What is Nuclear Family?
A nuclear family is a small group consisting of a husband, a wife, and children, natural or adopted. It is a more or less autonomous unit that is not under the control of adults or elders of the family.
A nuclear family is consists of two generations only. In all modern societies, the nuclear family is the most common type of family. In fact, it is both the consequences as well as the cause of the disintegration of the joint family.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Family
Advantages:
The advantages of living in a nuclear family are;
Development of personality: In a nuclear family, children are more close to their parents and can discuss problems freely and frankly with parents, which helps in the better development of their personality.
Autonomy: The new couples can live in their own ways and also develop new customs, rules and plan their economic and family activities and take decisions on any issues independently.
Economic advantage: The couples usually have sufficient financial stability as few members live together and the money earned is used for few members only as compared to a joint family.
Condition of women: The husband devotes more attention to the wife and she also can plan and manage her house as per her wish without interference from elders. The couples have chances to spend time together as well.
Peace and Harmony: As a nuclear family involves husband and wife living together, usually they support each other through thick and thin. The misunderstanding can be cleared and no external factor gets a chance to worsen the situation. There are no clashes with the in-laws and the other family members. Hence, the comparatively nuclear family enjoys peace and harmony.
Responsibility and accountability: As there are no other family members, spouses have to carry out their responsibility towards children, economic matters themselves which help them become responsible and accountable.
Family bonding: The occasional meet with the other family members strengthens the bond among them as compared to seeing and meeting on daily basis, as in the case of a joint family.
Culturally accepting: As there are no elder members in a nuclear family, the couples and their children are comparatively more receptive and welcoming to other cultures. It means that the orthodox cultural belief changes to somewhat liberal ones that are appropriate with time and situation.
Disadvantages:
The disadvantages of living in a nuclear family are;
Defects in personality growth: In a nuclear family both, the husband and wife, mostly take on jobs and their children are neglected and taken care of by the servants. The nuclear family is free from the control of the senior members. As a result, the children may lead an undisciplined life and develop all sorts of bad qualities like misbehaving, stealing, rudeness, etc. So, they become more unsocial as they do not get a chance to mix with extended family members.
Autonomy and immaturity in decision making: The elders/seniors are a great source of learning because they have more experience of life. So, in the nuclear family, autonomy sometimes leads to wrong decision-making, due to the lack of maturity of new young couples.
Economic disadvantage: Although the property comes in the hands of brothers in the nuclear family, the use of land for production is burdensome because the couple has to hire others /laborers for production. Moreover, the yield is also low with the land being divided.
Loneliness: Particularly, the housewife, after competition of household task, she becomes alone at home. At the time of emergency, one cannot get any help and support from any person.
Lack of peace and harmony: During bad times, especially at times of illness, financial crisis, etc. there may not be anyone by their side. The lack of emotional support and tension can take away peace and harmony among husband and wife.
Weakening family bond: There is often a lack of adequate time for couples to interact with family members who visit them as the couples are highly occupied in their responsibility and jobs. This situation can create distance in long run and weaken the family bonds.
Loss of family cultural and traditional heritage: The family heritage and culture are identities of a family. But with the modernization taking on the customs and traditions, and the absence of older generation to teach the younger ones, it is apparent that the future generations will either have no knowledge of customs and traditions since they accept other cultures.
Nuclearization
Nuclearization is the process of movement and shifts from a joint family system to a nuclear family system. Nuclearization is not automatically happening rather a lot of factors are responsible for its occurrence.
Factors influencing Nulclearization of Family:
Nuclearization is not automatically happening rather a lot of factors are responsible for its occurrence. The major pushing factors of nuclearization are;
- common property (where there is no personal ownership or anything)
- no money
- family conflicts
- small house
- in-laws attitude
- no proper education for children
- no comfort in life
Some minor pushing factors are;
- no privacy
- no freedom
- no health facilities
The structural-functionalist T. Parsons argues that contemporary (modern) society has removed many of the functions of the family which is used to perform in the pre-industrial period (ancient period).
However, another structural-functionalist Ronald Fletcher (1966) argues that with the growth of education and welfare services, the function of the family in contemporary society has changed by adding more responsibility onto the family instead of removing it. For example;
- parents supplement their children’s learning in schools by providing advice and help more effectively than in the past.
- an increased knowledge of diet and exercise means that the family plays a greater role in health.
- with the limitations of the state health services, the family plays a significant role in the care of elderly relatives instead of allowing them into old-age homes.
- the family have moved from a unit of production in the past to another important function i.e. as a unit of consumption today.
- In order to improve its standard of living, the family is engaged in economic activities.