Family

MS. SHEENA
 Class Outline
1. Introduction
2. Types of Marriages
3. Kinship Pattern
4. Conflict View
5. Functionalist View
6. Aspects of Mate Selection
7. Stages of Family Life
8. Divorce
9. Alternative Lifestyle
 Introduction

 Many variations - from culture to culture, from

individuals to individuals

Definition
 “…a social institution found in all societies that
unites people in cooperative groups to care for
one another, including any
children”(Macionis,p.470)
 Types of Marriages

1. Monogamy – one woman + one man

2. Polygamy – several husbands or wives
 Polygyny – one man + several women
 Polyandry – one woman + several men
Kinship Pattern

 Kinship – being related to each other

 Many of us can trace our roots by looking at
family tree

How to identify?
 US follow bilateral descent
 Both side of a person’s family are regarded equally
important (Schaefer,p.346)
Kinship Pattern(2)

 Patrilineal descent – only father’s side important

(property, inheritance, emotional ties)
 Matrilineal descent – only mother’s side
significant
 Today, kinship pattern/family member can be
combination of biological or social
process(Cussins,1998)
Authority Pattern: Who Rules?

 Societies vary in the way that power within the

family is distributed.
 Patriarchy – male dominated decision making
 Matriarchy – female dominated decision making
(very uncommon)
 Egalitarian family – each decision shared
 Conflict View

 Family as a reflection of the inequality in wealth and

power in larger society.
 Family denies opportunities to women.
 Family as an economic unit that contributes to
societal injustice – pass on wealth and property to
own generation
 Family help to maintain inequality— ethnic and racial
inequality maintained due to endogamous marriage
 Functionalist View

 6 functions (Ogburn and Tibbits,1934)

1. Reproduction
2. Protection
3. Socialization
4. Regulation of sexual behavior: incest taboo,
heterosexuality
5. Affection and companionship
6. Providing of social status
 Aspect of Mate Selection

 Many societies have unstated rules defining

potential mates as acceptable or unacceptable
 This norms can be distinguished in terms of:-
i. Endogamy
The restriction of mate selection to people within the
same group
ii. Exogamy
The requirements that people select mates outside
certain group
 Stages of Family Life

 Courtship – choose partner, in love

i.e. rural Sri Lanka and arrange marriages (p. 478)
 Settling in – get married, ideal vs. real marriage
 Child rearing – have children, big families vs. small
families
 The family in later life – living with spouse again,
death of spouse, caring for elders
 Divorce

 Divorce statistics are difficult to interpret

 Media frequently report that one out of every
two marriages ends in divorce
 In Malaysia – Selangor-highest rate
(3,209 cases, 2005)
 Alternative Lifestyle

 Cohabitation
 Remaining Single
 Lesbian and Gay Relationship
 Marriage without children
 Tutorial Question

There are various types of marriages

throughout the world.
a. Explain the term polyandry and where
is it practiced?
b. In your opinion, is this a good marriage
arrangement? Support your stance with
examples and justifications.
 THANK YOU
#STAYSTRONG