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1 (a) Explain the difference between a family and a household.

[9]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the nuclear family is a universal feature of societies.
[16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, the types of conjugal relationships that may be
found in societies. [9]
(b) Assess the claim that conjugal roles have become more equal in recent years.
[16]
1 (a) Describe the functions of the family. [9]
(b) Evaluate the view that the family in modern industrial societies has lost some
of its functions. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, how the structure of the family has been affected
by industrialisation. [9]
(b) Assess the contribution of feminist theories to an understanding of
relationships in families. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples, the variety of households that may be found in
societies. [9]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the nuclear family is of declining importance in
modern industrial societies. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, the major trends in marriage and divorce over the
last 100 years. [9]
(b) Assess the extent to which the changes that you have outlined in (a) reflect
the changing status of women in society. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples, the ways in which the family is linked to the
economy in society. [9]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the process of industrialisation leads to the decline of
the extended family. [16]
2 (a) Describe the main changes that have occurred in the distribution of power
within families in
the last 100 years. [9]
(b) Outline and assess the implications for society of the changes you have
outlined in your answer to part (a). [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples from the family, what is meant by life cycle. [9]
(b) Evaluate the extent to which the state may influence family life. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, how the status of children has changed in families
over the last 100 years. [9]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies there is equality between
all family members. [16]
Section A: Families and Households
1 (a) Describe, with examples, the diversity of family forms that may be found in
societies today. [9]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the extended family is of declining importance in
modern industrial societies. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, changing fertility patterns in modern industrial
societies over the last 100 years. [9]
(b) Evaluate the view that control of female fertility is the key to the status of
women in the family and the wider society. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples, what is meant by the life cycle of the family. [9]
(b) ‘In modern industrial societies the majority of individuals live in nuclear
family households’. Assess this statement. [16]
2 (a) Describe the ways in which the status of children in families has changed in
the last 100 years. [9]
(b) Assess the view that the nuclear family is the ideal family type for modern
industrial societies. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples, the meaning of kinship. [9]
(b) ‘In modern industrial societies functions that were once carried out by the
family are now carried out by the state’. Evaluate this claim. [16]
2 (a) Describe the factors that influence fertility rates. [9]
(b) Assess the view that in modern societies matrifocal family types are
becoming the norm. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with examples, what is meant by a matrifocal family. [9]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the nuclear family is universal in modern industrial
societies. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with examples, how the status of the elderly has changed in
modern industrial societies. [9]
(b) Evaluate the statement that ‘the rising divorce rate is evidence of the
increasing unpopularity of marriage’. [16]
1 (a) Describe, with two examples, what is meant by status in relation to the
family. [9]
(b) ‘The family is an institution of the state ideological apparatus.’ Assess this
view. [16]
2 (a) Describe, with two examples, what is meant by structure in relation to the
family. [9]
(b) Evaluate the view that high levels of divorce in modern industrial societies
are the result of a decline in the status of marriage. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term kinship. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of kinship. [6]
(b) Evaluate the claim that in modern industrial societies social class
determines the type of family structure people adopt. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term conjugal roles. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of conjugal roles. [6]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the family oppresses its less powerful members. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term household. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two types of household. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies family life is
characterised by diversity. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term canalisation. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of canalisation. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies family life is no longer
patriarchal. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of family structure. [6]
(b) Evaluate the claim that in modern industrial societies the state has taken over
most of the functions of the family. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term childhood. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples from different societies of the way
childhood is spent. [6]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the family in modern industrial society fails to protect
its less powerful members. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term matriarchy. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of matriarchal families. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies men no longer dominate
family life. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term extended family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two examples of family structure other than the
extended family. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that there is no single dominant family structure (such as
the cereal packet family) in modern industrial societies. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term nuclear family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two differences between the way children are
brought up in different societies. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the family has lost all but its ‘basic and irreducible
functions’ in modern industrial societies. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term lone parenthood. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe tworeasons why there has been an increase in
lone parent families in modern industrial societies. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the nuclear family is under threat in modern industrial
societies. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term ideological state apparatus in relation to the family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two ways in which families may control the
behaviour of their members. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that families fulfil positive functions both for their
members and society. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term domestic labour. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two family functions. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that family life in modern industrial societies is
characterised by equality between family members. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term symmetrical family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two households which are not families. [6]
(b) Evaluate the claim that the nuclear family is universal. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term marital status. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two types of marriage. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that marriage is losing its status in modern industrial
societies. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term household. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two features of a commune. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the nuclear family is the dominant family type in
modern industrial societies. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term gender. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two reasons why gender roles are changing in
modern industrial societies. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that marriage is no longer valued in modern industrial
societies. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term matrifocal. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two alternatives to the matrifocal family. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies there is no such thing as
a dominant family structure. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term dual burden in relation to the family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two causes of the dual burden. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies domestic labour is now
shared between couples. [16]
(2012) 1 (a) (i) Define the term reconstituted family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two types of family which are not reconstituted.
[6]
(b) To what extent are family structures increasingly diverse today? [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term domestic division of labour. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two characteristics of the instrumental role. [6]
(b) Evaluate the functionalist theory that family structures adapt to meet the
needs of the wider society. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term domestic violence. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two reasons for the increase in divorce in modern
industrial societies. [6]
(b) ‘Increasing levels of divorce weaken the institution of the family.’ Evaluate
this claim. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term segregated conjugal roles. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe how two family roles have changed in modern
industrial societies. [6]
(b) ‘Class is the most significant influence in shaping kinship patterns.’ Evaluate
this claim. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term privatised family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two benefits for the individual of belonging to
a wider kinship group. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the primary function of the family is to reproduce
labour power. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term empty-shell marriage. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two socially approved living arrangements in
modern industrial societies, apart from marriage. [6]
(b) ‘Matriarchal family structures are becoming dominant in modern industrial
societies.’ Evaluate this claim. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term commune. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two features of a kibbutz. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that in modern industrial societies the impact of the state
on family life has significantly increased. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term industrialisation. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two consequences of industrialisation for the
family. [6]
(b) ‘In modern industrial societies the extended family has largely been replaced
by the nuclear family.’ Evaluate this claim. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term patriarchal family. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two ways in which family structure may be
influenced by economic factors. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the primary role of the family is to serve the needs of
the economy.[16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term fertility rate. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two reasons why fertility rates may change. [6]
(b) Evaluate the factors that shape the social position of children within the
family. [16]
1 (a) (i) Define the term instrumental role. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two characteristics of the expressive role. [6]
(b) Evaluate the view that ethnicity is the most significant factor shaping kinship
patterns. [16]
2 (a) (i) Define the term primary socialisation. [3]
(ii) Identify and briefly describe two consequences of the dysfunctional family.
[6]
(b) Evaluate the view that the functions of the family have been greatly reduced
in modern industrial societies. [16]
Sociologists frequently use the term ‘traditional’ to refer to families that are made
up of heterosexual parents and their children. These traditional types of family
can also be extended to include other kin. When a family structure fits perfectly
into this pattern it is called an ideal type, but many families do not fit the ideal
type perfectly. Examples of these variations include beanpole and lone-parent
families in which a growing number of people live in modern industrial societies.
Many households are also made up of an individual living alone; these
households are not families even though the individuals living in them may have
kin. The development of single person households and other alternative types of
living arrangements has led some sociologists to argue that the traditional family
is in decline in modern industrial societies.
(a) What is meant by the term beanpole family? [2]
(b) Describe two reasons for the increase in the number of lone-parent families.
[4]
(c) Explain why more individuals may choose to live alone in modern industrial
societies than in the past. [8]
(d) Assess the extent to which ‘traditional families’ are disappearing in modern
industrial societies.[11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3
2 Explain and assess the functionalist view that the nuclear family ‘fits’ the needs
of society. [25]
3 ‘The elderly are a disadvantaged group in most societies.’ Explain and assess
this view. [25]
1 In his 1949 study George Murdock claimed that some form of family
existed in all societies. This was based on his examination of 250 societies.
Murdock defined the family as a social group that shares a residence, co-
operates economically and produces at least one child. This child (or
children) is the offspring, whether own or adopted, of two adults in an
approved sexual relationship who are from the social group. Within this
definition Murdock allowed for a great deal of family diversity in the
structure of the social group. The smallest family group, as identified by
Murdock, is the nuclear family. Murdock’s work has given rise to a great
deal of debate within sociology as to whether the family is universal or not
and if households which do not fit into his definition can in fact be called
families.
(a) What is meant by the term family diversity? [2]
(b) Describe two examples of households which do not fit into Murdock’s
definition of the family. [4]
(c) Explain why the family may be changing in modern industrial societies.
[8]
(d) Assess the view that the nuclear family is the main type of family
structure in all societies.[11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3.
2 Explain and assess the view that families are no longer patriarchal in modern
industrial societies. [25]
3 Explain and assess the view that childhood is a time when children are free
from the pressures of adult life. [25]
The process through which individuals learn to become members of their society
is known as socialisation. Primary socialisation occurs within the family and
takes place during infancy. Some aspects of primary socialisation are universal.
However, both the society and the family into which the infant is born will
influence their experience of childhood. Childhood is not the same for all. Even
within the same society, childhood can vary both in length and experience as the
child develops from infancy to adolescence and on into adulthood. Other factors,
external to the family, will also affect what children experience. Children may
belong to different social groups or undergo different rites of passage.
(a) What is meant by the term adolescence ? [2]
(b) Describe two universal aspects of primary socialisation. [4]
(c) Explain why the period of childhood may have become longer in modern
industrial societies.[8]
(d) ‘The most significant factor influencing a child’s experience of childhood is
the type of family into which he or she is born.’ Assess this view. [11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3.
2 Explain and assess the view that family life has become more diverse as a result
of people having more lifestyle choices. [25]
3 ‘Even though women and men may share conjugal roles today, there is still
inequality in the family.’ Explain and assess this view. [25]
1 The family is often described as the most basic unit of social organisation and
one which carries out important tasks, such as socialising children and caring for
its members. It is to be found in all types of societies. Until the 1960s few
sociologists questioned the benefits to be gained from family life and theorists
such as Parsons argued that nuclear families provided a ‘best fit’ for life in
modern industrial societies. Since the 1960s there have been more critical
assessments of family life and the different ways in which family members can
be treated. Some feminists have argued that women are exploited by family life.
Not only do women perform domestic chores but also enter the paid work force
as well as carrying out emotion work.Many forms of abuse can also be suffered
in families. For example, children may be particularly vulnerable to emotional
abuse, such as isolation and rejection by parents. They may also suffer physical
harm. Abuse within the family may still occur, even in societies that have strong
legal protections for human rights.
(a) What is meant by the term emotion work? [2]
(b) Describe two ways in which family life benefits its members. [4]
(c) Explain why children may be vulnerable to abuse within the family. [8]
(d) Assess the view that males have a privileged position in families today. [11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3.
2 Explain and assess the New Right view that the welfare state undermines the
nuclear family. [25]
3 Explain and assess the view that families are becoming increasingly child-
centred in modern industrial societies. [25]
1 Sociologists accept the idea that age and the process of growing older are linked
to both biological and social processes. The number of people aged 65 and over
has risen rapidly in modern industrial societies and this trend is expected to
continue. In many countries, there are now more older people than children in the
population. These changes leading to an ageing population will have significant
implications both for family life and society. As this happens our understanding
of what it means to belong to particular age groups and family relationships will
change. In order to understand the process of growing older, it is necessary to
study the social context in which it occurs. From this perspective age can be seen
as a social construction.
(a) What is meant by the term social construction? [2]
(b) Describe two problems for society of an ageing population. [4]
(c) Explain why the status of older people may vary between societies. [8]
(d) Assess the extent to which age is the most significant social division within
the family. [11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3.
2 Explain and assess the view that in modern industrial societies the nuclear
family continues to be the dominant family type. [25]
3 Explain and assess the view that in modern industrial societies the family no
longer serves the needs of the economy. [25]
1 Family diversity is found in most societies. This diversity is either
organisational or cultural. Organisational diversity focuses on kinship patterns,
the ways families organise their individual domestic duties and the way in which
families are linked to wider society. The reconstituted familyis an example of
organisational diversity. Cultural diversity focuses on the influences of class and
ethnicity on family types. Sociologists are interested in understanding the extent
to which family diversity exists in different societies. Using the work of the
Rapoports in the 1980s, Allan and Crow emphasise the increasing trend toward
diversification of family types and arrangements. They believe that these new
diverse styles enable individuals to exercise more choice in their living
arrangements and family relationships.
(a) What is meant by the term reconstituted family ? [2]
(b) Describe two family types, apart from the reconstituted family. [4]
(c) Explain why individuals are able to exercise more choice in their living
arrangements today. [8]
(d) Assess the view that the extent of family diversity may have been
exaggerated. [11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 or question 3.
2 Explain and assess the view that there is greater equality in relationships
between parents and children today than in the past. [25]
3 Explain and assess the view that the nuclear family serves the interests of the
state. [25]
1 Sociologists argue that changes in family life show that there is no longer one
type of family.
Until recent times nuclear or extended family life was the only ‘choice’ for the
members of society. Since the 1970s, however, other types of family have
emerged, based on developments such as confluent love and greater equality in
social life. New Right and functionalist theorists argue that family diversity has
negative consequences for the individual and society. This has created the idea
that the family is in decline. New Right theorists such as Murray, Marsland and
Saunders argue that the growth of welfare states encourages alternative family
types which can in turn cause problems for society. Postmodernists, on the other
hand, think that family diversity is positive for society. They reject New Right
and functionalist arguments that the nuclear family is the most desirable family
arrangement.
(a) What is meant by the term confluent love? [2]
(b) Describe two family types that have become more common since the 1970s.
[4]
(c) Explain why family diversity may have a negative impact on society. [8]
(d) Assess the extent to which individuals are free to choose their family type
today. [11]
Section B
Answer either question 2 orquestion 3.
2 Explain and assess the view that the family serves the needs of all its members
equally. [25]
3 Explain and assess the view that the elderly have high status in all societies.
[25]
a) What is meant by the term household? (2)
b) Decribe two types of family apart form reconstituted family. (4)
c) Describe why the structure of the family has been affected by industrialisation.
(8)

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