Changes in Australian Families: A Sociological Perspective

Introduction to Social
Theories
Running Head: SOCIAL THEORIES 0
Functionalism, Conflict Theory and
Symbolic Interactionism
S t u d e n t N a m e :
S t u d e n t U n i v e r s i t y :

SOCIAL THEORIES 1
To what extent has the Australian family changed in the last 70 years?
The changes occurred in Australian families with their caring nature towards each
other in society and nurturing children. In Australia, the changes consist of an increase in
divorce rates, double-income families shifting, a decline in marriage rates and family size,
and paid childcare. The people were living together without getting married and the marriage
rate was declining with the increase in divorce rates after the Family Law Act came into force
in 1975 and a reduction in the fertility rate down the replacement level (Porter & Nuntavisit,
2016). In this essay, the aim is to focus on the three theories of sociology which are
functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism relating to the changes in
Australian families. The issues faced there under the laws are the mentality of the previous
and present generation, acceptability, mind-set, lack of education and change in cultures and
trends, and respecting the perspectives of individuals living in Australia.
In Australia, families living together with different perspectives and point-of-views
due to differences in generations and the families are becoming smaller. The reason behind
the population is individuals living longer together with fewer babies who bring change in
Australian families (Lam, O’Flaherty, & Baxter, 2018). The country is developing with the
longest life expectancies all around the globe. Poverty is not generally measured in terms of
wealth but income relative to costs as well. The children without parents live with the
conditions of poverty in terms of income. The government reflects the redistribution of
benefits and taxation to support families with children and children with free families in
demographic conditions (Reiger, 2016). The financial conditions also define the income and
poverty measures related to the Australian families where the government supports them
when none of is employed (Baxter, 2017). Accordingly, larger families with lower income
are benefited by the government; the income directly impacts the children in the family and
related education and health costs.
It brings social change as well in Australian families considering education,
workforce market, demographic and economic situation. The demographic aspects lead to
lower rates of marriage, higher divorce rates, higher rates of living together, instability in
living together more than in marriage, and individual parents increment in modern Australia;
the change in single parenthood means including their gender issues where the most of them
were females; nowadays, more of intermingled and step-families; smaller families and lower
richness (Thomson, 2017). The education change aspects consist of education to women with

SOCIAL THEORIES 2
an increase in the percentage for development of tertiary education. The changes in the
workforce market with the declining rate of participation and unemployment especially for
women (Burn, Lewis, & McDonald, 2019). The women control their productiveness through
pills but levels of education increment, legal and administrative changes, and social attitudes
promoted to gender equality and increased the participation of women in the workforce
currently; increase in the percentage of part-time work by the individuals; increase in the
participation rate due to population groups; different structures of employment and women
with children, and decrease in the workforce participation of men. The economic changes
aspect leads to falling unemployment rates and inflation, and an increase in economic growth
(Connell, 2005). Even in politics, the families were pronounced about the consistent, static
and endless where the development kind leads to the support of marriage equality for LGBT
individuals by remembering the self-respect of the value of existing LGBT families (Jones,
2016).
According to the data of 2011, the family households were 71.5%, individual
households were 24.3% and group households were 4.1% in Australia. In 2015, ABS
(Australian Bureau of Statistics) unconfined family and household forecast from 2011-2036
of Australia where the increase from 8.42 million to between 12.73 million, and 12.57 million
by 2036. The estimates were based on the propensities of living arrangement, low rate of
change in living arrangement propensities, and change in propensities rate trends (Australian
Institute of Family Studies, 2019). The fall in the percentage of Australians families
continues according to the forecast issue. Between 1996 and 2016, the percentage fall from
54% to 49% and 48% by 2041 in Australia of families living with children as estimated
whereas families without children rise from 19% to 21% and remain the same by 2041. This
forecast was done on the basis of growth and population change assuming demographic
trends in the future (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2019).
The trends in Australian families based on the facts and figures as per the survey by
ABS includes 309,142 births in 2017 in Australia with low fertility rate; children living with
their parents; from 1970 to 2000 with falling percentage of marriage and divorce rates in
2016 in Australia; households and population, family and work, older people, children
separation from their parents, satisfaction in life at the time of life progress changes, to live
alone and self-well-being, and nature towards cross-generational support (Australian Institute
of Family Studies, Facts and Figures, 2019). The sociological theories based on the changes