Social Institutions: Family

Generally the family is recognised as an element of a broader kinship network that links ancestors and descendants of a person. It is the most permanent and most persistent of all social institutions which exerts constant influence in life of the members from the moment of birth to the moment of death.

Elements of Family

• It is formed by robust companionship of husband, wife, father, mother, children and other members in it.
• Family propagates and up bring children, nurture them, fulfil their needs (Economical or Biological).
• There is sense of togetherness, love, emotional attachment and protection among the family member.
• Family is configured as a large or small by size, large family constitute family members of several generation whereas small family has limited members.
• All the family members reside in common residence.
• It is an institute where social norms and customs are taught to the family members in order to build a society and contribute for its wellbeing.

Characteristics of the Family

The characteristic of family depicts the need of human whether biological that is sexual and affection or sociological that is every member of family has responsibility towards each other.

Family is said to be complete when there is permanent relationship between the members and this is possible only when they are psychological attached to each other. There is no such social institution which can be companied with family that forms a permanent relationship with its members that are bonded to each other psychologically and sociologically.

Main characteristics

Universality

Family is universal social unit. There is no human society in which some form of the family does not appear. It is present throughout the communities whether barbarians or in civilized world.

Emotions

Members of the family is emotionally attached to each other based on desires of maternal and fraternal love, parental care, mating and procreation. The base of family is built upon sentiments of love, compassion, cooperation and friendship.

Limited size

Being a primary social unit its size is necessarily limited, as it is a smallest social unit.

Formative influence

It is the family that creates an environment that surrounds trains and educates the members in it. It plays an important role in shaping the personality and helps to mould the character of the member on it.

Central position in the social structure

Family is the nucleus of all other social organizations as the whole social structure is built on family units.

Responsibility of the members

Each member of the family has responsibilities and obligations towards each other and also towards society.

Structure of family

The structure of the family is mainly based on the three pillars the nature of residence, the authority in the family and the size of the family.

Nature of Residence

It can be broadly described in three types:

Patrilocal

Practiced commonly in India, where the bride resides with the groom’s family or house.

Matrilocal

Here the groom resides with the bride’s family. This is seen in few clans of India like the Khasis of Meghalaya and Nayar taravad of Kerala.

Neolocal

In this the family is individualistic that resides separately in newly constructed house. It is commonly practiced in urban industrial society.

Nature of authority in the family

Patriarchial

Here, father has the highest status in the family. He is the head of the family who controls the social life of the family. It is commonly practiced throughout India.

Matriarchial

Here mother has the highest status in the family. She is the head of the family who controls the other members of the family. This system is seen very rarely in India, the Khasi clan of Meghalaya, the Nair clan of Kerala.

Based on the size

Family is mainly constituted in two types

Nuclear family

It is smallest family in size which has only a husband, wife and their children living together. The current industrial urban system has reduced the size of the family due to economic and social reason. It is further divided into two types.

1. A) The family of orientation: Here in this family the individual is born and resides with his parents and brothers and sisters.
2. B) The family of procreation: Here an individual gets married and procreates children with its companion to form a separate individual family.

Joint family

In a joint family more than two generations resides together who has common ancestors following common duties and have common property. They also has common kitchen and probably follows same traditional occupation.

Advantages of Joint family:

• In a joint family all members comes together to solve any social or economical problems on its member.
• This family gives moral support to its members in difficult times.
• Since the family members are large in numbers their strength and weight age is more in the society they live.
• Here more importance is given to all members rather than the individual member.
• The festivals and rituals are carried away all together thus distributing the task among each other minimises the time and efforts.
• In joint family the blood relation is given more relevance over the marital relationship.

On the basis of Ancestors:

The family is classified into two types

Patrilinel

This family line is traced from its male ancestors. Here the new generations inherits the name or title, rights, property from their male ancestors.

Matrilinel

It is traced from their female ancestors. Here the new generations inherits the name or title, property and rights from their female ancestors.

Functions of family

The family as a social institution performs several functions which is categorised into primary and secondary.

Primary functions:

Biological functions

• It regulates and satisfies the sexual behaviour of Husband and wife through the marriage.
• It fulfils the desire of human to procreate children and thus regulates the perpetuation of human race.
• It is the family that rears the child, protects it, trains it and creates personality thus it performs a function of maintenance of its members.

Socialization of family members:

• Family socialises its members through cultural continuity of the society of which it is a part.
• The social norms, moral values, beliefs and ideals of society are indoctrinated into its child to help the child to shape its personality and make it a civilized adult to build a better society.

Psychological Function

• Affection – Family provides emotional satisfactions to its members through love, sympathy and affection.
• Mental Security: It is the family which provides the most intimate and the dearest relationship for all its members that makes them mentally secure.

Secondary functions

Economic function:

• The family fulfils the basic economic needs of its members and supports them in financial crisis.
• There is no other institute than family where the members feel free to ask for support during financial crisis.

Educational Functions

• The child gets its basic and formal learning within the family. It provides training in social attitudes and habits which are important for an adult in its social life.

Religious functions

• The child gets the knowledge of the religion it follows. Family is the centre for the religious training to its members as it inherits the religious teaching to the next generation.
• It teaches its members all religious values, way of worship, morals precepts.

The Recreational Functions

• Family always aims to bring its member together and this is possible through the recreational activities. It is foster by various family functions such as reunions, hoisting relatives, playing indoor games, social gatherings, sport etc.

Structural and functional changes in the system of family

The traditional system of family has undergone qualitative changes till the date. The following are the driving factors responsible for the changes witnessed in system of family.

Influence of Industrialization

• Industrialization separated the home from the work and now the working members themselves bear the entire burden connected with their job. Earlier their families used to lend support in this regard.
• Family members have been disintegrated in search of jobs. Earlier the family workers worked together in an integrated economic enterprise.
• The traditional skills and crafts of household industries associated with the joint family have declined.
• It was a principal unit of production now has been transformed in the consumption unit.

Influence of urbanization.

• Due to costly life style in urban areas small nuclear families are preferred and this has weakened the joint family pattern and has strengthened nuclear family patterns.

Changes in children status

• Children’s demands have been increased. They are considered as a liability as earlier they were the economic assets to the family.

Changes in Marriage System.

• The freedom granted to individuals in mate-selection, change in age of marriage and change in the attitude towards marriage have also affected family system.
• Modern marriage has diminished the role of parents in mate-selection, marriage is now considered as social ceremony earlier it was a religious affair.
• Marriage contract today is entered into more autonomously by both men and women

Legislative Measures.

• Legislative changes in certain laws like child marriage Restraint Act, 1929 and the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 that prohibits early marriage have lengthened the period of education.
• Through the special Marriage Act, 1954 there is freedom of mate-selection and marriage in any caste and religion without the Parent’s consent after certain age is permitted, has modified the composition and traditions of the family.
• The Widow Remarriage Act, 1856, Hindu succession Act, 1956 and Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 have modified inter personal relations within the family and the stability of the joint family.

Influence of western values:

• There has been tremendous change in Indian family system due to the influence of western values that relates to modern science, equality, rationalism, democracy, individualism, free life, freedom of women etc.

Modern education

• Modern education has brought about change in ideology of joint family system in India. It has changed the attitude, values, beliefs and ideologies of the people and has created individualistic feelings amongst the females.