Sociological perspectives on partnerships

Brienna Perelli-Harris and Sharon Sassler

Chapter Chapter 4 in Research Handbook on Partnering across the Life Course, 2025, pp 38-49 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Sociologists have developed a range of theories to explain changes in partnership formation and dissolution. Here we focus on four overlapping perspectives. First, we discuss theories that describe cultural context and global family systems, including how macro-level social change influences couples; these consist of the Second Demographic Transition, Pattern of Disadvantage, and the Gender Revolution. Second, we discuss social institutions which shape partnership formation, and the institution (and deinstitutionalization) of marriage. Third, we examine theories of power dynamics within the couple, for example Bargaining and Exchange theory, and the persistence of gender norms. Finally, we explore social theories related to growing individualization and destandardization of the life course. Taken together, these sociological theories illustrate how individual- and couple-level decisions aggregate upwards to form partnership patterns visible at the population level.

Keywords: Sociological theory; Partnerships; Marriage (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781803923376
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