Conjugal family

Family of a married couple and their children

A conjugal family is a family system of spouses and their dependent children,^[1] by birth or adoption. Conjugal means there is a marriage relationship. If someone refers to their own conjugal family, they are referring to the fact that they are married with children.^[2] In a conjugal family, spouses and their children are considered to be principally relevant, with other more distant relatives less relevant. Being a nuclear family, a conjugal family is detached from kinship.^[1]

In Western societies

There are basic characteristics to a conjugal family. In western societies, the majority of pairings are opposite-sex.^[3]

Western societies often treat marriage as a legally-binding relationship, rather than an informal agreement. In these societies, both partners usually share control of their children's upbringing. They both have roles as a parent to protect their children, oversee the development of their children in society, and see to the survival of their children.^[4] The term is also applied to partners that are in a committed relationship, but not legally married.^[1]

In some cases, both partners have separate lines of income to support the family; in others, only one receives substantial income, colloquially called the "breadwinner," while the other spends more time caring for children and being a homemaker.^[5]

Conjugal family roles have changed over the course of history. Historically, marriages were exclusively opposite-sex and it was assumed that the male would be the head of the household and provide for the family while the woman would stay in the home and care for the children. However, conjugal roles have evolved over the years; in modern times, women often share breadwinning responsibilities with the men, and same-sex couples are more common.^[5]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Scott 2014.
^ Bell, Kenton (23 December 2014). "conjugal family". Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
^ "Number of Children Living Only With Their Mothers Has Doubled in Past 50 Years". United States Census. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
^ "The Convention on the Rights of the Child: The children's version". Retrieved 2 June 2024.
^ ^a ^b "How American parents balance work and family life when both work". 4 November 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2024.

Sources

Scott, John (2014). "family, conjugal". A Dictionary of Sociology (4 ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199683581.
Oppong, Christine (November 1970). "Conjugal Power and Resources: An Urban African Example". Journal of Marriage and Family. 32 (4): 676–680. doi:10.2307/350261. JSTOR 350261.
Durkheim, Emile. "The conjugal family." Emile Durkheim on institutional analysis (1978): 229-239.
Khatri, A. A. (1975-01-01). "The Adaptive Extended Family in India Today". Journal of Marriage and Family. 37 (3): 633–642. doi:10.2307/350528. JSTOR 350528.