Show how the role of family has changed in the present times. Illustrate with your own examples.

Families are the nexus of activities that include parenting , employment and leisure. As society changes, families must adapt to the new structures and processes resulting from this change. One of the most striking features of modern societies has been rapid growth of divorce.

The average age at which people get married is also increasing along with an increasing trend of an individuals not getting married. The changing roles of woman through increased education and employment, has put additional pressures on the family to adapt to dual-earner, households and changing needs of child care. All these changes are affecting family as an institution.

It has given rise to new family relationship: 

(i) Single-parent Family : Majority of single parent families are headed by single mothers. This may result from divorce, separation, death or by choice. Sometimes growing up in a single parent family can be a disadvantage for children.

(ii) Cohabitation : Cohabitation is the sharing of a household by an unmarried couple. Younger generations, especially in many parts of Europe and in some urban areas in India are preferring cohabitation as family relation. This is especially true among some same sex couples.

(iii) Step-parenting : As rates of divorce and remarriage is steadily on an increase, it gives rise to a new family form and relation of stepparenting. The extent of children staying in step families is increasing.

In the traditional family living, the wife had no voice in family decision making but in contemporary family she has equal power role to play. The authority has shifted from patriarchal to parents who consult their children an all-important issues before taking any decisions about them. Younger generations now claim more individuality. Change in family does not mean the complete erosion of previous norms and structure.