Marriage and Family Defined Basically marriage is a legal union based on mutual rights and obligations (Eshleman 2002),

and a family is a group of people related by marriage, blood, or adoption. The family orientation is the family a person is born into, or the family of birth. It provides children with a name, an identity, and a heritage. In other words, it gives the child and ascribed status in the community. The family of birth orients children to their neighborhood, community, and society. The family of orientation locates you in the world. The family of procreation is established upon marriage. The marriage ceremony signifies that it is legal for a couple to have offspring and to give the children a family name. The family of procreation then becomes the family of orientation for the children created from that marriage.

Cross-Cultural Analysis of Family and Marriage The structure of family and marriage involves many variation and cultures. This cross-cultural analysis examines the predominant family and marriage forms in modern society as well as an appreciation for alternative lifestyles. Types of Family Structure The nuclear family, the smallest group of individuals that can be legitimately be called a family, is generally composed of a mother, a father, and any children. Because the nuclear family is usually based on marriage, it is sometimes called the conjugal family. However, the two are not always synonymous. A nuclear family can be composed of a single parent and children or of a brother and sister. The extended family consists of two or more adult generations of the same family whose members share economic resources and live in a common household. Because it is based on blood ties, the extended family is often identified as the consanguine family. In general, extended families are most characteristic of preindustrial societies and rural parts of industrial societies. However, that nuclear family was not common in preliterate societies or in preindustrial Europe (Nydeggar 1985). Moreover, it would be inaccurate to conclude that the nuclear familymost characteristic of modern societyexists in isolation from a larger kinship network. Both of these issuesthe association of the nuclear family with industrialization and the question of the isolation of the modern nuclear family require elaboration. There is a curvilinear relationship between types of family structure and industrialization. Before humans began to domesticate animals and cultivate crops, most economies were based on hunting and gathering. Small bands of nuclear families followed herds of animals and changing seasons, moving around constantly, never staying long in any one place. When humans learned to domesticate animals to help with tilling the soil and cultivating crops, they no longer needed to mobile to maintain food supply. Families began to farm, settle down and establish roots. Large families were then needed to plow, harvest and fulfill the many other tasks needed to live. Thus, the emergence of family farms and permanent residences encouraged the development of extended family. When agriculture became the

dominant economic base, the extended family became major type of family. In general, when societies move from agricultural economies to industrialized ones, the extended family is replaced by the nuclear family because large families are no longer needed to supply the necessities of life (W.J. Goode 1970). One factor that account for relationship between industrialization and nuclear family structure is increasing geographical mobility. People in rural areas must leave their relatives to secure industrial employment in cities. Furthermore, for occupational reasons, those already living in urban area come to accept frequent changes in residence. Either way, geographical mobility makes it difficult to maintain close ties with large numbers of relatives. Before industrialization, family members were expected to take care of the sick and the elderly. With the growth of special-purpose organizations and government programs, the sick can be cared for in hospitals, paid for in part by their Social Security payments. In short, because outsiders have taken many over the services formerly performed by the family, relatives do not have to depend on one another as much as they once did. Certain conditions associated with industrialization are more compatible with the nuclear family than with the extended family. Although families in industrialized societies tend to have a nuclear structure and maintain separate residences, there is evidence that they are no isolated from their relatives as was once believed. Early research depicting the American nuclear family as isolated was conducted prior to some recent changes that are occurring in the other industrialized societies as well. For one thing, modern transportation and communication make it easier for relatives to maintain family ties even though separated geographically. Second, because of metropolitan growth, children no longer need to leave their parents and other relatives to go to college or to work. Apparently, the overwhelming majority of Americans maintain frequent contact with substantial number of relatives. It must be concluded that the modern family has either a modified nuclear or extended family structure that falls somewhere between the isolated nuclear family and the classic extended family (De Luca 2001). These family patterns take into consideration three circumstances: descent and inheritance, authority within the family and place of residence.

Dimension of Family Structure

Patrilineal

Matrilineal

Bilateral

Who owns what? From the father to his male descendants. Iran, Iraq and Tikopia in the Western Pacific are examples of patrilineal societies. Descent and inheritance be transmitted from mother to her female descendants. Some Native American tribes such as the five belonging to the League of the Iroquois in Pennsylvania and upper New York. Passes equally through both parents. Both fathers and mothers relatives are accepted equally as part of the kinship structure. This situation is mostly applied in American families today.

Who has authority? The oldest man living in a household has authority over the rest of the family members as in Jordan, Iraq and China (Khouri 2003). Oldest woman living in a household holds the authority, that controversy exists over whether any society has ever had genuinely matriarchal family structure.

Who lives where? A patrilocal residence, as in premodern China, calls for living with or near the husbands parents. Residing with or near the wifes parents is expected under a matrilocal residence.

Democratic control, authority is split evenly between husband and wife. Many families in the Scandinavian countries and in the United States follow democratic model.

Neolocal residence, where in nuclear family, a married couple establishes a new residence of its own. Extended families have different residence of norms.

Mate Selection

Exogamy
mate selection norms requiring individuals to marry someone outside their kinds.

Heterogamy
partners are dissimilar with respect to some important social characteristics.

Mate Selection

Endogamy
mate selection that require individuals to marry whithin their own kind.

Homogamy
tendecy to marry someone similar to oneself based on personal preference.

Type of Marriages The marriage ceremony is an important ritual announcing to the world that a man and woman have become husband and wife, that a new family has been formed and that any children born to the couple can legitimately inherit the family name and property. The traditional marital arrangement in the United States is merely one of several possibilities. Two basic types of marriages are: 1. Monogamy, the marriage of one man to only one woman at a timethe most widely practiced form of marriage in the world today. 2. Polygamy, the marriage of a male or female to multiple partners of the other sex, takes two forms: polygyny and polyandry.

Polygyny is the marriage of one man to two or more women at the same time. However, polygyny is not legal in any Western society (paddock 1999). As stated in its 1948 statement on human rights, the United Nations explicitly frowns on the practice of polygyny. Polyandry on the other hand is the marriage of one woman to two or more men at the same timeis an even rarer form of marriage, found exclusively in the South Asian countries of Tibet, Nepal, and India (Stockard 2002). A group marriage consists of two or more men married to two or more women at the same time. This form of marriage is also rare. In fact, researchers cannot identify even one society in which group marriage has been the normal form.

Theoretical Perspectives and the Family The family performs many essential functions. These functions are explained in the diagram below.

Conflict Theory Functionalism emphasizes the ways in which the family attempts to contribute to the order and stability of society. The conflict perspective draws attention to social concerns such as sexual inequality. The interest if conflict theorist in family gender inequality can be traced to Friedrich Engels, Karl Marxs collaborator. Engels saw womens oppression as the result. 1. Womens loss of a productive role. 2. Of mens interest---with the development of private property and surplus wealthin utilizing monogamy to confirm paternity (Engles 2001; originally published in 1884). Some feminists share with conflict theorists the belief that families reflect social inequality and experience conflict over resources (Benokraitis 2001). Conflict in the family according to these feminists is primarily the result of womens attempt to gain more power within the family structure. The theme bears on at least three issues: the domination of women by men, family rules of power and inheritance, and the male-dominated economic division of labor. Symbolic Interactionism According to this perspective, a key to understanding behavior within the family lies both in the in the interactions among family members and in the meanings that members assign to these interactions. Within the family, all the major concepts of symbolic interactionism can be observed. Socialization begins within the family. Interactions within the family members are able to develop further as they interact with people outside the home.

Family and Marriage in the United States The Nature of the American Family The marriage ratethe number of marriages per year for every one thousand members of a populationhas fluctuated in the United States since 1940. Since World War II, the marriage rate with some ups and downs has been cut in half. Many factors contribute to the smaller American family. Both men and women are marrying later and staying in school longer. Increasing numbers of women are in the labor force, for financial rewards as well as personal fulfillment (McLaughlin and Associates 1988). Legalized contraception and abortion have also reduced family size. Americans are increasingly choosing alternatives to the family pattern of mother as homemaker, father as breadwinner and children slightly less than one-fourth American households consist of a married couple with children under age eighteen. Romantic Love as the Basis for Marriage In a recent poll of the American public, 83 percent of both men and women rated being in love as the most vital reason to get marry. The relationship between love and marriage though has not always been viewed in this way. Marriage was not thought to be compatible with deeply romantic feelings. Criteria for mate selection include caste, wealth, family reputation and appearance. In modern societies, romantic love is almost always stated as a condition for marriage but it is seldom the only one. One of the strongest motivations for marriage is conformity. Over 90 percent if all adults in the United States do marry, conformity must certainly be a motivating factor. Although Americans typically believe that a marriage that is not based on romantic love cannot last, it may be more accurate to say that a marriage based only on romantic love is almost sure to fail. For a marriage to last, a couple must build a relationship that goes beyond romantic love (J. F. Crosby 1985). Divorce The divorce rate is the number of divorces annually for every one thousand members of the population. The sociologists employ the divorce ratiothe number of divorces persons in the population divided by the number of persons who are married and living with their spouses. In United States, in 2000, there were 19.8 million divorced persons and 120.1 million persons married and living with their spouses. Dividing the numbers yields a divorce ratio of 165. There are no easy answers to the high divorce rate in U.S. At individual level, we can associates it with three factors: 1. The earlier one marries, the greater the likelihood of divorce. 2. The longer a couple has been married, the lower the probability that the marriage will end in divorce. 3. Divorce is related to the nature and quality of the marital relationship. The more respect and flexibility taking place between partners, the lower the chance of divorce.

At societal level several factors seem to affect the divorce rate: 1. Divorce rates increase during economic prosperity and decrease during economic recession or depression. 2. Reflects the passage of the baby boom generation into the marriageable ages. 3. Women are more economically independent and because they have a wider availability of child care, they are less hesitant to dissolve a bad marriage. Recent decline in the U.S divorce rate and divorce ratio may continue for several reasons: The later people marry, the less likely they are to divorce. The average age of the population of the U.S is increasing as baby boomers grow older. Americans couples are having fewer children and the children are spaced farther apart. This reduces pressure.

Factors that affecting divorce rates: 1. Increasing prosperity is associated with higher divorce rates. Social and economic development, more women are initiating divorce as their economic opportunities and rights increase. 2. Religion is the second factor, particularly in less developed countries. Religion affects divorce independently of level of socioeconomic development as seen in Roman Catholic-dominated Italy and Ireland. 3. Patriarchal power structure. The more patriarchal a society, the lower its divorce rate. Family Violence Although family usually provides a safe and warm emotional haven, it can also be hostile environment. Much of the violence on the part of women involves self-protection or retaliation. Whoever initiates the violence, women are more likely to suffer greater injury because the average man is bigger, stronger, and more physically aggressive (Gelles 1997). Domestic violence is not limited to physical abuse. Verbal and psychological abuses are also a part of many families (M.D. Schwartz 1997; Jacobson and Gottman 1998; Knox and Schacht 2002). Probably the most frequent and most tolerated violence in the family occurs between children. The abuse of elderly people is little known because less research has been done in this area. Older women represent a higher proportion of the abused, in part because they live longer than men. The high incidence of divorce, violence and abuse has motivated sociologists to examine the strength and durability of the American family. One area of research focuses on what is being called family resiliency.

Family Resiliency Resiliency implies an ability to cope successfully with shock. Family resiliency refers to the familys capability to emerge from crises as stronger and more resourceful. Sociologists have identified four sets of factors promoting resiliency.

Individual -> self-esteem, autonomy, sense of humor and problemsolving skills.

Family-friend public policy -> a broad course of government mental action expressed in specific laws, programs and initiatives.

Family -> emotional support, commitment, warmth, affection and cohesion.

Community -> ample opportunities for participation in community life, emphasis on helping others, avenues for communication with friends and adults.

Lifestyle Variations Blended families Blended familya family formed when at least one of the partners in the marriage has been married before and has one or more children from a previous marriage. This type of family can become extremely complicated (Ganong and Coleman 1994; Herbert 1999). Sociologists point to three major problems facing blended families: financial difficulties, stepchildrens antagonism, and unclear roles (Lamanna, Riedmann, and Riedmann 2000). 1. Financial difficultiesincomes are lower in stepfamilies. This compounded by the financial demands from both former and present families. 2. Stepchildrens antagonismhoping for a reunion of their original parents, stepchildren may attempt to undermine the new marriage. 3. Unclear rolesthe roles of stepparents are often vague and ambiguous. Stepchildren often do not consider their parents new spouse as a real father or mother. Single-Parent Families Although courts today are more sensitive to fathers claims, women in all social classes are still more likely to win custody of their children cases of separation and divorce. Single working parents can seldom provide the time, attention, and guidance to their children that two parents can give, although research has been inconsistent on the effects of this situation (F.D Cox 2002). Adolescents who live with one parent or with a stepparent have much higher rates of deviant behavior than adolescents living with both natural parents (Dornbush et al. 1985; Popenoe 1999). Adults who grew up in single-parent homes are also more likely to be divorced, have an illegitimate child, be receiving psychological counseling, and be school truants, and use alcohol and drugs (Bianchi 1990; P.Taylor 1991; McLanahan and Sandefur 1996). Some researchers contend that the achievement and behavioral problems noted here may not be attributable to single-parent families alone. Other factors like poor parent-child relationships, failure to communicate, lack of economic resources and family disharmony may be more important than the structure of the family (Demo and Acock 1991). Female single parents and their children suffer from insufficient economic resources. Many were housewives or part-time workers before a divore; others are young, uneducated women who never married. Thus if they do not get an education or marry a solidly employed male, these mothers are unlikely to work their way out of poverty. Their children suffer the consequences along with them.

Childless Marriages Experts predict that the number of married couples choosing never to have children is likely to increase (Benokraitis 2001). The reasons married women give for choosing not to have children are diverse. An important factor is the disappearing social stigma attached to childless marriages. Some women simply do not enjoy the presence of children. Some childless marriages are not a result of choice but are due to physical or mental limitations. The presence of children tends to reduce marital happiness and satisfaction. Marital satisfaction is higher at the start of marriage, lowest during childrens teenage years and higher again when the children leave home. Most voluntarily childless couple appears to be happier and more satisfied with their marriages and live than couples with children (Polonko, Scanzoni, and Teachman 1982; Callan 1983; F.D. Cox 2002). Dual-Emplyed Marriages Dual-emplyed marriage is where both husband and wife are in the labor market. Women in dualemployed marriages are apparently expected to handle the bulk of household tasks and child-care responsibilities in addition to the pursuit of full-time jobs (Goldscheider and Waite 1991; Thompson and Walker 1991; Spain and Bianchi 1996). Women in dual-employed marriages often must cope with role conflict. They are torn between the time requirements of their jobs and their desire to spend more time with their children and husbands (Rubenstein 1991). Men in dual-employed marriages also feel the negative effects of conflicting roles and excessive demands on their time (Moen 1992). Working outside the home can provide a wider set of social relationships and greater feelings of control, independence, and heightened self-esteem. Compared to women who do not work outside the home, employed women tend to have more alternative channels for self-expression (Adelmann et al. 1989; Wolfe 1997). More discretionary money is available for purchases that improve the quality of life of all family members as economic pressure are eased. For men, benefits of a dual-employed marriage may include freedom from sole economic responsibility, increased opportunity for job changes, and opportunity for continuing an education (Spitze 1991; Crosby 1993). Whatever happens between partners, there seems to be a role here for government and business (Karmack 1992; Starting Point 1994). Under the Clinton administration, the Family and Medical Leave Act were passed. Prior to this federal law, no employers had been required to offer family leave for childbirth or medical emergency. There are several shortcomings to this step: 1. Most American workers are employed in organizations with fewer than fifty employees, this benefits is unavailable to them. 2. Less than 40 percent of dual-employed couples can afford to take an unpaid six-week leave. 3. Employees must have been employed by their company for at least twelve months to be eligible (Shaller and Qualiana 1993; Reskin and Padavic 2000; Wisensale 2001).

Single Life The increased age at first marriage for both sexes and the high divorce rate has combined to create an increase in the percentage of single adults. More than 26 million Americans over the age fifteen now live alone, an increase of 46 percent since 1980. Although many of these people will eventually marry, an increasing percentage will remain single all their lives (U.S Bureau of the Census 2001a). Remaining single has always been an alternatives, but it has carried a stigma. The stigma attached to remaining single has faded since colonial times, especially in the past two decades, and more Americans are either choosing this alternatives or at least marrying later than previous generations. More single Americans are choosing to remain childless, to obtain sex gratification outside of marriage, to pursue careers, to rear children from a former marriage, to adopt children, to have strictly homosexual relationship, or to rear out-of-wedlock children. It is safe to say that singlehood is an increasingly popular alternative to traditional marriage. Cohabitation Cohabitationliving with someone in a marriage-like arrangement without the legal obligations and responsibilities of formal marriagehas emerged as an alternative to traditional monogamy. Cohabitation has risen among people of all ages and all marital statuses, but particularly among the young and the divorced. Research reports on cohabitation are not encouraging. Another factor is the higher rate of abuse among cohabitating women than among married, divorced, or separated women. Cohabitation does not appear to improve the quality of later marriage. Furthermore, premarital cohabitation is associated with a higher risk of divorce (Brown and Booth 1996). Same-Sex Domestic Partners Because of the stigma that surrounds homosexuality, it is impossible to know what proportion of the American population is homosexual. The number of homosexuals cohabiting is increasing even though homosexual marriages are recognized only by Massachusetts (Van Drehl 2003). Homosexual familiessame-sex partners living together with children are also increasing in number, although their number is small compared with heterosexual marriages. Several relatively recent legal and religious decisions reflect change in the social landscape for same-sex domestic partners. Gay rights advocates were heartened by a 1999 Vermont Supreme Court ruling that gay and lesbian couples are due the same benefits and protections as heterosexual married couples. In 2000, the Vermont legislature also failed to legalize gay marriage. The U.S. Supreme Court dropped a legal bombshell in a 2003 decision striking down the nations anti-sodomy laws. Because U.S. accepts Canadian marriage licenses, confusions is likely to followed. Debate may become even more complicated if recent laboratory research on animals proves applicable to humans. In 2003, scientists reported turning ordinary mouse embryo cell into egg cell in laboratory dishes. If it ever becomes possible to make sperm from stem cells, then a lesbian couple could reproduce a child in complete independence from males (R.Weiss 2003).

Adult Children Returning Home Young American (18-34 years-old) has higher probability of living in their parents home than they did 30 years ago. These offspring have been labeled boomerang kidsreturning to their point of origin (Quinn 1993; Goldscheider and Goldscheider 1994). Young adults are marrying later more stay at home longer. More of them are continuing their education and find living at home the best solution to the challenges of self-support and school expense. An added financial burden can create significant strain for older parents whose adult children live at homecosts associated with education, day-to-day living, and perhaps even a grandchild or two. Adult children who find themselves in this situation could suffer as well as they know they burden they represent. Despite these strains, most families appear to adjust well with the return of older children (Mitchell and Gee 1996).

The Sandwich Generation The current middle-aged generation faces problems associated with new family forms. Due to prolonged life expectancy, refusal to place parents in nursing homes, and fewer siblings to share the burden, more middle-aged adults are finding mothers or fathers (their own or their spouses) living with them (Knox and Schacht 2002). Sandwich generation is the term applied to those adults caught between caring for their parents and caring for the family they formed after leaving home. On the positive side, elderly parents unable to take care of themselves usually receive better care from those who love them and fell responsible for their well-being. There are also negative repercussions. Taking care of an elderly parent is always not easy. A parent with severe arthritis or Alzheimers disease demands close and constant attention. One additional negative consequence deserves special mention is the burden of caring for an aging parent falls much more heavily on women. The average woman in the U.S. is likely to devote more years caring for her aging parents than she did caring for her own children (Clabes 1989). According to one study, over one-fourth of nonworking women were out of the labor force because of their parents need (Hull 1985).

SUMMARY 1. A family is a group of people related by marriage, blood, or adoption. Each of us may belong to two familiesthe family into which we were born and the family we create upon marrying. 2. The extended family and the nuclear family are two basic types of family structure. A curvilinear relationship exists between family structures. A curvilinear relationship exists between family structure and industrialization. In hunting and gathering societies, the nuclear family was the most prevalent type. With the rise of agriculture as the means of subsistence, the extended family came to prevail. The nuclear family regained popularity in modern industrial society. 3. Whether the family is nuclear or extended, there are several important dimensions of family structure. These dimensions pertain to descent and inheritance, family authority, and residence pattern. 4. Mate selection is never completely a matter of individual choice. Exogamous, endogamous, and monogamous mate selection norms exist in all societies. 5. There are four basic type of marriages: monogamy, polygamypolygyny and polyandry. 6. In all societies, the family has been the most important institution. It is the institution that produces new generation, socializes the young, provides care and affection, regulates sexual behavior; transmit social status and provides economic support. 7. Although functionalism emphasizes the benefits of the family for society, the conflict perspective depicts the traditional family structure as the instrument of male domination over women. 8. Symbolic interactionism is used frequently in the study of the family. Most of the interactions within families can be analyzed within this theoretical perspective. 9. Modern marriages are primarily based on love. 10. The divorce rate in U.S. rose dramatically recently. The dissolution of marriage however is not expected to continue to escalate. In fact, the divorce rate has declined slightly. 11. Although the American family provides social and emotional support for its member, violence in this intimate setting is not uncommon. 12. Problems such as the high divorce rate and frequent family violence and abuse have raised the question of the strength and durability of the American family. Sine researchers approach this area of research via the concept of family resiliency. 13. The nuclear family is not going to be replaced on any broad scale. There is considerable experimentation with new patterns of marriage and family; blended families, single-parent families, child-free marriages, people remaining single, cohabitation, gay and lesbian couples, adult children returning home, and the sandwich generation. In addition, the American family is being affected by the rise of the dual-employed marital arrangement.