The evolution of the European family since 1945 and public interventions

Résumé du document

It is easy to notice that the family of the post-Second World War was really different from today's family. This evolution statement can be found in the entire society at the social and economic level but also at the demographic and moral values level. Faced with all those changes, European societies have reacted differently. Some of them have chosen a strong State intervention (for example, Scandinavian countries) whereas others have preferred to favor the market (for instance the United Kingdom).

Extraits

[...] The evolution of the European family since 1945 and public interventions It is easy to notice that the family of the post-Second World War was really different from the today's family. This evolution statement can be found in the entire society at the social and economic level but also at the demographic and moral values level. Faced with all those changes, the European societies have reacted differently. Some of them have chosen a strong State intervention (for example, Scandinavian countries) whereas others have preferred to favour the market (for instance the United Kingdom). [...]

[...] However, there was a strong state intervention like Scandinavian countries. The fourth type was states with a familial policy inscribed in the law such as France. Welfare State intervened in order to avoid too many inequalities between families. Titmuss (1974) developed a typology of three models. The “residual Welfare model of social policy” (Titmuss p.30) designated society where individuals had two different ways to protect themselves from life risks: family and private market. State intervened only in last solution because the “true object of the Welfare State was to teach people how to do without (Titmuss p.31). [...]

[...] According to them, it was important to adopt a new analysis: the link between the evolution of private life and public interventions. Nevertheless, inside this second way of thinking, there were three different theses. The individualization theory was developed by Giddens (1990), Beck (1992) and De Singly (1993). They identified two different periods: the first and the second modernity. The family of the first modernity was very dependent on institutions (Church, State, and Wedding). There was also a strong interdependence between the husband and his wife even if men were considered as stronger. [...]

[...] The European Union created social and educative policy for children. Those measures were made to increase the well-being of future societies. The academic studies on this subject are really numerous and various. However, if the authors do not use the same criteria, they identify two main periods of familial evolution with the 1970s as a turning point. The familial changes create different social policies in all Europe (established by the market, the family or the State) but the main common objects of these policies were the protection of individuals against life risks and the conciliation of family and work. [...]

[...] Le démariage (justice et vie privée). Paris: Odile Jacob. Titmuss, R. (1974). Social policy: an introduction. London: Allen and Unwin. Esping-Andersen, G. (1990). The three worlds of welfare capitalism. Cambridge: Polity. Jenson, J., Hagen, E. & Reddy, C. (1988). Feminization of the labour force: paradoxes and premises. Cambridge: Polity. [...]