Quiz 1 Study Guide: Introduction to Diversity in Canada's Families - PDF

Quiz 1 study guide: chapters 1, 2, & 5 Chapter 1: Introduction to Diversity in Canada’s Families Social Policy: Þ Is unique in addressing as its core concern is people's well-being, both as individuals and members of society Þ Is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on aspects of sociolo...

Quiz 1 study guide: chapters 1, 2, & 5 Chapter 1: Introduction to Diversity in Canada’s Families Social Policy: Þ Is unique in addressing as its core concern is people's well-being, both as individuals and members of society Þ Is an interdisciplinary subject drawing on aspects of sociology, economics, geography, political science, history, law and philosophy Þ Considers basic human needs and how society organizes itself and responds to these Þ Is sometimes referred to as public policy or public administration Þ Looks behind the headlines at pressing topical issues such as welfare reform, childcare services, poverty and social exclusion, housing and urban change, health and ageing, education, changing populations and patterns of family life. Why is social policy important?: Þ It seeks to address issues of great social importance Þ We spend a lot of money on welfare – social policy evaluates this expenditure Þ Not only seeks to understand how society works but its ability to affect change How do we study social policy?: Þ Two broad dimensions: o Normative: engaging with the theories, principles and values (what are we trying to achieve?) § embracing ideologies o Empirical evidence: gathering of information to assess what is happening § policy change should be evidence-based The meaning of childhood: Þ The meaning of the term ‘child’ & ‘childhood’ varies culturally, across time & institutions (albanese, 2009) Þ There is no single, objectively definable moment when a child becomes an adolescent, or an adolescent becomes an adult. The concept of ‘periods of development’ is arbitrary Þ ‘Child’ & ‘childhood’ are social constructs (it depends on what a culture calls childhood or adulthood) How do you recognize a child when you see one?: Þ Newborn: birth - 1 month Þ Infant: 1 month - 1 year Þ Toddler: 1 - 2 years  Þ Preschooler: 2 - 6 years Þ Adolescent: 12 years - 18 years Þ Adult: 18 years and older *Sequence and classification differ for child development* Definitions of childhood are social constructs; also based on: Þ Chronological age Þ Level of maturity Þ Physical maturation Þ Economic dependency Cross-cultural variations/similarities: Þ some variations are caused by economic/political factors Childhood was studied empirically and philosophically Changing trends in the diversity of family forms: Þ Today, there are fewer households composed of a mother, father and children than in the past Þ Married couples: dominant family form, yet on the decline Þ Same-sex couples fully recognized as marriages and families in the 2006 Canadian census Þ Acknowledgement of the existence of transgender families, and families with transgender members Þ Types of families: o Different portraits of Canadian families today § Married families (nuclear: father, mother and children) § Stepfamilies-diff kids w diff parents on both sides (blended families-like joseph) § Transnational families/multi-local families § Same-sex families & transgender families § Common law couples-cohabitation? § Lone-parent families Þ Satellite families (satellite children): o People living separately from their children & spouses temporarily in order to secure better opportunities for their family o First used in the 1980’s to describe Chinese children whose parents emigrated to north America but returned to their country of origin, leaving their families in Canada.  o A family that finds itself temporarily separated and living across borders, in multiple locations. § A family where one or more members live abroad while maintaining strong family ties with those back in their home country. This situation often arises when a parent or both parents move abroad for work, leaving children or other family members in their country of origin. The goal is usually to provide financial support or secure better future opportunities, such as education or a more stable income. Þ Delayed child launch: o The postponement of home-leaving for young people due to changing economic circumstances & difficulty finding stable, decent-paying work. o In other words, adult children remain living with their parents for a longer period of time, often well into their twenties or even thirties, rather than moving out and establishing independent households at an earlier age. This delay can be due to various factors, including economic conditions (such as high housing costs, unemployment, or underemployment), prolonged education, or financial instability. Contemporary Canadian Family studies: Þ Studying Canadian families requires understanding of the Canadian economy, policy shifts, health care and longevity, the internet, poverty, immigration, conflict, violence, taxation, legal changes, human rights issues, family theories, etc. Defining ‘Family’: Þ There is no single overarching definition Þ A changing social construct Þ Judicial uses of family definitions: o perhaps most comprehensive, but not always consistent in capturing the lived reality of ‘the family’ Þ The influence of feminists among family researchers: o from ‘who makes a family’ to ‘what makes a family’ Theoretical and methodological approaches to studying families: Þ Theories are not fixed Þ Theories provide a lens through which we see the social world Biases in traditional theorizing: Þ Eichler (1997) identified seven biases in theorizing: o Monolithic bias: emphasizing uniformity of experience and universality of functions  o Conservative bias: emphasizing only a romanticized view of the nuclear family and regarded recent changes as ephemeral o Ageist bias: largely excluding children and the elderly in their analysis of the family o Sexist bias: assuming a natural division of functions between the ‘sexes’ o Micro-structural bias: a tendency to treat families as encapsulated units (ignoring external factors) o Racist bias: often devalued or outright ignored families of culturally or ethnically non-dominant groups o Heterosexist bias: treating the heterosexual family as “natural,” denying family status to lesbian and gay families The ‘Big Bang’ Feminist Theories: Þ The period following the 1960s: “the big bang” for feminist theories Þ Made private/intimate matters public (example: child-rearing and care, sexuality, domestic division of labour etc.) Þ Note: there is considerable variation with feminism. ‘Feminism’ should be ‘feminisms’ Conclusion: Þ Diversity characterizes Canadian families Þ Different definitions of family have proliferated Þ Current and shifting definitions reflect changing social attitudes, economic trends, laws and policies Þ Theoretical and research changes have occurred to reflect new ways of understanding families Chapter 2: Canada’s Families Intro: Þ Most people throughout history have spent at least some part of their lives in a family or a family setting Þ Families: important to our individual, social, and national identities Families as Historical Actors: Þ Broad range of family experiences Þ Variations by “race” and culture: o E.g., First Nations, Métis and Inuit families, francophone Catholic families in Quebec; and immigrant families Þ Families are historical actors as opposed to passive recipients of changing ideas and practice: they adapt to, and initiate trends.  Þ Modernization: brought changes in family structure o This was augmented & accelerated by transportation & communication advances o A sociological term describing the historical process in which a pre-industrial agrarian society reaches modernity, generally by means of a series of developments driven by industrialization, urbanization, and mass education. Þ Chain migration in the early twentieth century: the emergence of new Canadian families, mostly from Europe o Chain migration is a family-based immigration strategy which entails an individual or small group, usually male and often from the same family and community, leaving their country of origin to resettle in another country, and then assisting other family, kin, and community members to join them. Þ Traditional family functions: transferred to institutions such as the church & other charitable organizations and, later, the state Þ High infant and maternal mortality rates negatively impacted families Immigration policy: Þ Canadian immigration policy: racially exclusive. o Families from countries outside of Western Europe & the U.S. were excluded The shape(s) of modern families: Þ Demographic changes fundamentally affected the size, as well as the life course, of Canadian families Þ Canada’s Century (the century of the child): childhood as a special life-stage associated with play, schooling, and “character formation” rather than work and wages o *Vulnerable stage* Þ Divorce was difficult to obtain by women and highly stigmatized Þ Single-parent or blended family households existed mainly as a result of spouse’s death as opposed to divorce o new opportunities opened up for women o their presence was more visible The role of women: Þ New opportunities opened up to women for paid employment, higher education, and participation in the female organizations Þ Women’s unions, councils, etc. worked to defend women’s involvement in public life Þ The First World War accelerated both women’s public involvement and their entry into paid labour Þ In 1920, Canadian Council on Child and Family Welfare was created  Þ The 1921 census revealed a proportionately greater number of married Canadians than at any previous time on record Þ The 14 per cent decline in birth rate between 1921 and 1931 indicated proliferation of birth control despite being illegal Þ Demographic changes: longer life expectancy, smaller family size, and increased length of marriage Þ The Great Depression seriously curtailed family welfare programs Þ Canada’s first universal welfare measure, the Family Allowance Act, passed in 1944 o It aimed to provide financial support to families with children, as a way to alleviate economic pressures, especially during and after World War II. Families at mid-century: Þ The Reconstruction interlude after the Second World War saw renewed attention to the family o Reconstruction= federal government plans for the transition to a peacetime economy after the Second World War. Þ There was a rise in divorce rates after veterans returned Þ Years of unrealized consumer demand unleashed an economic boom o Production increased and wages rose Þ The post-war prosperity saw increase in birth rate (the era of Baby Boom) o Baby boom: a significant increase in birth rates that occurred after World War II, this period is characterized by a dramatic rise in the number of births, as soldiers returned from the war, and economies grew, leading to greater optimism and a desire for larger families. Þ The generation gap separating youth and their elders was embodied in the “hippie ethic” that challenged sexual taboos and embraced open marriage and communal living o This was interpreted as a generational rejection of all that “the family” represented o refers to the differences in attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors between one generation and the next, often leading to misunderstandings or conflicts between younger and older individuals Þ The single most important influence on families during this era was advances in the status of women o *The outcome of availability of female contraception-the Pill*(gave women control over their bodies) o Higher-paid work opportunities for women, longer lives, and changes to the Divorce Act (1968) made divorce a viable option for unhappy couples o The influx of married women and mothers into the labour force Families at the Millenium:  Þ Marked by a decline in fertility rates and the rise of the “childless by choice” unions Þ Increases in life expectancy results in smaller portion of the life-course devoted to childcare Þ Percentage of married mothers who worked for wages increased significantly Þ State-supported parental leave in the 1990s was vital to the new “configuration” of families Þ Legalization of same-sex marriage in 2005 with the Civil Marriage Act Þ Declining percentage of married couple families Þ Increase in the percentage of common-law couples Þ The male breadwinner family is now the minority experience among Canadians of all classes, cultural backgrounds, and regions. Conclusion: Þ The history of Canadian families for the past 200 years reveals the importance of families to individuals and society Þ The changing family forms over the years influenced by: o Industrialization and the rise of digital technology o Demographic changes o Change in the status of women o Changing relationship between private sphere of the family & public interest of gov't o Societal recognition of different family forms o The history of Canadian families consists of the varied stories of varying families, functioning in many different ways toward their goal of being families in their own way Chapter 5: Children and Parenting Intro: Þ Children can provide feelings of accomplishment and/or present challenges Þ Research suggests that the expectations facing parents both at home and in the workplace are rising (Duxbury and Higgins, 2012) Þ Fathers are spending more time with children, yet mothers still take on the majority of responsibility for children’s care The social construction of childhood and parenthood: Þ According to Philippe Aries, the concept of childhood did not even exist in Medieval Europe. Children were seen as smaller & less capable adults Þ Over time, the understandings of childhood have changed in Western society (ex.: collective understanding of adolescence as a distinct period in the life course etc.)  Þ The change in the understandings of the nature of childhood led to the change in the ideas of what constitutes good parenthood Þ In the 1980’s, children were presented as more capable & independent and mothers in the labour force were viewed as good role models who were creating good opportunities for their children (Wall, 2013) Þ “Good Parenting”: much more child-centered and intensive over the last three decades Intensive parenting: Þ In The Cultural Contradictions of Motherhood, Hays (1996) coined the term ‘intensive mothering’: an unprecedented attentiveness to children’s dev’t that had come to be expected of good mothers Þ Intensive parenting: the standard of good parenting in Canada and other Western societies Þ The historical and cultural dev’t of intensive parenting: o Can be traced back to the mid 20th century, after the end of World War II o John Bowlby’s theories of maternal deprivation and attachment Þ Another notable change in the new advice: the way that mothers’ and children’s needs were increasingly seen as being opposed rather than complimentary Þ Influences of Neoliberalism and Risk Culture: o Stressed indiv. rather than collective responsibility for social ills o For parents, this meant careful planning, based on expert advice, for children’s future success o Risk-management and hypervigilance Þ The influence of brain dev’t advice: o child-rearing experts claimed that parents can affect the way their child’s brain is wired and its future potential by providing appropriate brain stimulation in the early yrs o claim was criticized, yet brain dev’t advice became very popular o Ontario’s Early Years Centres & the Invest in Kids Foundation’s “Years Before 5” campaign Þ Involvement in a child’s school life is (now) viewed as an essential component of good parenting Þ In the 2000’s, experts began to raise concerns about the potential negative effects: children are not developing resilience. Parenting Styles: Þ Authoritarian: parents who shape, control, and evaluate their children on the basis of a set of criteria or rules or behavior Þ Authoritative: emphasizes the use of rational, issue-oriented discussion to direct and guide children  o Authoritative parenting was found to positively impact children Þ Permissive: permitting children to follow their own impulses, desires, and actions and offer little punitive intervention New(er) parenting styles: Þ Attachment parenting: achieved through baby-wearing, breastfeeding on demand and for at least one year or more, and co-sleeping Þ “Helicopter parenting”: constant support of adult children using electronic devices etc. Can negatively impact students’ well-being. Þ Concerns over raising a generation of stressed and over-scheduled children who lack the imagination needed to succeed on their own Þ Balancing under-parenting and over-parenting - the need to build resilience Class, Privilege and Intensive Parenting: Þ Intensive parenting as an ideology is based on the assumption that parents have the time, money, and support to spend ample time with children Þ It is a very middle-class ideal: most low-income families cannot meet these demands Þ The parenting styles of the less-privileged mothers are aimed at helping their children survive the realities of a world where marginalized groups have diff. life chances/opportunities Þ Intensive parenting sets the standard for good parenting Þ The demands of intensive parenting cause stress and lead to judgments as parents feel pressured Conclusion: Þ Parenting in Canadian society is highly child-centered and intensive Þ Good parenting requires financial resources, ample time, energy, and is more intensive, according to many family scholars, than at any time in the past Þ Acknowledging that parenting comes with many challenges & that structural barriers impact the life chances of both parents & children could result in a shift towards policy and programs based on an understanding of social responsibility for child outcomes