Family Structure And Its Effect On The Workplace Essay

The concept of family has changed in many perspectives throughout the years. Nuclear families started back in the 1950s also known as ‘ideal families’. Today family comes in many varieties whether it 's nuclear, accordion, or extended families and even same sex marriage. One thing that is undoubtedly true is that family will always be the one that you have an unbreakable bond with. American families have evolved in many ways leading us away from what was known as nuclear families.

Chief amongst these are that families have two goals: in raising children and establishing solid and stable adult relationships (Parsons and Bales 1955). The way families achieved these goals was by establishing specific roles for each member of the family, specifically the two parents. This structure, with a man in the workforce and woman at home, was very prevalent in the 1950s. In 1960, according to Phillip Cohen (2014), 65 percent of children lived in homes with married parents where only the father was employed. At this point, with a majority of children living in such situations, it seemed valid to define families using these households. However, this household structure quickly fell out of prominence: by 2012, only 22 percent of children lived in such homes. The most common household type — 34 percent — involved married parents where both adults worked. With families now being arranged in such varied ways, it is more difficult to generalize about family structures as you and Bales do, Dr. Parsons (Cohen 2014: 2-3).

In today’s society, family is often attempted to be organized within a social structure. Within this structure family typically is consisted of mom, dad, daughter, and son. However, many families do not fit into this configuration. These families may include same sex couples, separated or divorced families, extended families, or even blended families. Even though these families may be happy and healthy, to many they are not considered real families. Going along with the topic of imperfect families, both Barbara Kingsolver and Richard Rodriguez try to break down the traditional family structure through their writing. While Kingsolver’s “Stone Soup” and Rodriguez’s “Family Values” explore the ideas of different family structures and traditional American values, “Stone Soup” breaks down what an actual family is like while “Family Values” expresses the value of family in different cultures.

Stephanie Coontz in “The Way We Weren’t: The Myth and Reality of the Traditional Family” emphasizes that the traditional and ideal nuclear family widespread in media and textbooks are false and far from reality. In fact, it is common to see more similarities to the traditional family consistent of “male breadwinner and nurturing mother” (1) today than in the past.

Over the course of the last sixty years, family values have consistently continued to change. With a heavier influx of women entering the work force and the social emphasis of individualism, the traditional family image has changed, and with

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? “Traditionally, family has been defined as a unit made up of two or more people who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption: live together; form an economic unit, and bear and raise children (Benokraitis, 3).” The definition of decline is to “fail in strength, vigor, character, value, deteriorate, slant downward.” The traditional nuclear family consists of a father provider, mother-homemaker, and at least one child (Brym and Lie, 252).” The nuclear family is a distinct and universal family form because it performs five important functions in society:sexual regulation, economic cooperation, reproduction, socialization, and emotional support. Research from the 1950 's to the present will emphasize what trends are taking place among American families. Family trends might not have expected???

The families in America are steadily changing. While they remain our most valued and consistent source of strength and comfort, some families are becoming increasingly unstructured. In the past, the typical family consists of a working father, a stay at home mother and, of course, well-rounded children. Today, less than 20 percent of American families fit nicely into this cookie cutter image. American households have never been more diverse. Natalie Angier takes stock of the changing definition of family in an article for the New York Times.

Changes in American society in recent decades have had a major impact on the social structure of the country. A hundred years ago it was only now forty-seven years is seventy-eight. The meaning of family also change, a hundred years ago only four percent of the women had children out of wedlock, for children was normal losing his parents at the age of fifteen, the marriage rate was high and education it was low. The ideal family was that the man was working and who was the head of the family, and the woman was the figure responsible for the home and parenting, based on the rules of marriage model. Today we see a completely different picture, although the family remains an essential part of our society, has been affected by structural changes,

Family needs have changed since the 1950s and women's work in the ideal nuclear family has been historically constructed and reproduced by culture and patriarchal heteronormative society. An ideal nuclear family is a group consisting of two parents and their children. This family includes both sexes, who maintain a sexual relationship and one or more children. Within this family, everyone had roles; the father worked whereas the mother maintained the household and cared for the offspring. The children were to model and study their parents to become them, so they could later take their place in society when the parents are too old to perform their duties. The nuclear family is no longer the American dream and soon society began to notice that many Americans were not living the ideal nuclear lifestyle. With the world adjusting and adapting there are new definitions for what consists of a family. We are shifting from a heteronormative society to an inclusive society.

This is all very normal. Their definition of a typical family is completely askew from what the 1950s has told us to be true. One of the main things that disproves the coveted idea of the nuclear family is culture. In the article, “The Color of Family Ties: Race, Class, Gender, and Extended Family Involvement”, authors Naomi Gerstel and Natalia Sarkian, attempt to disprove the idea of weaker family ties among minority groups when observing the deep rooted connections to extended kin that the typical 1950’s values of family does not support. They state in opposition to popular belief that, “The Nuclear family ignores extended family solidarities and caregiving activities (Gerstek Sarkian 48).” This provides evidence that families that fulfill the nuclear family ideals may be less inclined to provide emotional, financial, or otherwise support to family outside an immediate setting. Families of minorities are a prime example of how the nuclear family cannot exist in

Times have changed; the nuclear family is no longer the American ideal because family needs have changed since the 1950's. This American convention of a mother and father and their two children, were a template of films and early television as a depiction of the American family life. Now seen as archaic and cliché by today’s standards, but the idea is common throughout many of the first world nations in the world. This ideal was a vast departure from the past agrarian and pre industrial families, and was modeled and structured as the ‘American dream’ father working, mother maintaining the household and children molded to be simulacra of the parents. This portrayal was not the standard; many communities throughout America had a different

n the upcoming page’s I will answer the following questions. Why is family the most important agent of socialization? What caused the dramatic changes to the American family? What are the changes? I will discuss the differences in marriage and family, I will discuss how they are linked to class, race, gender, and personal choices. The purpose of this study is to explore the many different family functions and the paths that people are now choosing. I will give my opinion on whether these changes have had a positive or negative affect. I will finally discuss the trend of the modern family, back to pre-World War II family structure, how would that effect the strides that have been made in the progression of women rights.

A brief view of the 4 decades within the periods of 1950 to 1990 would show us a significant shift from the conventional nuclear family to the non-conventional modern family. Starting from the 1950s, the families were nuclear, where members worked together, understood their roles, and did what was expected of them; by the 1960s, there were a few sitcoms that began to undermine the television parent’s authority by privileging the independence of nearly adult or adult children; by the 1970s, the authoritative father began to disappear as they were no longer

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.

Family influence is an important force in preparing youth for their roles as workers. Young people form many of their attitudes about work and careers as a result of interactions with the family. Family background provides the basis from which their career planning and decision making evolve. However, within each family, the level of involvement can vary, offering both positive and negative influences. This Digest examines the research on family influences on career development and describes implications for practice.