Family Sequence Evaluation By David Popenoe

Mathematically, a monotone sequence is a sequence that either increases or decreases indefinably. This means that nowhere in this sequence is there any variance away from the either increasing or decreasing pattern. As an example, the Fibonacci sequence, characterized as the sum of all integers, ({1+2+3+4…+n}=1,3,6,10,15,…,(n+1)/2) is always increasing; conversely, the harmonic sequence, which can be seen as: 1/2,1/3,1/4,…1/n is always decreasing. There is a group of family scientists who insist on comparing the family to a monotone sequence. Henceforth in this document, this group will be called family decline theorists. For this comparison to be made, the family must be reduced to a set of ordinal data points. After this is done, any deviance away from the ideal can be seen as either an increase or decrease (the chance of

It makes sense why this is important. If you narrow the family down to series of variables – female homemaker, male breadwinner for example, than moving away from this structured idea looks like decline. The main defender of the family decline theory to be used in this evaluation is David Popenoe’s article, American Family Decline, 1960-1990 A Review and Appraisal. In this piece, Popenoe claims that there is an ideal family and there should be a push to go back to this ideal. The definition of a family found in American Family Decline is as follows; a family is “A group in which people typically live together in a household and function as a cooperative unit, particularly through the sharing of economic resources in the pursuit of domestic activities”(Popenoe). This evaluation will attempt to show how this definition is inadequate in encompassing every modern variation of family and through the use of standpoint theory, comes to the conclusion that no definition is possible. Furthermore, Popenoe’s use of this definition to show family decline is