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Sociology(of(Marriage(and(Family!
Marianne!Ryan+Go!Navada!(2011)!
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Permission!is!granted!to!copy,!distribute!and/or!modify!this!document!under!the!
terms!of!the!GNU!Free!Documentation!License,!Version!1.3!or!any!later!version!
published!by!the!Free!Software!Foundation;!with!the!Invariant!Sections!being!
author’s!analyses,!no!Front+Cover!Texts!and!one!Back+Cover!Texts:!“Sociology!of!
Marriage!and!Family!by!Marianne!Ryan+Go!Navada.”!A!copy!of!the!license!is!
included!in!the!section!entitled!"GNU!Free!Documentation!License".!
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! ! 1! Chapter(1(.....................................................................................................................(4!
Introduction!.................................................................................................................................................................!4!
Myths&and&Cultural&Constructs&.............................................................................................................................&4!
Defining&the&Family&...................................................................................................................................................&5!
Family!and!Social!Change!....................................................................................................................................!11!
Sociological!Perspectives!....................................................................................................................................!12!
Important!Concepts!...............................................................................................................................................!12!
Gender&Roles&and&Sex&.............................................................................................................................................&12!
Economic&and&Political&Structures&...................................................................................................................&13!
Why!Study!the!Family?!.........................................................................................................................................!13!
Public&Policy&...............................................................................................................................................................&13!
Personal&Reasons&.....................................................................................................................................................&14!
Works&Cited&................................................................................................................................................................&14!
Chapter(2(...................................................................................................................(14!
The!Social!Context!of!Marriage!.........................................................................................................................!14!
Sexual&Possession&.....................................................................................................................................................&15!
Economic&and&Intergenerational&Property&Rights&....................................................................................&17!
Economic!Structures!.............................................................................................................................................!18!
Hunting&and&Gathering&.........................................................................................................................................&18!
Agricultural&Societies&............................................................................................................................................&19!
Industrial&Societies&.................................................................................................................................................&20!
PostNIndustrial&..........................................................................................................................................................&22!
Political!Determinism!...........................................................................................................................................!22!
Measuring!Women’s!Power!...............................................................................................................................!24!
Diversity!in!American!Families!.........................................................................................................................!24!
African&American&Families&..................................................................................................................................&24!
Works&Cited&................................................................................................................................................................&26!
Chapter(3(...................................................................................................................(26!
Works&Cited&................................................................................................................................................................&30!
Chapter(4(...................................................................................................................(30!
The!Class!Structure!................................................................................................................................................!35!
Poor/Working&Poor&or&Lower&Class&................................................................................................................&35!
Working&Class&...........................................................................................................................................................&36!
Middle&Class&...............................................................................................................................................................&36!
Upper&Class&.................................................................................................................................................................&36!
Patterns!for!the!Lower!Class,!Working!and!Middle!Class!.....................................................................!39!
Parenting&and&Social&Class:&The&Ongoing&Debate&.....................................................................................&40!
Works&Cited&................................................................................................................................................................&41!
Chapter(5(...................................................................................................................(41!
Defining!Race!............................................................................................................................................................!41!
African!Americans!or!Blacks!..............................................................................................................................!45!
Marriage&Patterns&...................................................................................................................................................&47!
Public&Assistance&and&African&Americans&.....................................................................................................&52!
The&Middle&Class&Black&Family&..........................................................................................................................&54!
Mexican!Americans!................................................................................................................................................!55!
Culture&..........................................................................................................................................................................&55!
Asian!Americans!......................................................................................................................................................!56! ! 2! Works&Cited&................................................................................................................................................................&58! Chapter(6(...................................................................................................................(59!
Why!do!People!Divorce?!......................................................................................................................................!60!
Income!and!Divorce!...............................................................................................................................................!64!
Economic&Partnership&...........................................................................................................................................&64!
Economic&Independence&.......................................................................................................................................&64!
Equal&Dependence&...................................................................................................................................................&64!
Role&Collaboration&..................................................................................................................................................&64!
Results&..........................................................................................................................................................................&66!
Children!and!Divorce!.............................................................................................................................................!67!
Long&Term&Effects&of&Divorce&.............................................................................................................................&68!
Works!Cited!...............................................................................................................................................................!70!
!
! ! 3! ! Marriage,(Family,(and(Traditions!
Navada,!Marianne!Ryan+Go.!2011.!“Marriage,!Family,!and!Traditions.”! Chapter(1 (
Introduction((
!
Sociology!is!an!academic!discipline!that!seeks!to!explain!group!behavior.!
Sociologists!focus!on!patterns!of!behavior!demonstrated!by!a!group!for!a!period!of!
time.!The!emphasis!on!group,'patterns,'and'institutional'effect!differentiates!us!
from!psychology.!Psychologists!generally!provide!an!individualistic!assessment!of!
behavior,!but!sociologists!concern!themselves!with!a!sustained!behavior!
demonstrated!not!by!one!person!but!by!a!collective.!Given!this!analytical!
framework,!sociologists!find!answers!to!questions!regarding!social!phenomenon!by!
looking!at!environment.!For!example,!in!2009,!the!United!States!(US)!fertility!rate!
(the!average!number!of!children!born!to!a!woman!in!a!lifetime)!is!2.1,!in!
Switzerland,!1.5,!and!in!Venezuela,!2.5.1!A!sociologist!would!argue!that!
environmental!forces!whether!this!pertains!to!the!law,!cultural!norms!and!beliefs,!
economic!issues,!politics,!gender!roles,!religion,!possibly!explain!these!differences.!
Notice!how!the!causal!factors!are!beyond!the!individual—they!are!social.!This!
example!uses!women!in!specific!countries!as!a!group,!but!keep!in!mind!that!
groupings!exists!even!within!these!national!boundaries.!These!differences!can!occur!
either!longitudinally!(different!time!frames)!and!cross!culturally.!So!in!the!US,!an!
American!family!existing!in!the!1920s!will!exhibit!dissimilar!patterns!compared!to!a!
contemporary!American!family.!Even!within!families!in!the!21st!century,!an!upper!
class!family,!for!example,!will!experience!a!different!trajectory!than!one!from!a!
working!class!family.!!
Keep!in!mind!that!sociologist!rarely!deal!with!absolutes.!We!always!think!in!
terms!of!probabilities.!Based!on!the!fertility!rates!mentioned!above,!women!from!
Venezuela!generally!have!more!children!than!women!from!the!US,!but!this!does!not!
mean!that!all!Venezuelan!women!have!more!children!than!American!women!!For!
example,!we!find!that!divorce!rates!are!correlated!with!age!of!marriage.!Couples!that!
marry!at!a!younger!age!tend!to!have!higher!divorce!rates.!This!does!not!mean!that!
couples!who!marry!before!the!average!age!of!marriage!will!divorce.!This!just!means!
that!the!probability!of!divorce!decreases!as!age!of!marriage!increases.!!
!
Myths(and(Cultural(Constructs(
!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1!Source:!World!Bank!Data!!
! 4! !
Myths!permeate!our!collective!understanding!of!marriage!and!families.!Some!
of!the!myths!may!include:!!
• Women!before!were!oppressed!and!powerless!and!contemporary!Western!
women!have!more!power!in!the!household.!!!
• Divorce!was!uncommon.!!
• Society!valued!marriage!and!this!is!not!the!case!anymore.!!!
• Marrying!for!love!leads!to!satisfactory!marriages.!!
!
The!persistence!of!these!myths!relate!to!our!social!definition!of!traditional!
marriage!and!families.!“Traditional”!is!a!concept!that!society!uses!very!casually,!yet!
very!few!define!what!exactly!this!means.!In!contemporary!US!society,!when!we!talk!
about!the!“traditional”!American!family,!what!one!is!referring!to!is!the!1950s!family.!
This!entails!a!male!head!of!household,!a!housewife,!children,!and!home!ownership.!
The!question!for!us!is,!why!the!1950s?!Why!not!the!1920s?!Why!not!1830s?!The!
point!is!that!what!we!define!as!traditional,!as!a!society!is!culturally!motivated.!
Meaning,!tradition!is!not!about!the!“oldest”!practice;!rather,!what!we!value!as!
traditions!in!the!US!are!highly!strategic!points!in!time.!Very!rarely!will!you!
encounter!an!American!defining!“traditional!American!family”!as!the!one!practiced!
by!George!Washington!in!the!eighteenth!century,!wherein!the!households!for!the!
elites!included!their!slaves.!!The!1950s!family!requires!a!robust!economy.!Even!if!
politicians!and!moralists!advocate!a!traditional!family,!this!is!difficult!to!achieve!
when!most!families!need!dual5incomes!to!survive.!It!takes!a!certain!income!level!
and!job!stability!to!maintain!and!one+income!household.!One!of!the!conundrums!of!
contemporary!American!politics!involves!the!glorification!of!the!“traditional”!
American!family!while!cutting!back!social!services!that!help!families!achieve!these!
goals.!!!
!
Defining(the(Family(
!
The!concept!of!cultural!construction,!applied!to!families!show!that!societies!
in!different!points!in!time!and!across!culture!have!defined!“family”!in!many!ways.!!
Families!can!be!monogamous!(a!marriage!system!in!which!people!are!only!allowed!
one!spouse)!or!polygamous!(a!marriage!system!in!which!men!and/or!women!are!
allowed!to!have!one!spouse!at!a!time.)!Even!these!labels!can!be!deceiving.!In!the!US!
for!example,!a!majority!of!marriages!might!be!monogamous,!but!sexual!relations!
might!extend!these!boundaries,!either!covertly!or!with!consent.!The!US!census!
defines!a!family!as!“a!group!of!two!people!or!more!(one!of!whom!is!the!
householder)!related!by!birth,!marriage,!or!adoption!and!residing!together;!all!such!
people!(including!related!subfamily!members)!are!considered!as!members!of!one!
family.”2!Note!how!the!census!does!not!place!great!importance!on!sex,!but!the!
current!debate!on!gay!marriage!shows!that!some!Americans!find!sexuality!as!an!
integral!part!in!defining!what!a!family!composes!of.!In!sociology!we!stay!away!from!
defining!which!types!of!families!are!right!or!wrong;!rather!our!goal!is!to!understand!
why!families!change.!Why!are!outcomes!different?!How!do!families!function?!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2!US!Census!
! 5! Cultural'relativity!refers!to!a!way!of!thinking!that!acknowledges!differences!
in!cultural!beliefs.!For!sociologists,!research!work!assesses!the!circumstances!that!
engender!certain!practices!without!making!any!moral!judgments.!We!look!for!
outcomes!and!patterns.!Moreover,!a!more!analytical!understanding!of!our!own!
practices!reveals!the!complexities!of!our!own!social!practices.!For!example,!in!the!
US,!we!consider!monogamy!the!norm,!but!this!term!is!used!quite!loosely.!We!expect!
people!to!be!monogamous!when!agreed!upon!by!the!people!in!the!relationship,!but!
people!can!have!different!partners!at!different!points!in!their!life.!The!prevalence!of!
cheating,!of!course,!makes!the!issue!more!complicated.!What!we!practice!in!the!US!is!
public!monogamy.!If!it!is!illegal!in!the!US!to!practice!polygamy!but!not!cheating!or!
having!sexual!relations!with!a!person!other!than!a!spouse!or!a!partner,!then!what!
does!that!say!about!marriage?!Data!on!infidelity!is!always!difficult!to!collect,!but!
author!and!researcher,!Peggy!Vaughan!finds!that!10%!of!“married!people!say!that!
they!have!had!sex!outside!their!marriage”!in!a!given!year,!while!some!surveys!show!
that!“two+thirds!and!higher”!have!affairs.3!In!a!study!conducted!by!the!University!of!
Vermont,!98%!of!men!and!80%!of!women!“reported!having!imagined!a!sexual!
encounter!with!someone!other!than!their!partner.”!Interestingly,!“majority!of!people!
who!discover!a!cheating!spouse!remain!married!to!that!person!for!years!afterward.”!
For!sociologists,!what!is!of!interest!regarding!infidelity!is!that!outside!factors!are!a!
better!predictor!of!one’s!probability!of!cheating:!opportunity.!Regardless!of!how!
happy!or!satisfied!a!couple!may!be,!temptation!and!opportunities!negate!a!happy!
relationship.!Technology!has!allowed!us!to!expand!these!opportunities!to!
unprecedented!levels.!Studies!show!that!Facebook!and!other!online!social!
networking!sites!are!becoming!a!variable!in!explaining!divorce.4!!
In!the!US,!polygamy!is!socially!more!accepted!than!polyandry!(woman!
having!more!than!one!husband).!In!fact,!polyandry!has!entered!the!American!psyche!
through!popular!culture:!TV!series!and!reality!shows.!Polygamy,!however,!is!illegal!
in!the!US,!even!in!Utah.!According!to!the!Utah!Office!of!the!Attorney!General,!as!of!
2011,!“Polygamy!is!illegal!in!Utah!and!forbidden!by!the!Arizona!constitution.!
However,!law!enforcement!agencies!in!both!states!have!decided!to!focus!on!crimes!
within!polygamous!communities!that!involve!child!abuse,!domestic!violence!and!
fraud.”5!Religion!plays!an!important!role!in!defining!polygamous!families!in!the!US!
and!the!utilitarian!benefits!are!rarely!discussed.!Another!polygamous!group!in!the!
US!is!the!Somali!refugee!immigrants.!What!is!interesting!about!their!story!is!that!a!
man!who!comes!here!in!a!polygamous!marriage!is!made!to!choose!a!wife.!As!a!
result,!the!divorced!wife/wives!and!her!children!now!have!a!single+parent!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
3!Carey, Benedict, and Tara Parker-pope. 2009. “Marriage Stands Up for Itself.” The New York Times, June
28 (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/fashion/28marriage.html).
4! “Facebook fuelling divorce, research claims. 2011.” The Telegraph.
(http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/6857918/Facebook-fuelling-divorce-researchclaims.html).
5!“Utah Attorney General - Mark Shurtleff - Utah Attorney General - Mark Shurtleff - Protecting Against
Polygamy.” (http://attorneygeneral.utah.gov/polygamy.html). !
! 6! household.!In!fact,!Somali!men!residing!in!the!US!most!often!choose!to!have!only!one!
wife!since!maintaining!a!family!with!one!wife!is!already!financially!taxing.!!
(
(
http://youtu.be/d4yjrDSvze0!
Video'151:'Polyandry'in'Asia'(4'min.)' What!are!the!economic!benefits!of!polyandry!in!these!harsh!regions?!Why!would!a!
wife!marry!brothers!instead!of!choosing!two!strangers!to!marry?!!
!!
http://tlc.discovery.com/videos/sister+wives+tour+the+brown+family+home.html!
Video'152:'Polygamy'in'the'US'(3:08'min.)'' !
!
Can!the!same!economic!and!rational!arguments!be!explained!when!analyzing!
polygamy!among!the!Mormons?!Why?!Why!not?!I!chose!this!segment!in!the!TLC!
series!to!highlight!the!importance!of!a!house—the!physical!structure,!in!determining!
family!size.!Real!estate!prices!and!land!availability,!whether!or!not!one!lives!in!a!
crowded!urban!center!or!the!suburbs,!influence!decisions!regarding!how!many!
children!a!couple!decides!to!have.!The!average!American!single+family!home!has!
increased!from!983!sq.!ft.!in!the!1950s!to!2,349!sq.!ft.!in!2004!(see!Error!'Reference'
source'not'found.!and!Image!1+2).6!A!combination!of!a!booming!real!estate!market!
until!the!early!2000,!the!availability!of!cheap!consumer!goods,!and!land!
development!all!contribute!to!the!builder!manufactured!McMansions.!!Average!
home!also!depends!on!the!region!and!cities.!In!short,!where!one!lives!in!the!US!and!
population!density!shape!a!family.!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
6!“Behind the Ever-Expanding American Dream House!: NPR.”
(http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5525283). !
! 7! ! ! Image'151:'Average'Square'Footage'of'American'Homes,'1950'to'2004' ! Image'152:'Average'Square'Footage'of'American'Homes'by'Region,'2004' ! 8! !
The!average!square!footage!of!the!American!house!also!testifies!to!our!
country’s!status!as!a!first+world!industrialized!nation.!It!takes!an!element!of!
distribution!of!wealth!in!a!country!to!reach!the!level!of!standard!of!living!middle!and!
working!class!Americans!enjoy.!The!photo!book!Material&World,!best!captures!the!
cross+national!differences!of!household!possession.!Juxtaposed!are!two!houses,!one!
in!a!rural!part!of!Uttar!Pradesh,!India!and!the!other!a!suburb!in!Pearland,!Texas!(see!
Image!1+3!and!Image!1+4).7!Compare!the!number!of!children,!their!possession,!and!
the!role!of!religion!in!families.!!The!average!square!footage!of!the!American!house!
also!testifies!to!our!country’s!status!as!a!first+world!industrialized!nation.!It!takes!an!
element!of!distribution!of!wealth!in!a!country!to!reach!the!level!of!standard!of!living!
middle!and!working!class!Americans!enjoy.!The!photo!book!Material&World,!best!
captures!the!cross+national!differences!of!household!possession.!Juxtaposed!are!two!
houses,!one!in!a!rural!part!of!Uttar!Pradesh,!India!and!the!other!a!suburb!in!
Pearland,!Texas.!Compare!the!number!of!children,!their!possession,!and!the!role!of!
religion!in!families.!
! ( !
' !
!
''''''' (
(
!
! (
! ( !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7!“NOVA | World in the Balance | Material World | PBS.”
(http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/material.html). !
! 9! ( Image'153:'A'Family'from'Pearland,'Texas'USA' (
( Image'154:'A'Family'from'rural'Uttar'Pradesh,'India' ! ( 10! The!photos!attest!not!only!to!differences,!but!also!similarities.!Societies!may!
interpret!marriage!and!family!differently,!but!all!societies!have!some!concept!of!
marriage!and!family,!or!element!of!kinship!ties.!!These!ties!refer!to!networks!that!
are!derived!from!genealogical!origins!that!are!either!biological,!historical,!and!
cultural.!This!is!an!important!question!in!understanding!families!and!society:!why!is!
it!that!all!societies!have!these!kinship!and!marriage!ties?!This!is!a!question!that!we!
will!attempt!to!answer!later!on.!!! Family(and(Social(Change((
!
!
Sociologists!concern!themselves!with!social!change!and!what!has!led!to!
certain!practices.!When!and!why,!for!example,!did!we!start!requiring!couples!to!
follow!legal!traditions!to!be!considered!married?!Why!can’t!two,!three,!or!more!
people!who!want!to!be!together!declare!themselves!married!without!the!sanction!of!
the!state?!!As!a!democratic!society,!we!like!to!think!that!marriages!and!families!are!
highly!intimate!relationships!based!on!individual!needs,!but!sociologists!would!
argue!that!decisions!about!marriage!and!families!are!subject!to!the!public!sphere.!
Decisions!regarding!when!one!decides!to!marry,!whom!they!decide!to!marry,!how!
many!children!a!person!will!have,!are!rooted!in!our!economic,!political,!and!cultural!
systems.!We!may!think!that!these!decisions!are!emotional,!but!sociologists!provide!a!
rational!explanation!to!these!decisions.!!Contrary!to!the!American!ethos!that!in!a!
free!society,!we!can!do!whatever!we!want!free!of!social!constraints,!our!most!
intimate!decisions!are!bounded!and!limited.!For!example,!legally,!heterosexual!men!
and!women!can!marry!whoever!they!want!in!the!US,!but!pause!for!a!second!and!
think:!what!are!the!chances!of!a!working!class!man!who!has!a!crush!on!the!actress!
Cameron!Diaz,!for!example,!of!meeting!her!and!even!getting!a!chance!to!ask!her!on!a!
date!in!person?!Yes,!it’s!possible!that!they!might!meet!each!other,!but!the!...
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