What is a Family?

FAMILY:

A group of 2 or more people who live

together and/or are related by blood
or marriage
 Function of a family
Emotional support
Financial support
A place for love and belonging
Socialization
Learning
Types of Families
 Traditional or Nuclear Family
This is what many people imagine when
they think of a typical family.
Mother, Father and children
 Extended Family
Relatives other than parents and children
-Grandparents
-Aunts & Uncles
-Cousins
Extended family members, regardless of
where they live, can be an important
resource for each other when they are
needed. Its just part of being a family.
 Blended Family
Husband and wife, at least one of whom
has children from another marriage.
A blended family can include children from
both spouses.
 Single-Parent Family
One parent and his/her children
Occurs from divorce, death or leaving of a
parent never having been married.

-Can be rewarding as well as challenging

-Juggle all the responsibility (work and
home)
 Childless Couples
Husband and Wife who have never had
children
This is either because they do not want to
have children or they are not able to
 Adoptive Families
Children are not biologically linked to their
parents
Parents must go through a legal process
to make children part of the family
May have both birth and adopted children
The Changing Family
AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Marrying Later in Life*

Men: age 26
Women: age 24
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Couples Having Kids Later in Life*

Cost of rearing a child

from birth through
college has been
estimated at million
dollars
AMERICAN FAMILIES
*COUPLES WITH FEWER
CHILDREN*

Average number of
children per family
is 2
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*COUPLES WITH NO CHILDREN*
Double Income- No
kids
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Divorced Adults*
More we expect from
the marriage the
higher our chances of
divorce

60% of all divorces

involve kids
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Single Parent Family*
1 in 4 children live with
only 1 parent
Standard of living for
women drops 73%
Ex-husbands
standard jumps 42%
Most have joint
custody
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Single Parent Family*
of all children have
NOT seen father in the
last year
1 in 6 see their father
once a week
Most do NOT receive
child support
Work, childcare,
money, and time are a
challenge
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Grown Children Moving Back In With Parents*
54% of 18-24 year
olds lived with parents
WHY?
Divorce,
unemployment, never-
married, increasing
age of first marriage,
high cost of living, low
entry salary
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Grown Children Moving Back In With Parents*
Problems? Coming and
going(44%) Cleaning and
maintenance(49%) Use of
household resources (36%)

Mealtime (33%) Money and

spending (31%) Friends (23%)
Rent (21%)
BOTH PARENTS AND
CHILDREN SUFFER
AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Grandparents Moving In*

Usually grandma
Usually requires care
4 million victims of
Alzeimers
Sandwich generation
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Blended Family*
Fathers are likely to remarry
13% of todays children are step children
ADVANTAGES: New couple has more
time alone, Relationships are precious,
negotiation and compromise, learn to let
go, more role models, earning potential is
doubled
AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Blended Family*
CHALLENGES: Emotional
difficulties 2 years for
couple to adjust, 4-5 years
for family oneness, more
difficult with older children,
identity change, social
isolation, difficulty letting
child and new step parent
develop a relationship
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*Blended Family*
MUST deal with emotional pain and scars
of 1st marriage before entering into
another relationship
New traditions, rules, & extended
relationships
PATIENCE is critical to the success of any
remarriage
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*WORKING MOTHERS*
Day care can cost
of family budge
Usually still does
majority of housework
and kids
Women have 15 fewer
leisure hours a week
than men
 AMERICAN FAMILIES
*WORKING MOTHERS*

SOLUTIONS: Stay at
home Work from
home Mr. Mom
The mommy track
AMERICAN FAMILIES

9 of 10 people continue to live in households as family

9 of 10 young adults do marry
3 of 4 of those divorce will remarry
Majority of those who marry will have kids