Structural types of a modern family and their problems.

Family is very important to every person. Belonging to a family is one bond almost everyone in the world shares. One sign that this is true is that people usually show great concern about the family as an institution.

There are many different types of families. While most families are traditional, comprising a father, a mother and one or more children some of them are headed by one parent, usually a woman. In a few families there are no children. These childless couples may believe that they would not make good parents, they may want freedom from the responsibilities of children; or perhaps, they are not physically able to have children. Other families have one adult who is a stepparent. A stepmother or stepfather is a person who joins a family by marrying a father or mother.

People tolerate and accept these different types of families. In many countries, people have the right to privacy and they do not believe in telling other ones what type of family group they must belong to. They respect each other's choices regarding family groups, Families are very important to everyone. One sign that this is true is that people show great concern about the family as an institution. Many believe there are too many divorces. They worry that teenagers are not obeying their parents. They are concerned about whether working women can properly care for their children. They also worry that too many families live in poverty.

Newspaper, motion pictures and television shows highlight difficulties within families. Family crimes, problems and abuse become news stories. But most families do not experience these troubles. Since the earliest days people have been predicting the decline of the family.

Families serve many functions. They provide a setting in which children can be bom and reared. Families help educate their members. Parents teach their children values - what they think is important. They teach their children daily skills, such as how to ride a bicycle. They also teach them common practices and customs, such as respect for elders and celebrating holidays. Some families provide each member a place to earn money, however, most people earn money outside the home. The most important job for a family is to give emotional support and security.

Families in a fast-paced, urban, country face many difficulties, adjust to the pressures of modern society by changing. These changes are not necessarily good or bad. They are simply the way people adjust to their world.

The family unit is still the basic living arrangement for most people. But for more and more people this definitely means the nuclear family. It is unusual already for adults of different generations within the family to live together. Very few children now grow up in large families and more and more adults are living along. Besides today people are getting married later than they used to. Some women and men are delaying marriage and family because they want to finish university or start their careers. Even women more and more often put aside their role in the society in order to make a career or to satisfy with their own life.

Nowadays most women work outside their homes. There are two reasons why mothers and wives work. One reason is that there are many opportunities for women. The other one is to support their families. The majority of women work because it is an economic necessity. Men worked, work and will work to support their families. So what is the result of both parents working? When both parents work they have less time to spend with their children and with each other. At the same time the majority of men and women say that they prefer a marriage in which the husband and wife share responsibilities for home jobs. They prefer a marriage in which the husband and the wife talk about their problems and solve them before they get too big. Members of strong families are committed to one another, show each other affection and appreciation.

Many marriages today fail and end in divorce. This does not mean that couples don’t believe in marriage. It simply means that they are giving up being married to a particular individual. Most people who get divorced marry again and live together without being married.