fringestream - fallout families

FALLOUT FAMILIES: THE NEW NUCLEAR

Rede$ining thefamily structure thesoundhq.com

Tuesday, November 10, 15

FALLOUT FAMILIES

Welcome to our FringeStream series, our monthly magazine exploring how the fringes of culture are shaping mass behaviors. What happens when fragmentation, diversity and the choice to live

differently becomes the new normal?This month we explore Fallout Families, which challenges us to think about family structures

differently and brings to life what new family norms look like, moving beyond the traditional -‐ and

increasingly outdated -‐ model of the nuclear family.


“FALLOUT FAMILIES”


WHAT IS IT?

THE NUCLEAR FAMILY IS ON THE DECLINE.

Today it is far more likely that a family will not be the archetypal married couple with 2.4 kids.

Advertisers, marketers, researchers and media planners (not to mention the rest of the business world) continue to adhere to a model in which most adults are imagined to be on a journey to, through and from the standard nuclear family -‐ because it’s easy. And it’s comfortable. And mainstream.

Except that it no longer is.

“Married couples with 2.4 kids don't really exist: today, only a quarter of families could be termed ‘nuclear’”

The Guardian, 2013

THE FAMILY DYNAMIC IS CHANGING...WE’RE LIVING IN A POST-NUCLEAR WORLD


WHY IS IT?

New versions of the traditional family have been enabled or necessitated by a variety of factors, including: the economic crisis, progression in LGBT rights, an ageing population, the housing shortage in major cities, rising divorce rates, improving gender equality and Kluidity. We are living in a

more progressive and tolerant society than ever before.

Above all we now live in a world in which people are increasingly questioning the need to follow traditional ways of being.

…THIS IS CAUSED OR ENABLED BY ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND

CULTURAL SHIFTS...


…WHICH GIVES RISE TO A NUMBER OF NEW NON-NUCLEAR FAMILY TYPES

RISE OF THESOLOMOR

DINKs(dual income, no kids)

REVERSINGGENDER ROLES

SAME SEXPARTNERS

MULTI-GENERATIONALLIVING

MULTI-PARENTALFAMILIES

TRADITIONAL MODEL

THE OUTCOME: NUCLEAR FAMILIES


WHAT IS IT?

32% OF MARRIED FATHERS (approximately 7 million dads) are “a regular source of care for their children under age 15”, up from 26% in 2002

THE

NEW

NORMAL:

Mothers are now the SOLE OR PRIMARY INCOME PROVIDER in a record 40% of households with children

Over a lifetime,

unmarried women can

pay as much as a

million dollars more

than their married

counterparts for

healthcare,

taxes and more

FAMILIES

FALLOUT

In the US, the number of people living in multigenerational homes doubled from around 28 million in 1980 to 57 million in

2012. Whilst in the UK, more than 500,000 households consist of more than three generations, rising to 556,000 by 2019.

28Mpeople living in multigenerationalhomes

57Mpeople living in multigenerationalhomes

1980 2012

500k+households consistof more than threegenerations

2015

556k+households consistof more than threegenerations

2019

In the US, among those under age 50 nearly half of LGBT women (48%)

are raising a child under age 18 along with a fifth of LGBT men (20%)

20%48%the fastest growing categoryof households is:

IN THE US AND UK...


THE CHALLENGE FOR BRANDS

BRANDS INCREASINGLY SHOW THAT THEY ‘GET’ THE CONTEMPORARY FAMILY BY MIXING UP THE INGREDIENTS A LITTLE: a mixed-‐race couple here, a divorced dad there, maybe even some same-‐sex parents.

Typically these are taboo-‐breaking statements that intentionally celebrate the fringes. And that’s great. But increasingly those fringes are the norm.

Brands that want to really connect with contemporary families need to go one step further -‐ reKlecting this new normal for what it is: normal.

“Making advertising more representative of the society it serves tends to follow two clear

stages. The First is to actively break taboos that hold society back and in which the inclusion of people that are different to the norm is to make a point. The second is about normalising those groups as an

unremarkable part of contemporary life.”

Richard HuntingdonDirector of Strategy, Saatchi & Saatchi

BRANDS AND THE NEW NORMAL


“The repercussions of these [family] changes on housing, pensions,

health and long-‐term care, labour markets, education and public Jinances, have been remarkable”OECD Report, The Future of Families, 2011

THE CHALLENGE FOR SOCIETY

AND IT’S NOT JUST THE MARKETING WORLD THAT NEEDS TO REFLECT THIS NEW NORMAL.We live in a world built for nuclear families: family cars, family meals, family homes, family holiday deals. And it’s not just products. Everything from maternity/paternity leave to tax beneKits were set up to beneKit nuclear families.

Today, 52% of British adults feel that the Government fails to take their family set-‐up into account.

The rise of Fallout Families demands new thinking and new solutions right across society -‐ with implications for politics, healthcare, property, Kinancial products, employment law and childcare.

SOCIETY AND THE NEW NORMAL


There has been a proportional decline of marriage since the 1970s. 51% of the adult population of England and Wales is ‘not married’, and 43.6% of American adults are unmarried (61% have never been married). Since 2000 the most common household in America has been a person living alone.

While we know that it is more expensive to be single (cost of living, tax bene$its, healthcare etc.) we see that many of our ‘singles’ are choosing to be single, living the life they want to create, with or without a partner.

In Denmark, in particular, we are seeing a rise of the ‘Solomor’; single women who are choosing to get pregnant or adopt without the immediate support of a partner. A trend that has been growing since 2007 when they offered single women free fertility treatment. With companies like Facebook and Apple offering support to freeze women’s eggs, the options and the $inancial support to ‘opt in’ to parenthood single is on the rise -‐ with the understanding that it can take a village to raise a child, not just two heterosexual parents.

THE RISE OF THE SOLOMOR

WHAT’S GOING ON?

“We’re seeing an avalanche of educated older women – 85% are aged between 31-45 and half have masters degrees or higher. More and more of them are going it alone and

we predict that by 2020, 70% of our clients will be single.” -Ole Schou, director of Cryos International, the world’s largest sperm bank in Aarhus, Jutland.

“Over a lifetime, unmarried women can pay as much as a million dollars more than their

married counterparts for healthcare, taxes and more.” -Lisa

Arnold and Christina Campbell, The Atlantic


WHAT’S GOING ON?

D.I.N.KSDual Income No Kids (or DINKs) are a growing phenomenon across the world. Couples that choose not to have children fall under the following loose buckets:‣ Can’t so don’t

‣ Select not to

‣ DINKs for now – will have to later.

DINKs are typically af$luent and high spenders. DINKs are a global growing ‘tribe’, especially in India, China and Japan. 60% of DINKs expect to feel some sort of prejudice about their decision, however 80% feel that their decision makes them a better contributor to their society. DINKs admit they feel like they are constantly defending their decision to ‘opt out’.

So why ‘opt out’? One in $ive couples in the Netherlands decide never to have children. ‘Parental honesty’ is at an all time high, as rewarding as it is to have kids, it’s hard work and expensive! DINKs ‘opt out’ as many of them haven’t had the biological urge to have kids. Having a ‘family’ can include being an Aunt/Uncle, owning a pet or caring for ageing parents. DINKs can delay making decisions about having children much later in life than ever before. While some of society (and brands) may need to catch up, DINKs are here to stay and growing in number. For DINKs the absence of their own children does not mean the absence of family.

“Childfree couples put the highest value on themselves as a couple. They know that to go the distance, relationships take work and cultivation. Part of "having it all" is the ability to have the time and space to devote to their relationship.” - Laura Caroll, Huffington Post

“There's a resistance to parenthood being the default

after marriage. People are questioning it in ways that they

didn't perhaps 30 or 40 or 50 years ago.” - Laura S. Scott, Childless by

Choice Project director


REVERSING GENDER ROLESWHAT’S GOING ON?

“Perhaps no single facet of human behavior in the 20th century has more influenced marriages and families than have changing gender

roles" - Kenneth Davidson & Nelwyn Moore, Marriage and Family

Gender equality is more of a reality than ever before. Males and females $ind themselves facing the same challenges and opportunities i.e. competing for the same jobs, under the same pressures and have the same aspirations.

As the gender pay gap is slowly closing and couples salaries are beginning to match or over take each other, we are beginning to re-‐think the way household and child care duties are apportioned. Binaries that once maintained clear boundaries between genders are now blurred.

A recent study in the UK revealed that fathers spend seven times as much time interacting with their children than their own fathers did with them 40 years ago.

While corporations and governments are starting to catch up with paternity and maternity leave support, social stigma is still a major reason as to why we default to Moms staying home and Dads going to work. Sweden is allowing for all working parents to be entitled to 16 months paid leave per child. A minimum of 2 months of that must be taken by the father to encourage and promote equality between genders in childrearing and their professional lives.

Millennials are leading the way to less con$ined traditional gender roles and are more willing to break long-‐standing norms. Meanwhile Gen Edge, the post-‐Millennial generation, is likely to hold the least rigidly de$ined view of gender as they reach adulthood as they are being raised with less de$ined gender roles.

The U.S. Census reports that 32% of married fathers (approximately 7 million dads) are “a regular source of care for their children under age

15”, up from 26% in 2002, whilst mothers are now the sole or primary income provider in a record 40% of households with children.

[Pew Research]


As many as 6 million American children and adults have an LGBT parent.

Growth in same-‐sex parenting has been enabled by the rise of same-‐sex marriage and a more relaxed attitude towards same-‐sex adoption and fertility treatment in many developed markets.

And contrary to popular belief, this is far from being a white, middle-‐class phenomenon: a recent Williams institute report shows that same-‐sex parents are ethnically diverse and relatively less well-‐off than others. In the US, half of all children living with same-‐sex couples are non-‐white (compared to 41 percent among opposite-‐sex couples) and the average annual household income of same-‐sex couples with children is signi$icantly lower than that of similar heterosexual couples ($63,900 versus $74,000, respectively).

Interestingly, same-‐sex parents invest more time in their children than heterosexual couples. A recent study from the University of Texas found the difference is even more pronounced in families with two mothers, who spend around 40 per cent more time on activities with their kids than heterosexual parents.

And fathers in same-‐sex couples spend around the same amount of time with their children as straight mums – which is twice as much as heterosexual dads, on average.

SAME SEX PARENTSWHAT’S GOING ON?

In the US among those under age 50 nearly half of LGBT women (48%) are raising a child under age 18 along with a fifth of LGBT men (20%).- Kenneth Davidson & Nelwyn Moore,

Marriage and Family


Whilst multigenerational living is common in some parts of the world, in Western societies – where independence is arguably celebrated over all else, nuclear families has been the default.

However, rising costs of living, ageing populations, fewer employment opportunities and housing shortages are leading to greater numbers of multigenerational households in the West – at levels last seen in the 1950s.

Despite the the economic recovery and reducing unemployment, more millennials are returning to live at home with their parents than ever before.

A recent report by the Pew Research Centre concludes that 26% of 18-‐34 year olds in the US live with their parents, up from 24% in 2010. And in Europe, nearly half (48%) of 18-‐30 year olds are still living at home.

As both childcare and care home costs continue to rise, more grandparents are also returning to the family home.

Grandparents are estimated to save Britain more than £7 billion in childcare costs by looking after their grandchildren. Meanwhile in the US, 7.8 million children are living in homes with grandparents present and 4.9 million live in grandparent-‐headed households.

WHAT’S GOING ON?

MULTI-GENERATIONAL LIVING

In the US, the number of people living in multigenerational homes doubled from around 28 million in1980 to 57 million in 2012 [Pew Research]

Whilst in the UK, more than 500,000 households consist of more than three generations, rising to 556,000 by 2019 [Intergenerational Foundation think-tank]


Households containing two or more families were the fastest growing household type in the UK in the last decade, increasing by 56% to 313,000 households.

An emerging family structure is that of multi-‐parenting—or raising a child with more than two legal parents. These families can be made up of a variety of circumstances but usually consist of two or more couples who come together to raise a child.

Research in the $ield is limited, but the trend is growing. In 2013, the state of California passed a bill allowing children to have more than 2 parents in reaction to a case where one child had 2 mothers and 1 father.

A multi-‐parental home takes the village approach to raising children, ensuring that the child has multiple sources of; emotional, educational and $inancial support.

In The UK The Daily Mail recently reported on The Twin Oaks community in Virginia which houses 92 adults and 13 children and where responsibility for everything is shared. Residents must get group permission before having a baby.

MULTI-PARENTAL FAMILIES

WHAT’S GOING ON?

"We wanted to make sure that there was one legal parent in both households, because we're splitting the upbringing equally" - Multi-parent family, Amsterdam

(Vice)

"The idea of a ‘nuclear family’ – white picket fence, a kid or two,

friendly golden retriever – has been under siege for a while now.

A more recent family structure that might be hard for your

grandparents to wrap their heads around is that of multi-parenting – or raising a child with more than

two legal parents. ” - Vice, August 2015


URBAN PLANNINGAND PROPERTY

EMPLOYMENTLAW

FINANCEAND MONEY

The rise of Fallout Families has a number of implications for society as a whole – presenting challenges and opportunities in areas such as urban planning and property, employment law,

2inance and money.

And while the advertising, media and research industries have started to acknowledge the evolution of the family – by Klagging and celebrating differences, we think it’s time to take it to the

next level – normalisation.

IT’S TIME TO NORMALISE FALLOUT FAMILIES

BUT, WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?


FALLOUT FAMILIES ARE CHANGING THE FACE OF PROPERTYSOCIETAL IMPLICATIONS

WHILE THE SHAPE AND NATURE OF FAMILIES HAS CHANGED, THE SAME IS NOT TRUE FOR PROPERTY –with many Fallout Families struggling to Kind the right space for their lifestyle.

With considerable growth predicted in Boomerang children staying at home with their parents, and the elderly returning to live with their own kids, there will be a growing demand for properties and developments that are purpose-‐built for multigenerational living: properties with larger communal kitchens or properties in which there are annexes for grandparents and adult

children alike.

The rise of multi-‐parent households is leading to the building of bespoke communities, where multiple bedrooms or private living areas surround a large Kluid communal space where everything from eating to childcare to laundry is shared.

And the rise of afKluent professional single mothers is generating demand for a new type of inner-‐city apartment or housing development better-‐suited to the raising of children.


looking for a new job.

And there is a growing dialogue about the need for employers to make it easier for fathers to take on their share of childcare responsibilities.

In the UK, The Equality Act 2010 dictates that professionals in a same-‐sex couple cannot be discriminated against if they request maternity, paternity, adoption or parental leave from their employer. Yet if two people are adopting (whether they're a heterosexual or same sex couple), only one person is entitled to adoption leave.

THERE ARE IMPLICATIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT LAW AND EMPLOYERS

SOCIETAL IMPLICATIONS

THE GROWTH IN POST-NUCLEAR FAMILIES IS STARTING TO INFLUENCE EMPLOYMENT LAWS AND EMPLOYERS.

At Virgin, men who have been with the company for at least four years will be entitled to a year's paternity leave on full pay, whilst new laws in the UK mean parents can split up to 50 weeks of paternity/maternity leave.

In the US, a 2014 survey of dads revealed 89 percent said paternity leave would be an important criterion in

“We’re not going to get anywhere unless there’s a men’s movement. You can’t have half of a gender

revolution.” Anne-Marie Slaughter, head of New America Foundation and author of the much-publicised

recent Atlantic article by “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All”


FINANCIAL PRODUCTS WILL NEED TO ADAPTSOCIETAL IMPLICATIONS

THE CHANGING NATURE OF THE FAMILY MEANS A GROWTH IN DEMAND FOR NEW FINANCIAL PRODUCTS (e.g. mortgages for multi-‐generational or multi-‐parent homes.)

The purchase of these multi-‐generational homes may be funded in part by grandparents freeing up equity by selling their own properties.

Meanwhile, as multi-‐generational living becomes more normal, research by Mintel suggests that young adults will abandon saving for a mortgage and will instead

Kind new ways to reinforce their identity: spending their increased discretionary funds on experiences, holidays, clothes and grooming products.

A growth in democratic purchasing in multi-‐adult families means a need for more Klexible bank accounts, payment mechanisms, utility bill ‘ownership’, etc.


Despite recent steps towards featuring more diverse families in advertising, very few brands have moved to the stage of normalising them. Be the pioneer and move from celebrating to embracing, simply reKlecting the new normal -‐ with no fanfare. Many Fallout Families are frustrated with the inability for

‘the world’ to catch up with their everyday lives.

ADVERTISING NEEDS TO MOVE FROM CELEBRATING TO NORMALISING

BRAND AND ADVERTISING IMPLICATIONS

‘THE NEW US’ – CHEVYThe strategic idea behind the campaign

talks about values that unite us, their family spot showcases a multitude of

Fallout Families, reflecting that while the appearance of a family might change

their values do not.

HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=_DXVTGNAOIQ

#HOWWEFAMILY – TYLENOLTylenol’s new #HowWeFamily campaign

showcases the different structures of the modern family. Posing some challenging questions

around love, family and fighting for the recognition of being considered a family with

the tag line - family is defined by who you love, but how. We’re curious to see where they take the next phase in their strategic approach and

how they will be tying it back to the brand…

HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=C33DTK7NUQO

TOGETHER – WELLS FARGORecognising why families work so hard and looking to partner with all families to help

them get them to where they are going. The campaign depicts two mothers getting

ready to adopt a little girl that is deaf and they are practicing how to welcome and

communicate with her through sign language.

HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=DXDSX8HFXEK


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DXVtgnAoIQ












One of the most remarkable examples of the normalisation of Fallout Families came during this summer’s Women’s Soccer World Cup when the UK’s traditionally conservative Daily Mail newspaper reported on the childcare challenges faced by England star Casey Stoney, a mother of twins, whose

partner, Megan Harris, is also a footballer.

NORMALISING



RE-THINK WHO’S BUYINGBRAND AND ADVERTISING IMPLICATIONS

AS AN INDUSTRY, WHEN THINKING ABOUT FAMILY PRODUCTS AND PURCHASING, WE STILL HAVE A TENDENCY TO GRAVITATE TOWARDS THE TRADITIONAL NUCLEAR FAMILY –through targeting, through conscious or sub-‐conscious messaging, through recruitment for market research (we could go on!)

But new family structures such as multigenerational living are changing the purchasing dynamic. Boomer parents are being inKluenced by their adult Millennial

kids and vice versa, throwing your targeting strategy into disarray. And when it comes to toys, food, education or experiences for kids, it’s time to think beyond mums as the key decision-‐maker.

It’s just as likely to be Dad. Or Dads. Or granddad.


DON’T LOOK FOR DIFFERENCES, LOOK FOR SIMILARITIESBRAND AND ADVERTISING IMPLICATIONS

FALLOUT OR NUCLEAR, FAMILIES SHARE MANY CORE VALUES AND ASPIRATIONS REGARDLESS OF THEIR SHAPE, SIZE OR SEXUALITY.

The deKinition of a family may have changed but the ability of brands to align with what matters to them has not.

Family connects back to our deeper human need for unconditional love, acceptance and support. Family is a place to feel safe and completely validated.

Can you align with the contemporary values shared by families of all types?



A WHOLE RANGE OF PRODUCTS AND PROMOTIONS SUB-CONSCIOUSLY IMPLY THAT NUCLEAR IS BEST.You may risk alienating a growing proportion of families -‐ without even realising it.

STOP IMPLYING THAT NUCLEAR IS BEST (WITHOUT EVEN REALISING)

From “family tickets” (2 adults, 2 kids) to “family” board games (for four players), to “Mother and toddler” activities (what about my Dad? Or my two Dads?), Fallout Families are surrounded by unintentional signals that they don’t belong. Contemporary brands will increasingly break down these barriers.


THANK YOU!FALLOUT FAMILIES: THE NEW NUCLEAR

Rede$ining thefamily structurethesoundhq.com

VANCOUVER TORONTO CHICAGO NEW YORK LONDON MUMBAI


SLIDE SITE

1 https://vice-images.vice.com/images/content-images/2015/08/03/a-child-in-the-netherlands-is-going-to-have-five-parents-876-body-image-1438630930.jpg

11 http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/tiny-homes

12 http://ideas.time.com/childfree/http://www.betacuts.com/dual-income-no-kids-family-stickers/

13 http://www.suchablog.com/images/2007-mai/absolut/absolut-world-02.jpg

14 http://www.chambanamoms.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/RED1-1224.jpg

15 http://www.buzzle.com/images/fashion/family-clothing/family-clothing-in-winter.jpg

16 https://vice-images.vice.com/images/content-images/2015/08/03/a-child-in-the-netherlands-is-going-to-have-five-parents-876-body-image-1438630930.jpg

18 http://www.audiencescan.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/multi-generational.jpg

19 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/11/gay-parenting-study-healthy-kids-_n_3421590.html

20 http://aclendinggroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Mortgage-Form.jpg

22 http://www.itv.com/lorraine/hot-topics/footballer-casey-stoneys-double-baby-joy

23

http://www.macleans.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/The-new-dads-with-pads_wide.jpghttps://i.ytimg.com/vi/n09SejxpcFA/maxresdefault.jpghttp://cdn.bols.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/man-tampons.jpghttp://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/03/19/article-2116933-123A60E0000005DC-661_634x840.jpghttp://iconosquare.com/p/885637945591914479_231031846

24 http://blogs.cdc.gov/publichealthmatters/files/2012/09/ElderlyEmergency_Banner.jpg

25 http://auniformbrand.com/fiat-500l-redwood-publishing/www.musicwithmummy.co.uk/

IMAGE REFERENCES


https://vice-images.vice.com/images/content-images/2015/08/03/a-child-in-the-netherlands-is-going-to-have-five-parents-876-body-image-1438630930.jpg


http://www.southernliving.com/home-garden/tiny-homes

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is5W6GxAI3c










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http://www.musicwithmummy.co.uk

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