Chapter 7: Ourselves in families

How Australians make families in a context of far-reaching change has become a hot issue. Because how we think about things makes a difference, we explore some of the ways we can think about families. Is there only one kind of family? How do people form families? How crucial is the family? We examine critically some of the answers to these questions as well as make suggestions of our own. We then turn to the widespread belief, in a time characterised by ideas like ‘globalisation’ and ‘restructuring’, that the family is in trouble—maybe even dead. Is the family dead or dying? To address this question, we ask whether there was ever a time when the traditional family was alive and well.

Further reading

‘Diversity: Beyond the nuclear family’ by Sherry Saggers & Margaret Sims
Family: Changing families, changing times
edited by Marilyn Poole
(click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2004, pp66-86.
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‘The changing family’ by Freda Briggs
Children and Families: Australian Perspectives
edited by Freda Briggs
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1994, pp. 1-16.
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Motherhood and Modernity
by Christine Everingham
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1994, pp. 64-84.
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‘Families, values and change: setting the scene’ by Robyn Hartley
Families and Cultural Diversity in Australia
edited by Robyn Hartley
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1995, pp. 1-24.
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The Making and Breaking of the Australian Family
by Michael Gilding
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1995, chapter 1.
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The Double Life of the Family: Myth, Hope and Experience
by Michael Bittman & Jocelyn Pixley
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1997, chapter 1.
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Families, Labour and Love
by Maureen Baker
(Click on the title for more information)
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 2001, pp. 6-12.
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Further reading

Australian Bureau of Statistics: Australian social trends on family and community
View this page

Australian Institute of Family Studies
http://www.aifs.gov.au/