OCR A-Level Sociology H580
Introducing Socialisation, Culture and Identity
Families and RelationshipsComponent 01
Youth SubculturesComponent 01
MediaComponent 01
Research Methods and Researching Social Inequalities
Understanding Social Inequalities
Globalisation and the Digital Social World
Crime and DevianceComponent 03
EducationComponent 03
Religion, Belief and FaithComponent 03
Families and Relationships
Power, the dark side of the family and theories of partner roles
- 3 things to know
- Component 01
Overview
Recall questions on power between partners, including Edgell on decision-making and the allowance and pooling systems, the dark side of the family, coercive control, Dobash and Dobash and Marxist accounts of domestic violence, Leach and Laing and Cooper, and functionalist, Marxist and feminist approaches to roles between partners.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
What did Edmund Leach argue about the emotional demands of the nuclear family?
What did Laing and Cooper claim about the family?
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What did Edgell find about decision-making in couples?
Model answer
In his study of professional couples, Edgell found that very important and infrequent decisions such as moving house or major finance were taken by the husband or jointly with him dominant, while women decided routine, low-cost matters like food shopping.
- 2
Distinguish the allowance system from pooling in household money management.
Model answer
In the allowance system the man gives his partner a set sum for housekeeping and keeps control of the rest, while pooling means both partners have access to a shared account; pooling looks more equal but the man often still has the greater say.
- 3
Why is control of resources treated as an indicator of power in a relationship?
Model answer
Because the partner who controls money and decides how it is spent can shape the household's priorities and limit the other partner's independence, including their ability to leave.
- 4
What is meant by the 'dark side' of the family?
Model answer
It refers to the harmful side of family life that consensus accounts overlook: domestic abuse, child abuse, neglect, coercive control and the psychological damage close family relationships can inflict.
- 5
Define coercive control.
Model answer
Coercive control is a pattern of intimidation, isolation, surveillance and financial restriction used to dominate a partner, and it is recognised as domestic abuse even where there is no physical violence.
- 6
How do radical feminists explain domestic violence against women?
Model answer
Dobash and Dobash argue that violence is not the act of a few disturbed individuals but a product of patriarchy: marriage confers authority on men, and violence typically follows a wife's perceived challenge to it.
Other ways to work this
The same content, four other ways.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Every question in Families and Relationships, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
Or £46 a year, about £3.83 a month. Cancel anytime.