Family and Consumer Science, Application Essay Example

According to Mills, it is evident that families need to exercise sociological imagination by considering how the lives of individuals intersect with family’s history. This implies that an intersection exists between the troubles of the family and the history of the society, which is a public issue. Gender revolution in this case applies to the shift experienced by women in society with regards to their place and the existence of new forms created by adult partnerships. However, this era faced unprecedented challenges and conflicts, but the children of such parents end up building different adult paths in the future. The new options and constraints available have led a majority of them to use strategies that shape their course of family, work, and gender change for coming generations (1995: 4). According to Goode, the term family is the central position of a society because it links individuals with other societal institutions like the economy, the state, or the church. It should also be noted that in any given family, children are termed as active observers because they are aware of what is happening around them (Kathleen 2010, chap.2). As a result, adults need to be aware that their actions and efforts bring about unintended consequences. The family structure is also a point of concentration that needs to be investigated because this contributes to healthy development among children. Technological advances in families have also contributed to existing changes in the lives of children. In most instances, it is difficult to reach the young generation, but those stay-at-home mothers make the experience for these teenagers unbearable. This has led many to believe that the concept of working mothers has made many of the youths live a comfortable life without having the mother to deal with the whole day.

In every family, individuals cherish different aspects of their lives and thus, parents need to build a relationship with their child, which is long lasting. The creation of such bonds helps in bringing the family together and these aides when challenges and conflicts arise. Many are times when fathers are absent from home they claim they are busy looking for finances in order to give their family a comfortable life. Furthermore, being breadwinners makes them loose out so much on their children’s upbringing, and many have regretted this move. Majorities have made their children not rely on them, and their presence has affected their future perspective. For example, for young girls, they are scared of getting married for fear of having a husband who spends too much time in the office and less at home, with family (Mills 2000). It is vital for the family to spend time together because it brings them closer together and makes them connected. This is an element that saves the resources and time of families because of consistence. Family moments are treasured moments by children because their parents instill in them values that will help them through this changing times. It is clear that parents need to plan their time and ensure that they have time for their family.

In today’s generation, both parents are working in order to make end meets and give their children comfortable and better lives. However, this is at the expense of their children’s development because the caretakers instill in them an attitude that goes against believes of their family. Therefore, it is imperative for parents to allocate time for their children and engage their children in contributing to family developments. This gives the children a sense of belonging and also, enables them have improved self-esteem, which contributes in their adult development process. In my family, most of the house chores are done by my mother who is nursing administrator. Despite her busy schedule in the office, she ensures that all our meals are home cooked. This is her time to be with her family, which she appreciates and treasures so much, but my father also chips in by helping in doing other work like gardening and homework (Mills 1995). This character has instilled in me a sense of responsibility and sharing that has motivated me to work hard I school so I can emulate them. I would like to have a family that is close knit and works together both after work and during work hours by ensuring that the day’s activity is organized. Today’s technological advancements have made it possible for families to stay in touch and learn more from each other through the social media.

As a result, people tend to use sociological imagination as an excuse in trying to achieve success and use it to run away from their personal responsibility. If such cases occur in the society, it is vital for people to identify the structures roots like labour force exploitation, certain groups discriminating, and incompetent political solutions among others. For such cases, sociological imagination steps in in order to enable those personal situations change thus, creation of a better society. Moreover, these changes also affect the history and biography of the family since they will uphold the new values introduced into the society. It is essential for both parents and children to communicate and understand the positive and negative sides of having changes influencing their habits and character (Kathleen 2010, chapt.1). Family, as a unit, needs to uphold all societal beliefs and embrace the different characters and personalities without malice. Nevertheless, parents need to be aware of the changes that happen in their environment because it penetrates into their family unit and at times destroys the bond created. This pulls their efforts back and leads them into conflicts and blame games. This is not a solution, but a problem that need to be mitigated.

Sociologists and philosophers have come up with various theories that help in curbing such problems. According to my family’s experience, it is evident that family structures do not contribute much to the increasing divorce rates and single-parent families in today’s society (Mills 2000). The fact that a society has different family structures across time and cultures, they have been able to live in harmony and have followed their beliefs and traditions. Furthermore, my parents taught us, children, to be accommodative of other people in the society. However, during the socialization process, we should not forget to uphold our virtues, beliefs and values as a family. Development is bound to exist, but we should consider to what lengths are we growing. If it is towards the negative poles, then we need to re-think our steps and console our family values. The contributing factor to such circumstances is the parents who are not embracing the historical changes in society. In some instances, it is better for parents to separate because of the family members, whose pathways are dictated by such events. Stereotypes are also evident in some families, but it is wise to allow such changes to occur because it marks a beginning of changes to the family. This becomes a sign of relief and in the long run a supportive home is built (Kathleen 2010, chapt.2).

References

Goode, William J. 1982. The Family. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall

Kathleen, Gerson. 2010. “Unfinished Revolution: How a New Generation Is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in America.” Journal of Family Communication, 11(1):1-57.

Mills, Wright C. 2000. The Sociological Imagination. USA: Oxford University Press