12.2: Marriage and Family in Theoretical Perspective

 12.2: Marriage and Family in Theoretical Perspective

 Marriage and Family in Theoretical Perspective 

12.2 Contrast the functionalist, conflict, and symbolic interactionist perspectives on marriage and family. As you just read, human groups around the world have many forms of mate selection, ways to view the parent’s responsibility and ways to trace descent. Although these patterns are arbitrary, each group perceives its own forms of marriage and family as natural. Now let’s see what pictures emerge when we view marriage and family theoretically.