CH-1 Introduction to Family Studies – Changing Families: Relationships in Context : Chapter Notes

This document contains Chapters 1 to 3 Chapter 1 Introduction to Family Studies INSTRUCTOR'S INTRODUCTION The two distinctive features of this chapter reside, first, in the broader range of theoretical perspectives presented compared to other textbooks. All the theoretical perspectives presented in this chapter are highlighted at some point in the text. Second, as explained in the Preface of the textbook, the themes provide the threads that link various topics together, often leading to matters of social policies affecting family life. The themes present the text's “voice,” “flavour,” or perspective. This perspective comes from my own fieldwork as well as from readings that have particularly influenced me throughout the years. These themes are useful instruments of integrative analysis, social critique, and social policy building. ADDITIONAL CLASS MATERIAL ON METHODS The following class material is meant to accompany Table 1.2 on Methods in Family Research. Instructors may wish to return to this topic in a later lecture to avoid beginning the course with methods. Although qualitative material is discussed, the emphasis is on quantitative methods. The reason is that Canadian instructors in family studies, including myself, tend to have a greater expertise in qualitative methods. The additional material is intended to complement instructors’ expertise whenever appropriate. Another suggestion: You may reserve these notes and the related pages from Chapter 1 and use them to accompany the Family Research inserts that appear in each chapter. Or these inserts may be put together along with Table 1.2 to create a Module or special lecture on research methods in family studies at a convenient point in your program. Surveys Surveys probably constitute the largest source of research information in the sociology of families. The results of many longitudinal surveys of large samples, including several generations within a family, are becoming available. For Canada, one can think of Statistics Canada's General Social Surveys and the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth which began in the early 1990s. In the U.S., one can think here of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, and the National Survey of Families and Households--which are older than the Canadian survey of children and youth and include several generations within a same family. Family research utilizing surveys has recourse to a multiplicity of "instruments" (i.e., questionnaires in this case), but a few prominent "scales" or questionnaires that have been extensively tested are used repeatedly throughout family studies. One can think here of the Marital Adjustment Test for Marital Satisfaction developed by Locke and Wallace in 1959, the Conflict Tactics Scale to measure the behaviours of people during a situation of conflict which was developed by Straus in 1979, and the Psychological Maltreatment of Women Inventory developed by Tolman in 1989, which is a self-report questionnaire for men. Online questionnaires are now the least expensive survey method followed by phone interviews. Face-to-face interviews are the most expensive forms of surveys. The latter, however, particularly when combined with a self-administered questionnaire, including some open-ended questions for qualitative data and interviewers' observations, provide a far richer and textured set of data or information than mail or phone surveys and, so far, even online surveys. In order to generalize to the rest of the population, surveys have to use a random sample. A random sample gives an equal chance to all the members in a category of people of being selected. When a targeted sample includes a small minority of the population, for instance lesbian couples who give birth, researchers often turn to other sampling techniques that are not random. They may ask colleagues for names of persons who would be willing to be interviewed and, in turn, these persons may provide additional referrals. This is at times called the "snowball sampling technique." Other researchers place advertisements on campuses for student volunteers or advertisements in newspapers or magazines. The people who respond to these ads are then interviewed. While the latter methods may be useful to explore a topic, they do not necessarily yield generalizable data or information. Why? Because respondents are self-selected. For instance, fathers who respond to an ad seeking subjects for a study of father-daughter incest may be those fathers who feel truly guilty for their actions, who have maintained a good relationship with their daughter, or who may not have engaged in sexual intercourse with them. In contrast, fathers in denial may not respond and neither might fathers who are unrepentant. Thus, the study will not reach the entire spectrum of types of father-daughter incest and consequences. Surveys have several limitations. First, they can focus on only a limited number of topics and can ask only a limited number of questions. Therefore, this presents a problem for secondary analyses. That is, researchers who later have recourse to these large data banks for their own topics may have very limited material at their disposal, such as only one question (indicator) for, say, marital happiness. This is often too little. Second, multiple-choice questions do not offer respondents the chance to express the magnitude of their experience or feelings. The latter are better obtained through open-ended questions that yield in-depth qualitative data. Third, surveys often ask questions that respondents have never thought about before or questions that do not address respondents' current preoccupations, joys, and problems. In contrast, in-depth interviews or questionnaires can avoid this pitfall as they are in great part driven by respondents. The students' autobiographies in the textbook are an example of an in-depth questionnaire that allows respondents to choose which of their own life experience and preoccupations they will use as the basis of their responses. Thus, qualitative surveys yield richer data but they are time consuming and expensive to analyze. They also require great analytical skills and extensive theoretical linkages. Observations Observers may simply record what they see or they can do audio and now videotapes that are analyzed later by independent coders. Coders are persons hired to give a name to the behaviour they observe on the video by segments of a few seconds at a time. A code number is generally assigned to each type of behaviour so that statistics can be derived. For instance, a child who smiles at his mother while she speaks to him may be coded as "warm response" and receive a score of 5 on a 5-point scale. Such codings often take place with the help of a computer already equipped with keys corresponding to the observed categories: The coders then simply press the key corresponding to "warm versus cold behaviours" and then press the number or code 5 in the above example. Indirect observations, combined with a form of instant (or “live”) surveys, are also used. For instance, families can be given a pager or their members can be “beeped” on their cell phones at random times during a day. At that point, all family members are asked to check multiple-choice questions (the same for all members) in order to gain a more holistic picture and also to compare the perspective of each family member with that of the others. For example, parents’ answers can be compared to each other, to their children’s, or siblings to each other. Questions generally ask where they are at the time of beeping, what they are doing, with whom, and what their mood or feelings are, etc. Observation studies can be designed to include a great deal of qualitative information in addition to the statistical one. Observation of families in their natural settings is a very difficult enterprise to undertake for many reasons. Families may be reluctant to participate, they may alter their daily activities to look better in the observer's eyes, or they may not have enough space at home to accommodate the observer. Naturalistic observations in public places are also possible, such as when parents and children are playing together in a park or are talking in a restaurant. Experiments At times, fieldwork can include a level of experimentation, particularly when it takes place in a laboratory setting. One can think here of the research whereby various instruments are attached to the respondents' skin to measure heart rate, pulse, perspiration levels (as in a lie-detector test), and even draw samples of blood to examine chemical changes in response to happiness or stress, for example. Couples interact around assigned tasks and the researchers can follow chemical and organic changes that take place when a stressor is introduced, when a couple disagrees, or when a couple is affectionate. Real experiments generally include at least two groups: The experimental group that is given a specific stimulus such as the possibility to watch a violent or an erotic video; also needed is a control group similar to the other one which does not receive the stimulus or the treatment in medical research. The two groups are measured on various dimensions derived from the researcher's theory both before and after the stimulus. For instance, along these lines, it has been found that parents who were asked to interact with a child who had been trained by researchers to behave in an oppositionalconflictual manner tended to drink more alcoholic beverages after the session than similar parents who had interacted with the same child who had played a very cooperative and prosocial role with them. These children who are trained by researchers on how to behave are called "child confederates." Naturalistic experiments are those that involve, for instance, the study of family functioning before a mother is diagnosed with breast cancer and after the diagnosis or even the surgery. Such families can be observed or interviewed. Their level of warmth toward each other, of help to the mother, and so on, is measured before and after a natural situation (or stimulus) occurs. Naturalistic experiments are not frequent because researchers rarely have the opportunity of knowing in advance of positive or negative changes that occur in a family. But longitudinal surveys often do catch changes, such as a divorce, and are able to compare a family's behaviour years before and even after, and also compare such a family with one in which divorce does not occur, or before and after a natural disaster. Experiments can be combined with indirect observations mentioned above. Evaluative Research Evaluative studies may involve a quasi-experimental design whereby researchers test parents, children, or families before a treatment or a social intervention is initiated and re-test them after. Generally, a control group is involved. The goal of evaluative research is to appraise the success or failure of an intervention or of several interventions which are being compared to see which is the most effective. For instance, researchers recently compared two programs designed to lower levels of wife abuse. They used pre• and post-measures as is generally the case in a well-designed evaluative study. Welfare initiatives are often evaluated but one has to be very careful and closely examine the procedures involved in the evaluation, particularly when a government agency evaluates its own programmes (self-evaluation). For instance, after WorkFare for people on social assistance was introduced in Ontario, the government reported a sharp decline in the welfare caseload of assisted families. This was touted as proof of success for this initiative. Yet, independent researchers found that only one third of the former welfare recipients had actually exited poverty. The rest were still as poor as before. At the same time, food banks were noticing an increase in the utilization of their resources by families. Obviously, what was needed was a methodology whereby WorkFare families (generally mother-headed) were followed up carefully to see how many were still employed, whether they were still poor or if they were worse off than when they were socially assisted. Reliance on just one statistics, such as a drop in the welfare rolls, can be very misleading when evaluating the success of a programme. (Evaluative research is mentioned in the textbook in Chapter 14 as it is very important with respect to outcomes of social policies.) Content and Secondary Analysis and Historical Research Secondary analysis refers to the very widespread practice whereby researchers utilize the data contained in the various surveys discussed earlier and analyze some segments of it. These analyses are secondary because they come after the original design of the surveys has occurred. The researchers who design a survey and analyze its data engage in a primary analysis: They had designed the survey to answer certain specific research questions. Researchers who engage in secondary analyses fall into two categories. Those who are knowledgeable in a field and are testing specific hypotheses derived from their theoretical perspective or are searching for an answer to a research question that has not yet been analyzed. These researchers know that a given survey contains relevant information. Then there are those who are simply in search of "publishable material" and take the data in the survey and analyze it until they find what are called "statistically significant differences" or, yet, correlations. The latter researchers are not guided by knowledge or theory and may try to find a theoretical perspective that explains what they have found after the fact, so to speak. Content analyses of, for instance, television programmes, websites, YouTube, social media, and magazine articles can be very useful to pinpoint trends that can influence children's behaviours (i.e., violence) or family relations (i.e., portrayal of parents or of the maternal or paternal role). Historical family research utilizes, in addition to public statistics, the content analysis of personal documents such as diaries, family genealogies and marking events, marriage and baptism records in churches of past centuries, advice books written for parents, advertising in old magazines and newspapers, old newspapers' accounts that pertain to family life, biographies, ledgers and bookkeeping records of farms, estates, and plantations, ship manifests and captains' logbooks, to name only the main sources for content analysis. Novels can also be content analyzed for portrayal of family. Paintings of family groups can also be examined, a method that Philippe Aries has used to demonstrate that children in earlier European centuries were part of the adult world at a relatively young age. Poetry, oral tradition, and written songs can also be sources of insight into family lifestyles and preoccupations of a given period. HELP WITH ANALYTICAL QUESTIONS (located at the end of chapter in the textbook) Question 1. Possibilities: Some instructors, for ideological reasons, see families as a "traditional" concept. Others like to emphasize that the element of choice and intimate relations seem to fulfill this perspective. However, not all family members are involved in intimate relations; some may actually be strangers but still recognize that they belong to the same family (as illustrated in a quote in the Student’s Guide and in a question also in the Guide). The emphasis on intimate relations will not cover such family members. As well, one can have intimate relations outside the family and with individuals who pass through one's life for only a brief period of time, and who never penetrate one's familial circle. Thus, families and intimate relations are two separate concepts that overlap in some instances but cover different realities in other instances. The concept of intimate relations misses the notion of institution, the intergenerational aspect of families, and the reality of extended families. As well, it is not a concept that is well adapted to the situation of many new Canadians. Question 3. Linkages of themes to theories: Social inequalities can be linked to political economy theories, structural functionalism, rational theory (capital), and feminist theories. They can also be linked to behaviour genetics in the sense that social inequalities limit individuals’ development of some of their abilities, particularly at the intellectual and personal control levels. Gender inequalities and roles originate from feminist theories and are also linked to political economy theories and to social constructions of reality. They can be linked to the developmental aspects of a family (as, for instance, one sees the continuation of the nurturing role of women throughout the stages of family development) as well as to social exchange theory and even interactional theories. Family diversity can be linked to structural functionalism or as a critique of its original conception; to political economy theories; to feminism; to social constructionism. Family responsibilities can be linked to political economy theories, social structural functionalism, feminism, social constructionism (the constructs of the roles of mothers, fathers, and children, for instance). They can also be linked to rational theories (families provide capital) and to developmental theories (responsibilities are continued, added, and transferred as families grow, shrink, and parents age). Effective community is itself derived from rational theory but can also be linked to interactional theories as well as behaviour genetics. Cultural context is related to social construction; feminism can also present a critique of our current cultural context. The interactional theme is linked to symbolic interactionism, interactive-transactional theories, developmental and behaviour genetics perspectives (in the latter case, there is an interaction between nature and nurture, between the shared and nonshared environments, and between genes and these environments which form nurture). It can also be linked to political economy theories as an explanation of the context of inequalities and its effects on family relations. SUGGESTED VIDEOS www.youtube.com probably still offers Jean Kilbournes’ Killing Us Softly—Advertising’s Image of Women. This video comes in several segments. It is related both to feminism and social constructionist perspectives and can also be used to illustrate what is meant by content analysis (of the media, in this case). Sut Jhalby’s The Codes of Gender also offers an analysis of advertising that includes elements of symbolic interactionism, particular Goffman, as well as feminism and social constructionism. The Oprah Show had an interesting hour on Sister Wives, an ideal polygamous American family, around October 13-14, 2010. SUGGESTED LIGHT READINGS The two historical novels by Bernice Morgan, situated in Newfoundland, provide a very good example of family as an institution lasting throughout a century: Random Passage (1992) and Waiting for Time (1994), St. John’s, NF: Breakwater. These two books provide a realistic depiction of the situation and are equally suggested for Chapter 3. A miniseries also resulted. SHORT ESSAY QUESTIONS 1.Discuss polygamy from a feminist perspective or even social exchange theory. Answer: Polygamy, from a feminist perspective, is often seen as a practice that perpetuates gender inequality and subordination. In many polygamous societies, women are treated as property, and their autonomy and agency are severely limited. Polygamy can exacerbate power imbalances between men and women, as it often involves one man having multiple wives, but not vice versa. This unequal distribution of spouses can lead to competition, jealousy, and conflicts among the wives, further disempowering them. From the lens of social exchange theory, polygamy can be understood as a system of exchange where men gain social status and economic benefits by having multiple wives. In such societies, women may enter into polygamous marriages due to limited economic opportunities or social pressures, viewing marriage to a wealthy or powerful man as a means of security or social advancement. However, this exchange is often unequal, with women having limited bargaining power and facing the risk of being marginalized or mistreated within the marriage. Thus, from both feminist and social exchange perspectives, polygamy perpetuates gender inequality and undermines the rights and agency of women. 2. How are social constructionism and feminism related in the study of families? Answer: Social constructionism and feminism are closely related in the study of families, as both perspectives emphasize the importance of understanding how social norms, values, and institutions shape our understanding of family structures and dynamics. Social constructionism posits that concepts such as family, gender roles, and relationships are not natural or inherent but are socially constructed through interactions and cultural practices. Similarly, feminism challenges traditional notions of family by highlighting how gender inequality and power dynamics influence family dynamics and structures. Feminist scholars draw on social constructionist theories to examine how ideas about gender and family are constructed and perpetuated within society. They explore how patriarchal ideologies shape family norms and practices, often leading to unequal power dynamics and the marginalization of women within the family unit. By analyzing the ways in which family roles, responsibilities, and relationships are socially constructed, feminists aim to challenge and change existing power structures within families and society at large. In summary, social constructionism and feminism intersect in the study of families by emphasizing the socially constructed nature of family dynamics and the role of gender in shaping these dynamics. 3. Present a case study of an age-gapped family (or an age-condensed family) focusing on the consequences of this situation both for parents and children within a developmental perspective. Answer: Case Study: Age-Gapped Family The Smith family consists of Sarah (45) and John (50), who have a 10-year-old daughter named Emily. Sarah and John had Emily later in life after struggling with infertility. The significant age gap between Emily and her parents has several consequences for both the parents and the child. For the parents: • Economic considerations: John and Sarah may have concerns about their ability to provide for Emily's future, especially considering their impending retirement. • Energy levels: As older parents, Sarah and John may have less energy to keep up with Emily's needs and activities. • Health concerns: Older parents may face health issues that younger parents typically do not experience, which can impact their ability to care for and engage with their child. For the child: • Limited social interaction: Emily may have fewer opportunities to interact with peers outside of school if her parents' friends are predominantly older. • Caretaking responsibilities: Emily may take on caretaking roles for her parents earlier than children with younger parents, potentially impacting her own developmental needs. • Grief and loss: Emily may face the loss of her parents at a younger age than her peers, leading to emotional challenges and developmental consequences. From a developmental perspective, the age gap between Emily and her parents may influence her social, emotional, and cognitive development in unique ways, requiring careful consideration and support from her family and community. 4. Use anthropological material to illustrate some of the different social constructions of motherhood that exist throughout the world. Answer: Anthropological research reveals the diverse social constructions of motherhood across different cultures. In matrilineal societies such as the Minangkabau of Indonesia, motherhood is central to social organization, and descent and inheritance are traced through the maternal line. Among the Aka and Ngandu people of Central Africa, mothers and fathers share childcare responsibilities equally, challenging the notion of motherhood as solely a female role. In contrast, among the Trobriand Islanders of Papua New Guinea, motherhood is valued, but children are primarily raised by a network of extended family members, with aunts playing a significant role in childcare. These examples demonstrate that the social construction of motherhood varies significantly across cultures and is shaped by factors such as kinship structures, gender roles, and cultural values. 5. Link the concept of the shared environment in behavior genetics to symbolic interactionism as well as interactional-transactional perspectives. Answer: The concept of the shared environment in behavior genetics can be linked to symbolic interactionism and interactional-transactional perspectives, which emphasize the importance of social interaction and interpersonal relationships in shaping human behavior. Symbolic interactionism posits that individuals develop a sense of self and identity through interactions with others. From this perspective, the shared environment, which refers to environmental factors that are common to individuals growing up in the same family, plays a crucial role in shaping how individuals perceive themselves and others. For example, family interactions, communication patterns, and parental modeling can influence children's development of social skills, emotional regulation, and cognitive processes. Similarly, interactional-transactional perspectives highlight the bidirectional influence of individuals and their environments on each other. In the context of the shared environment, this perspective emphasizes that family dynamics and relationships are not static but are shaped by ongoing interactions and transactions between family members. For instance, a child's behavior may elicit different responses from parents and siblings, which, in turn, influence the child's subsequent behavior and development. In summary, the concept of the shared environment in behavior genetics is consistent with both symbolic interactionism and interactional-transactional perspectives, as all three perspectives underscore the importance of social interactions and relationships in shaping human behavior and development. Chapter 2 History and Cultural Diversity of Canadian Families INSTRUCTOR'S INTRODUCTION This chapter presents a chronological narrative of the changes that have taken place among the first three groups of founding families: the First Nations, the Québécois and their predecessors in France, and then the British, and how the latter two have particularly affected Aboriginal families. This chapter then illustrates the increasing diversity of origins of Canadian families as new Canadians arrive in Canada from a broader spectrum of nationalities and religions. The focus is on black Canadian families, Chinese- and Indo-Canadian families. ADDITIONAL CLASS MATERIAL ON THE HISTORY OF AMERICAN FAMILIES As a comparative note, and because some overlap and similarities exist between the two societies, a brief history of families in the U.S. follows. This section presents the broad strokes or, if you wish, the general outlines of the history of American families. (Not only are there similarities and parallels between Canadian and American history but also with Australia, for instance, and New Zealand. All involve British conquests and colonial rules as well as subjugated Aboriginal groups.) Multiple Historical Roots Chronologically, the first set of civilizations belonged to the Natives: they were quite diverse by the time the first colonists arrived. In the south, some Native nations had already been in contact with Spaniards. In the northeast, other nations had been trading and even intermarried with the French. Much later on, in 1867, Alaskan Natives were included after having been under Russian rule; to this day, many still carry Russian surnames. The second set of historical roots lies in Protestant Europe, particularly England of the seventeenth century. These British Europeans became the dominant group in American society. A wide spectrum of African societies, whose members were brought to the American shores in chains, formed the third influence on American family life. The Latinos, ranging from Puerto Rico and then Florida to northern Mexico, in the latter case what became the American southwest, represented the fourth early cultural group in the formation of the American family. These diverse Latinos were already in place long before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. But it is only much later that their territories were annexed by the U.S. It is also only toward the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries that other immigrant groups, largely from Europe, began contributing to the landscape of American families. For their part, Hawaiians chronologically constitute one of the last indigenous cultural root of family life in the U.S., although their influence has remained largely isolated, both because of conquest and long distance. The cultural groups other than Europeans are now minorities; their trajectories are unique as they have often been marked differently than the British-majority group by the same historical events. For instance, the Civil War carried different implications and consequences for African Americans compared to whites. Furthermore, the life courses of minority families have been deeply affected by developments among majority families. For example, the historian Franklin (1993) discusses the role that white males have played during slavery in African-American families and in the formation of black masculine identity. Although, southern white women were affected by this reality even as mothers, overall, the historical causality flowed from white to minorities. The Colonial Period The 20,000 Puritans who arrived from England between 1620 and 1640 brought with them the traditional, nuclear family of father, mother, and children. Their dream was to establish a Godly family based on the teachings of the Bible. Families raised six or seven children who learned to read the scriptures at home and worked together as a unit of production. As the years went by and the colonists aged, grandparents co-resided with one of their adult children. But this extended family system at the household level never constituted the main form of family structure. The reason lies in the fact that life expectancy was low: Relatively few elderly parents survived until all their children were married. Further, elderly parents had many children, so that, when they lived with one, all the others constituted separate nuclear families. (The parallels with Quebec are evident here.) In terms of gender stratification, the colonial society was a masculine one and women were subordinate to men, particularly their husbands and fathers. Fathers were responsible for the moral character of their children as well as their families' honour. They were the primary parent, although mothers were the main caretakers and it is only in the eighteenth century that they replaced fathers in the area of religious instruction. Sexual relationships outside marriage were condemned but nevertheless occurred and frequently led to legal proceedings. When the early moral standards of the small cohesive communities eroded somewhat, masculine infidelity became relatively more acceptable and, in the south, common between white men and slave women. Widowed women could receive some land and manage their families: They were seen as replacing their deceased husbands. Divorces were granted on a very limited basis. Fathers typically retained custody of children, as was the case in England. In the period roughly bounded by the years 1620 and 1780 before industrialization, adults and children used to participate in the household economy. Families were units of production and much of what they needed was produced at home or in the vicinity. Everyone was involved and children contributed from an early age. Children were regarded as useful and responsible members of the family economy. Skills were acquired in one's immediate environment; children observed what their parents or host families were doing and learned by imitation as well as direct teaching. Families formed an integral part of their communities and many functions fulfilled by various social agencies in the twentieth century were taken care of at home, particularly education and social control. Fathers were responsible not only for their children's behaviours, but for that of their live-in servants as well as slaves. Thus, households, especially in the south, were more extensive than Canadian ones at the same time. Religion was a constitutive element of the family dynamics of these early Americans and was largely a masculine domain. Families Become More Diverse and Stratified As the conquest of the country moved southward and westward, families began to diversify depending upon the geographic location of settlement and the nature of their work. Small cities became stratified, as was the ca se in Canada, along social class lines that later extended into the countryside. Social classes then largely consisted of three broad categories of families: important merchants and large plantation owners at the top, then artisans, and at the lowest rung were the labouring segments of the population. At the bottom of this stratification system were the slaves. After 1780, with the advent of industrialization, the merchant and large landowner class was enlarged by entrepreneurs, and the artisan class by various types of clerical workers as well as army personnel. The lower class of workers was exploited for its labour. American families were becoming more socially diversified and rigidly stratified, their economic base was evolving, and their lifestyles were becoming more varied. In the eighteenth century, children often left home by the age of ten, particularly in poor families, to become apprentices or even servants. They were incorporated within their host family, and, in the late nineteenth century until World War II, lodgers became part of the households of the poor while servants lived in the homes of the more affluent. Thus, while the European-American family has always been predominantly nuclear rather than extended, the household unit often contained additional, unrelated persons. While the seventeenth and eighteenth century family formed an economic unit, generally working together on a farm, the nineteenth century family, although still predominantly agricultural, became more diversified as production gradually shifted outside the home to an urban landscape of factories and office jobs. Around 1820, America witnessed the development of a middle-class ideal where the family became a site of comfort. A distinction was made between the home as a private domain and the public sphere of work, the economy, and politics from which women and children were excluded. The role of the father became less intimate and more externally oriented toward the public domain. Industrialization and New Social Definitions With the rapid growth of industrialization and urbanization in the nineteenth century, the condition and social definition of childhood began to change. The new economy no longer needed child labour and concerns grew about the working conditions of poor children who toiled twelve hours a day in unsanitary environments. Moreover, romantic definitions of children as naturally innocent combined with the movement to control idle youth in urban areas resulted in a perception of children as needing protection and education. A consequence of these social developments taken together resulted in child and adolescent schooling becoming the norm. Farm children as well as many children of immigrants escaped this rule for a long time: They were needed to help their families economically. Thus, the social reconstruction of children did not reach all social classes or all ethnic groups simultaneously. The new attitude toward children as objects of emotional gratification rather than coworkers as well as the generally declining birth rate among the white middle class occurred concurrently with a new ideology of domesticity. It was characterized by an emphasis on intensive mothering and the privacy of the family. Mothers were seen as naturally endowed to pursue the moral education of their children and to nurse their sensitivities. Women's role in life was to invest their energies into the care of their children. As a reflection of these social reconstructions, after 1860, children were more frequently placed in their mother's custody following divorce. The Twentieth Century Husbands' and wives' emotional relations and companionship had become more important aspects of marriage by the early 1900s. The division of labour by gender solidified, particularly among the middle class: Mothers were relegated to the domestic sphere while fathers became the exclusive breadwinners and their families' representatives in the public domains. But again these developments occurred unevenly throughout the social class system: The working class could not exactly afford to live without the wife's economic contribution. Nor could African Americans. Boarders became more common in cities, particularly in immigrant households until the 1940s, in order to supplement families' income. Thus, the separation of the domestic sphere from the public domain was at first a white middle-class phenomenon. As the nineteenth and twentieth centuries unfolded, most families had become units of consumption: Productivity took place elsewhere and basic necessities had to be purchased. Family heads worked outside for wages or occasionally had an office or business attached to their home. Working-class children and particularly adolescents continued their contribution to the family economy as wage labourers until the 1920s and on farms until much later. White women entered the work force in great numbers during World War II in order to replace men who went abroad as soldiers. But when the war was over, women were encouraged to stay home. This situation lasted until the 1960s after which point their labour force participation continued to rise to this day. However, African-American women had long preceded their white counterparts in this respect as over 40 percent were employed already in 1900, and this figure is probably an underestimate. Then, in the 1970s, adolescents re-entered the work force in part-time jobs in the service sector, in order to acquire discretionary spending money. By 1990, 61 percent of tenth graders and 90 percent of eleventh and twelfth graders worked at some time during the school year. By the close of the twentieth century, the requirements of the labour market in terms of education had given rise to two new life stages. First, that of young adulthood--which stretched adolescent dependence on parents longer. Second, that of preadolescence, largely the result of consumerism and media influences which sold lifestyles to children. Thus, children became more differentiated along age lines and more isolated from other age groups, including adults. ADDITIONAL CLASS MATERIAL ON ITALIAN-CANADIAN FAMILIES By coming to this country to pursue new lives and find new opportunities, immigrant groups other than the French and British have transformed the Canadian social and cultural mosaic. Italian Canadians provide a telling example of an older immigrant group with unique cultural traditions and family structure that, over time, has melded into Canadian society while retaining many of its traditions and adhering to the importance of family. Italians began to arrive in significant numbers in the late 19th century. Between 1870 and 1900, Italian immigration to Canada was steady if unspectacular; by 1901, there were 10,834 Italian Canadians here. Between 1900 and 1914, however, immigration exploded: By 1911, Italian immigrants to Canada numbered 45,963. Although the First World War reduced immigration, once peace returned, Italian immigration resumed: The prosperous 1920s saw 26,183 new arrivals. In the 1930s, as immigration was restricted to protect Canadian workers during the Great Depression, only 3,898 Italians arrived. Then in 1940, Italy’s fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini, aligned Italy with Nazi Germany, and Canada, as an ally of Great Britain, went to war against Germany and Italy. The immigration of Italians came to a halt. After the Second World War, Italian immigration to Canada resumed, and by 1981, over 500,000 Italians had come to this country—an immigrant group second in size only to that from the British Isles. Since then, Italy’s economic situation has improved markedly via the European Economic Community. Consequently, Italian immigration to Canada and the U.S. has declined. Still, despite lower immigration rates, Italian Canadians retain a significant presence in Canada, numbering over one million. Indeed, after the United Kingdom and China, Italy is the third most common birthplace of immigrants to Canada. Italians have traditionally placed great importance on family life and especially on family solidarity between all blood relatives, in-law relations, and godparents. “One’s personal identity was derived from his family, and family membership was essential in terms of defining one’s place in society.... The strength of the norm of solidarity meant that the disgrace of one member of the family affected everyone—a disobedient child was the concern not only of the parents but of the extended kin as well.” The extended family was headed by a male capo di famiglia— usually the oldest married male member—who made the decisions about all family matters, including children’s education, dowries, and funeral expenses. Although the Italian family was patriarchal, women were not without power. Even in Italy, a woman could own property and contribute economically to her family by working part-time in the fields. She also retained her dowry after marriage, which gave her economic leverage and went to her children, not her husband, upon her death. Many aspects of traditional Italian culture and family life were transplanted to Canada. Primarily from poor and agrarian southern Italy, early Italian immigrants came largely as families. Unmarried Italian men who decided to stay in Canada soon contacted their families in Italy in order to find wives. As Ramirez (1989:12) notes, early Italian immigrants brought with them “a notion of the family that rested on strict norms of authority, mutual responsibilities and honour. The family was viewed essentially as a cooperative enterprise whose material and emotional well-being was dependent on the specific roles that the various members were expected to perform.” Men’s responsibilities centred on providing for their families. Although the first waves of immigrants who reached Canada were largely peasants and farm labourers—and some Italian farming communities were founded in places like Naples, Alberta—the majority of men worked in industrial jobs: mining, logging, and building and maintaining the railway. Women, on the other hand, were relegated to the domestic realm and were responsible for producing homemade articles (both for their families and to exchange for other goods and services); processing and preserving food; raising domestic animals; and tending their gardens. As in Italy, women also continued to be responsible for maintaining kinship ties, particularly with female relatives, and for nurturing their children. “In a world where the family status was judged not by the occupation of the father but by the signs of family well-being which emanated from the household, the mother played an important role in securing that status.” The extended family was still evident in many Italian-Canadian homes after the Second World War. Although these firstgeneration immigrant Italian women were discouraged from entering the wage-labour force, it was not unusual for them to take in boarders and thus contribute to the family earnings. At first, new immigrants brought with them Old World notions such as “pride in one’s village or regional origin”; identity as Canadians remained elusive. However, as they began to see Canada as a land of opportunity, many second- and third-generation Italians conformed to the social norms of the English-speaking majority, pursued an education, and began moving into the middle classes as restaurateurs, small business owners, and professionals. Migrating to cities— primarily Toronto and Montreal—they tended first to settle in areas with low real estate prices. Consequently, there emerged in every major city a “Little Italy” with Italian shops, restaurants, and a strong social life built around the Roman Catholic Church and social and cultural organizations. Post-1945 immigration also says much about the cohesive nature of Italian-Canadian society built around family, kinship, and friends. By 1950, the federal government’s more liberal immigration policies allowed Canadian citizens to sponsor family members, including cousins, as new immigrants. In this way, and wanting to reunite their families, members of the established Italian-Canadian community brought family members from war-torn Italy to Canada, where housing and employment awaited them. In the post-war economic boom in Canada, labourers were needed in construction and in the burgeoning industries in southern Ontario. Thus, if an Italian bricklayer brought his brother or a cousin to Canada, his brother or cousin would also work as a bricklayer. As these new Canadians became established, they in turn sponsored other immigrants to Canada. In his study on Italian immigrants in Alberta, Aliaga (1994) found that family was a key factor in the decision to immigrate to Canada and to adjust to the new environment once they were here. More than 90 percent of all Italian immigrants who came to Canada between 1946 and 1967 were sponsored by a family member who was already residing here. This enhanced the already existing notion that, despite social divisions in the working-, middle-, and even upper-classes, Italian Canadians constituted a distinct ethnic community in which family was central. Admittedly, the majority of new Italian Canadians settled in Toronto and its hinterland; but because of overall increased immigration, other Italian communities across the entire country expanded proportionately. Italian immigrant husbands tended to be more educated than their wives, but both were less educated than the general Canadian population. This situation is indicative of the low levels of education that Italians had when they immigrated to this country. As late as the 1980s, 50 percent of Italian-Canadian husbands had less than a Grade 9 education, compared to 22 percent of Canadian husbands. Likewise, 56 percent of Italian immigrant wives had less than Grade 9 education, compared to 21 percent of Canadian wives. However, only 8 and 10 percent of younger Italian males and females, respectively, had less than a Grade 9 education, indicating that significant improvements were being made in levels of education. Howell et al. (2001) reported from their study on ethnic groups in Toronto and Montreal that the majority of Italian men who immigrated to Canada after the Second World War were employed in non-professional occupations that required long hours and backbreaking toil. Despite these hardships and their lower educational levels, the majority of families were economically successful. Italian Canadians placed great importance on owning their own home and, although they tended to be employed in lower status occupations and earned less than the general population, they were more likely than other Canadians to own their own home, even an expensive one. As Ramirez (1989:14) notes: “This ancestral desire for a measure of economic and psychic security to be concretized in the possession of a house became part of Italian migration folklore: during the post-World War Two era, one of the most popular songs in Italy spoke of ‘a little house in Canada which had a pool with fish inside, was surrounded by lots of lily flowers, and was admired by passers-by.’” The economic success of Italian immigrant families has been due in part to women’s economic contributions. Given that Italian immigrant men earned considerably less on average than Canadian men, women’s salaries in the post-1945 era were crucial to a family’s economic wellbeing. After the Second World War, large numbers of young Italian immigrant women entered the paid labour force, indicating greater gender equality among second and subsequent generations of Italian immigrants. Because of their lower educational levels, most Italian immigrant women gained employment in the clothing, food, and light–manufacturing industries, and in service jobs such as cleaning. Whereas 52 percent of Canadian-educated females were in the labour force, 63 percent of Canadian-educated Italian females were employed. In one instance, Aliaga (1994) found that 84.7 percent of married Italian women in Calgary were either employed or had been in the workforce. Many employed Italian mothers relied on family members, friends, and neighbours to help with the children in their absence. Increased participation by females in the labour force is not the only change that has taken place amongst Italian Canadians. Research indicates that, as early as the 1950s, second and subsequent generations of Italian immigrants increasingly detached themselves from traditional Italian cultural values and family structures and assimilated into the Canadian population. There has been a steady increase in the number of Italians who speak English rather than Italian in their homes, and more Italian Canadians have married non-Italians. Where first-generation families tended to be large, families of second and third generations have become smaller; though still strongly attached to the Church, younger women do not want the same kinds of domestic burdens that affected their mothers and grandmothers. Canadian-educated Italians, who are typically second- and subsequent-generation Italians, are more likely to be single (never married) and to have lower fertility rates than foreign-educated Italians, who tend to be first-generation immigrants. Evidence now suggests that as immigration has slowed and Italian Canadians have rejected large families, the Italian-Canadian community has begun shrinking relative to the rest of Canada’s population which has been increased by new arrivals. Ethnic exogamy (marrying a spouse of a different ethnic origin) amongst Italian Canadians is also contributing to assimilation. Ethnic exogamy amongst Italian-Canadian men has increased from 19 percent in 1921 to 33 percent in the 1990s. However, the percentage of ethnic exogamy amongst second and subsequent generations of Italian immigrants is even more telling—approximately 70 percent of Canadian born Italians are married to a non-Italian spouse, compared to 20 percent for foreign-born Italian Canadians. Often, these changes have created intergenerational conflict, as many first-generation Italian immigrants do not understand how their children and grandchildren can abandon the most cherished values of their culture. When first-generation immigrants were asked what they were most troubled about, they tended to speak “of their worries about their children’s (and grandchildren’s) marital prospects and adherence to Italian religion, language and culture.” For the most part, Italian parents hoped that their children would marry other Italians from good families or, at the very least, marry Catholics from good families. As two students explain it, “My brother made my parents very happy because he married a ‘good’ Italian girl whereas my sister myself and my younger brother have been disappointments here.... Mind you we are all engaged or going out with persons of a better social class than us and this would make other parents happy but not mine.... My parents don’t even notice that my brother’s marriage is rather shaky....” “My parents are second-generation Canadian and it was impossible for them to marry a person that was not Italian and my mother therefore did not marry the man she loved. But us three kids will marry as we wish even though I am fortunate enough to have met a nice and kind Italian fellow who on top of it all is a real hunk and my parents are happy with whoever we bring home provided they come from good families. But there are limits and even though I didn’t mind, when my brother brought a girl from Jamaica home, this didn’t go over well....” Despite the many ways that Italian immigrants have assimilated into Canadian culture, they have also preserved important aspects of Italian culture and the primacy of family. The daily activities of churches and community centres within Italian communities have been pivotal in keeping individuals of Italian descent connected and in sustaining various cultural practices. Large Italian weddings also provide a means of ethnic solidarity. “Guest lists of four hundred to six hundred people, generous gifts to the bridal couple, elaborate meals and drinks, and entertainment at the reception have all become cultural expressions of Italian spirit in Canada” (Howell et al., 2001:138). The Italian-Canadian community remains a vibrant and cohesive ethnic group built around the family and a strong sense of culture and heritage. HELP WITH ANALYTICAL QUESTIONS (Located at the end of Chapter 2 in the textbook). The analytical questions for this chapter 2 are fairly straightforward and involve several options. SUGGESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION, PROJECTS, PAPERS Write a paper on other minority-group families in Canada with the help of the Internet/ newspapers/magazines. Analyze the contents of newscasts or newspapers pertaining to non-white families. What facts are reported? How can these facts be explained (i.e., theories related to social inequalities, social construction, social capital)? What conclusions could these facts lead to? What facts are not reported? In multi-ethnic classes, students could be asked to think how Chinese-Canadian (or Indian or Iranian) families, for instance, differ from those in Hong Kong or Shangai or Beijing (or New Delhi or Teheran). Different waves of Chinese emigration have brought to Canada different Chinese families: Those who left Hong Kong in the 1970s were different from those who left in the late 1990s, and from those who are now moving to Canada directly from mainland China. Sending countries do change so that the families which arrive also differ throughout the decades. One cannot assume that all families that originate from one country, but have arrived at different times and thus belong to different cohorts, have lived through exactly the same experiences and that they are the same. The sociohistorical contexts change in home countries. So do the immigrants they produce. As well, some immigrants originate from a rural background while others come from large cities, which bring additional differences. The issue of arranged (and even forced) marriages can be discussed in this chapter or in the previous one in conjunction with polygamy—although arranged marriages occur in societies and groups that are not polygamous, such as India and among very orthodox Jews. The issue of female feticide, particularly in China and India, can be discussed here or later in Chapter 8 on Family Formation. In this chapter, it can be discussed in terms of feminism, while in later chapters it can be discussed in terms of consequences for the population. SUGGESTED WEBLINK Regarding topic 4 above, Human Rights Watch presents information on honour killings in India. www.hrw.org/ Search: honor killings, India CHAPTER LINKAGES Concepts presented in Chapter 2 (such as patrilineal, neolocal, clans, etc) can be added to those presented in Chapter 1 in terms of family types. Arranged marriages can be added to the type of unions presented in Table 1.1. Chapters 1 and 2 complement each other in terms of definitions. The theme of family diversity heralded in Chapter 1 forms one of the cornerstones of Chapter 2, both historically and cross-culturally. Chapter 3 Contemporary Changes in Family Life INSTRUCTOR'S INTRODUCTION This chapter extends the study of the recent history of Canadian families in two ways. First, it situates family responsibilities within the current sociohistorical context. Second, it includes three salient aspects of technological evolution that have had a huge impact on family life: The audiovisual media in general, the Internet, and smart cell phones. The Internet and smart cell phones are in their infancy and one can only glimpse at some of their future consequences for families' way of living. The media constitutes a key cultural context that impacts heavily on individual family members because it presents constructions of reality and exacts time that could be spent interacting with family members. Children, adolescents, and even adults often evaluate themselves and their family life according to what is presented on television, in films, videos, websites, and now even the social media. This influence is underrated, in part because it is so complex to study. And it is complex to study because it has become so pervasive: For instance, even children who do not watch television are affected by it via their peers who do. And, now, children who do not have a cell phone often feel “left out” compared to their peers. In turn, this technology magnifies consumerism and creates new needs. I often observe mothers driving their SUVs while talking on the phone with a child next to them-even with a child who is herself or himself on a cell phone! Or fathers or mothers walking with their children but interacting with their cell phones. Or, yet, couples eating together at a restaurant while texting others. What does this do to family dynamics? Or one can observe adolescents walking with their parents and the young ones have a headphone and are listening to music or yet are on the cell themselves. Again, what does this do? And how does this relates to the material on children's age segregation? Many students have known nothing else in the past few years and consider these observations to be normal: A bit of recent history is necessary to make them understand that things have not always been like this and that they do not need to be like this. All of the above can be used as topics for class discussion as are the following materials and material in the Student’s Study Guide. Please note that the answer to the question asked by students in the Student Guide can serve as a basis for many similar questions that students raise about themselves or others they know. Similar questions are presented in other chapters of the Guide. ADDITIONAL CLASS MATERIAL ON INDIVIDUALISM I am including two sections for which I had no space in the original textbook. Please, again, note that the references have been deleted for space considerations. This material can also be used for class discussions. Individuation, Individualism, and Self-Esteem (related to social constructionism: could also go with Chapter 1 and Chapter 10 on the Parent-Child Relationship and Child Socialization) Individuation is a salient value expressed in clinical, child development, and family systems textbooks. This concept refers to the "fact" that, beginning with adolescence, children have to "separate" from their parents, and develop their own individuality apart from family membership. It is said that families are "enmeshed" (a “bad” thing) when individuation does not take place. Individuation is presented as a necessary life stage and as a universal one. The reality is that individuation is a value and a social construct that is not shared across the world, nor even among all western countries (see Kagitcibasi, 2007, in textbook). Even in Canada, individuation is a less important goal for parents to achieve for their children among recent immigrant families. It is often through a certain level of "enmeshment" or familial solidarity that Aboriginal and black youth, for instance, develop a sense of security. Individuation has also been critiqued in feminist theories as a male-biased conception or social construction of human development. Women "individuate" themselves less than men: As we see in many chapters, women remain more tied to their family than men. This may be strength rather than a weakness. Naturally, individuation stems from individualism or personal autonomy as salient characteristics that are highly valued in North American and British psychology. These concepts mean that family members want to be able to make decisions for themselves as separate individuals and are less concerned about the consequences for the family system itself. Within such a value context, the approach to family life has become more voluntaristic, that is, starting a family is more of a choice than in the past and so is staying within its boundaries. As we see later, in Chapter 12, individualism is certainly one of the reasons why fathers who divorce or who produce children nonmaritally are less committed to their children: For them, the relationship often becomes a matter of personal choice rather than responsibility. The emphasis on individualism in civic and family life is also related to the valuation of self-esteem as an important characteristic to develop in children. There is actually a near cult aspect to the valuation of self-esteem in the scientific literature of English expression that has no counterpart in other languages. Fortunately, there have been excellent critiques on the worship of self-esteem and its presumed worthy social effects. More recent research has even found that, contrary to what used to be believed, aggressive children, delinquents, and certain teen mothers do not necessarily have low self-esteem as a starting point--quite the contrary. (In some research, low self-esteem had been "found" to be the source of delinquency, etc.) More recent research actually shows that children whose self-esteem has been built out of proportion of their merits do not have a realistic appraisal of their own abilities relative to those of others and are less likely to "mend their ways." Many have an exaggerated sense of self which prevents them from learning socially acceptable rules of behaviour and from respecting others' rights. Or, yet, to feel guilty when they transgress (see Twenge and Campbell, 2009, in textbook). CHAPTER LINKAGES Four of the themes heralded in Chapter 1 are pursued in Chapter 3: 1. The theme of family responsibilities constitutes several sections of Chapter 3. At the theoretical level, family responsibilities are related to political economy theories. 2 (a). Family diversity also appears in the section on family responsibilities along with that of social inequalities. It is one of the theses of these sections that many families are prevented from shouldering their responsibilities because they have an unequal access to social resources. Other families become unequal because they are socially constructed as deviant (same-sex parent families in some areas). Thus, families that are "diverse" as well as those that suffer from social inequalities (economic and racial, for example) are at a disadvantage in their ability to fulfill the institutionalized functions of their families. 2 (b). Family diversity is highlighted in transnational families and military families: These families extend the meaning of diversity. The cultural theme is reflected in the entire presentation on the media and family life. The social construction of children continues to be a focus of this chapter--although often as an underlying current--and as such links both with Chapters 1 and 2. HELP WITH ANALYTICAL QUESTION Question 1. The topic of intimate relations does not cover family responsibilities or all of the functions that families, as an institution, fulfill. This again indicates that, while the two concepts of intimate relations and families overlap, they are not necessarily identical. SUGGESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION, PROJECTS, PAPERS (Other exercises can be found in the section on Relevance to Students’ Own Lives in the Guide.) Students could do a content analysis of a number of television programmes in terms of themes, behaviours observed, or social definitions and then relate these to family life and/or personal development. Several theoretical perspectives from Chapter 1 could be utilized to frame this analysis. Students could be asked to keep a log of their observations on the role that cell phones play in family interactions, both in public and private places. SUGGESTED READING An interesting article by David Gorski about “pseudoscience,” a critique of shows such as Oprah’s, in The Toronto Star, Sunday, June 7, 2009, in the Insight section. SHORT ESSAY QUESTIONS 1. Why is it said that children's worlds are age-segregated? Answer: Children's worlds are often described as age-segregated because they tend to interact and socialize primarily with peers who are of a similar age. This age segregation occurs in various settings, including schools, playgrounds, and extracurricular activities. There are several reasons why children's worlds are age-segregated: 1. Developmental Similarity: Children of the same age often have similar interests, abilities, and developmental needs, making it easier for them to relate to and interact with one another. 2. Socialization Process: Age-segregated settings allow children to develop social skills, form friendships, and establish a sense of belonging within their peer group. These interactions play a crucial role in children's social and emotional development. 3. Peer Culture: Children's worlds are shaped by a peer culture that includes shared norms, values, and activities. Age-segregated settings provide children with opportunities to participate in peer culture and develop a sense of identity within their peer group. Overall, age segregation in children's worlds helps facilitate socialization, peer interactions, and the development of a peer culture that is distinct from adult culture. 2. Give at least two changes in family life that seem to be related to the penetration of television in homes. Answer: The penetration of television into homes has had a significant impact on family life, leading to several changes, including: 1. Altered Family Dynamics: Television has become a central feature of many households, influencing family routines and interactions. For example, the introduction of television dinners and family viewing time has changed mealtime dynamics and increased family time spent in front of the television. 2. Shift in Socialization Patterns: Television has become a primary source of entertainment and information for many families, influencing children's socialization patterns and leisure activities. The availability of children's programming has led to increased screen time among children, impacting their play, reading habits, and outdoor activities. Overall, the penetration of television into homes has transformed family life by altering family routines, socialization patterns, and leisure activities. 3. How does Facebook (or cell phones) affect children? Justify your answer with the help of symbolic interactionism from Chapter 1. Answer: Facebook, cell phones, and other forms of social media can have both positive and negative effects on children, which can be understood through the lens of symbolic interactionism. Positive effects: • Enhanced communication: Social media platforms allow children to stay connected with friends and family, regardless of geographical distance, fostering social bonds and relationships. • Expanded social networks: Social media can provide children with opportunities to meet and interact with peers who share similar interests and hobbies, allowing them to form new friendships and communities. Negative effects: • Social comparison: Children may compare themselves to others based on the content they see on social media, leading to feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem, and negative body image. • Cyberbullying: Social media platforms can be used as tools for cyberbullying, with harmful effects on children's mental health and well-being. Symbolic interactionism emphasizes the importance of social interactions and the meanings that individuals attribute to these interactions. On social media, children engage in symbolic interactions through likes, comments, and shares, which shape their perceptions of themselves and others. These interactions can have a profound impact on children's self-concept, identity development, and social relationships. 4. Use political economy theories to prove that the family is not declining. Answer: Political economy theories provide insights into the ways in which economic structures and power dynamics shape family life. Contrary to the idea that the family is declining, political economy theories argue that the family continues to play a central role in society, albeit in changing ways. 1. Capitalist Economy and the Family: Capitalism relies on the family as a unit of consumption, production, and socialization. Families provide a workforce for capitalist production, consumers for capitalist markets, and socialization for future generations of workers and consumers. As such, the family is a crucial institution for the reproduction of capitalist society. 2. Welfare State and the Family: The welfare state plays a key role in supporting and regulating family life. Social policies such as child benefits, parental leave, and subsidized childcare help support families and ensure the reproduction of the labor force. These policies demonstrate the continued importance of the family as a social institution. Overall, political economy theories highlight the ways in which economic structures and policies shape family life and demonstrate that the family remains a central institution in modern society, despite changes in family structure and dynamics. Instructor Manual for Changing Families: Relationships in Context Anne-Marie Ambert 9780321968586