Chapter 14 Family Life Today
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Older adult care also changed through
the years. Before the Social Security Act was
established in 1935, many older adults lived
with their adult children and grandchildren.
Just as they had often taken care of their
parents in the past, grandparents now
expected their adult children to take care
of them. The grandparents also expected
their adult children to provide them with
most of the necessities of life. In return, the
grandparents helped with responsibilities
such as child care and family chores.
In some families, multigenerational
households are the norm. For other
families, Social Security and other sources
of income may help older adults live
independently.
In today’s society, families are adapting to change. New careers
are attracting both men and women. People of both genders are seeking
higher education and aspiring to responsible careers. Marriages are
based more on love and affection than on the necessity of providing
care for one another. Men and women are sharing the wage-earner role
as well as sharing in child care and household tasks, 14-1. Parents are
beginning to value time as highly as money. Employers are fi nding
ways to help people meet the demands of both work and family.
How Families Adapt to Change
To be effective, families must be fl exible and resilient as they adapt
to changing societal, demographic, and economic trends. These trends
are now very different from those of the early twentieth century. In
the early 1900s, most Americans lived on farms. They experienced
the social controls (based on anxiety about “what people will say”) of
rural community life. Today, however, more Americans live in cities or
suburbs and earn a living in an economy based on providing goods and
services. People live in a more anonymous and permissive environment
associated with urban life today.
14-1
In families today, fathers are spending more time
with their children.