Chapter 15 : The Family and Intimate Relationships

Kinship, Family, and Marriage: Key Concepts

  Kinship, family , and marriage are closely related terms of key significance for sociology and anthropology. Kinship comprises either genetic ties or ties initiated by marriage. A family is a group of kin having responsibility for the upbringing of children. Marriage is a union of two persons living together in a socially approved sexual relationship.

  A nuclear family refers to a household in which a married couple or single parent lives with their own or adopted children. Where kin in addition to parents and children live in the same household or are involved in close and continuous relationships, we speak of the existence of an extended family.

  In Western societies, marriage, and therefore the family, is associated with monogamy (a culturally approved sexual relationship between one man and one woman). Many other cultures tolerate or encourage polygamy , in which an individual may be married to two or more spouses at the same time. Polygyny , in which a man may marry more than one wife, is far more common than polyandry , in which a woman may have more than one husband.

The Family in History

  The modern Western family, which features close emotional bonds, domestic privacy, and a preoccupation with child rearing, is also characterized by affective individualism , meaning that marriage partners are usually selected on the basis of romantic love. This is now the norm, but it was not always so. In premodern Europe, parents, extended family members, or even landlords decided on marriage partners, basing their choices largely on social or economic considerations.

  There are many types of families in the world, but there is a trend toward the Western norm of the nuclear family. Some reasons for this trend include: the Western ideal of romantic love, the growth of urbanization and of centralized governments, and employment in organizations outside traditional family influence.

Changes in Family Patterns

  There have been major changes in patterns of family life in the United States during the post-World War II period: A high percentage of women are in the paid labor force, there are rising rates of divorce, and substantial proportions of the population are either in single-parent households or are living with stepfamilies. Cohabitation (in which a couple lives together in a sexual relationship outside of marriage) has become increasingly common in many industrial countries.

  Family life is by no means always a picture of harmony and happiness. The "dark side" of the family is found in the patterns of abuse and family violence that often occur within it. Although no social class is immune to spousal abuse, studies do indicate that it is more common among low-income couples.

  Cohabitation and homosexuality have become more common in recent years. It seems certain that alternative forms of social and sexual relationships to those prevalent in the past will flourish still further. Yet marriage and the family remain firmly established institutions.

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