Introduction
In lay man’s term, the family is basically considered as comprising of parents and their children who live together in a home. It can mean different thing to people though, as people tend to define according to how they experienced how to belong to a family. Nevertheless, despite its wide-ranging definition, it generally boils down to having people to count on. It refers to a resilient association where one can feel secure and loved because of one’s bondage with the people who accepts and respects unconditionally. Further, families may come in many forms as this social structure is constantly evolving with the passage of time, thus the emergence of different family arrangement.
The Nuclear Family
According to the definition provided by the United Nations and the U. Census Bureau, a nuclear family is considered to be the traditional form of family that basically consists of the wedded couple and their children who live under one abode (Widmer & Jallinoja, 1). The central point of the nuclear family is the presence of the matrimonial vow between two individuals of the opposite sex and their commitment to bring up their children according to their agreed terms and values. This is a basic social structure that has been in existence for many centuries; and the idea of a mother taking care of her family needs, a father bringing working to sustain the financial needs and the children being obedient to his parents was a picture-perfect definition of the family.
The Extended Family
A trend that changed the structure of the nuclear family is the emergence of the extended family. This form extends beyond the nuclear family to include other people such as aunts, uncles and other relatives who live within the same residence. Accordingly, this family form stems from the traditional arrangement that extends due to the close association between family generations. An example of which is the Chinese household that cherished the “extended family ties” (Peoples & Bailey, 165), thus the children may stay together in the family home even after marriage.
Other Family Forms
The changing times witnessed the emergence of other family forms to accommodate the need of individuals and the society as a whole. For instance, the 21st century saw the rise of beanpole family structure which is a form of kinship ties where the family member from different generations develop a strong bond. There is also the rise in the number of single-parent families which comprised of the lone parent and her or his children. The structure is usually a single female parent and her children, although there are also instances when a single male parent is involved. There are other family forms, and it is expected that there will be other forms that will arise in the future due to the changing times.
Conclusion
Scholars have attributed the reason for the change in the family structure to the transformation of the society. Nevertheless, it remains that an individual needed a family because this social structure, in whatever form, are helpful to its members and to the society. It gives support when all other things in the outside world fail, and it is considered to be an advantage to live in the presence of a loving and supportive family.
Works Cited
Peoples, James, and Garrick Bailey. Humanity: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.
Widmer, Eric, and Riitta Jallinoja. Beyond the Nuclear Family: Families in a Configuration Perspective. Peter Lang, 2008. Print.
