Chapter 1 - Meaning of

Marriage & Family

Used by permission of
THE ACADEMY OF NURSING
2355 E. 3900 S.
S.L.C., UT 84124
801-506-0064
 OBJECTIVE:

Come up with
a personal
definition or
statement on
what family
means to you.
 TRIANGULATION
• Relationships may be
complex within a family.

• Triangulation (3 is bad -
2 group against a third or
two come to a third party
to help resolve their
conflict) Results in
problematic symptoms
for the third.

Groups of three come up with a 3 min skit on a family interaction.

Example: Household jobs, discipline, son not wanting to be like father.
 WHAT IS MARRIAGE?
• Bond between a man
& woman.
– All 50 states but Hawaii do
not allow gay/lesbian
marriage.
– 1996 Defense Marriage
Act gave states the right to
decide.
 WHAT IS MARRIAGE? (cont.)
• Commitment
• Intimacy and sexually
unite
(a defining reason why many marriages
stay together)
• Cooperate economically
• May give birth or adopt
– 50 years ago this was central reason for
marriage.
– Purpose for marriage has become much more
diverse.
 WHAT IS MARRIAGE? (continued)
• Book’s definition: Legal union
between a man & woman, united
sexually, cooperate economically,
and may have children.

• Benefits: Live longer, healthier,

fewer accidents.
 WHAT IS MARRIAGE? (cont.)
• Legally recognized union
– Marriage license
• Not open on Saturday.
• Fee: $50
• City & County offices on 21st S. State.
• Good for 30 days, good immediately.
• 18 years without parents consent.
• Second cousins may marry.
• No blood tests or physical exams
required.
• Both bride & groom must be present
place of birth.
• Need to know mothers maiden name &
parents.
 CULTURE DEFINES WHAT A
MARRIAGE IS OR NOT
• Monogamy - one man, one woman. All 1st
world countries are monogamous.
• Polygamy - more than one wife or husband.
Example: Islam & Fundamental Mormons
• Bigamy – Marrying another person while still
married to someone else. It is against the law.
• Serial Monogamy or Modified Polygamy –
Succession of marriages over time. Typical of
US marriages.
 MEDIA
ARE WE IMMERSED IN IT?
 MEDIA
ARE WE IMMERSED IN IT?
• Everyone’s view of marriage is somewhat
distorted. No other family is exactly like your
family. But our family is not the only one we
"know."

• Popular Culture constructions or TV & movies

gives us privy to intimacies and conflicts which
are usually not acceptable public behaviors.

Discuss the PROs and CONs of TELEVISION.

 CULTIVATION THEORY
• Cultivation theory: These consistent
themes, images, and stereo types that cut
across programming genres cultivate or
form world views.
– People who watch more than the average
amount of media are more likely to mistake
the media world for the real world.
• Average family has the TV on 7 hours a day.
• Average person watches 4 hours per day.
• Average person will spend 10 years of their life
watching TV.
 PROS OF TV:
• Opens up the world to us.
• Communicates instantly what is
happening.
• Less prejudice, we see other cultures.
• Children learn from parents era and vice
versa.
• Families watch TV together.
• Gives more meaning to life to elderly.
• Entertaining – novelty in a box.
 CONS OF TV:
• Shallow communication about wealth, races,
sex.

• We trust each other less.

• Spend less time being citizens and with families.

• Children bored with school due to razzel dazzel

of TV – shorten attention span.

• Freezes images in our mind (Sept 11).

• Speeds up time (ER, NYPD, Friends).

 ERA OF TV:
• 1953: ½ OF ALL
FAMILIES OWNED A
TV.

• 1957: 90% OF ALL

FAMILIES OWNED A
TV.
 ERA OF TV (cont.)

• Most of us will spend

10 years of our life
watching TV.

• On your death bed

will you wish you had
watched more TV?
 ACTIVITY:
• Divide into 6 groups and each discuss one
of the following as to how it is portrayed on
TV
– Crime
– Sex
– Conflict and problems in families
– Men & Women
– Races
– Single parent families
HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
AMOUNTS OF CRIME?
HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
AMOUNTS OF CRIME?
• Create a perception that the world is a
dangerous place.
• People that are more fascinated with crime
watch more shows on crime which confirm
their views.
HOW DOES MEDIA
PORTRAY SEX?
 HOW DOES MEDIA
PORTRAY SEX?
• Sex acts like extramarital affairs, premarital,
rape, prostitution appears to happen 4x more
frequently than they really do.

• Physical beauty and appearances are extremely

important.

• Rarely see anything on birth control.

• Rarely see loving marital sex.

HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
CONFLICT & PROBLEMS
IN FAMILIES?
 HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
CONFLICT & PROBLEMS
IN FAMILIES?
• Love will conquer all.
• 30 minutes can resolve any problem.
• Usually solved with manipulation or humor.
• Divorce is rare & a trend towards non traditional
families.
• Total omission of household chores which is a
huge source of conflict.
• Life is much less complicated than in reality.
– Rarely see divorce, unemployment, chronic illness,
death, poverty, caring for elderly.
HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
MEN & WOMEN?
HOW DOES MEDIA PORTRAY
MEN & WOMEN?

• Middle class women

like the Cosbys.

• Working class men

like Homer Simpson.
HOW ARE DIFFERENT

RACES PORTRAYED?
 HOW ARE DIFFERENT
RACES PORTRAYED?
• Whites over represented.

• Blacks improving.

• Perpetuates racism.
HOW ARE SINGLE PARENT
FAMILIES PORTRAYED?
 HOW ARE SINGLE PARENT
FAMILIES PORTRAYED?
• Fathers head household 5x as often.
• Single women want to marry & single men
enjoy their freedom.
• The reality is single father remarry more
often than women.
• Step families have harmony or solve a
problem in a single episode.
• Affiliated kin shown as families.
 SOAP OPERAS: What do you see
on afternoon TV?

• High rates of conflict,

betrayal, infidelity, divorce
& multiple marriages with
secrets they keep from
their spouse.

• Exaggerated amounts of
sex.
TALK SHOWS:
 TALK SHOWS:
• Group therapy for the masses that everyone can
afford.

• Primary purpose is to entertain or raise the

rating. Definite difference in scholarly research
whose primary purpose is to gain knowledge.

• Topics are high interest or shocking materials to

attract an audience.
 WE ARE IMMERSED IN THE
MEDIA!
WHAT CAN WE DO?
• To keep from being used?
• To keep from being manipulated?
• To keep from being negatively influenced?
• To keep the media from displacing the
family, education, or religion in our lives?
 ADVICE:
• Be skeptical.

• Search for biases, stereotypes, and lack of

objectivity.

• Look for moralizing. What are the underlying

values?

• Go to the original source and see how valid they

are.

• Seek additional information. The whole story

was probably not told - watered down info.
WHAT IS FAMILY?

Try to come up with a satisfactory definition of family.

ARTICLES ON FAMILY SITUATIONS:
ARTICLES ON FAMILY SITUATIONS:
ARTICLES ON FAMILY SITUATIONS:
ARTICLES ON FAMILY SITUATIONS:
ARTICLES ON FAMILY SITUATIONS:
 DEFINITIONS OF FAMILY
• Nuclear family:
Mom, Dad, Kids

• Traditional family:
Father bread winner,
Mom is homemaker
(Only 8-11% of all
families)
On a blank piece of paper, draw your family visually.
(Refer to page 29 Genogram)
On the other side with pictures draw what a family is -
no words.

Have a few share theirs. Some may include friends,

foster family, grandparents, step families, mother-in-law,
aunts/uncles, nephews/nieces, etc.
 Family Types
• Living alone
• Cohabitation
• Couple with no children (DINK)
• Divorced adults
• Single parent families
• Step families
• Adoptive/Foster family/legal guardians
• Grandparents living with families or raising
grandchildren
• "Boomerang" families - children move back in
The Decline of Traditional
Families
Household Composition
 DEFINITION OF FAMILY

Book’s
definition:
Two or more adults
related by blood,
marriage, or affiliation
who cooperate
economically, share a
common dwelling
place and may rear
children.
 Functions of Families

• Family ties like intimacy.

• Economic cooperation - families are consuming

and producing units.

• Reproduction and socialization.

• Only a family can produce a socialized adult.

 WHAT SHOULD A CHILD LEARN
IN A FAMILY?
• Values, moral
• Culture and traditions
• Self concept
• How to solve problems/conflict resolution
• Commitment to family is first
• Each member must contribute
• Change is possible
• How to make a decision
• Communication
Assignment of Social Roles and
Status (Identity)

• We belong to two families in our lifetime:

• Family of Origin: You were the child
• Family of Procreation: You are the parent
 WHY LIVE IN A FAMILY?
• Love and closeness
• Offer continuity in
emotional attachments,
rights, and obligations.
• Close proximity which
facilitates cooperation and
communication.
• Abiding familiarity with
others. Can know
ourselves and others well.
• Economic benefits.
 IS THE AMERICAN FAMILY
DYING OR CEASING TO EXIST?
Consider this:
• Nine out of ten people continue to live in
households as family members
• Nine out of ten young adults marry.
• The majority (three out of four) of those
who divorce will remarry.
• The majority of those who marry will have
children.
CHARACTERISTICS OF STRONG
FAMILIES
• Appreciation – notice the less obvious
things, express appreciation often.

• Kindness –tends to be catching.

• Communication – listen so others will talk,

talk so others will listen.

• Time Together – plan it, don’t wait to find it,

need quantity to have quality.
CHARACTERISTICS OF STRONG
FAMILIES (cont.)
• Values and Standards – communicate them
clearly, follow them consistently.
• Strictness & Permissiveness – firm, fair, and
friendly.
• Problem Solving – look for solutions, not for
blame.
• Traditions –give a sense of identity.
• Fun & laughter – plan it, use props, bring
home jokes.
 CHAPTER 1 VOCABULARY
1. Family: 2 or more adults related by blood,
marriage, or affiliation. Who cooperate
economically, may share common dwelling
place & may rear children.
2. Marriage: Legal union between a man &
woman united sexually, cooperate
economically and may have children.
3. Monogamy: 1 husband or 1 wife, sexual
exclusivity
4. Polygamy: More than one husband or wife
at the same time.
 CHAPTER 1 VOCABULARY
cont’d
• 5. Serial Monogamy or Modified Polygamy:
Succession of marriages over time. Typical of US
marriages.
• 6. Cultivation Theory: Media images form view of
world.
• 7. Nuclear Family: Consists of mother, father and at
least one child. (Traditional Family)
• 8. Family of origin: Family of which one is reared as
a child.
• 9. Family of Procreation: Family one forms as a
couple.
 CHAPTER 1 VOCABULARY
cont’d
• 10. Family of cohabitation: Family formed
by two people living together whether
married or unmarried, may include children
or stepchildren.
• 11. Affiliated Kin: Unrelated people who are
treated as if related.
• 12. Kinship system: Social organization of
the family, conferring rights and obligations
based on status.
• 13. Conjugal: Related by marriage
• 14. Consanguineous Relationship:
Relationship formed by common blood lines.