Josias Je A. Rellora Research #002 Sr.

Glenn Lazaro
Grade XI – St. James Social Science 11

“The Family: Declining or Changing”

Topic/Issue

I. Background Study
Whatever we believe it is because of the way our Family raises up. They influence as through the way
of their living, having a healthy life means we are aware of the things we eat, what we use and we do to
our living things. Things we do to our country like improper disposal of solid and toxic waste. Also,
overpopulation is one of the big issues that the Philippine Government faces today. It affects badly to our
environment if we are overpopulated. Overpopulated means a lot to Filipino people because there are a
tendency that even the water we drink will lessen, the air we breathe would be populated if we cannot
manage the growth of each member of the family. If we have knowledge on how we can help to save our
environment we should start now, to have a good environment is good for living things same as polluted
environment is very harmful to living things.

Our parents moved with their families to towns. Here it was assumed that fathers worked outside the
home in factories, businesses or schools. Mothers cared for the children inside the home. Church was now
what one goes to. And divorce was the way “other” families solved their problems.
My generation lives in the city. Our families are often dual career. We talk about the importance of
friendship and companionship in marriage. We feel the freedom not to have children and to select a
church that meets our personal preference. Over half of our marriages will end in divorce.
It seems hackneyed by now to state that there are profound social changes in the past century which
have molded and shaped the contemporary family (Skolnick and Skolnick, 1989). Both the difficulties
and the resources of the contemporary family are a consequence of these changes. A list illustrative of
changes follows.
 The decline of infant mortality means one doesn’t have to have six children so four will survive.
 The fact that people live longer means more time together and more adjustment after the children
leave.
 The use of birth control allows for more choice in family and career planning.
 The spread of mass education increases employment opportunities for men and women.
 Women have surged into the work place and so increased family income.
 Birth rates have declined, leaving more time for activities other than parenting.
 The women’s movement has affected both the way men and women think and act towards one
another.
 Social and sexual rules continue to be relaxed so that unmarried couples live together and
unmarried mothers raise children.
 Abortion is legal but under attack.
 Remaining single and childless is increasingly acceptable.
 Divorce rates have skyrocketed and then leveled off; now we begin to assess the after-effects.
These are changes that reflect a changing culture. Most of the changes that have shaped the structure of
our family life are less a result of Christian conviction than the result of societal shifts. The church will
not be able to understand or respond to these families unless it reflects on the social changes that have
occurred in this century. The family in times past was embedded in a community, not a private place of
refuge from the world of work. Research has demonstrated that between 1957 and 1976 a major
psychological revolution had taken place in American society such that in the past, fulfillment meant
satisfactory performance of traditional roles of spouse and provider, while 20 years later fulfillment meant
finding intimacy, meaning and self-definition. There are fewer functions (education, entertainment,
religious socialization, etc.) served by the family than in time past and more of the functions are relegated
to institutions outside of the family. What is left is a need for companionship without the structures which
mediate family closeness.
Over several decades, Western societies have seen a shift in family patterns and diverse roles, also
divorce rate have risen significantly and there has been an increase in ‘Reconstituted families’ formed
from second marriages

From a functional perspective the family purpose is to work as a social institute, and according to
(Haralambos & Holborn 2008) the family performs four basic functions in all societies which are termed
the ‘sexual’, ‘reproductive’ ‘economic’ and ‘educational’ these are deemed essential for social life
because without reproduction there would be no members of society, also without economics there would
no provisions for providing food and therefore life would cease to exist, and without education as
suggested by George Murdock there would be no culture and he suggests therefore that human society
could not function.

However according to Parson (in Parsons & Bales 1956) the family social institution developed to meet
two such needs that the family, and only the family, met: the needs for primary socialization and
personality stabilization Primary socialization was the process through which children obtain the basic
values of society from the family from an early age.

Marxist perspective states the capitalist system exploits the free domestic labour of the ‘housewife’
through domestic labour, and that child rearing should be considered as family activities ‘outside’ the
operation of the capitalist economy but instead an essential part of it.
Many sociologists are concerned about what they see as the decline in marriage and family life, and they
see this as a threat to the family, for example Brenda Almond (2006) believes that the family is
fragmenting, there is also an increase in the legal and social acceptance of marital breakdown,
cohabitation, gay and lesbian relationships and so on.

II. Methods
This study is best described as naturalistic study design because it was used to inform new knowledge or
attitudes one point at a time. This present study uses a mixed method and at the same time using descriptive
design.

III. Analysis
We are now in a new generation. Nowadays, families are not as close as in the past and a lot of people
have used this. The values that our family taught us is not that tight like before the younger people not use
to it. Especially living in the city, everyone in the family is busy in many things that they forgot the value
of family. Most people are having to work longer and both parents work. They have no time to spend with
each other as they did before. One of the reasons is the materialistic and consumer driven culture we are
now. Also, the modern technology it means that people are more interested in their online life than
interacting with their family in their free time.
 Before family values are very important, the head of the family is strict when it comes to family
bonding, their beliefs, and their culture. Family eat together, go to church together and pray together.
Family values teach us how to develop traditionally the foundation of how children grow with respect and
GOD fearing. Parents are very supportive of growing their children. Filipino people values are built on
traditional, passed to generation to generation. conservative and religious.

Some of the Filipino values may include obtaining knowledge, wisdom, and necessary skills, and using
them at home and living out the values you acquired within the family. It engages in developing the
Importance of family.

The family is often regarded as the basis of society; in pre-modern and modern societies alike is seen as
the basis in which social organization takes place, for example socializing children, in the 1960’s there
was not discussion about the importance of family, at that family life was merely evolving with the
modern times, the ‘nuclear family’ which consist of a two generation household of parent and their
children, was seen as well adapted to the demands of modern society. A classic definition of the family by
George Peter Murdock (1949) “The family is a social group characterized by common residence,
economic co-operation and reproduction. This includes adults of both sexes, at least two of whom
maintain a socially-approved sexual relationships, and one or more children, own or adopted, of the
sexually cohabiting adults”.

Another type of family is the extended family, which includes the family members which extends
‘vertically’ that would include three generations for example; grandparent and grandchildren, it also
extends ‘horizontally’ to include at least ‘in laws’ cousins, aunts and uncles, and dependent on the
perceptions and the boundaries of the family; determines how far this extends.

IV. Ethical Considerations

The structure of the Filipino family has shifted significantly over the last 30 years, a major influence of
this is through the decline of marriage and the rise in cohabitation according to the National Statistics
Office (NSO).

Due to the changes in marriages, divorce and cohabitation to the growing number of new types of
families Two in five of all marriages are now remarriages, which makes step families one of the fastest
growing family forms in the world, currently making up one, in the decade to 2006, the number of single
parent families also increased to 2.3 million, making up 14% of all families in ten of all families.

V. Conclusion
By highlighting dual income, blended, single parent and empty nest families we have tried to show that
in the family of God, there is much diversity and that persons in each of these families are of inestimable
worth. It behooves us to develop new models and find a new language for caring. An awareness among
leaders that the family has changed, is changing, and will change is critical. Change is not evil in and of
itself. Yet the church often fears change. Why insist on labels and stereotypes that hurt other people? Why
be so hesitant to change the language and the conception of the family? We would do well to work harder
to affirm families that feel they are second-class citizens. The kinds of families we have described are
families that need the church. They challenge the church with a new set of problems and strengths. They
can motivate the church to develop new structures and new models of ministry. Let us mobilize ourselves,
our gifts, and our congregations to nurture families that reflect the Reign of God.