Kinship and Family Structures: A Sociological and Anthropological Perspective

Kinship and Family

Defining Family

Family: A group of people directly linked by kinship ties, where adult members take responsibility for childcare. Kinship ties are established through marriage or genealogical lines, connecting individuals within a family. Marriage: A socially recognized and approved union between two adults. Marriage creates kinship between individuals and their families.

Family Structures

Nuclear Family: Two adults in a relationship living together with their children (biological or adopted).

Monogamy/Polygyny: The practice of one person being married to one or multiple spouses.

Unilineal Descent: Kinship traced through one parent (father or mother).

Cognatic Affiliation: Kinship traced through both parents. Bilateral cognatic descent is the most common form, with relationships traced equally through both paternal and maternal lines. This is our system of kinship, where everyone is related (parents, siblings, uncles/aunts, cousins, grandparents).

Neolocality: Common in bilateral cognatic descent, where a couple establishes a residence separate from both sets of parents.

Theories of Family Emergence

Anthropologists and sociologists view family as a cultural organization, not a natural one. Various family structures exist (extended/nuclear, polygamous/monogamous, matrilineal/patrilineal, matrilocal/patrilocal). Studies explore whether family is a universal social form, an institution representing and managing the daily lives of related individuals.

Lévi-Strauss's Perspective

Claude Lévi-Strauss argued that family is a universal social form based on the principle of male prohibition of a specific woman for himself, making her available to another male. This exchange of women ensures social cohesion. This theory posits that family is a male invention, created by and for men's benefit.

Principles of Kinship

Two principles define kinship structure:

1. Affinity: Relationships established through marriage.
2. Affiliation: Relationships based on blood ties.

The total kinship system encompasses all ties established by marriage and parentage.