[연구논문] 여성의 개인주의 확대와 가족 변화: 미국 사회를 중심으로

Expansion of Women's Individualism and Family Change in American Society

This study analyzes the impact of the expansion of individualism on families in American society. A man and his family have been identified as one and the same in the discussion of individualism so far. Women have held no independent social identity in society. In the 1970s the feminist movement drew attention for the first time to the possibility of independent social status of women as individuals. With more women aspiring to independent social status, the traditional ideal of the family lost acceptance as a valid social norm. In reaction to this change, conservatives organized to harshly counterattack liberals who supported the change. The idea of 'family values' has become a hot issue across American society since the 1970s. However, the vociferous warning regarding family breakdown expressed by the conservatives has had no substantial effect on people's behaviors. The expansion of individualism to women leads to a consistent pace of family changes. The key point of such changes is that families are based on a wide variety of relationship patterns, while the nuclear family loses its monopolistic status. While the stability of relationships is lessened, the initiative of individuals to make a variety of decisions about relationships is heightened.