Family as a Social Institution

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Table of Contents

The theoretical importance of the family
Historical perspectives on family diversity
Works Cited

The theoretical importance of the family

William J. Goode wrote this article. The article focuses on several key questions related to studying families (Goode 1). Through this, Goode highlights the emotional intensity found in families and means by which kinship networks are interlinked in our societies.

In the article, various views on family, the positions of the family in society, preconceptions about the family, the importance of family, sociological approach to family research, and definition of family are highlighted. The points in the article can be generalized into difficulties in studying and defining families and different perceptions about families. Sociologically, the author asserts that family is a social institution that exhibits unique characteristics of legitimacy and authority.

While coming up with the above article, Goode consulted existing literature. For instance, he notes that for centuries thoughtful individuals have pointed out that family was disintegrating (Goode 3). He asserts that several analysts have previously reported that family units are no longer performing their core functions. Equally, Goode uses three sources to substantiate his claims. The sources are the Family through Literature by Nicholas Tavuchis, Technical Innovations, and Theoretical Functions of Primary Groups and Bureaucratic Structures by Eugene Litwak, and Conquerors and Slaves by Keith Hopkins.

During the classroom sessions, the following questions can guide the students in analyzing the article. How have American families changed over the last few centuries? How will family units in the future differ from the current family units? What are the students’ perceptions of the family? Do the current family units meet their required mandate?

Historical perspectives on family diversity

Stephanie Coontz wrote this article. The article investigates the link of historical research with current family studies (Coontz 42). In the article, the author asserts that family history has been influenced by a large extent by some factors. These factors are sociological and anthropological. The author asserts that these factors have not only shaped the family history over time but have also been shaped by family history. In general, the article focuses on variability in the European and American historical record, diversity in emotional and sexual arrangements, families in the cauldron of colonization, families in the early commercial and industrializing economy, the family consumer economy, and implications of historical diversity of the contemporary families.

Through the above points, the author illustrates that families have always been diverse and that no one family can be evaluated based on its socioeconomic context (Coontz 57). Similarly, the article illustrates that in history families have always been fragile, vulnerable to economic changes, and needful of economic and emotional support from other family units. As such, all families have and will continue experiencing internal contradictions, conflicts, and external stresses (Coontz 58).

To substantiate her claims, the author consulted the existing literature. As such, the author uses more than 20 books and articles as her sources. Because the article focuses on the historical perspectives on family diversity, the author needed to consult several credible books about family history.

During the classroom sessions, the following questions can guide the students in analyzing the article. What do you understand by family diversity? What is the extent of family diversity? How is the diversity in the current US families different from the families in most periods in the past?

Works Cited

Coontz , Stephanie. “Historical Perspectives on Family Diversity.” Handbook of family diversity . New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. 42-58. Print.

Goode, William Josiah. “Theoretical Importance of the Family.” The family. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 2001. 1-14. Print.

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Family as a Social Institution

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