Sociology of the Family

Sociology of the Family



Sociology of the Family

Introduction

This paper will be discussing about my family and issues that are arising within social relationship. First I will be discussing about my family. I am a 25 year old Nurse who works full time and goes to school full time . My Mom is a secretary and my Dad is an accountant. I have a 29 year old brother who just got married. The main theme of this paper is to analyze the sociology of the family.

Sociology considers the family to be one of the most important social groups, as some form of family can be identified in almost all human societies. The family is often seen as a norm in social relationships, this belief is reinforced by the media, politicians and religion. However the diversity of family structure has increased due to major changes in modern society eg. Changes in divorce laws, changing values and the changing role of women (Szinovacz & Davey: 2008). These changes have led to a huge increase in diversity of family types eg. Single-parent and reconstituted families. Sociological research has shown that our definition of the family varies greatly from that of other cultures and also from other groups within our own society. Family sociologically defined is: 'a social unit consisting of people who support each other in several ways' - those several ways being functions of the family. This essay will demonstrate a breadth of understanding in the functions of the family and will question whether the family is or is not losing its functions to other institutions in society such as the media and religion. Some sociologists such as functionalists would argue that the family is not losing its functions as it plays a part in 'the organic analogy' alongside the other institutions and plays a key part in society. Whereas other sociologists argue that the family is losing its functions to other institutions in society.

With regard to my family, I always get into a conflict with my elder brother in Caregiving situation. I will be discussing the family conflict theory and other theories in order to support my statement.

Context of Care

There are approximately 50 million people who provide care for a chronically ill or disabled family member or friend. The age range of the care recipient extends across the life span from infants and children to the very old. Causes of illness and disability are varied as well. The amount, extent, duration, type, physical and mental strain, and other social and economic factors influence the effect that caregiving has on the family. For example, the types of conflicts related to parenting an adolescent with insulin-dependent diabetes are very different from those experienced by a daughter caring for an elderly parent with dementia. The average family caregiver is 47 years old. Almost 34 million adults provide care to someone 50 years or older. Of those, 9 million care for someone with dementia. The number of unpaid family caregivers is expected to increase ...