Which scholar argued that relationships and family life are so diverse that there are no longer any clear norms about what a modern relationship should consist of?

Which scholar argued that relationships and family life are so diverse that there are no longer any clear norms about what a modern relationship should consist of?

• A. Lyotard
• B. Beck-Gernsheim
• C. Judith Stacey
• D. Baudrillard

Answer: (B)

In late modern society, the idea is that individualization reshapes intimate life so much that there isn’t one clear template for what a modern relationship should look like. People increasingly construct their own paths, balancing personal fulfillment with social expectations, which leads to a wide variety of relationship and family forms. This view, associated with Beck-Gernsheim, argues that the traditional script—like a single path to marriage and parenting—has weakened, leaving relationships to be negotiated cases of choice rather than fixed norms. You might see couples marrying later, cohabiting without marrying, forming new family arrangements, or redefining roles within partnerships. All of this reflects a move away from a single, universal relationship model toward pluralism in intimate life.

Lyotard comes from postmodern critique of grand narratives rather than a specific claim about intimate life norms. Baudrillard focuses on simulacra and media-saturated culture rather than family norms. Judith Stacey also emphasizes diversity in families and the breakdown of a single universal norm, but Beck-Gernsheim’s emphasis on individualization as the engine behind the erosion of a single relationship script makes this answer the most direct fit for the statement.