In recent decades, many important changes have taken place in society, and the family is no exception. Since 1975, divorce figures have doubled, leading to an increase in single-parent households . Something that, only a few years ago, was not socially accepted.

Today, however, the phenomenon of divorce is quite common. According to the Business Insider portal, which has drawn up a graphic map showing the divorce rates in different countries around the world, Spain is in fifth place with 61% of break-ups.

The importance of the family in the development of children and youth

The family is extremely important in the development of children, since it is possibly the socializing agent that will most influence their growth . In fact, children need adults for a long period of time, which has caused all societies to be organized around groups of people that we generally know as “the family”.

But with the changes that have taken place in recent years with respect to family structures, the youngest children have sometimes had to live in family environments that are not always ideal. Families educate children, and their primary objective should be to provide them with a solid foundation so that they can face the future with the best possible guarantees. In other words, families must help them learn to be respectful of others, to have a strong and resilient personality or to acquire emotional and financial security, in short, to prepare them for a successful adult life. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

Toxic or pathological families

The importance of the family in the emotional well-being of its members has been of scientific interest for the last decades. Not only because of the genetic origin of some pathologies such as schizophrenia, but also because of the importance of the environment and the influence of family structures on mental disorders.

In the field of mental health, there is a growing awareness of how family difficulties affect its members, so it is necessary for them to deal with their difficulties in the best possible way. In this sense, what differentiates a dysfunctional family from a functional one is not the presence or not of problems, but rather what is important is the use of the recurrent interaction patterns that hinder the social and psychological development of its members , and affects their adaptation and conflict resolution.

  • To learn more: “Toxic families: 4 ways they cause mental disorders”

Stability and change in the family

As mentioned, the normal family , if this concept makes sense, is not free of difficulties or problems, which forces us to rely on a conceptual scheme of family functioning in order to understand its dysfunctionality. The normal family is in constant effective functioning, and despite the difficulties it is capable of transforming, adapting, and restructuring itself over time to continue functioning.

It is important to differentiate the dysfunctional family from the poor family. The latter is characterized by difficulties in satisfying economic resources. To begin with, poor families do not necessarily have to be dysfunctional , however, scientific research has provided data that affirm that families with scarce economic resources may have difficulties when it comes to carrying out the different family functions. For example, the education or emotional and relational development of their children.

Types of families that exist

Since the family is part of society, it is a structure that can and does change over time. The family structure does not indicate whether a family is functional or not, but simply has to do with the form of the family and the members that make up the family. This has much to do with the historical, economic and cultural context.

This variety of forms includes the following.

1. Nuclear family (two-parent)

The nuclear family is what we know as the typical family, that is, the family formed by a father, a mother and their children. Societies generally encourage their members to form this type of family.

2. Single parent family

The single-parent family consists of only one parent taking care of the family unit, and therefore raising the children. It is usually the mother who stays with the children, although there are also cases in which the children stay with the father. When only one of the parents takes care of the family, it can become a very big burden, so they often need help from other close relatives, such as the children’s grandparents. The causes of the formation of this type of family can be, a divorce, premature motherhood, widowhood, etc.

3. Adoptive family

This type of family, the adoptive family , refers to the parents who adopt a child. Although they are not the biological parents, they can play a great role as educators, equivalent to that of the biological parents in all aspects.

4. Family without children

This type of families, the families without children , are characterized by not having descendants. Sometimes, the inability of the parents to procreate leads them to adopt a child. In any case, we can perfectly imagine a family unit in which, for one reason or another, it has not been wanted or possible to have children. We must not forget that what defines a family is not the presence or absence of children.

5. Family of separated parents

In this type of family, which we can call family of separated parents , the parents have separated after a crisis in their relationship. Despite their refusal to live together, they must continue to fulfil their duties as parents. Unlike single parents, in which one of the parents carries the entire burden of raising the child on his/her shoulders, separated parents share functions, although the mother is, in most cases, the one living with the child.

6. Composite family

This family, the composite family , is characterized by being composed of several nuclear families. The most common cause is that other families have been formed after the break-up of a couple, and the child, in addition to living with his mother and partner, also has the family of his father and partner, and may even have half-brothers and sisters.

This type of family is more common in rural than in urban settings, especially in contexts of poverty.

7. Homoparental family

This type of family, the homoparental family , is characterized by having two homosexual parents who adopt a child. There can also be homoparental families formed by two mothers, obviously. Although this possibility raises a wide social debate, studies have shown that the children of homoparental parents have normal psychological and emotional development, as this APA report explains, for example.

8. Extended family

This type of family, the extended family , is characterised by the fact that different family members are in charge of raising the children or several family members (parents, cousins, grandparents, etc.) live in the same house. If you have ever seen the famous series “The Prince of Bel Air”, you can see how Will lives in his uncle’s house, who takes on the role of his father. It can also happen that one of the sons has his own child and they all live under the same roof.

Bibliographic references:

  • Martín López, E. (2000). Family and society. Madrid: Ediciones Rialp.
  • Vázquez de Prada, Mercedes (2008). Contemporary family history. Madrid: Ediciones Rialp.
  • Grandson MC. (1997). Enfoque Familiar en Salud. Femec Magazine of Medicine.
  • Pusinato, N. (1992). The systemic approach in the study of family relations. Cusinato M. Psicología de las relaciones familiares, 21 Ed.