2. Objectives
Analyze the trends contributing to the changing
family.
Compare functions of the family in various cultures.
Explain the relationship between family roles &
responsibilities.
List characteristics of a strong family.
Describe 6 common family structures.
Describe the 6 stages of the family cycle.
3. What is a family?
Family can be defined in many ways!
According to the US Census Bureau the term family
means a group of two or more persons, related by
blood, marriage, or adoption, who reside together in
a household.
Families are as varied as people themselves.
4. The Changing Family
Activities and functions of families of
the past are quite different than
today.
In early history, the family hunted
and gathered in order to survive.
Family members filled roles that
provided survival. They lived in
family groups.
As agriculture evolved, families were
able to set up permanent homes, and
become independent as a family.
5. The Changing Family
The industrial revolution brought new pressures on
society and the family.
The father was typically the main provider and the
mother was the full-time homemaker.
People no longer worked solely for the survival of
their own family.
The technological age continues to affect families
today.
6. How Families Adapt to Change
To be effective, families must be
resilient.
Families must be prepared to cope with
the effects of a technological society.
Although technology makes life
easier, it presents a challenge to
families at home and at work.
At work-must keep up the technological
advances.
At home-important family functions displaced
7. Family Functions in Various Cultures
Families take many forms, but the functions they
perform are the same from culture to culture.
Families Provide:
Economic support
Education (religion)
Love & Affection
Nurturance
Children (procreation
Protection
Recreation
8. Provide Physical Needs
To the best of their abilities, families provide
the necessities of life such as food, clothing,
shelter, furnishings, and health care.
9. Education
From the moment of
birth, children are taught the
ways of their culture by their
families.
Families teach children how to
speak a language, how to take
care of themselves, and how to
get along with others.
Families also convey their
beliefs about religion to their
children.
10. Provide Love & Affection
An important family function is to provide an
emotional “safe haven” for family members. They
know their needs for love, affection, and acceptance
will be met.
11. Nurturance
The family provides the
environment for nurturing the
social skills of children, which
allows them to function in the
world.
Families teach, mostly by example,
the difference between acceptable
and unacceptable behavior. As a
result their children can take their
places as productive members of
society.
12. Procreation
Through procreation
(reproduction), couples
bring the members of the
next generation into the
world.
Although a male-female
bond forms the foundation
for parenting the family life
across cultures, marriage
forms may differ widely.
13. Protection
Adult family members are responsible for
the care of all family members.
Responsible parents provide protection from
harm, encourage good health and safety
habits, form wholesome friendships, and
avoid situations in which they are likely to
become victims of crime.
14. Recreation
Sports, games, and other
recreational pursuits
provide family members
with relaxation and
physical exercise.
These activities provide
children with
opportunities to learn
communication skills and
good sportsmanship.
15. Roles & Responsibilities of Family Members
Members of families have certain roles.
There are given and chosen roles.
A given role is a role acquired when a
person is born into a family (son, daughter,
brother, sister)
A chosen role is a role a person voluntarily
assumes (husband, wife, father, mother)
16. Roles & Responsibilities of Family Members
Roles are defined by responsibilities.
How well people fulfill these responsibilities
determines how well they perform their roles.
Your role expectations for your future family are
influenced by the roles played in your family today.
It is important to understand people’s role
expectations, especially when entering into
marriage.
17. Functional & Dysfunctional Families
Functional Family – Family
system in which all family
members fulfill their roles
and responsibilities.
Dysfunctional Family –
Family system in which one
or more family members do
not fulfill their
responsibilities, throwing the
system out of balance.
18. Characteristics of Strong Families
Respect for individual uniqueness
Trust
Sense of play and humor
Shared responsibility
Ability to recognize right and wrong
The belief in upholding family traditions
The belief in the importance of healthy interaction
among members
Shared belief in the importance of a religious or
philosophical foundation
19. Family Structures
As society changes, new family structures
emerge.
Today there are many different family
structures.
There is no one best structure as long as the
family is performing its functions and
members are fulfilling its roles.
There are six common structures.
20. Two-Parent Family
Married couple and their
biological children
Social activities often
center around the family.
Also referred to as nuclear
family.
Less than ¼ of American
families consist of married
couples with children.
21. The Single Parent Family
Occurs as a result of divorce, separation,
death, or having children outside of
marriage.
Growing faster than any other family
form.
About 1/8 of all families are single-
parent.
Most single parents do not plan to be
single parents.
A sing parent faces the strain of being
the sole head of the household (time,
energy, money, etc.)
22. Parents Who are Single as a Result of Desertion,
Divorce, or Death
Challenge of reshaping their own lives and the lives
of their children under difficult circumstances.
Time, effort, & cooperation, of all family members to
reestablish secure family unit.
23. Unwed Parents
Many unwed mothers are
choosing to keep their babies
rather than arranging for
adoption.
A woman who keeps her baby
should recognize her true reasons
for doing so.
Her reasons affect the way she
behaves as a mother.
Unwed fathers can choose to raise
the child also.
24. Single Parents by Adoption
A person’s background will be investigated
The reasons for wanting to adopt will be questioned
The person must be able to provide the child with
adult contacts of the opposite sex
25. The Stepfamily
Major structure in our
society.
Stepfamily – Family
structure in which either or
both spouses have been
married before and may
have one or more children
from the previous marriage.
Relationships in stepfamilies
may be complicated.
26. The Extended Kinship Family
Extended kinship family –
Family structure in which
several generations of a family
live together.
More common in foreign
countries.
Advantages
Interaction between family members
of all age groups
Aging members have an honored
position
27. The Foster Family
Foster Parenting – System that provides children
with substitute families while their parents are
unable to care for them.
Parents may not get along, parents may be unable to
provide adequate care, children may have been
abandoned.
Families are must be licensed and are reimbursed for
children’s expenses.
Children come from all different backgrounds.
28. The Adoptive Family
Parents become legal
parents of a child they
bring into their home.
May have been unable to
have children on their
own.
Most couples prefer to
adopt newborns.
Adopting older children
may be challenging.
29. The Family Life Cycle
Stages of change through which
families pass as they expand and
contract in size.
Beginning, Childbearing, Parenting,
Launching, Middle-Years, and Aging
Stages
30. Beginning Stage
Begins with the
establishment of the family
unit when the couple
marries
Adjust to married life and
separation from parents
Establish feeling of
interdependence
31. Childbearing Stage
Birth of children and
focus turns to needs of
the children
New responsibilities
Interpersonal
relationships expand in
family
Role conflicts may occur
32. Parenting Stage
Reorganization of the family around school-
age children
Parents recognize individual needs of each
child while sharing family goals
Parent’s involved in children’s activities
Teens seek more independence
33. Launching Stage
Children leave home
(leave for
college, careers, and
marriage)
Parents refocus on
their relationship
Parents relate to sons
and daughters as
adults
34. Middle-Years Stage
Prepare for retirement
“Empty-nest” stage
Parents provide emotional
support as adult children
establish their own families
and careers
Parent often become
grandparents
Prepare for retirement
35. Aging Stage
Retirement
Focus on friendships, hobbies, interest, and
travel
Grand-parenting continues
