SOC271 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Pitirim Sorokin, Alvin Toffler, Flextime
21 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
FUTURE OF THE FAMILY
In 1927, John B. Watson, the behavioural psychologist, predicted that by 1977 marriage would
no longer exist in the United States.
In 1937, the controversial sociologist Pitirim Sorokin predicted that divorce and separation
would become so pervasive that there would be little or no distinction possible between
marital and non-marital sex.
Orleans & Wolfson, in 1970, stated that the American family is slowly disintegrating and
evidence of its collapse is observable in the multitude of unhappy, broken families and
miserable people, however, new family forms will emerge from the ruins of the old
monogamous structure. [Myron Orleans and Florence Wolfson, “The Future of the Family,” The
Futurist, April, 1970]
“The model of marriage that served the old purposes excellently serves the new ones poorly.
Thus, mono-gamy will prevail; but it will almost certainly continue to change . . . toward a re-
definition of the special roles played by husband and wife, so as to achieve more equal
distribution of the rights, privileges, and life expectations of man and woman.” [Morton Hunt,
Playboy, 1971]
“ . . . the child of tomorrow is likely to grow up in a society far less child-centered than our own.
The aging of the population in high-technology countries implies greater public attention to the
needs of the elderly and a reduced focus on the young.” [Alvin Toffler, The Third Wave, 1980]
The foregoing comments all suggest some form of change that the family will undergo . . . An
accommoda-tion to changes in society.
1. Progressive shattering of the kinship system. further pressure to devote energies to the
marital ties rather than to the relations.
2. Erosion of kin-related values and virtues.
De-emphasis of kin, weakened feelings of responsibility and obligation to relatives.
3. Decline of parental values. in some sectors, there is a negative value placed on parenthood,
parenthood increases responsibilities and restrictions/constraints that some couples do not
wish to burden themselves with.
4. Increase in alienation. privatism and isolation valued.
5. Loss of moral absolutes. there is nothing absolutely right or wrong . . . there is an expanding
gray area of permissiveness and tolerance.
A look at the future of marriage and family prospects:
1. Canadians still strongly favour the traditional family form - marriage, the husband-wife
conjugal unit, and the husband-wife-child nuclear unit - remain the preferred choice of many
Canadians.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
In 1927, john b. watson, the behavioural psychologist, predicted that by 1977 marriage would no longer exist in the united states. In 1937, the controversial sociologist pitirim sorokin predicted that divorce and separation would become so pervasive that there would be little or no distinction possible between marital and non-marital sex. [myron orleans and florence wolfson, the future of the family, the. The model of marriage that served the old purposes excellently serves the new ones poorly. Playboy, 1971] the child of tomorrow is likely to grow up in a society far less child-centered than our own. The aging of the population in high-technology countries implies greater public attention to the needs of the elderly and a reduced focus on the young. [alvin toffler, the third wave, 1980] The foregoing comments all suggest some form of change that the family will undergo .
