Judgments of Social Change: A Closer Look

Abstract

Judgments of social change—the type of change judgments that will be the topic of this chapter—are frequently regarded as distinctively contemporary, and thus as saying something unique about our times. Yet despite appearances, they are far from unique. Consider change judgments about the institution of the family. As historians of the family have noted, the perception that the once-perfect institution of the family has suddenly undergone a decline has been a perennial fixture in American culture (Caplow et al., 1983; Scott & Wishy, 1982; Seward, 1978; Tufte & Myerhoff, 1979). Each generation seems to believe that theirs is the first to experience the family as a deeply troubled institution. Thus, in 1983 we heard it said that “thirty years ago the American family was still happy and spirited and intact” (Ager, 1983, p. 47). Yet, more than half a century before the time of that statement, family life was also viewed as very much in jeopardy. At that time, the Lynds, authors of a classic study of American life (Lynd & Lynd, 1929), “feared for the future of the community and its institutions. They were especially apprehensive about the family, which, it seemed to them, had lost the emotional harmony that prevailed in earlier generations and was being riven in one place by a generation gap and in another by marital instability” (Caplow et al., 1983, p. 15). In their book, the Lynds noted that the theme of the decline of the family was common to many inspirational Chautauqua speeches of the time. In the words of one such speaker: “We seem to be drifting away from the fundamentals in our home life. The home was once a sacred institution where the family spent most of its time.