Nuclear Family Case Study

Following Murdock’s idea of the nuclear family, further family types were devised. According to Office for National Statistics (2013) the most common family type is married couple with or without children, making up 12.3 million families out of 18.2 million families in total, in the UK. The family is arguably one of the most important aspects of society and has an essential part in satisfying the emotional and physical requirements of an individual, which is compulsory for attaining economic and social growth. The other most common family types include, lone parent families, cohabiting couple families, same sex cohabiting families, extended families and blended families. It has been argued that a family does not to be a nuclear one to function effectively. As long as a family provides a support system for the adults and children within it, then it will be a positive family structure. However, it should be noted that the rise in break downs of the nuclear family, and the decrease of extended families, has significantly increased anxiety and worry in young children, and a considerable growth in the number of teenagers and adults suffering from depression.

A contemporary issue that can have an impact on social policy and society is unemployment. Due to the recession in 2008, the UK has been in economic crisis which has had a direct effect on employment rates. A lack of employment can have an effect in many ways such as, negative effects on mental health, erosion of skills and denying children educational opportunities. One of the most common negative side effect of unemployment is low mental health. If someone loses their job it can have a negative impact on them as there is a loss of routine, lack of motivation and lack of income,...

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...eceiving high quality care which will benefit them in later life.

To conclude, this assignment has critically explored and analysed the development and impact of contemporary issues and social policy on children and their families in the UK. It has looked at the concept of social policy and what it means. The assignment has examined the meaning of family and the different types of family that exist, including the nuclear family. The meaning and the impact of the ‘modern family’ has also been discussed. Two areas of social policy have been looked at in depth. The areas were employment and gender roles and they have been analysed and discussed to see how they impact both individuals and the effect they have on a larger level, on society and on a global level. The areas of social policy have been related to practice to see the influence that they have on settings.