Sociological Approaches to Family and Intimate Life

This assignment explores the social construction of family and intimate relationships through sociological approaches. It discusses the concept of social construction and how it applies to families and intimate relationships. It also delves into conflict theory, marriage customs, and society's influence on love.

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Assignment on Sociology
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Table of Contents
Family as a social construct...................................................................................................................2
Intimate relationships as the social constructs......................................................................................3
Sociological approaches........................................................................................................................4
Conflict Theory................................................................................................................................5
References.............................................................................................................................................7

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Family as a social construct
Social construction is actually a theory of understanding knowledge in communication and
sociology theory which evaluate the development of shared construction of understandings of
the world which form the basis for joint assumption about the reality. It is something that is
present not in the objective reality, but as the result of human interactions. Families as asocial
construction mean that family is the classification of the reality agreed upon by the members
of the society. The definition reflects the ideologies or value system associated with positions
in the power structure of the society (Doherty et al., 2009). It is classified into two different
types: weak and strong social construct. Family as the social construct or structure is
commonly taken for granted to mean a married couple with kids. For some people family is a
father, mother, and kids; to other family is any union that includes respect and compassion.
Some interactionists described that family is not a concrete reality or objective. Similar to
another phenomenon it is the social construct which is subject to the flow of the social norms
and the ever-changing meanings (Alexandra Beauregard, Ozbilgin, and Bell, 2009).
Considering the meaning of different other elements of the family father was previously a
symbol of emotional and biological connection to the children's. With the more parent and
children relationship progressing via adoption, change in guardianship, or remarriage, parent
word is less common to be associated with a biological connection. The word father and
mother are no longer correlates with the meaning of caregiver and the breadwinner. Some of
the interactionists also identify how the status of the family role of every member is socially
constructed, which can play an import role in how individuals perceive and assess social
attitude or behaviour. The families are viewed as the group of actors or role players that act
together in order to construct a family. Previously a good father was the person who worked
hard to gain financial support or safety for his children. Nowadays a is considered good when

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he takes the time from his busy work schedule to promote the children’s skills in relation to
social, intellectual growth, and emotional wellbeing. Some researchers describe marriage as
the social construct. The family has been seen as the social group which is held together by a
common goal or purpose (Almond, 2008). The distinction between the family and group and
include 1; family members may be involuntary, and the link may be permanent, 2; the actions
of the members' of family can be unseen, therefore there is a secure environment provided
for the honesty and openness but also an atmosphere for dark activities like abuse, addictions,
and neglect, 3; the group members can be more intensely attached via emotional ties, 4; the
shared family paradigm, and 5; a frequent biological links which is not exist in other social;
groups. The challenges families face in includes divorce and remarriages, stress among
children of divorce and remarriage, violence and abuse, and domestic violence (Bengtson,
and Allen, 2009)
Intimate relationships as social constructs
The way in which people perceive love in the society is completely constructed by the human
population. Researchers have constructed what love should look like, feel like, and act like.
People have convinced themselves selves that it is impossible to love two different people
equally at the same time, that if people say they love one person that means they must never
have the desire for another. People as a society now become self-proclaimed judges on the
validity of others people’s love, a judgment they have no right to pass. They do not teach kids
how to cry, what crying needs to look like or when this is appropriate. Why it is that kids and
young people are being taught that intimate life should feel like a spark or the burst of energy,
that loving two different people at the same time is unethical and hurtful, that the most strong
and powerful expression of intimate life and love is life-long marriage? People have taken the
feeling that needs to be organic and instinctual and they have delivered it a script and made it

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a specific choice. Because people have constructed the intimate life or love and the rules and
regulations that go with loving an individual, it has now become a choice for people (Tiefer,
2018).
People need that a lover or two people in an intimate relationship must be devoted to each
other, that their energy and time should be focused on pleasing their companion, that they
become single and must sacrifice some parts of “single life” to maintain the happy and
healthy relationship. Love is the socially constructed approach that has been changed and its
role is improved in the society over time. Intimate relationships are not always been
described as a link in the institution of marriage but also has become the driving motivation
or encouragement and requirement within the Western culture or other cultures. Marrying for
the sake of love became a prominent thing in the society in the starting and mid-1900s whilst
females entered the workforce and after those no-fault divorces emerged, the divorces rates
were increased. As the emotion became the common reason to get married, the loss of this
specific feeling also became the reason for leaving the person. In love, experience is not the
single reason for many divorces, however, loss of love feelings is becoming a most common
factor, as loss of that feeling impact marriage, changes and determinants surrounding
marriage can affect love itself (Soloski et al., 2013).
Sociological approaches to the family and intimate life
Family
Conflict Theory
Conflict theory is one of the main theories that particularly useful for understanding: a
person’s wealth and poverty, reasons of divorce, discrimination, harassment, forced sexual
activities, child abuse, and so on. Conflict theory specifically claims that human society is in

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the state of perpetual issues and competition problems for limited resources (Huinink, and
Feldhaus, 2009). Conflict Theory may predict that the people who have perpetually work to
increase their personal wealth at the expense and some sufferings of those who have not
(Morgan, 2014). This is considered as the power that competition is most commonly won by
the wealthy people and lost by a normal or general person with common means. Power is an
ability to gain what an individual wants to achieve even in the presence of an opponent or
opposition. Authority can be described as an institutionalized legitimate power (Farrington,
and Chertok, 2009).
Intimate life
Over the course of the history, intimate life and love have been expressed and shown
differently all around the world. Displaying love is different which is based on the societal
norms. Intimate relationships may include actions like kissing, hugging, emotional contact,
sex, and companionship that play a key important role in happiness in the relationships.
Different cultures of different societies have adopted new customs. For example, particularly
in Japan, people show the affection are discouraged, and individuals believe in expressing
their intimacy or love for their loved one in a specific way like packing their food for work.
Specifically in France, people express their love by holding their hands together, kissing and
starting physical relationships. In the United States there is a different approach to love. Some
people believe in going with partners on love dates, having casual sex, and being open to
meeting strange and new people on the social media sites or dating apps. The customs in the
US are commonly more liberal than other countries of the world. The traditions of marriage
are largely cultural as well (Rahman, and Jackson, 2010).
Marriage customs

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Marriage can take place when two different people love each other or fall in intimate
relationships and decided to live their whole life together, even though it is not how this
always happens. In the 19th century, the decision of marriage was used to made by the father
or mother based on political or economic considerations. Particularly in India, the marriage
arranged by parents or carers is still the part of their tradition or culture. Now elopement, also
called love marriage, has now become dominant in some of the parts of India. Marriages in
the parts of Japan are more liberal when have to choose those who they are going to marry. In
the US, marriage customs are based upon on the person's roots and values. The wedding or
marriage based on what each person believes is right. Arranged marriages in Japan would
start with a courtship that would enable love to progress and would results in an arranged
marriage (Hendry, 2010)
Society influences on love
Society plays a key role in the way people see love depend upon social differences like
gender, economic status, race, religion, ethnicity, and education. In today's society or
community, there are various major factors that impact how love is perceived by people. The
biggest impact that people see in today’s modern society is of social media sites and movies.
Media impacts the expectations people have of what love or intimate relationships should
be. Young people are the target population who are mainly impacted by an unrealistic
approach of love that they see over and over in movies or films (Friedland et al., 2014).

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References
Alexandra Beauregard, T., Ozbilgin, M., and Bell, M.P., 2009. Revisiting the social
construction of family in the context of work. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 24(1),
pp.46-65.
Almond, B. 2008. Family: social construction or natural phenomenon? JSTOR, 97(285), pp.
29-43
Bengtson, V.L. and Allen, K.R., 2009. The life course perspective applied to families over
time. In Sourcebook of family theories and methods (pp. 469-504). Springer, Boston, MA.
Doherty, W.J., Boss, P.G., LaRossa, R., Schumm, W.R. and Steinmetz, S.K., 2009. Family
theories and methods. In Sourcebook of family theories and methods (pp. 3-30). Springer,
Boston, MA.
Farrington, K. and Chertok, E., 2009. Social conflict theories of the family. In Sourcebook of
family theories and methods (pp. 357-384). Springer, Boston, MA.
Friedland, R., Mohr, J.W., Roose, H., and Gardinali, P., 2014. The institutional logics of love:
measuring intimate life. Theory and society, 43(3-4), pp.333-370.
Hendry, J., 2010. Marriage in changing Japan: Community & society (1st ed). London:
Routledge.
Huinink, J. and Feldhaus, M., 2009. Family research from the life course
perspective. International Sociology, 24(3), pp.299-324.
Morgan, D.H.J., 2014. Social Theory and the Family (RLE Social Theory) (1st ed.). London:
Routledge.

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Rahman, M. and Jackson, S., 2010. Gender and sexuality: Sociological approaches (1st ed.).
UK: Polity.
Soloski, K.L., Pavkov, T.W., Sweeney, K.A. and Wetchler, J.L., 2013. The social
construction of love through intergenerational processes. Contemporary Family
Therapy, 35(4), pp.773-792.
Tiefer, L., 2018. Social constructionism and the study of human sexuality. In Sex is not a
Natural Act & Other Essays(pp. 15-29). Routledge.