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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.

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Presentation on theme: "The Domestic Labour Debate Since the 1970's the debate about just who is doing what in the household has been gathering momentum."— Presentation transcript:

1 The Domestic Labour Debate Since the 1970's the debate about just who is doing what in the household has been gathering momentum

2 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

3 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

4 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

5 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

6 Gillian Leighton 1992 Found that when men became unemployed this power balance shifted with wives taking over the main money decisions

7 Pahl 1993 & Vogler 1994 In separate studies both found that in the area of financial matters there was more equality

8 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.

9 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.

10 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

11 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

12 Burghess 1997 Found fathers taking a more central role in the emotional development of their children Fatherhood

13 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

14 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

15 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! Fatherhood

16 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

17 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

18 Childhood & Industrialisation WC attitudes stayed the same but MC attitudes started to change in the mid 19 th century Campaigners fought against children working in mines and factories Schooling became important for the MC Childhood

19 Childhood In 20 th Century The 20th century became ‘child centred’ Health and diet improved and the infant mortality rate declined. Childhood

20 The 20 th 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

21 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 & The State

22 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

23 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

24 Bocock 1993 Childhood Richard Bocock suggests that the rise of the child as consumer over the latter parts of the 20 th 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.

25 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

26 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 Childhood & The State

27 Squeezed in between childhood and adulthood is the unclear term ‘youth’ Youth

28 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) Youth

29 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.

30 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. Childhood & Other Cultures

31 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

32  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 http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp99/rp99-111.pdf

33 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

34 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 Demographic Changes 1900 - present

35 Migration The census of 2001 shows the following ethnic mix in the UK Ethnic Origin% of Population White92 Indian1.8 Pakistani1.3 Mixed1.2 Black Caribbean 1.0 Black African0.8 Bangladeshi0.5 Chinese0.4 Ethnic minorities are not evenly distributed across the UK with the highest % in London and other significant numbers in Birmingham and Bradford/Leeds Immigration Since 1900 By the beginning of the 20 th 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. 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!

36 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

37 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

38 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. Effects Of Migration


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