Does a Postmodern Family Exist?

Abstract

The main aim of the article was an attempt of a discussion on the changes of a contemporary family in the context of theses of the appearance of postmodern family. No one doubts that we live in a time of a deep and dynamic social changes which have drastically modified the picture of our families. The thesis of a postmodern society puts a question of the condition of a family, the society’s natural emanation. The idea of “postmodern family” appeared at the end of the second half of the twentieth century and, in spite of its ambiguity, it is more and more often used to describe today’s family. The article shows the main reasons of transformations, relations between social changes and family changes and describes some models of family: traditional (pre-modern), modern and postmodern. The author focuses on socio-cultural factors of the postmodern family. Observation of transformations that have been occurring, allows us to discover some new and specific features of a contemporary family. It may be important for understanding a family, scientific studies and various activities connected to its improvement. It is difficult to answer the question concerning the fact of the existence of a new, the so-called postmodern family. Maybe we need more time, distance and empirical data to notice this fact. The positive answer might determine serious consequences to family policy, education, family therapy and social work with families.