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The Domestic Labour Debate
Since the 1970's the debate about just who is
doing what in the household has been
gathering momentum
Willmott and Young 1975
The Symmetrical family has become
common
Move from segregated (separate)
conjugal roles to joint conjugal roles
i.e. greater sharing of household tasks
by husbands and wives
Growth of the privatised family
More women are working
Oakley 1975
Interviewed 40 housewives in London
(criticism – very small sample)
Many married women expressed the
desire for their men to be ‘men’
Women carried out the majority of
household tasks
Gershuny 1992
Looked at Canada & Europe
Men are doing more domestic tasks
- particularly where partners work
But – women still do more
In recent research published in 2005, Gershuny
says that men are doing twice as much as they did
in 1961 but women still do twice as much as men on
average
Edgell 1980
Looked at decision making between
spouses
Women made more decisions in areas of
domestic spending and children’s clothes
Men made the more ‘important’ decisions
of moving house etc
Male careers were seen as more
important as they were the main
breadwinners
Gillian Leighton 1992
Found that when men became
unemployed this power balance shifted
with wives taking over the main money
decisions
Pahl 1993 & Vogler 1994
In separate studies both found that in
the area of financial matters there was
more equality
Morris 1990
Lydia Morris found that even in families
where the husband was unemployed – he did
little or no more housework than when he
was fully employed.
This she concluded, was because they felt
emasculated as a result of their job losses and
household chores further exasperated this.
Dunscombe & Marsden (1995)
Identified ‘emotional work’ as an
important part of the woman’s role
Added to the dual burden mentioned
above this makes a ‘triple burden’
i.e. Women are involved in paid
employment, do most of the domestic
activities and take on the emotional
support role.
Fatherhood
In the early 1990’s
many sociologists
detected a change in
the role of fathers.
Many more men were
attending the births of
their children and
playing a greater role in
childcare.
Fatherhood
Dennis And Erdos 1992
Arguing from a new left perspective,
Dennis and Erdos suggest that the
absence of an authority figure is a
major factor in youths turning to
deviance and crime.
This has echoes of functionalism and
new right philosophies but is backed
by recent government moves on
making parents directly responsible
for bad behaviour of young people,
e.g. fines for parents of persistent
truants
Fatherhood
Burghess 1997
Found fathers taking a
more central role in
the emotional
development of their
children
Fatherhood
Beck 1992
In a post- modern
world men can no
longer rely on careers
to give identity and
fulfilment.
Being a ‘dad’ gives a
sense of purpose
Fatherhood
Dermot et al 2006
Research at The University of Bristol led by Esther Dermott found that
many modern men still work long hours after becoming fathers and have
little desire to spend more time at home.
After an initial surge of interest after the birth they soon settle back into
their old working routine.
As Dermott points out
'.....If by new fathers we mean: is more emotional, turns up at sports day,
wants to build a relationship with the child, then yes (we have them). If we
mean: rearranges his employment in order to prioritise child care then we
don't have that‘
However, most men stated that fatherhood had been a life changing
experience and that their social life and personal relationships had
changed. Men didn't want to work less hours but they wanted more
flexibility to be able to take an afternoon off to watch the Christmas play
etc.
Fatherhood
However it is important not to
over emphasise the role of men
in this area.
Most children are looked after by
females in the main.
Men are doing more but women
still do most!
Childhood
Childhood is a social
construction. It is created by
society rather than simply a
biological stage.
Different societies and
different historical periods
have different ideas about
what is a child and what is
expected of a child
Childhood
Pre Industrial Society
Aries 1962
‘Childhood’ is a recent
invention
In pre industrial society
children were little adults
They were an economic
asset – they were
expected to help the
family unit of production
Childhood
Childhood & Industrialisation
WC attitudes stayed the same but MC
attitudes started to change in the mid
19th century
Campaigners fought against children
working in mines and factories
Schooling became important for the
MC
Childhood
Childhood In 20th Century
The 20th century became ‘child centred’
Health and diet improved and the infant
mortality rate declined.
Childhood & The State
The 20th century saw the increasing need
to protect children via a number of
pieces of legislation.
1945 Butler Education Act – schooling
for all 5-15
(Raised to 16 in 1972)
The Children Act 1989 – giving more
rights to children
Childhood & The State
1990 Child Care Act
1991 Child Support Act
These deal with the care, upbringing and
protection of children
Social Services and Social Workers have
powers to take children away from
dangerous home situations
Childhood
Postman 1984 and 1994
Neil Postman "The Disappearance of Childhood" 1982 believes that
childhood is fast disappearing. Children grow up very quickly and
experience things only open to adults in the past.
Our definitions of 'childhood' and 'adulthood' will need changing in
the not too distant future. Postman argues that childhood is dying
because we are moving away from a print culture to a visual culture.
Reading is in decline as a result as are the important skills of
persistence and delayed gratification.
Visual culture opens children to often dubious representations of
sex and violence through TV, film and video. They are also exposed
to advertising focussed specifically on the youth market. Whereas
in the 19th century the child in their teenage years was a wage
earner, the child of the 20th century has become an "egocentric
consumer"
Childhood
Cunningham 1995
argues that modern society has seen a collapse in adult
authority as parents became more inclined to give into
their children's demands.
the shift in power away from parents to children is
therefore not just economic - it is emotional as well
Parents increasingly look for emotional gratification
from their children resulting in a reluctance to discipline
them effectively and a tendency to "give in" to their
demands.
adolescence or "youth" as a period of stress between
parents
Childhood
Bocock 1993
Richard Bocock suggests that the rise of the child
as consumer over the latter parts of the 20th
century is a further prop to the capitalist system.
Children and youths are an important market and
are easily persuaded to part with their money via
very focused advertising.
Childhood
Lee 2001
Nick Lee disagrees with Postman and
says that childhood is not disappearing.
He agrees that it has become a complex
and ambiguous area and that children
are targeted as a market by producers
and advertisers.
However, the parents control the purse
strings and children can only spend as
much as their parents allow.
The paradox of childhood is one of
dependence and independence at the
same time.
Childhood & The State
Recent changes have undermined the
distinctiveness of childhood, according to some
sociologists.
TV and other media have penetrated our homes
and teat children as fully fledged consumers of
products.
On the other hand the need to protect children
against the ‘evils’ of the adult world are reflected
in the policies shown above.
Hence the messages have become confusing and
the debate about the status of children in
contemporary society has developed into a
source of tension
Youth
Squeezed in between childhood and
adulthood is the unclear term ‘youth’
Youth
Pilcher 1995
Says it is best treated as
•a transition between child and adult.
•From compulsory education to
employment
•From family of origin to family of
destination (orientation to procreation)
Childhood & Other Cultures
As stated above childhood is a social construction and varies
across time and space. Children in many developing countries
are experiencing the type of childhood many in this country
experienced in the early industrial period.
Childhood & Other Cultures
Townsend et al
Using data from 43 developing countries they found:
1/3 of children in the world suffer from
absolute poverty (i.e. below the minimum
food, shelter and clothing level)
134m children have never been to school
Nearly 400 million children have a 15 minute
walk to get water or are drinking unsafe
water
Civil wars in many areas have made difficult
lives even worse.
Demographic Changes 1900 - present
UK Population
The population of the UK has grown throughout the
century but at a declining rate. 1996 based projections
suggest that the population in the UK will continue to
grow into the next century; by 2021 it is projected to rise
to just over 62m
Demographic Changes 1900 - present
Some Trends
•In 1900 women had an average of 3.5 children,
today it is 1.7.
In 1900 63% of people died before 60yrs, today
only 12% do.
Between 1901 and 1905 the general fertility rate in
the UK was about 110 live births per 1000 women
aged 15-44. By 1971 this had fallen to 91 and in
1997 to 59
The number of births in the UK has declined
throughout the century, interrupted only by the two
post-war ‘baby booms’ and a secondary peak in the
1960s.
Women now have children much later in life.
Boys are expected to live to 75 on average, girls 80
– in 1900 it was 45 and 49 respectively
Infant mortality rates have fallen over the century
from 140/1000 to 5/1000
Source: House Of Commons RESEARCH PAPER 99/111
http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp99/rp99-111.pdf
Demographic Changes 1900 - present
Why are women having fewer children?
More children survive now than in the
past
Reliable contraception – especially the
pill since the 1960’s
Children are expensive
Women have children later in life
Careers for women have become more
important
Demographic Changes 1900 - present
Why are people living longer?
Health and sanitation have improved
The welfare state gives help to the
elderly – pensions, medical care etc
Improved diets and exercise
Less likely to die in a war now
Jobs are less physical and are safer
Immigration Since 1900
Migration
The census of 2001 shows the following ethnic mix in the UK
Ethnic Origin
White
92
Indian
1.8
Pakistani
1.3
Mixed
1.2
Black Caribbean
Black African
Bangladeshi
Chinese
0.4
% of Population
By the beginning of the 20th
century there had been many
migrants from Ireland due to
poverty and starvation.
After WW II many migrants came from
Europe especially Poland.
Between 1950’s and 1960’s there was a
big wave of economic migration from Asia
and the Caribbean.
In the recent years the changes in the EEc
have led to many migrants fro eastern
Europe, particularly Poland.
1.0
0.8
0.5
Ethnic minorities are not evenly distributed across the UK with the highest % in
London and other significant numbers in Birmingham and Bradford/Leeds
Emigration Since 1900
At the beginning of the century the UK was a net exporter of
population, mostly young men, to other countries especially North
America, the antipodes and other colonies.
The UK again became a net exporter of population in the 1970s and 1980s as
families migrated under arranged passages to Australia, New Zealand and
South Africa.
Since 2000 1.1 British citizens have moved abroad (most popular countries
being France and Spain) and just over ½ a million have returned from abroad.
Most go to experience a better standard of life –both financially and weather
wise!
Effects Of Migration
1. Family Diversity
Although we need to avoid
stereotyping Asian goups do have more
extended families than other ethnic
groups
Afro- Caribbean groups have the
highest percentage of single parent
families of all ethnic groups
Effects Of Migration
2. Integration Issues
This looks at how ethnic groups have
‘fitted in’
Some argue that multicultural policies
have helped other cultures ‘fit in’ to
British culture.
Opponents argue that too much
emphasis has been placed on
‘multicultaralism’ at the expense of
‘Britishness’
Effects Of Migration
3. Political Issues
This is a n area of hot debate
Far right parties like the BNP have
made it a central issue
Others have worried in the past about
the effects of migrant workers to
Britain both economically and socially.
Recent fears about the ‘invasion’ from
Eastern Europe have fuelled this
debate again.