Paper Summary:

This paper points out that the only consistent approach to the definition of "family" is that, in modern Western culture, family is increasingly being defined not through marriage and biological reproduction but through conscious choice of association. The author stresses that the typology called the Traditional Family Life Cycle, which describes the "five stages" of family life, is open to questions of validity. The paper concludes by discussing TV sitcoms and series that illustrate traditional and alternative family structures.

From the Paper:

"However, other sources define non-traditional families differently. Blended families are considered examples of non-traditional families. Same-sex couples with children fall either under the single parent or unmarried-couples categories. Extended family is sometimes confined to instances of adult children and grandchildren living with their parents. In reality, extended family situations are often far more complicated, with children shuffled between a wide array of relatives and relatives of all sorts cohabiting with their respective children. Finally, most people considered adoptive families to be somewhat non-traditional; others classify them as traditional. Likewise, foster families seem as if they should be classified as non-traditional families or non-families."

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