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Schaefer contributed greatly to the field of sociology because he coined several terms that are mostly used in explaining the social phenomenon. He analyzed the views of various prominent scholars in the field, as well as the major ideas of great theorists, such as Karl Marx, Durkheim, Merton, and Max Weber. For instance, he revisited the ideas of Robert Butler on ageism, which is a coined to discuss the prejudices and all sorts of discriminations directed towards the older people in the community.
The author invented the term agrarian society meaning the technologically advanced pre-industrialized society that depends on simple machines in the production of goods and services. He also looked at the validity of Durkheim’s ideas on anomie whereby he observed that when people lose direction, the problem has to be explained by understanding the dynamics of society instead of attributing the behavior to an individual.
Based on this, social problems are explained after a comprehensive analysis of the social structure, which includes the various agents of socialization such as the family, the school, the polity, the peer, and the media. The most important term that the author formulated was the egalitarian family, as it presents a new issue of concern in many societies because the role of women in the industrialized society is yet to be recognized.
He proposed that the community should embrace an egalitarian family whereby the contributions of women should be taken into consideration instead of assigning them inferior and degrading roles, such as housekeepers, secretaries, nurses, and caregivers.
Under the new arrangements, the adult members of the family unit should be regarded as equals meaning the views of each person should be incorporated into the decision-making process. Traditionally, only men were allowed to design and implement policies, even those that affected women. For instance, it was a man who determined the number of children to be reproduced while women were expected to obey the men’s authority.
In his analysis, the author noted that social changes had facilitated the emergence of complex family relations whereby the father is no longer regarded as the head of the family. Some scholars refer to these new developments as alternative families or postmodern family arrangements, which explain the changing forms of relationships, partnerships, and companionships.
Unfortunately, the scholar was quick to note that the society is reluctant to accept the new changes because intensive struggles for power and gender identifies have always been witnessed, which prevent the attainment of the new dreams. According to Giddens, the social transformations in family life have generated conflicts in the way patriarchal authority is expressed.
An egalitarian family arrangement is one of the major threats to the patriarchy, according to the author because it opposes the tenets of the traditional family that insists on the male power and authority in marriage. In the new family arrangement, partners are always focused on striking a balance between family life and professional commitments with an attempt to construct a harmonious, democratic relationship (Maume 860). For several scholars, an egalitarian family is simply an ideal type since it is inapplicable in real life.
The author wondered why western societies are always insistent on the egalitarian family, yet individuals are unwilling to apply it in their relationships. Western governments have bowed to pressure from feminist organizations to the extent of facilitating egalitarianism in the labor markets through the formulation of stable policies and adequate measures to ensure that women are hired into powerful positions in various organizations. However, the idea is yet to be applied at the family level.
The number of families willing to embrace egalitarianism is in the increase in the western countries, but they are inconsiderable given the extensive campaigns. In a study conducted in the United States, the author reported that young professionals are more willing to embrace equality in the family as compared to the elderly who are reluctant to change family relations.
In an attempt to classify egalitarian families, the author discussed the other two forms of family relations, including traditional and neo-traditional associations at the family level. In the traditional family type, the father is often considered the sole breadwinner while the mother is expected to take care of the activities of the home, including cooking for the family, caregiving, and reproduction (Nordenmark 236).
In other words, the mother is involved in the unpaid work of the home. In his view, this form of family relations is in the decrease in western society even though it is rampant in the third world societies. Classification of the neo-traditional family relations is interesting since it proves that women do not enjoy their rights and freedoms in modern society.
While both fathers and mothers are expected to engage in paid work, as well as sharing family chores, the mother is still subjected to inhuman treatment in the sense that the distribution of housework is uneven.
Women work part-time, but the family responsibility is solely theirs because they are to provide the basic needs for the members while fathers are to accomplish the long-term objectives of the family. He concluded the debate on the egalitarian family by arguing that it is difficult to evaluate whether the family is egalitarian or neo-traditional because the mother will always tend to have additional responsibilities.
Works Cited
Maume, David. “Gender Differences in restricting Work efforts Because of family responsibilities.” Journal of Marriage and Family 68.11 (2006): 859-869. Print.
Nordenmark, Mikael. “Does gender ideology explain Differences between countries regarding the involvement of Women and of men in Paid and unpaid Work?” International Journal of Social Welfare 13.1 (2004): 233-243. Print.
Schaefer, Richard T. Sociology: A Brief Introduction. Dubuque, Iowa: McGraw-Hill, 2013. Print.
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