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Analysis the changing american family
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Parenting in America Today There has been quite a bit of research done on what a family in America today looks like. In fact, the American family is changing and the family unit is undergoing challenging fluctuations. There really isn’t one typical American family unit any long and families are more diverse now than in times past. Parents in America today are less likely to be married when they decide to have children and are more likely to be older and more educated. Families can consist of two parent households, single family households, blended households, same sex households and households wherein unrelated people live together due to economic circumstances. In fact, two parent households in America is on the decline and is no longer the definition of a family. How you define your family is up to you. American families today are smaller than in years past. Most parents or families consist only of one or two children and it rare to see larger families unless the family is blended or there are religious beliefs about raising a large family. There are a few factors influencing this and neither a small or large family is the wrong thing, it is a personal choice. However, one factor that can influence family size is economics. It is very expensive to raise a large family while ensuring they will be provided with the necessary provisions to thrive. The invention of birth control plays a part in smaller families as parents can now choose to not become pregnant until they want children. In years past this was not an option. Another reason for smaller families is people are waiting until they feel personal aspirations are met. Waiting until after higher education or good employment often delays child rearing and in turn for the femal... ... middle of paper ... ...ied about the amount of screen time as opposed to those with less education, the same goes for those with a higher income than those with less. It is important to understand, those with a lower income may not have access to devices with screens such as a computer or video games and therefore screen time is limited by economics not choice. Overall, income, education level, race, and gender all have a role in how American society views parenting in today’s world. Parents are as diverse as children are individual and there is no right or wrong in how a parent deals with the circumstances they are faced with when raising children. It is important to have a strong belief system and understanding of available resources within and outside of the family, school and community in order to raise a child to be an individual with values and principles you as a parent believe in.
In The Changing American Family by Cris Beam he uses statistics to show how the changes have changed so drastically. These statistics I think we’re trying to show the amount of change helping you picture in your mind how the changes have increased over the years. I believe that Cris Beam was trying to show that it really has changed and that the Traditional American family is no more. With the article The American family is no more by Allie Bidwell she talks more about the di...
Two families, the Stanleys and the Neumanns, are chosen to be documented and videotaped over a period of 20 years. Over this time between 1991 to 2011, these two american families go through what is supposed to be the american dream. This documentary is called “Two American Families.”
Today 's generation have changed many ways since the beginning of the century. In “The American Family”, Stephanie Coontz discusses many situations that has occurred during the beginning of the 21st century and suggested solutions to solve those issues in the future. For instance, she argued that women are being treated unfairly, family are not discussing their problems openly, and institutions need to change to fit the families’ requirement. In “Complexity of Family Life among the Low-Income and Working Poor” Patricia Hyjer Dyk, argued that women still doesn’t have enough choices, low income families doesn’t have enough jobs, and Government are not helping many families. Dyk’s review of the scholarly research on low-income families support Coontz’ evaluations of the problems faced by 21st century families and the solutions Coontz recommends, like improving women 's lifestyle, discussing problems openly, improving institutions and changing institutions so it can to fit to fulfil families need. .
It’s not easy to build an ideal family. In the article “The American Family” by Stephanie Coontz, she argued that during this century families succeed more when they discuss problems openly, and when social institutions are flexible in meeting families’ needs. When women have more choices to make their own decisions. She also argued that to have an ideal family women can expect a lot from men especially when it comes to his involvement in the house. Raymond Carver, the author of “Where He Was: Memories of My Father”, argued how his upbringing and lack of social institutions prevented him from building an ideal family. He showed the readers that his mother hide all the problems instead of solving them. She also didn’t have any choice but to stay with his drunk father, who was barely involved in the house. Carvers’ memoir is relevant to Coontz argument about what is needed to have an ideal family.
While watching the documentary “Two American Families” there was three aspects I noticed within the two families. The first being how there was a shift in the social class of the families due to economic problems. The second being the role reversal of the male and the female. The third being the effect of the families’ financial instability on the children and their decisions into adulthood.
The definition of what consitutes a “family“ has definatly changed over time. Usually, what constitutes making up a family is relative to a specific culture, but as always, there are exceptions to the rule. Ever since the golden age of television had sprung upon American culture, it has tried to mimic the "ideal" American family through it's programming. Even as early as the 1950's, television producers made
In conclusion this paper has shown my perceptions on the described topics. I have identified why the family is considered the most important agent in socialization. I explained the dramatic changes to the American family and what caused them. I explained the differences in marriage and family. I expressed my feelings on the trend of diverse families, and how a change in trends to traditional views would change women’s rights.
The most compelling data that we have shows the change in our American family structure. Day there are alarming number of children with mental disorders and children being raised in single parent homes has increased. In both areas it is shown that we need more preventive care (Petersmeyer 1989). Other statistics are equally troubling: each day in the United States, 3,600 students drop out of high school, and 2,700 unwed teenage girls get pregnant (Petersmeyer 1989). As a society we have a responsibility to our youth to help them become strong adults. My grandmother was always telling me that it takes more then the immediate family to raise a child well, if a child is to be rear well it takes a whole community contribution.
Beginning in 1992, a man named Bill Moyers has followed the lives of two American families in the film, “Two American Families.” Produced as a documentary, the film covers an 11 year period. The two families shown in the film are the Neumann family and the Stanley family. Both families have multiple children and struggle economically. The main difference between the two is that the Stanleys are African American and the Neumans are white. This leads to the question of whether race was a cause of all their struggles.
In June of 1904, as reported in the New York Times: Come on out here, Hattie, and give us a tune, It was “Billy” Snyder, keeper of the elephants in the Zoological Gardens, Central Park, New York, who spoke nonchalantly and in his most ordinary tone of voice, while twenty children craned their necks wondrously across the railing. It was “Hattie” the champion trick elephant of the world and the great pet of the children of New York City. Youngsters surprisingly viewed these otherwise threatening, menacing creatures as friends. It would seem that children developed such a close relationship with the animals that each beast was given their own individual personality and characteristics.
As we have learned through Skolnick’s book, as well as Rubin’s research, the make up of the family is influenced by many factors. The economy, culture, education, ethnicity/race, and tradition all help to create the modern family. The last few decades have heavily influenced the family structure, and while some try to preserve the past, others embrace the future. Through it all, we find you can have both.
According to most, ethnicity usually is displayed in the values, attitudes, lifestyles, customs, rituals, and personality types of individuals who identify with particular ethnic groups. Ethnic identifications and memberships in an ethnic group has farreaching effects on both groups and individuals, controlling assess to opportunities in life, feeling of well being and mastery over the futures of one's child and future. These feelings of belonging and attachment to a certain group of people for whatever reason are a basic feature of the human condition. These ties are called "ethnic ties" and the group of people that one is tied to is an "ethnic group." In the general sense, an ethnic group consists of those who share a unique social and cultural heritage that is passed on from generation to generation.
The family is the fundamental base to learn patterns associated with behavior in society. Mexican-Americans are the largest ethnic minority group in the United States. The Mexican-American culture is mostly based on traditions and values that are passed on for generations. This is one of the main cultures in which parents teach their children the same ideals, values, norms and social roles they were taught while growing up. For Mexican-American family is essential and fundamental to their culture. The role the family plays in the development of children will influence the way they will behave in the future. Usually, the family structure of this culture is based on the trait of familism. Familism is common in Mexican descendants because it highlights
The changing of American families has left many families broken and struggling. Pauline Irit Erera, an associate professor at the University of Washington School of Social Work, wrote the article “What is a Family?”. Erera has written extensively about family diversity, focusing on step-families, foster families, lesbian families, and noncustodial fathers. Rebecca M. Blank, a professor of economics at Northwestern University, where she has directed the Joint Center for Poverty Research, wrote the article “Absent Fathers: Why Don't We Ever Talk About the Unmarried Men?”. She served on the Council of Economic Advisors during the Clinton administration. Andrew J. Cherlin, a professor of sociology at Johns Hopkins University wrote the article “The Origins of the Ambivalent Acceptance of Divorce”. She is also the author of several other books on the changing profiles of American family life. These three texts each talk about the relationship between the parent and the child of a single-parent household. They each discuss divorce, money/income they receive, and the worries that come with raising a child in a single-parent household.
To thoroughly elaborate on the institution of family we most look at the family as it was before and how much it has changed over time. Throughout the years we are recognizing that the family is slowly being replaced by other agents of socialization. Families in the past consisted of a mother and a father and most times children. We are, as many societies a patriarchal society; men are usually the head of the households. This has always been considered the norm.