Happy families? : history and family policy
"[This report] brings together evidence on the history of families and how they have changed over the last few hundred years, examining the claims that abound about 'broken' families. It finds that high rates of non-marriage among men and women bringing up children existed during much of the past two centuries, making the period 1945-70 unusual, rather than the norm. Marriage break-up, marital unhappiness and violence towards women and children were also common in the past, partly because divorce was financially and legally difficult. The report also tackles claims about the lack of male 'role-models' noting that before the 1950s there were always large numbers of impoverished families headed by lone mothers. The prevalence of premarital sex in contemporary society is also discussed, and identified as a normal part of the courtship process for large sections of the population over the last 250 years. The report concludes that the poorest families have always found it hardest to achieve stability and harmony, suggesting that socio-economic inequality may be a more important challenge than features of the family itself."--Jacket
eBook, English, 2011
Rev. ed
British Academy, London, 2011