Chapter 2: Studying the Family

1. Summary:

Chapter 2 discusses the important role theory and research has in the study of marriages and families. It begins by stating three key reasons theories and research are important. The first reason given is that it is important to research to increase your knowledge and find out as much as you can about family issues. But it is important to be aware that some Internet sources may mislead people by distributing contradictory information; some denouncing specific procedures and others recommending procedures that offer little genuine benefits or may actually be harmful. The second reason given states that theories and research are important because they help us better understand our own family and personal situations. It points out that the beliefs a family holds can define that family’s lifestyle. The third and final reason is that theories and research allow us to deal with our own situation more critically and make decisions that are appropriate and best for our family. With so many statistics available in a media filled with biases and critics it is difficult to know how accurate they are but using theories and research allows one to interpret data more precisely and make more rational decisions about what to do with our lives and family.

The chapter then examines eight different theoretical perspectives on families and gives a critical evaluation of each. These theoretical perspectives each consist of different ways to understand family-related processes. The first two examined are macro-level theories which include structural-functional theory and conflict theory. The structural-functional or functionalism theory is based on the view that the family is a part of society with separate members with specific functions designed to maintain its unity and place in society. Each member must fulfill its individual needs while at the same time cooperate with other family members to provide for the family’s survival and social stability. The criticism of this theory is that social change and disagreements are viewed as dysfunctional, but in reality these changes and arguments are part of everyday life and are often affirmative. The conflict theory is based on the view that a family is a group that must deal with inequality as its members disagree, struggle for power, and compete for scarce resources. Critics of this theory suggest that this theory neglects to acknowledge the positive aspects of families like love and self-sacrifice.

The next three theoretical perspectives mentioned are a combination of macro- and micro-level theories; they include feminist, ecological, and developmental theories. Feminist theories view the family as members of a group who learn how gender determines how a person behaves and the position they hold in a society. This theory puts great emphasis on the social changes which have been influential in changing how society views the family unit and creating move diversities in the structure of today’s families. The theory has been criticized because some feel that feminist theorist make too big a deal about issues that only concern women and ignore the importance of oppression to other family members. Ecological theories consider the family as a group who is influenced by and must adapt to changes in the environment. This theory considers the influence internal relations have on family members, settings involved, and the dynamics of these factors within the family. Critics argue that the dynamics considered are not easily measured and most likely do not take in to account the differences in “traditional” and “nontraditional” families. Family developmental theories, like ecological theories, analyze changes that occur within the family. This theory includes models of the family life cycle, which consists of members who change their behavior and perform tasks as a means to survive the series of changing stages and events. Critics find the theory to have too many limitations and many suggest that the family life cycle model used is deceptive because life stages do not always occur in a specified order.

The last three theories presented in this chapter are micro-level theories; this covers the symbolic interaction, social exchange, and family systems perspectives. Symbolic interaction theories deals with the view that the family is a group of people whose every interaction is symbolic and dictated by the way we perceive things. It suggests that our ideas, beliefs, and attitude are symbolic and shape our families and our lives. Criticism comes from those who suggest the theory unrealistically assumes people always reflect before they react but in reality many people often act impulsively. Social exchange theory infers that people seek to maximize benefits and minimize costs therefore people are motivated to remain in relationships as long as the benefits outweigh the costs. As with the symbolic interaction theory critics of this theory argue that many people react more irrationally than this theory suggest. The family systems theory views the family as group who functions solely as a unit that depends on the interactions of its members with each other and the larger society. It stresses the importance of functioning as a unit and making changes when needed to remain a unit. Critics argue that the theory is based on limited evidence. The eight theories examined are often used by researchers to generate data and develop strategies to aid family service professionals.

The third section of the chapter covers a variety of different family research methods. It presents strengths and limitations for each method. The methods discussed include: surveys, clinical research, field research, secondary analysis, experiment, and evaluation research. The most common data collection comes from surveys which often collect data using questionnaires and interviews or focus groups. Clinical research is time consuming and involves the study of a group of people who seek professional help for problems they are experiencing. Case studies are often conducted from clinical research, which provide detailed information on the patient’s life. Like clinical research, field research is time consuming and involves collecting data by observing people but instead of being in a clinical setting participants are observed in their natural surroundings. Secondary analysis entails studying data collected by another research method. Experiments consist of researchers making an observation; forming a hypothesis; performing various tests to check variables and measuring their effects before drawing a conclusion based on the analysis. Evaluation research involves researchers examining how efficient and effective particular social programs are in order to ensure that the programs are doing what they are designed for.

In concluding, the chapter ends by acknowledging that the study of marriage and the family is not an easy task and as our society continues to change more research should be done. It suggests that much of the present research is inadequate because many researchers fail to understand the historic background of the modern family.

2. What was interesting/what did you learn:

I found the social exchange theory very interesting. Through out my life I have heard of a few people marrying people for their money or choosing whom they wish to date based on a persons success. After reading about this theory it really did put into perspective that there are people out there that just stay with each other because the rewards outweigh the costs. However, often if someone finds someone else that has more to offer, their existing relationship will end and they will move onto the one that has more rewards. This sounds very greedy to me! It doesn’t sound like a very healthy family could form out of this theory. If someone is continuing to calculate the rewards vs. costs of their current relationship and examine if they could do better, then it seems to me that that family is not really building a loving connection besides staying together because it appears there are strong benefits. The social exchange theory really put into perspective for me that some families are motivated to stay together not because they love each other, but because it’s better to have someone than no one. But this, in my opinion, could lead to the demise of healthy family relationships if many couples remain married even though they are not happy.

3. Discussion Point:

I found it very mind bogging that there is such thing as a family life cycle, which provides the stages in which a family should develop. This seems unrealistic to me because very rarely is there a family who has a specific order of events that they must follow till they retire and die. I don’t believe there is one set path that a family should follow. No one has a perfect life; certain life events pop up and can significantly change any plan a family had for the future. This approach only covers “traditional” families and leaves out families involving homosexuals, single parents, no children, divorced, and any other type of family that is seen as “nontraditional.” Therefore, after reading this part of the chapter, I disagree with the implementation of the family life cycle and think it is far out of reach to say these are the steps a “traditional” family should prepare for. Does this model really represent more than half of the “traditional” families today or is it impracticable? Should the family life cycle be remodeled to include those that are left out?