Sociological Lenses

Across our country and others, families sit down together to enjoy a family dinner together.  It can be joyful or even argumentative.  It has changed through the years from being a reserved dining experience to a time for families to express themselves (Griffin, 2016).  In the past, it was considered a tradition.  It was a time where the family became unified.  Let’s look at this familial trend through sociological lenses.

Conflict theory in sociology states that conflicts arise when resources, status, and power are not distributed equally between groups in society and that these conflicts fuel social change (Crossman, 2017).  Having family dinners is more important today than in the past because there are so many more distractions such as technology and a variety of activities to chose from outside of the home.  There is a conflict for devotion to family time without these distractions.  We meet and interact with many different types of people during the day and our children are learning about the world from various places without input or filters from parents.  Family meals can provide a secure place to discuss ideas, current events, and daily happenings.  These meals provide opportunities to parents to be role models for communication and manners, give children a sense of security, monitor their emotional, educational, and even spiritual growth, prevent destructive behaviors, nourish and expand their worlds one food at a time, and save money (Hand, 2005).  There is a conflict of finding time between working and children’s extracurricular obligations.

Functionalism looks at each part of society in terms of how it contributes to the stability of the whole society (Crossman, 2017). Family mealtime is still an important function in our society.   Research shows that family meals help nurture children’s social, cognitive, emotional, and nutritional development. The normal family mealtime has changed because of changes to the definition of what a family unit can be, the necessity for women to work outside of the home, or that the food is from a fast-food restaurant in front of the TV, or some other kind of distraction, due to the use of technology.  Despite the changes, family mealtime is still a historic tradition and functions to stabilize society and the growth of young people in society.

Symbolic interaction theory analyzes society by looking at the meanings that people impose on objects, events, and behaviors (Crossman, 2017).  Before the late 18th century, dining rooms and dining tables were not used or thought of and it made it difficult for families to dine together regularly.  Tables and rooms had multiple uses and families would sometimes eat in shifts.  If there were not enough chairs, the men would sit and the women and children would stand (Griffin, 2016).  The rise of American family dinners began in the late 1700’s.  One of the first American homes to have a room specifically for dining was Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, which was built in 1772. The dining room with the dining table at its center, began to become a part of wealthy homes across the country and eventually began coming into middle class homes (Griffin, 2016).  With a designated space for family meals and enough seating, family meals had a set time and parents used this time to educate children about manners and religion.  In 1943, the sociologist James H.S. Bossard wrote that “it is at the dining table, and particularly at dinner time, that the family is apt to be at its greatest ease.” (Griffin, 2016) In the same year, The Saturday Evening Post published Norman Rockwell’s Freedom from Want, where a family is dining around a Thanksgiving table.  It was symbolic of the strength of American values during World War II. The people in the painting not only have food, but are very happy, smiling at each other and the viewer (Griffin, 2016).  Dining together at the dining room table with family is symbolic interaction and brings families together.

References

Becky Hand, Licensed & Registered Dietician. (2005, June 11). The Benefits of Eating Together.

Crossman, A. (2017, June 30). Everything You Need to Know About Functionalist Theory.

Crossman, A. (2017, August 7). Learn About Symbolic Interactionism, the Theories and Perspective.

Crossman, A. (2017, August 4). What Is Conflict Theory?

Griffin, M. (2016, February 16). ‘No Place for Discontent’: A History of The Family Dinner in America.