, “Strengths & Limitations”, “Policy Relevance”. This can be reproduced quickly on exam paper for rapid recall.