Changes in fertility rates, the introduction of contraception and changing social and working conditions for women have led to changes in family structures. Read this article on family structures in the USA. In pairs, talk about the highlighted expressions and compare your explanations. Reading 26 Seven Types of Family Structure Family is what we make of it. Some include a mother and a father, others extended family and more. A family can be defined as a group of people who are related. The word family is not only used to refer to father, mother, and children. People are related in many other ways. You do not have to be related to someone by blood to be in the same family with them. Families come in different setups and arrangements. The way society is set up today, people are moving away from traditional norms more and more. The more people open up and accept different cultures from all over the world, the more societies are blending. What used to be conventional and acceptable is going through changes. Here are several variations of family setups that we have today. Nuclear Families The nuclear family is the traditional family setup that makes the majority of all families. It consists of two parents and children. The children can be biological or adopted. The parents can be from different sexes, same-sex or gender fluid. The premise of this family is two parents raising children in the same home. The nuclear family is the widely accepted setup in societal norms across the world. Almost 70% of world families have a nuclear family setup. Single Parent Families Single parent families consist of one parent with one or more children. The parent can be single out of choice, because of the death of a spouse, or as a result of a divorce. Single parent families were looked down upon in the past, but now they are a social norm. Rapid changes in gender roles, as well as different moral rules, have led to the rise of single parent families. Extended Families Extended families (also multi-generational families) consist of more adults who are related by blood or marriage living under the same roof with their children. In the United States, the nuclear family is the social norm. However, in other parts of the world, it is normal for people to live with grandparents, in-laws, aunts, nieces, nephews, uncles, and cousins under one roof. Childless Families A childless family consists of partners living together without children. Most societies do not recognise this as a complete family. They expect couples to have children eventually. However, partners may choose to live without children, or they may have medical conditions that make it difficult to have children. Stepfamilies Stepfamilies are also known as blended families. They consist of two halves of other nuclear families that blend into one. Two people from previous families join to make one. It could be both partners with children, or one can marry a partner who comes with a child or children. Stepfamilies have also become a normal setup over the years, due to the rising rates of divorce. Most blended families have parents who co-parent the children. They can live with the children, or they can each take turns spending time with them. Grandparent Families These are comprised of parents raising their grandchildren. Grandparents raise children if the parents are not in the lives of the children. It could be a result of death, addiction, sickness, imprisonment, abandonment, international work travel, or being unfit parents. 122 Language skills Extras Explore 9 The world we live in Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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