Recent decades have witnessed remarkable changes in family patterns and household organisation. In particular, contemporary family and household relationships have become far more diverse than they were previously. This book examines the character of these changes, providing a systematic overview of the ways in which domestic arrangements have been altering. Moreover, it places these developments in family and domestic life in their wider economic, social and demographic contexts, showing how family patterns can be understood only by linking what happens inside families with the broader environments in which they operate. Particular attention is paid in the text to the growth of new forms of solidarity and fragmentation within families and households, including cohabitation, divorce, lone-parent households and step-families. The book also focuses on the dynamics of family and household organisation, emphasising the changes that occur in people's domestic relationships as their life course position alters. Thus, in addition to examining the contemporary organisation of marriage, including the domestic division of labour and patterns of resource allocation, it also analyses the household and family circumstances of young adults and people over retirement age. In focusing on diversity and change in domestic relationships the book reflects the revitalisation evident in the sociology of family life in recent years, a period in which new research questions and fresh understandings have emerged about the ways in which people organise their lives as members of households and families. Graham Allan is Reader in Sociology at the University of Southampton. His interests include sociology of the family, community and friendship. Graham Crow is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Southampton. His interests include the sociology of domestic life, community, sociological theory and comparative sociology.

This international collection features the most influential scholarship published during the past few decades on the concept of the family and related issues. An invaluable resource for students and researchers alike, the four volumes cover the following themes: Vol. 1: Family Groups Vol. 2: Family and Gender Issues Vol. 3: Family Ties Vol. 4: Family and Society The scope offers an international range of material, and includes key work from the USA, Europe, Canada, Australia, and Asia.

Covering a series of issues, this book seeks to reestablish sociology of the family as a key area in undergraduate studies. It provides a theoretical and scholarly overview of the area and includes various essays.

The enduring and multi-faceted significance of families in society, and their value as a focus for the exploration of social change have ensured that families remain a prominent focus of academic enquiry. This book proposes a new conceptual framework that both challenges and attempts to reconcile traditional and contemporary approaches.

Bringing together essays by twenty-one distinguished scholars who have helped shape the field of family sociology in the last decade, this interdisciplinary anthology examines variation within family experience, especially as it has evolved across racial, ethnic, social, gender, and generational lines. The essays place historical and institutional frameworks at the center of the discussion. In-depth chapter introductions along with critical questions to spark class discussion make this an ideal text for courses focusing on family composition, trends, and controversies in the United States.

"Recent decades have witnessed remarkable changes in family patterns and household organisation. In particular, contemporary family and household relationships have become far more diverse than they were previously. This book examines the character of these changes, providing a systematic overview of the ways in which domestic arrangements have been altering. Moreover, it places these developments in family and domestic life in their wider economic, social and demographic contexts, showing how family patterns can be understood only by linking what happens inside families with the broader environments in which they operate. Particular attention is paid in the text to the growth of new forms of solidarity and fragmentation within families and households, including cohabitation, divorce, lone-parent households and step-families. The book also focuses on the dynamics of family and household organisation, emphasising the changes that occur in people's domestic relationships as their life course position alters. Thus, in addition to examining the contemporary organisation of marriage, including the domestic division of labour and patterns of resource allocation, it also analyses the household and family circumstances of young adults and people over retirement age. In focusing on diversity and change in domestic relationships the book reflects the revitalisation evident in the sociology of family life in recent years, a period in which new research questions and fresh understandings have emerged about the ways in which people organise their lives as members of households and families. Graham Allan is Reader in Sociology at the University of Southampton. His interests include sociology of the family, community and friendship. Graham Crow is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Southampton. His interests include the sociology of domestic life, community, sociological theory and comparative sociology."--

Fully updated, this comprehensive and engaging introduction to the sociology of the family offers cross-cultural and historical coverage of a timely topic. For this new edition the authors have added a glossary, expanded and revised many of the chapters, and included a short outline at thebeginning of each chapter to provide an overview of material covered. An entirely new section on adoption has been added, and the chapter on dual career families greatly expanded.

The Case of Zhenhua and Shuqin -- The Case of Fuchang and Liyin -- Part 4 Broader Perspectives -- 13 Family Change and Historical Change: An Uneasy Relationship -- Introduction -- Myths About the Past -- The Malleable Household -- Interdependence Among Kin -- Privacy and the Family's Retreat from the Community -- The Ideology of Domesticity and Women's Work -- Changes in the Timing of Life Transitions -- Reducing the Misfit -- 14 What Difference Does It Make? -- Reweaving the Tapestry -- Time and Motion -- Reexamining Social Change -- Proto-Industrializatiori -- Family Strategies -- The Role of Human Agency -- The Subjective Reconstruction of Past Lives -- The Life Course and the Rediscovery of Complexity -- Looking to the Future -- Cross-Cultural Dimensions -- Notes -- References -- Credits -- Index