...Today, the definition of family is very complex and cannot be explained in just a few words or lines. It can be said that the word ‘family’ has more than one meaning and this makes it more complicated for one to understand the meaning of family. According to most people, a family can be one in the traditional sense with two heterosexual parents with children, one with two parents of the same sex with an adopted child, one with a single parent. But maybe a family could be made of multiple partners; as an example in Judith Stacey’s book with the three gay partners living together. Maybe it could even be a live-in relationship where the partners are not married, as opposed to popular belief. The word family is not restricted to only these instances and can be illustrated in various other ways without a set structure or definition. In the article “American Family Decline”, Popenoe argues that the definition of family is changing and cannot be attributed to just one concept. He argues the state of the changing American family and states the causes for these changes. But due to the complexity of the word he desires to relate family to its traditional view with one father, one mother and the two children to whom they gave birth all living collectively in the same house. According to Popenoe, since the 1960’s up to the 90’s there has been a rapid shift in the percentages of the changing family. He further states that there has been an increase in the divorce rates in the past couple...
Words: 1349 - Pages: 6
...Abstract In the 1960’s, “The Cleavers” of” Leave it To Beaver” were a representation of how the family structure was throughout society. Made up of father who worked, a mother who stayed at home to raise the children and family dinners every night. Today in 2012, the family dynamic has changed dramatically. There are several factors that can be attributed to these changes and these changes could continue to change society for future generations. However, perhaps from researching the past and how we got here, we can find ways to strengthen families in the future. Family Changes Since 1960 the family dynamic has changed. Over these mere 52 years families have gone from having both parents in the home, usually with a father who works and a mother who stayed at home to raise the children. Today, many families are broken; children are shuffled between the mother’s home and the father’s home every other weekend. With this broken foundation the family structure itself is becoming weaker, thus creating a difference in society today compared to when our parents and grandparents were being raised. As previously mentioned, the Cleavers made up the traditional family in the 1960’s. This dynamic accounts for less that 15% of families today in the United States (Mintz, N.D). Another drastic change we have seen since 1960 is the divorce rate that has doubled since 1966. Another difference that has grown dramatically since as early as 1970 is the number of homes where couples...
Words: 1111 - Pages: 5
...Sociology: Family Changes Abstract In the 1960’s, “The Cleavers” of” Leave it To Beaver” were a representation of how the family structure was throughout society. Made up of father who worked, a mother who stayed at home to raise the children and family dinners every night. Today in 2012, the family dynamic has changed dramatically. There are several factors that can be attributed to these changes and these changes could continue to change society for future generations. However, perhaps from researching the past and how we got here, we can find ways to strengthen families in the future. Family Changes Since 1960 the family dynamic has changed. Over these mere 52 years families have gone from having both parents in the home, usually with a father who works and a mother who stayed at home to raise the children. Today, many families are broken; children are shuffled between the mother’s home and the father’s home every other weekend. With this broken foundation the family structure itself is becoming weaker, thus creating a difference in society today compared to when our parents and grandparents were being raised. As previously mentioned, the Cleavers made up the traditional family in the 1960’s. This dynamic accounts for less that 15% of families today in the United States (Mintz, N.D). Another drastic change we have seen since 1960 is the divorce rate that has doubled since 1966. Another difference that has grown dramatically since as early as 1970 is the...
Words: 334 - Pages: 2
...Families in the 1960’s and Today Kiana Joyner American Intercontinental University Abstract This paper will discuss the differences between families from the 1960’s and the families of today. There are many differences between the different times. I have focused on the parentage portion of the families. I explained what the ideal family is and how it is different today. I’ve also included ways that will help these families of today become stronger as a family. Families in the 1960’s and Today There is quite a big difference in families from the 1960’s, and the families of today. Many of the changes from back in 1960 have to do with the parents and keeping family together. These differences have changed since then and will continue to change as time changes. The families today are mostly single parent homes with just the mother’s and the children. On the other hand when the families do consist of married parents, during the early years of the children’s lives, the parents end up divorcing. The difference between the families today and in the 1960’s is that families consisted of having a working husband, the homemaker wife, and the child, or children. This was known as the ideal family. Today you will see more step parent’s then biological parents raising the children (Mercadante, 2009). In my personal experience I grew up with both biological parents together until they divorced when I was ten years old. After a while with it just being my mother, and four children...
Words: 609 - Pages: 3
...Britain in the 1960s and 1970s a response to social change or did it create it? In 1959, six years before becoming Labour’s Home Secretary, Roy Jenkins said that ‘the state should not impinge excessively on peoples private lives and personal morality’. Permissiveness is routed in this idea of a new relationship between society and the individual, representing ‘striking changes in public and private morals’. According to Andrews, social change began in 1956 with a ‘class initiative’, caused by rapidly growing affluence. The affluence of the 1950s is proven by the proportion of homeowners in England and Wales rising from 31% to 44% between 1951-60, representing vast economic growth. Many politicians, particularly those on the Left, believed that ‘the affluent society was directly responsible for the permissive society’. Rising affluence occurred amid the re-emergence of Conservative values in the post-World War Two period, with Brown claiming that ‘the 1950s were about perfecting Victorian values’. The conservatism of the 1950s gave the 1960s a cause for rebellion, creating the unique conditions for permissive legislation to be passed. This paper will focus on acts passed between 1967-1970, including the Abortion, NHS (Family Planning) and the Sexual Offences Acts of 1967, the Divorce Reform Acts (1969), and in 1970 the Matrimonial Property Act. These permissive acts symbolised the breakdown of Victorian and Christian morals, particularly surrounding the family, thus causing social...
Words: 3580 - Pages: 15
...Influence of the 1960s The sixties were the age of youth, as 70 million children from the post-war baby boom became teenagers and young adults. The movement away from the conservative fifties continued and eventually resulted in revolutionary ways of thinking and real change in the cultural fabric of American life. No longer content to be images of the generation ahead of them, young people wanted change. The changes affected education, values, lifestyles, laws, and entertainment. Many of the revolutionary ideas which began in the sixties are continuing to evolve today (Bradley & Goodwin, 2010). Because of the sixties, I was able to grow up in a neighborhood where different cultures live harmoniously. Before the sixties, non-white people were not allowed to mixed-in with the white families. It is because of the 60s that one neighborhood can include a Hispanic family, and Asian family and an African-American family (Carter, 2010). The Civil Rights Act of 1965 gave more people the right to vote and took down the obstacles which prevented many people from participating in democracy and exercising their full rights as citizens. This enabled me to exercise my right as an individual living in the United States. The Civil Rights Act provided not only me but a lot of people the right to be vote, be heard, and express their opinion (Farber, 1994). The legacy of the 1960s can be seen including society and family structure in America. America. American society is more...
Words: 1882 - Pages: 8
...“Rises in the number of divorces in the UK since the 1960's are due mainly to changes in the law” (Asses the extent to which sociological evidence and arguments support this statement) Divorce is the legal termination of a marriage contract between two people. The divorce rate is the number of legal divorces filed per 1000 married people per year as opposed to the total number of divorces which is the entire amount of divorces filed. The changes in the law is seen as on of the main reasons for the increase in divorce over the years. As the years have past these changes have made divorce somewhat easier. One of the three changes in the law is known as Equalising the grounds for divorce between the sexes this meant that women were now able to freely file for divorce as only men could do previously. Another change was the Widening the grounds for divorce, this was enforced in 1937 and therefore made divorce easier to obtain and allowed a doubling of the divorce rate because more reasons were now accepted for a divorce to take place. The last change in the law includes, Making divorce cheaper, the introduction of this legal aid lowered the cost of divorces which allowed more couples to file for a divorce as it was more affordable also those of wealthy families found that it was easier to file for a divorce and pay the price rather than to actually work things out between their partner. All three changes allowed the divorce rates to rise vastly. Due to the process being...
Words: 802 - Pages: 4
...the 1960’s. Imagine yourself as women in the 1960s. They were denied basic rights, trapped in their own home for life, and discriminated against in the work place. Then the 1960s came along and with it, the thought that women could have a say in their government that they could perhaps leave home without feeling guilty about leaving their children alone and that they could earn wages just like men. Women in the 1960s were stereotyped to only be capable of being a housewife and a child bearer. The women’s liberation movement of the 1960s helped all these changes come about, through its record number of policies and radical ways. Most women feminists were radicals. They formed groups that researched to find the cause of the problem and put an end to the barriers of segregation and discrimination based on sex. Women feminists were committed to the study the situation of women, instead of just taking action. In this movement women had to see the fight for women as their own, not as something to help and they had to see the truth about their own loves before they could fight in a radical way for anyone else. Women were denied basic rights in most aspects of society from political rights to reproductive rights; women in the U.S fought vigorously for equality. “The women’s rights movement began in the nineteenth century with the demand by some women reformers for the right to vote, known as suffrage, and for the same legal rights as men” (Women’s rights, nd). Before the 1960’s in...
Words: 1109 - Pages: 5
...The Social Events of the 1950's, 60's, 70's, 80's, and 90s Introduction Over the past 50 years, there have been many changes within the social movement in the United States. Some of these changes have been for the better and some not so great. These changes were made with the hopes and dreams of making life better for all cultures, species, families, and environment. Now the question is, how did these change come about, and what were these changes about? Social Life of the 1950's In the early 1950's was a new beginning for the United States. With the end of the Great Depression and World War II, people felt that they could start living, and have things they thought they would never have, like a home, cars, a wife or husband, and children. With the new beginning, families started moving from large city life to the suburbs, for the reason that life in the suburbs was considerable less hectic and peaceful than what city life was like. Due to the Great Depression, many men and women put off getting married or starting families for the reason of lack of money or homes, and with the War, many were afraid they might not come home. However, with the new feeling of security and peace couples were able start the family they always wanted and so began the Baby Boom years. People moving to the suburbs triggered...
Words: 2021 - Pages: 9
...the Cold War Christopher Sigler History 328 Dr. Reaves March 11, 2014 Post World War II America was a period of massive economic growth in America. Despite a brief economic recession from 1946 to 1947, the years following World War II saw the United States become the world super power that it is today. From 1940 to 1950 the American Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased 50% from $200,000 million to $300,000 million1 and by 1955 sixty percent of Americans identified as middle-class2. The exponential economic growth and social class shift during this period created several important changes to American culture. Many American families now possessed excess money; Money that was spent on single-family homes, entertainment, appliances, and cars, items that the general public could not afford before this period. The result of the influx of money not only changed the American family forever, but the marketing strategies used by companies as well. As Americans began to place a heavier value on entertainment, movie stars, actors, and other celebrities began to have a prominent influence on society. Post war-prosperity and the economic boom during the early cold war began the American, and eventually global culture of celebrity marketing. To understand the United States rise to a world superpower one must look at the aftermath of the widespread war of World War II. World War II was a global war that involved thirty nations and claimed the lives of over 50 million people3...
Words: 2092 - Pages: 9
...Crime was on the Rise In the 1960’s, the world was changing at a rapid rate. The 60’s provided many challenges for America in many ways. With the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr, and Malcolm X, America seemed to be slowly destroying itself. With many Americans fighting for their rights, countless types of crime were committed during this time. Several great leaders in America were killed, but several bad Mafia leaders were taken down as well. Crime rates in America during the 60’s increased tremendously with assassinations, civil rights riots, and Mafia murders happening around every corner. Over the past 40 years, America has changed in many ways. Back in the 1960’s technology, politics, civil rights,...
Words: 1197 - Pages: 5
...Life Changes Christopher Cookson Sociology: SSCI210 - 1304A – 04 Unit 4 – Individual Project Abstract Studies show that family life has changed since 1960. There are many things that have affected the way that this has happened. From the actual size of families to the way that children in today’s families are raised. This paper will demonstrate some of the reasons that these things have changed and the reasoning behind it. Life Changes Over time there has been a large increase in single parent families. There are many different situations that cause these single parent families i.e. divorce, death, unmarried parents, and more. The growth of single parent families has a huge impact on what was considered normal for a family. The single parent household has a huge impact on how children are raised provided for and many other aspects that affect how children are molded. This truly affects and has affected how family life is looked at in today’s society. There are more and more single parent families on a daily basis due to people not learning the responsibilities that are required to have a true family life. (Ellwood & Jencks, 2002). To compare today’s family life to that during the 1960’s would be like comparing night and day. To have a single family household during that time was looked down upon and rarely heard of. As well, the actual size of families has decreased. The reasoning behind this is said to be modernization and the...
Words: 682 - Pages: 3
...Since the 1950's it is obvious that over the years family sitcoms have evolved. Family sitcoms have evolved in many ways such as length, stereotypes reflected, race, family values and types of families. For example, in Leave it to Beaver it presents the typical nuclear, middle-class and white family. The show illustrates the 1950's typical lifestyle which is father going to work, stay home mother that does "female jobs", and kids going to school. In the 1960's the stereotypical nuclear family changed and The Brady Bunch challenged this new change in traditional family types and their show consisted of a blended family. The married couple in the show had previous children to divorcees and got married to each other. As you can see between the 1950's - 1960's...
Words: 589 - Pages: 3
...the population * Deaths and Emigration decreases the population • Natural change: is the number of births minus the number of deaths • Net migration: is the number immigrating into country minus the number emigrating from it • The UK’s population grew from 37mil in 1901 to 61mil today and should reach 71mil by 2031 • Growth has been mostly due to natural change rather than net migration Births There are two measures of births 1. Birth rate 2. Total fertility rate The birth rate • The birth rate: is the number of live births per 1,000 of the population per year • There has been a long-term decline in the birth rate • In 1900, it was almost 29 • By 2007, it had fallen by more than 60%, to under 11 • But there have been fluctuations • There were 3 ‘baby booms’: 1 after each war and another in the 1960’s • The rate fell sharply in the 1970’s, rose during the 1980’s and early 1990’s, and then fell until the recent increase since 2001 The total fertility rate • The total fertility rate: is the average number of children a woman will have during her fertile years (aged 15-44) • In the 1960’s baby boom, it reached an average of 2.95 children per woman, declining to an all-time low of 1.63 in 2001, before rising slightly to 1.84 in 2006 • The total fertility rate obviously affects family and household size – the more children a woman has, the bigger the family: 1. More women are remaining childless nowadays 2. Women are having children...
Words: 1600 - Pages: 7
...Eugene Whitehead HCS/531 February 18, 2013 Ann Gantzer Science and technology have always been joined at the hip. The evolution of health care services in the United States (U. S.) undoubtedly has been shaped at least in part by advancements in scientific research and knowledge, and technological innovation (Shi & Singh, 2012). The following exploration focuses on ways a specific scientific or technological event or innovation affected health care provision in the U. S. to date. Health care is dynamic. Science and technology continue to prove themselves as important facilitators of the change processes that occur in health care. The scientific method and nursing process are just a few examples that demonstrate the significant contribution scientific research and technology provided to the historic development of the health care delivery system in America. This report cannot realistically address the exhaustive list of scientific and technological advancements that have benefitted the practice of medicine. However, I intend to satisfy the question of just how much influence the chosen event exerted on the course of health care evolution. The Significant Event Birth control or contraception, endearingly dubbed “the pill” by the American public made medical and scientific history in 1960. Since its inception the pill has been surrounded by controversy running the gamut from health concerns and moral choice to religious opposition and political-legal issues (Kruvard, 2012)...
Words: 1212 - Pages: 5