8 Family, Household and Domestic Group

Dr. Meenal Dhall

Contents of this unit

1. Introduction

2.Family-

2.1. Functions of family

2.2. Types of family

2.3. Variations in forms of family

2.4. The Hindu joint family

2.5. Role relations in family

3. Household

4. Domestic group

5. Latest developments and trends

6. Summary

Learning Objectives

To understand family and its functions.
To understand various types and forms of family and its functions.
To understand household and domestic group.
To understand the scope of family, household and domestic group.

Introduction

Various meaning of English word, such as kutumba, graha, kula, vamsa, parivar note their meaning with genealogical components. We should study any social institution in dynamics and in its relation with other social institutions. Scope of studying family, household and domestic group allows us to know:

Various definitions of English word family.
More accurate understanding of the conceptual, normative and the behavioral character of the ancient families.
To accommodate plurality of norms within a single structure.
Legal, psychological, socio-cultural and religious aspects.
Origin of family as a social institution.

Family is a concrete manifestation of societies that embraces sets of ideas and assumptions which reflects the values and helps in understanding the society at individual level and group level. Household refers to social groups that can be based on kinship ties, non-kinship ties. Members of a household are not necessarily related by blood, it could be classmate, friendship, no relationship ties. Domestic group refers to resource owning groups. There is need to study family, household and domestic group to understand society, changes, development and advancement.

Family

It consists of people who are connected to each other by ties of marriage, blood or adoption.

Family is a social group which symbolizes a system of human socio-cultural and biological unit and enhances development of a society by acting as a building block. Family is a concrete manifestation of societies that embraces sets of ideas and assumptions which reflects the values and helps in understanding the society at individual level and group level. Family acts as a viable and operational social unit which is, never studied/understood in isolation, always talked in terms of kinship, gender and social structure. The task of defining family is not an easy one because when people use the word family they know what they mean, they clearly indicate in what context they are defining family. The word FAMILY has a multitude sense of connections and relatedness. Family always reflects plurality of meaning, never points to one meaning. Concept of family is loaded with ideas of individual, socio – cultural, biological, political, economical and the correct moral values in which one should conduct their lives and people with whom they should live. It gives identity to self, group identity enhanced by a clear sense of group boundaries that delineates members from non- members. Members tend to see the world in terms of “in group” members and “out group” members; people are seen either as ‘we’ or ‘they’. Therefore family is regarded as a source where primary socialization begins and considered as the primary group of an individual. Family is a universal social institution and the backbone of a society, which is accepted by all. It holds an important position which enhances life of each and every individual. Members are connected to each other by emotional ties of marriage, blood, adoption which points towards two important vital things, namely reproduction and survival. Common residence, co-habitation are characteristic features of family, because members of family live together once in a lifetime whether for a short period of time or for a longer period of time. It is found in all societies, whether simple societies or advanced post modern society.

In many writings different congregations of kin and affine have been labeled as specific forms of family. For example, if someone says, “last week the entire family attended the funeral”; the house has been in the family for seven generations; I live here in the apartment with my wife but my family is in London. When one is invited by his/her friend for his/her daughter’s marriage reception, the primar y thought comes is that with whom he/she should go or who are the people who can accompany him/her, is that invitation restricted to the husband and wife or husband, wife and unmarried children or husband, wife, unmarried children and husband’s parents or husband, wife and married children along with their children. These are the ways to think how one defines family when one is using the word. There are several perspectives by which one can define or redefine the notion of family. Definition of family overlaps with household or domestic group. When kinship, cohabitation, marriage and division of labor are also included then it becomes complex and difficult as well to describe family.

George Peter Murdock says family is a social group characterized by common residence, economic cooperation and reproduction. It includes both sexes, at least two of who maintain social relationships and one or more children (biological) or sexually cohabiting couple. He said there are several important characteristic functions of family: reproduction provides food and shelter, economic and production unit, consumption unit, cooperation among members, unspoken understanding, religious functions, division of labor, primary socialization skills/values, and psychological functions in building individual’s personality.

Biological and social factors interact with each other while completing family as a universal group. In any event we can observe biosocial factors in human families and they are:

Territoriality and spacing
Reproduction, procreation, social continuity
Hierarchy
Jealousy

2.1. Functions of Family

Human beings depend greatly on learning than any other animal and they cannot develop normally without social contact. The basic learning is given by family to a child, right from birth. Socio-cultural skills/values are learned under the nurturance/guidance of family members. The family handles the task of transforming a biological potential into a human being thus family is a social invention. Physical qualities of human beings create a strain when they exist along with a cultural environment. Biological factors and cultural factors interact, sometimes maintain harmony or sometimes create a great tension. The social designs of human beings are biologized and the biological traits are provided with a social meaning and shape. Socio-cultural knowledge always enlightens the dynamics and structure of family designs. Thus there are several important biological, socio-cultural and bio-social functions performed by family and they are:

Biologically family provides a legitimate platform for two adult members to sexually cohabit together as a couple and enhance social continuity.
Family provides shelter and fulfils basic metabolic need of meeting food intake. Family ensures each and every member has met the needs of food intake.
Family acts as an economic unit in which members take part in productive activity; members may do similar or different jobs (occupation). A common fund is pooled together to meet the needs of individual or every member of family.
Family acts as a unit of consumption. Members cook from kitchen share a hearth and eat food under the same hut. This binds members close together. Still today in many families all members having dinner or lunch or breakfast together is followed which reflects a close emotional tight bond between them.
Members of family provide services to each other in a meaningful way and cooperate with each other.
Household works are divided on the basis of division of labor based on age, gender and position of a person in family and even personal competence. For instance, if mother is preparing a feast for the family her children would help her in preparation or bring grocery items ingredients required for the feast from market, husband provides money to buy t hings, in this way all members give their contribution.
An unspoken understanding is generated within a family which enhances its strength.
Family is a source where primary socialization begins. Basic skills/values are given to younger children under the guidance of elders. This provides learning basic manners, etiquettes, obligations and moral values.
Family performs psychological functions like molding a personality of an individual. Family provides an environment to create/develop good thoughts. Therefore making a good responsible citizen. For example if a person is provided with good family environment an emotional support is given by the family member then that person would feel free and may not have stress. Whereas if a person is provided with a fighting environment where his/her parents fight continuously, without emotional strength the person may feel low.
Family also performs religious functions during worship of family deities, family rituals, customs, ceremonies, festivals, etc. in this way religion affects family and brings members of family together.
Security, protection, education, health related functions are also performed by family.
Family is a center of culture; it helps to gain knowledge about cult and then transmits it to the next generation.
Family performs certain social functions like customs, traditions, moral; and etiquettes in public places, personality are acquired through family. Thus a human being become a social being and develops good thoughts.
Family as a whole operational unit is also important for political institution. The politico-jural domain is also affected by the functions of family.

The factors that influence effective socialization:

Warmth and nurturance, and affection from parents or other persons say grandparents, elder sister, elder brother, elder or same-age cousins, neighbours, teachers, friends, etc.
Identification- in this identification process, the child accepts the wishes of the parents as his or her own, so that those role patterns become part of child’s good behavior.
Recognized authority
Consistency
Freedom
Communication
Punishment

2.2. Types of Family

Various anthropologists made an attempt to classify family. The classification of family has been done on different basis. Family is a universal social gro up, its variables, forms, structure or types differ from society to society. For example, one can study joint family thoroughly in India and various forms of nuclear family in developed countries, like United States of America, etc. no doubt many factors, variation in culture and social values exists, thus different types of family are found. Therefore it is a difficult task to provide a universal classification of family.

2.2.1. On the basis of Marriage Practices-

FAMILY is classified into four types:

a) Monogamous Family- family comprise of a husband, a wife and may/may not have children. Both of them are prohibited to have more spouses. This form is considered as the ideal form.
b) Polygamous family- one individual has more than one spouse. One man marries mo re than one woman or reverse. Polygamous family is of two types, namely polyandrous family and Polygynous family.

Polyandrous family- consists of one woman has many husbands at a time. If the husbands of wife are not related to each other, then it is known as non- fraternal polyandrous family. Example, Nayars of Kerala. If the husbands of woman are related to each other in a relation of brother, then it known as fraternal polyandrous family. Example: Toda of Nilgiri hills and Khasa of Jaunsar & Barwar region of Uttrakhand. In this Eldest brother brings wife by performing all the rituals, and all younger brothers have sexual relation with her. If there is age difference between wife and younger brother, then he brings ritually a wife, again all brothers have access to wife.
Polygynous family- one man is allowed to marry more than one woman. Thus this family consists of one husband and several wives. Example : Idu Mishmi tribe in Arunachal Pradesh and Konyaks of Nagaland. All wives may/may not stay together with husbands, wives have common granary, but stay in different apartments.

c) Endogamous family- a family where man is supposed to marry within one’s own group/clan/gotra/caste/varna. Endogamy rules of marriage are practiced in this type of family. Example: Among Muslims and Christians in Kerela, it is necessary to marry within one’s group.
d) Exogamous family- a family where one is supposed to marry outside one’s own gotra/clan/varna/caste/panda/village/parivar. Here rules of exogamy, like four gotra rule,

sapinda system are practiced. This type of family can be found in northern region of India among jats of Haryanaand many others.

2.2.2. On the Basis of Rule of Residence-

Family is classified into six types:

a) Matrilocal Family- the family in which a man joins his wife’s matrilineal residence. This type is found among Nambiars, Khasis of Meghalaya, Nayars of Kerala.
b) Patrilocal family- the family in which after marriage daughter moves out of her natal residence and joins her husband’s patrilineal family. And brothers brings wife in his patrilineal family. This type is commonly found in most of the places of northern, and central India.
c) Bilocal family- in this type, after marriage married couple change their residence alternatively. Both paternal and maternal families are given importance. All rituals, customs from both the side are practiced.
d) Uxorilocal family- man changes residence, not necessarily to wife’s matrilineal place but near to the wife’s matrilineal relatives. Example: Nayars of Kerala, mainly to look after the property of his wife, husbands move to nearby place.
e) Virilocal family- in this family, woman stays near the husband’s patrilineal relatives along with her husband.
f) Neolocal family- when husband and wife decide to set up a new independent family, away from their parents and settle at a new place. Example: if husband’s natal family resides in Chennai and wife’s natal family resides in Delhi, and both husband and wife settle in a new place, in London.
g) Avunculocal family- this type of family is found in matrilineal societies. Sister’s son is required to bring wife and join his mother’s brother family to look after property. This means after marriage newly married couple reside in maternal uncle’s house. “Avuncu” means maternal uncle. Example: matrilineal societies of Kerala.

2.2.3. On the Basis of Descent or Ancestry-

Family is classified into three types:

a) Patrilineal family- this type is commonly prevalent in all over the world. In this type descent or ancestry is determined through father line and continues from father to son to grandson and so on. The property and family name or caste is inherited by sons. Example: Jats of Haryana. In this type man is dominant and women are either marginalized or of low status. Patrilineal families are further divided into extreme patrilineal families and moderate patrilineal families.
b) Matrilineal family- the descent or ancestry is inherited through mother. It continues through mother to her daughter to her granddaughter and so on. The property and family Name or caste is inherited through matrilineal line. In this type women is dominant and has high status. Example: Nayars of Kerala.
c) Bilineal family- descent or ancestry is identified/determined through both mother and father.

2.2.4. On the Basis of Nature of Blood Relations-

Family is classified into two types:

a) Conjugal family- in this type two adult individuals of different sexes are related to each other by marriage, a heterosexual pair, who may/may not have children. Example: nuclear family of USA.
b) Consanguineous family- in this type husband and wife are related to each other, they are either cross-cousins or parallel cousins. Husband and wife are related by blood. Example: Muslims or some groups of Reddys of Andhra Pradesh or among some non-Brahmins of Kerala.

2.2.5. On the Basis of Authority-

Family is classified into three types on this basis:

a) Patriarchal family- in this all power is in the hands of patriarch i.e. father. Authority is given to the eldest male member of the family who exercises absolute power/authority o ver other members of the family. He is the main decision maker. After his death, power is transmitted to eldest son of family. This type is most commonly found in joint families of Hindus in India.
b) Matriarchal family- in this power/authority is in the hands of eldest female member of the family. Woman enjoys high status, liberty and freedom. She owns all the property. Descent is known through mother line. She is the main decision maker. Power/authority is handed over to the wife or eldest daughter. This type is found is mainly found in Khasi, Jantia, Garo tribes of Meghalaya and among Nayars of Kerala.
c) Egalitarian family- in this type power/authority is equally shared/distributed among husband and wife. Both of them are decision maker, take joint decisions and share each other’s responsibilities. Both son and daughter together inherit/gets property in equal shares.

2.2.6. On the Basis of Size, Structure and Composition-

Family is divided into three types:

a) Conjugal family-this family consists of a husband and wife who got married. After this couple may/may not have children.
b) Nuclear family- this type is the most elementary and ideal form, found all over the world. The nuclear family consists of a husband, wife and their unmarried children. This constitutes a basic unit of family, the family size is small. This is an independent autonomous unit. This is also known as primary family. Orientation and procreation are its parts.
c) Extended or joint family- the size of this family is large which extends beyond a nuclear family. And may have more than two nuclear families. This type is most commonly found among Hindu joint family. This family is comprised of father, mother, their sons and their wives, unmarried daughters, grand children, grand father, uncles, aunts, their children, father’s parallel cousins their children and so on. Earlier, joint families were engaged in one type of business/occupation and the next generations follow that business/occupation. But now with globalization, modernization and westernization each family member is engaged in different/similar job. Joint family mostly includes members of three to four generations. It extends parents-child relationship.

2.3. Variations in family forms

Other than nuclear and joint family there are many more forms of family. These variations are specially observed in India. Following are the various family forms:

a) Nuclear family- comprised of a married couple, husband and wife with or without unmarried children. The term nuclear family was first used by G.P. Murdock, Ame rican anthropologist, in his book ‘Social Structure’. He gave the classical approach to study family.
b) Composite family- another variation of nuclear family which is found when nuclear family expands horizontally i.e. collaterally due to polygamous unions. Example: a family in which husband and wife is there with their children, husband brings two more wives and may have children with them; polygynous family.
c) Extended family- comprised of any grouping broader than nuclear The members are related to one another through marriage, blood and even adoption. Extended family has both lineal and collateral type of members which means father, son, parents, son’s wife with their children. Example: in India many joint families of western side resemble extended family like that of Punjabi family has both lineal and collateral members.
d) Joint family- typically found in India, China, Japan-these countries are more connected to traditions in agriculture. Joint family consists of father, his married sons, all stay together with their wives and unmarried children. Example: found in north region of India.
e) Stem family- this type of family comes with ideal joint family gets fissioned or disintegrate, some of its members move out. Stem families are those families which were once part of joint family. Example: Khasi tribe in Meghalaya, matrilineal community where youngest daughter brings husband, gets everything in property, land and stays with unmarried children. Here older sisters have to move out and set up a new household husband and children. These are stem families which were once part of matrilineal joint family.
f) Supplemented nuclear family- this is actually a nuclear family plus one or more unmarried/widow/separated relatives. Example: husband, wife, their unmarried children and husband’s unmarried sister lives with them.
g) Sub-nuclear family- this form is a fragment of a former nuclear family which consists of a widow, and her unmarried children.
h) Supplemented sub- nuclear family- a group of relatives who are members of formerly complete nuclear family plus some other unmarried/separated/widow who was not a me mber of nuclear family. Example: a family in which husband, wife, their children lived and then husband dies, wife’s mother in law joins her.
i) Single person household- a household which has only one member.
j) Collateral joint family- in this type two or more married couples between whom there is a sibling bond and that sibling bond can be brother-brother relationship and their unmarried children.
k) Supplemented collateral joint family- this family comprised of collateral joint family plus unmarried/widow/divorced relatives.
l) Lineal joint family- two couples between whom there is a lineal link (vertical) link. Lineal link is usually between parents and married sons. Example: father, mother living with their married sons and wives.
m) Supplemented lineal joint family- lineal joint family plus unmarried/divorced/widowed relatives who did not belong to the lineal links join the family. Example: father, mother, their married sons and wives and wife’s unmarried brother stays with them.
n) Lineal collateral joint family- three or more couples linked lineally (father- married sons) and collaterally (married brothers with their wives). Example: parents plus two or more married sons (or married brothers) plus their wives and their unmarried children.
o) Supplemented lineal collateral joint family- in this type, lineal collateral joint family plus unmarried/divorced/separated/widowed relatives who did no t belong to the family. Example: parents plus two or more married brothers plus their unmarried children plus wife’s sister or unmarried nephew/niece.
p) Other types- this form includes those families which cannot be categorized under one term, in this form of family, widow stays at nephew’s place. Examp le: widow sister stays with brother’s son’s family.

2.4 The Hindu joint family

The Hindu joint family is a group consisting of known ancestors and relatives and exists in large size in which members generally live together under the same roof, eat, cooked food in one hearth, hold property in common and who participate in common family worship and are related to each other. Patrilocal family is commonly found as dominant among Hindus. Joint family is the extension of nuclear family horizontally as well as vertically i.e. lineal and collateral. The Hindu joint family is one notable institution. Industrialization and urbanization has altered traditional family institutions. Large joint family existence reflects the rich culture of Hindu society. In this type of family each child gets special attention, love, and care under the guidance of grandparents or elders. Children learn, and in the process imbibe cultural, traditional, social values from their elders in a joint family.

Indian joint family is always linked to caste system. There is always bustle and expectation, laughter and quarrels, discussions and plans, love and emotion in joint family. Joint family often symbolizes a close bond between members of family. Following are the characteristic features of joint family:

Common Residence
Common Kitchen
Large Size
Principle of Seniority
Responsibility
Mutual Rights and Obligations
A Unit of Consumption
Economic Unit
Religious Functions and Common Worship
Strong Affinal and Consanguinal Bond

The Hindu joint family largely emphasizes respect between generations and between spouses, rather than an easy familiarity. It is seen that husband generally never expresses his love, romantic feelings toward his wife in the presence of other adult/ elder males. Men and women eat together, but follows traditional domestic norms, i.e. men eat first and then women are supposed to eat. In large joint families, there are often many pressures acting toward fission of the family. All these behavior is observed in the folktales and songs. In the Hindu joint family, a sense of identity, belongingness and sharing is generated within an individual. In the Hindu joint family practices rules of exogamy and sapindaship along with four gotra rules for marriage is practiced.

However, changes are occurring in traditional/classical Hindu joint family. A transformation is observed. Joint families are now disintegrating in to stem families or nuclear families. Not necessarily, the family business/occupation is same. As the preconceived notions of family are changing about family day by day, family has been redefined in multitude sense, therefore in the present day Hindu society different forms of joint family exists.

2.5. Role relations in family

What each member does is partly shaped by the rights and obligations, usual definition of roles, of each person to each other, and still more by all the influences each can influence other family members toward desirable act and the role relations are:

Acquiring sex roles(may/may not based on division of labour) by children and adults
Husband-wife relations
Power and authority relations
Parent-child relation and socialization
Forgiveness, honesty and loyalty; handling parent-child conflict.

Household

Characteristic feature of household is that it has a common residence. Household refers to social groups that can be based on kinship ties, non-kinship ties. Members of a household are not necessarily related by blood, it could be classmate, friendship, no relationship ties. Majority of household s have been small in size. Most definitions of family overlap with household and domestic group. Household is actual domestic arrangement found on the ground and are highly adaptive, flexible, and responsive to change. Members live together, share common residence. Members of household cook food from same kitchen and eat from common kitchen/hearth together under the same dwelling.

Members of household reside together, share same kitchen and may/ may not be related to each other by blood or marriage or adoption. Classmates who stay away from family and share a rented apartment may form a household. Members of household could be related to each other by friendship, partners, classmates and co inhabiting or may be live-in couples.

Domestic Group

In order to study any social institution in a holistic manner, it is important to consider it ecologically, economically, demographically, psychologically and physiologically which affects its size and composition. Domestic group is rooted in environmental, biological, psychological substratum. Domestic group refers to resource owning groups. Member of domestic group pool together and contributes their part of labor and do various kinds of production activity based on division of labor specifically on age, gender and position/status of member. They also have political functions, they train individual completely so that individuals can enter politico-jural domain. Since they are resource owning group, domestic group acts as production unit. Domestic group members are engaged in harnessing the resources that group have and involve in economic production. This is the reason that definitions of family overlap with domestic group. A domestic group comprised of labor, urban and economic production, once these resources are harvested, it is divided among different consumption unit. These units often have separate kitchen, separate residential units and may have different consumption units. Example: polygynous societies. Consumption unit of production act as a unit of reproduction. Say, husband and wife are still young and giving birth to offsprings, but when wife attains menopause or husband becomes older, incapable of reproduction then they look for consumption units.

Meyer Fortes said domestic groups are essentially householding and housekeeping group which organize to provide material resource and cultural resources which are needed to maintain and raise or bring up its members. They undergo cyclical developments. These cycles are always in process. This is particularly known as developmental cycle of domestic group which covers the life of an individual and the unfolding of group dynamics. He further said that every domestic group passes through three phases in the developmental cycle of domestic group:

Phase of expansion- it starts with marriage and further expands by birth of first child and it continues to expand till the birth of last child. This phase is dependent on fertility of wife/woman and physiological factors like wife’s menopause and husband’s inability to procreate. This determines the length of expansion, span and duration.
Phase of dispersion- it starts with marriage of first/eldest child and it continues till the marriage of last/youngest child. In Patrilineal system, sons generally set up a new household, new unit of production & consumption of his own domestic group. In some domestic groups, youngest son stays with father and gets property- land/house, etc.
Phase of replacement- it starts with ageing of parents and continues till their death with a passage of time, parents become old and has no stamina to perform any physical activity. They rely on their children they requests them to represent and perform their function. In this process parents no longer take part in economic unit, thus their authority/power declines slowly. Children grow in autonomous manner and take decisions. Children replace parents/head of the family and then undergo the phase of expansion.

These 3 phases does not necessarily follow the same sequence of phases. Some groups may skip phase of expansion, couples who are unable to procreate. Domestic group is like human factory which shapes, polishes, nurtures the child/individual. Life of an individual pass through four phases of life

Matricentral cell- mother-child dyad, starts when child is in mother’s womb.
Patricentral cell- when child start crawling, father comes closer to child and takes interest in his responsibility. Child acquires basic skills from parents and come close to them.
Entering domestic group- child starts walking, not allowed to step out of home, constantly under guidance of parents/elders/siblings. Child learns skills from people other than his/her parents.
Entering politico-jural domain- child enters public domain, outside domestic domain & takes up responsibilities, positions in offices.

Latest Developments and Trends

Concepts of family, household and domestic group can never be studied in a static a fixed state. Society is changing, concepts are changing therefore it is important study any social institution in dynamics and in its relation with other social institutions. It is estimated that in today’s world at least 16% of all children live in single-parent family. In the present world, lesbian and gay couples are emerging which do not fit into definitions of family. It’s a challenge for family that one member has sexual orientation different from majority. Sexual orientation is an individual’s belief, attractions and behaviors toward members of the opposite and same sex. Nowadays, the issues of equal civil rights, gay couples legally adopting children are emerging. More divorced cases are happening in the present day world. Family relationships are dwindling and do not last long. People have started opting for short-term relationship. All the changes in psychological, biological a nd socio-cultural thoughts are giving rise to the dynamics. There are many factors like job, marriage, migration, which creates frictions, tensions among members of domestic group, and which often complete the members to lose their control over their child which may lead to dispersion/separation.

The modern day family challenges- With time, definition of family have been altered/modified because of advancement and changes in relationships. With globalization and urbanization, family is getting affected and is faced with the following challenges:

Communication problem
Grief and loss
Divorce
Frequent fights, arguments
Financial problem
Live- in relationships, co inhabitation
Separations
Gay couple adopting children
Single parent families
Illegitimate child and mother
Late marriages
Old people left alone

Summary

We come to know that family is the universal primary group. Given below is a difference between functions of family as a primary group and other groups:

Family	Other groups
Marriage/procreation	Job or task
Permanent	Contractual
Inter-personal relation and oriented	Goal-oriented
Co-operative	competitive

There is no substitute for family. It is a unique social institution and has social associations.
No society or civilization exists without family. Society is an abstract which reflects the foundation of family.
Both, Biological and socio-cultural factors has led to the formation of this universal group.
It is difficult to distinguish between household, family and domestic groups, because all three performs the functions as: economic unit, consumption unit, psychological unit and socio-cultural unit. But it is necessary to define, as well as redefine the notion of family, domestic group and households.
All these three are the core of the society which interacts with other groups and always studied along with kinship, marriage, economy, polity, religion and education.

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