FRHD 1020 Lecture : Couple and Family Relationships
Document Summary
Legal definition: family-variety of legal definitions, not fixed but fluid and definitions are for legal, medical and family benefits services. Various laws and legal definitions define the family as common law or married spouses, single parents with one child and same-sex couples. Social definition: family-different groups, religious organizations and ethic groups have different definitions of family. The nuclear family (often called standard north american. Family" defined as married parents with children) and extended family (consists of everyone else considered family) are seen as 2 basic family concepts. E. g. some close friends or pets are considered family whereas conflict causes some family members not to be considered family anymore. Murdock"s 3 keys of relationships-co-residence, economic and reproduction. A social group characterized by common residence, economic cooperation and reproduction including adults of both sexes, at least 2 of whom maintain a socially approved sexual relationship and one or more children, own or adopted, of sexually cohabitating couples.