Family in Transition Review
I have been out of college for many years now but this text was loaned to me by a Sociology major after we had some interesting discussions about family issues, and despite this being a textbook, it was a pleasant surprise to enjoy reading it.
I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning about the current issues of families in America and all the factors that affect the existence of a family; basically, the evolution of the "family" unit in the United States over the past few decades with a focus on recent years.
Current trends in American family life are discussed in a scholarly manner along with some debunking of popular myths about families. Excellent and for the most part easy-to-read text on the status of today's families, esp. with articles about the impact of class, race, educational level, socio-economic status and our aging population on what defines a family at this time (2008-2009).
Issues such as our longer lifespans are discussed as far as how it potentially means longer years in marriage and time alone together after the children have become independent, but it is also just as likely that couples may have their elderly parents to take care of, and/or adult children returning home due to the recent changes in the economy. The text also discusses the shift in the preferences of men and women away from marriage/family as an economic necessity and instead more about psychological fulfillment and building lifelong relationships within the family.
Changes in technology and a shift towards a service and information economy enable more jobs for women and can even allow for both men and women to work from home and still raise a family if they choose. However the economy has been unstable in recent years so this affects not only the adult children who may not be able to leave home and live independently, but also changes the dynamics within the family if suddenly the wife/mother becomes the primary wage earner and/or the husband/father is unable to find work at the same earning power as before. The text also discusses how over the years society's expectations remain the same for a mother's responsibilities whether she stays home with her children or is also working outside the home full-time, and the so-called "mommy wars."
The topics have been relevant personally so I admit to some bias in favorably reviewing this text because so much of what is discussed seems to accurately reflect real-life situations that I have lived through as well as those heard about via friends and relatives.
Family in Transition Overview
The classic reader on family life that reflects current trends, places them in historical context, and balances cutting-edge scholarship with time-honored pieces. With every edition, this best-selling reader has chronicled changes in the contemporary American family. The popularity of this text speaks to the authors' ability to find articles that are timely and germane to the subject on one hand, and accessible to undergraduate students on the other. While the selections vary from one edition to the next, they all demonstrate in various ways how family life is bound up with the social, economic, and ideological circumstances of particular times and places.
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Customer Reviews
Good Information but too much detail - T. Brown - Northern California - USA
This book has some good reading and is very informative, however it has alot of graphs and some of it is hard to continue reading for the boringness of all the details that most aren't really interested in that much. Some of it was very good, but when you got to the parts that weren't so good, it was hard to stay focused on what you were reading.
Excellent! - jeri -
This is one of those sellers that I would not hesitate to buy from again or recommend to others. The book is in great condition and I received it within 5 days of ordering.
Good but a difficult read - Fonta Lena Wenger - Mesa, AZ USA
This book has a collaboration of authors and the writing style varies greatly from one chapter to the next. Some are very difficult to read and can turn an interesting topic into a snooze fest.
Overall it is a very good book that looks at different points of view (i.e., conservative, liberal, feminist). I couldn't rate it that high though because it was difficult to read.
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