TEM-101: Social Science

Lecture Series 10: Functions of The Family

(Lectures 7/8: Research Methods in Social Science)

Instructor: Dr. Zahara Batool Date: 02 May 2018

Today
 Variations in the family pattern
 Functions of the family in society
 Matching family patterns with family functions

 The family in the United States [Pakistan] today

 The family in transitions
Function of the family
The family has many functions:
 It must reproduce the species; otherwise the species will end.

 It must see to it that the young are reasonably well adjusted, so that
they don't cause trouble for society and that they grow up to be
productive in the biological and physical sense
 It must provide sufficient satisfaction for parents to keep them well
adjusted so they don't make trouble for society.
 Reasons for desiring more or fewer children vary in different societies.
 In agricultural societies, especially if land is plentiful, people are likely to
desire large families because children tend to be an economic asset.
 In industrial societies, where children are more costly, families tend to
have fewer of them. If the trend toward childless couples continues,
society will have to find some other way to reproduce itself. For the
United States, this may well mean an increase in immigration.
Matching Family Patterns with
Family Function
 What family structure best meets these functions?
 That's hard to say because it depends on individuals'
psychological development and the technology and
exigencies of the society.
 Let's consider the variations of family groups in reference to
modern Western society.
Number of mates
 Our society is primarily a monogamous one in which a family group includes a
male and a female. Why?
 (1) this family grouping works well for reproduction. Given current technology,
that's the way society reproduces itself.
 (2) Children take enormous amounts of time. A one-parent family has a difficult
time meeting either the child's or the parent's psychological needs. As a matter
of fact, a two-parent family has a difficult time meeting the child's and the
parents' psychological needs, especially if both parents are working. This places
two types of pressure on social institutions.
 One pressure is for an extension of the family, either by including a third mate or by extending the
family and including grandparents, aunts, or uncles as part of the primary family unit.
 The second pressure is for society to develop institutions such as day care to remove part of the
childrearing burden from the family.
Number of mates
 (3) the family group consists of a monogamous male and female is for the
psychological adjustment of the individuals. According to some social scientists,
"three's a crowd" is more than just a pat phrase. Individuals have psychological
needs to be accepted and loved, making mates of some type necessary, and
the need for security argues for a single mate. Some individuals might prefer
more than one mate for themselves, but
 few would prefer that their mate have more than one mate. The development of
strong friendships outside of marriage often results in strong feelings of
jealousy. Those feelings are in part genetic; most species have developed
instincts that encourage the propagation of the individual genes, and humankind
is no exception.
 (4) from society's point of view monogamous relationship provides a mate for
most people because males and females are born in nearly equal numbers.
Selection of mates
 Western societies generally allow individuals to select their own
mates. Such a selection process is by no means universal; families
in Eastern societies generally choose mates for their children. The
problem with family selection is the possible incompatibility of mates
and failure to fulfill the psychological function of marriage, although
as some of our Eastern friends point out, given the number of
divorces and unhappy marriages in the West, self-selection doesn't
seem to do such a good job of meeting the psychological functions.
Selection of mates
 The advantage of family selection is that it is more likely to fulfill
economic and social stability goals.
 Of course [as we saw in Chapter 4] social stability is not necessarily
a goal of society.
 Cultural diffusion is also necessary, and one of the reasons Western
societies have adapted better than Eastern societies to changing
technologies and may be that self-selection of mates creates social
instability that allows and generate change.
Family Control and Reckoning of
Descent
 Western societies generally are patriarchal and use a bilateral method

reckoning descent. These customs do not seem to fulfill significantly any of

the functions of the fam other than the need for the psych logical adjustment

of the mate.

 Society does need to fulfill the child rearing function, and it is true that

women bear and nurse children, have evolved both genetically and socially

so that, on average, a woman is better able to deal with children than a man

is, at least until the child reaches the age of about three.

 Maternal instincts exist. But this patriarchal reality only suggests that the

male will most likely maintain the uninterrupted income earning activities,

not that the male will have control of the family

Family Control and Reckoning of
Descent
 What maintains the patriarchal system is, in large part, social and genetic

inertia. Male dominance is built into the social and genetic structure of

society. The fact that it is built in does not mean that it cannot, or will not, be

changed. It simply means that it will only be changed through conscious

effort and moral commitment to equality.

Food for thought
 Another interesting question in relation to the functions of the family is
what is likely to happen to the family as the age structure of society
changes.
 Urban Transition and Family structure in Pakistan, a case
study of Faisalabad
 November 2014
 Kashif Mahmood
Reference material
 Chapter 8; Text book

Thank you for listening