What is the difference between a family and a household?

A family is a group of people related by blood, marriage or adoption. A household is one person or a group living together at the same address, who need not be related. A group of students sharing a flat is a household but not a family.

What family types are studied in WJEC GCSE Sociology?

The main UK types are the nuclear family (two parents and dependent children), the extended family (with other relatives), the reconstituted or step family, the lone parent family, the same sex family, the cohabiting family and the beanpole family. Globally, forms include polygamy and arranged marriages.

What are the functions of the family?

The family carries out primary socialisation, the stabilisation of adult personalities (emotional support), reproduction, economic support and social control. Functionalists see these functions positively, while Marxists and feminists argue the benefits are not shared equally.

How do the three perspectives view the family?

Functionalists see the family as benefiting everyone by meeting society's needs. Marxists argue it benefits capitalism by producing obedient workers and consumers. Feminists argue it benefits men more than women, because women do most of the unpaid housework and childcare.

How has family life changed in the UK?

Marriage has fallen and cohabitation has risen, divorce has increased greatly, and there are more lone parent and reconstituted families. Within families, conjugal roles have become more joint, though feminists argue women still carry a dual burden of paid work and most of the housework.

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Families: a complete overview for WJEC GCSE Sociology (Component 1)

A complete overview of the families topic in WJEC GCSE Sociology Component 1, covering family types and diversity, the functions of the family and the functionalist, Marxist and feminist perspectives, changing family patterns, and roles and relationships within the family.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.814 min readC200QS-component-1Updated 2026-06-15

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

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What this covers
Family types and diversity
Functions and perspectives
Changing patterns and roles
Check your knowledge

What this covers

The families topic is one of the two main topic areas of Component 1 of WJEC GCSE Sociology (the other is education). This overview ties the dot points together: family types and diversity, the functions of the family and the three perspectives (functionalist, Marxist, feminist), changing family patterns, and roles and relationships within the family. The big idea is family diversity: there is no single "normal" family.

Family types and diversity

A family is related by blood, marriage or adoption; a household is simply people living together. The UK has many family types: nuclear, extended, reconstituted, lone parent, same sex, cohabiting and beanpole. Globally there is even more diversity, including polygamy and arranged marriages.

Functions and perspectives

The family performs functions: socialisation, emotional support, reproduction, economic support and social control. The three perspectives disagree about who benefits: functionalists say everyone, Marxists say capitalism, and feminists say men more than women.

Changing patterns and roles

Family life has changed: marriage has fallen and cohabitation risen, divorce has increased for legal, social and economic reasons, and lone parent and reconstituted families have grown. Within the family, conjugal roles have become more joint, though feminists point to the dual burden on women, and the position of children has changed.

The families topic is one of the two main topic areas of WJEC GCSE Sociology Component 1. A family is a group related by blood, marriage or adoption, while a household is simply people living together. The UK has many family types: nuclear, extended, reconstituted, lone parent, same sex, cohabiting and beanpole, and globally there is even more diversity, including polygamy and arranged marriages. The family performs functions including primary socialisation, the stabilisation of adult personalities, reproduction, economic support and social control. The three perspectives disagree about who benefits: functionalists say everyone, Marxists say capitalism through producing obedient workers and consumers, and feminists say men more than women because women do most of the unpaid domestic work. Family life has changed: marriage has fallen and cohabitation risen, divorce has increased for legal, social and economic reasons, and lone parent and reconstituted families have grown. Within the family, conjugal roles have become more joint, though feminists point to the dual burden on women, and the position of children has changed, with childhood seen as a special, protected stage. The overall theme is family diversity: there is no single normal family.

Check your knowledge

Explain the difference between a family and a household. (2 marks)
Describe two types of family found in the UK. (4 marks)
Identify three functions of the family. (3 marks)
How does the Marxist view of the family differ from the functionalist view? (4 marks)
Identify two ways family life in the UK has changed. (2 marks)
Explain one reason why divorce has increased. (3 marks)
Explain the difference between segregated and joint conjugal roles. (2 marks)
What do feminists mean by the "dual burden"? (2 marks)

Solutions

Q1: A family is related by blood, marriage or adoption; a household is people living together who need not be related (such as a flat-share).
Q2: Any two, described: nuclear (two parents and dependent children); lone parent (one parent with children); reconstituted (a step family bringing children from previous relationships); extended (with other relatives).
Q3: Any three of: primary socialisation, stabilisation of adult personalities, reproduction, economic support and social control.
Q4: Functionalists say the family benefits everyone; Marxists say it benefits capitalism by producing obedient workers and consumers, so it serves the rich rather than everyone.
Q5: Any two of: fewer marriages, more cohabitation, more divorce, more lone parent families, more reconstituted families.
Q6: Divorce laws have been made easier, quicker and cheaper, so more couples in unhappy marriages can now divorce.
Q7: Segregated roles are separate (man as breadwinner, woman as homemaker); joint roles are shared more equally.
Q8: The dual burden is the feminist argument that women do paid work and still most of the housework and childcare, so roles are not equal.

Sources & how we know this

WJEC GCSE Sociology (Wales) specification (C200QS) — WJEC (2017)