Families

"It focuses on the impact of economic systems and social class on the organization of family life. Because the most vital function of the family is the survival of its members, the author gives primacy to the economic system in structuring the broad parameters of family life; that is, the economy shapes the prospects families have for earning a decent living by determining the location, nature, and pay associated with work. The author does not assign families a passive role in this process, but rather argues that from early hunting and gathering societies to contemporary societies the organization of family life is enhanced when understood in the context of economic forces. The power of economic forces to transform families is evident in the fact that most family scholars situate the study of Western families within the context of the industrial economy that began to emerge in the 1700s, noting how it gradually separated family life from work, fostered massive patterns of immigration and urbanization, led to modernization, created new specialized institutions and professions , and shaped the marital, family, and gender ideologies. The rise of industrial economy also resulted in the social class stratification system which continues to exist in capitalistsocieties, although it has taken different contours with the transition from industrial production to an economy based on information and services. This new post-industrial economy has been a major factor in drawing women into the labor force, creating greater class polarization inequality, and influencing patterns of marriage and childbearing"--