The Decline Of The Nuclear Family - 1084 Words

â€Å"The Decline of the Nuclear Family† In 1970, 40% of couples were married with children. 2013 marked a new low as only 19% of household were married with children. A nuclear family is usually described as a heterosexual marriage with the average of 2.5 children, became synonymous with the American dream philosophy in the mid-1940s. The nuclear family standard is rapidly on the decline in the United States. These declining number have a range of causes. The causes of the decline of the nuclear family are cohabitation, childfree couples, high divorces rates, and the introduction of LGBTQ families. The effects are increased self-fulfillment, serial monogamy, childhood psychological trauma and family diversity. Gay and lesbian marriages†¦show more content†¦Today, alternative long-term relationships are growing in times in heterosexual and LGBTQ relationships. Cohabitation is defined by â€Å"Recent Changes in Family Structure† as quote: â€Å"an intimate relationship that includes a common living place and which exists without the benefit of legal, cultural, or religious sanction.† Between 2005 and 2009 2/3 of relationships approximately were preceded by cohabitation (â€Å"Rise of Cohabitation† 2014.) This arrangement is less committed and therefore it takes longer to end, without much emotional devastation of a pricey divorces. Most marriages still begin with cohabitation. However, it is becoming less and less likely that cohabitation will end in a marriage. Marriage is still common in today’s culture, with approximately 60.25 million married couples in 2016 (â€Å"Number of married couples in the United States from 1960 to 2016 (in millions)† 2016.) This is evident why it is killing the nuclear family standard. People are having less desire to fully commit to a marriage in the first place. 1950 social standards would have never accepted an unmarried couple as a part of a normal life so only can a legal marriage constitutes the ideal set forth. Another, w ay to break the standard is remove some components. In 1950, were approximately 3.5 million births with women having an average of 3.8 children (â€Å"Measuring childbearing patterns in the United States 2010†.) As of the 2010 women on average have 1.9 children. ThisShow MoreRelatedThe Decline Of The Nuclear Family932 Words   |  4 Pages5: The Decline of the Nuclear Family In college classes, the traditional nuclear family is defined as a family consisting of one or both parents and their dependent children in a single family unit without any extended relatives (Kendall, 2013). Some sociological perspectives suggest that any departure from what is known as the â€Å"traditional,† or nuclear, family indicates a social problem, while others maintain that the definition of family has simply evolved beyond the nuclear family. Some evenRead MoreExamining the View that the Traditional Nuclear Family is in Decline1344 Words   |  6 Pagesthe View that the Traditional Nuclear Family is in Decline When evaluating the view that the traditional nuclear family (of two opposite sex married parents living in a household that contains only them and their own dependant children), is in decline, I will be taking various pieces of research and evidence from Sociologists, Journalists and other sources, into consideration in order to try to determine how true this view is. The nuclear family would appear to be foundRead MoreThe Decline Of The Family941 Words   |  4 PagesThe Declining Family Throughout human history individuals around the world, of various ethnic, racial, cultural backgrounds have linked together to form what people call today families. A lot of questions come to mind when contemplating the complex relationship people have. Since families have a direct bearing on society now and on future generations it is essential to take seriously what is happening to the family. Is the American family in decline, and if so what should be done about it? â€Å"TraditionallyRead MoreEssay about sociology and the family1732 Words   |  7 Pagesvariety of family and household types. You will be required to reference your work throughout and produce a correct and current bibliography to demonstrate that you have used different sources to obtain your information. Sociology and the Family The Nuclear Family generally consists of a Mother, a Father and at least 1 child, this image of a family is thought to of come about at the time of the Industrial Revolution. (Willmott and Young) believe that an increase in the Nuclear Family was theRead MoreThe Family As A Social Institution1569 Words   |  7 PagesMalak AL-Raee Dr. Anaheed AL-Hardan Soan 201 March 23, 2017 Families in Lebanon Families vary from time to time and from one culture to the next. However, the family as a social institution exists in all cultures. In general, a family can be defined as any group of people who live together and are emotionally bonded, related by blood, marriage, or adoption. Furthermore, there are many variations in the family from one generation to the other, and this is what happened in Lebanon. LebanonRead MoreHow The Family Is Problematic From The Historical Perspective1606 Words   |  7 PagesExplain and discuss why the definition of the family is problematic from the historical perspective. The family form I am going to be defining is the nuclear and with reference to the historical perspective I will attempt to explain why this definition is problematic. Within this discussion I will also explore whether the nuclear family is a natural family form or whether it is a socially constructed one. According to Munice et al (1995; 10) the nuclear family is a â€Å"small unit produced from the conjugalRead MoreThe Nuclear Family Essay1347 Words   |  6 Pages The Diminishing Nuclear Family Hadar Mustafa Jun29, 2015 Introduction More often than not, stable and functional families serve as a prerequisite to a good society. Hence, the society’s support system for families must be flexible because needs and goals of families vary over time (Loveless, 2007). However, nuclear families face many challenges because parenting, child-rearing, and other economic responsibilities had to be done by two adults only (Bowden Smith, 2010). In thisRead MoreAssess sociological explanations of the nature and extent of family diversity today850 Words   |  4 Pagesexplanations of the nature and extent of family diversity today. (24 marks) In todays society, there are various alternatives from the typical family type. The top examples of these are lone-parent, cohabitation and reconstituted. But there are also some others such as same sex couples, single parent and multi-cultural families. There has been a decrease in the number of nuclear families in the UK and an increase in various other families such as single parent families. But the raise in single parentRead MoreSociology - Part Of Childbearing Essay1637 Words   |  7 Pagesthis kind of relationship is that there is less stigma related to sex outside of marriage nowadays than what there was in 1989 where only 44% of people agreed that premarital sex is not wrong at all and so because of this decline in stigma and secularisation, which is the decline of religious influence, more cohabiting couples will be having sex outside of marriage and therefore producing children. As well as this, there has been a feminisation of the workforce and due to this happening wom en mayRead MoreMarried with Children: The Evolution of the Nuclear Family1396 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"binuclear family† once said, â€Å"Pessimists say that the family is eroding. Optimists say the family is diversifying. Both points of view are right. Families are more diverse and they are more in trouble-but not because of their diversity. The families of today-whatever their size or shape-are in crisis because our economy is failing, our national resources are shrinking, and our governmental policies to support them are inadequate.† This quote gives a perspective of several reasons for the decline of the