THE CHANGING AMERICAN FAMILY

The author seeks to explore the diversity and the change of the typical American family over time. There has been a lot of disparity between the traditional American family and the modern day family. A lot has taken place ranging from culture to the economy and the general way of living among Americans. The author, therefore, seeks to understand these changes in comparison with the original form of a family in the American context.
Three Examples of the Families Described
One of the families outlined in the article is the Kristi and Michael Burns. To the both, this was not their first marriage but the third. The first marriage came young and left early. Kristi two sons from previous relationships while Burns had a daughter and a son already. They have now been together for three years. Though their marriage is not perfect, they are determined to make it happen and stay together. The two work hard to maintain the good relationship despite what other people say about them. Their children are still adapting to one another. However, Kristi is jealous of the attention Burns gives to her daughter. She also seems unhappy with her husband retreating into his computer.
Anna Perez and Julian Hill are living together though not yet married. They have three kids. Mr. Hill had a son with Ms. Perez while the other two sons were from Ana’s previous relationship. Mr. Hill is involved in everyday lives of all their children. Anna is the breadwinner of the family. The two have been together for six years.

Ms. Perez broke out of her previous relationship due to infidelity of her husband. This made her kick him out of the apartment. The former husband still visits but has no say in the upbringing of the children. Mr. Hill and Ms. Perez are only engaged for a year and still anticipate to stay at least that long before they feel stable in finances to get married.
The Indrakrishnans are another example of a family in the article. Dr. Indrakshnan and his wife had a marriage which was semi-arranged. They had to admire each other and stay together. Together they have a daughter who is in senior high school. They frequently visit the Hindu Temple just as is their culture. Dr. Indrakshnan is seen as a celebrity in the area. He is a gastroenterologist. Their daughter Harini likes to practice Bharatanatyam, an Indian dance which she says keeps her connected to her culture.
This family is exceptionally stable and rich. They attribute their secret to long lasting marriage to tolerance. This applies to their relationship and their parenting style. Most interesting is how their child has embraced her parents’ approach. The moment she realized that Facebook was distracting her from schoolwork, she did away with her account. This shows great respect and obedience to the parents unlike to other younger adults who put their interest first. Many are reluctant especially when it comes to the social media where everyone wants to connect with friends.
The General Trends in Families in the United States
Families are characterized by social equality and equal rights socially for all.
Families are becoming diverse regarding ethnicity, race, religion, and style.
People who are single stay alone and consider themselves as families composed of one. They consider themselves as more social and civic minded.
The old-fashioned plan of a stable family consisting of parents who are married seems difficult to achieve to majority except for the elite.
Reduced birthrate due to fears of the high costs of upbringing to functional independence of kids among others.
Low marriage rates
The rise of the cohabiting couple is another trend in the families in the United States today. People opt to just stay together and get along.
The birth rate among adolescent women and the teens has highly dropped due to better sex education and birth control methods.
Mothers of dependent children can now work outside the home. The employed mothers’ rate has quadrupled, and women who are the families’ primary breadwinner has increased.
Cultures are also adjusting in the United States. People are embracing dual income families, and most partners share childcare and household duties.
More mothers are now better educated than their mates.
There is reduced divorce rate especially among the elites with an exception of baby boomers.
Same-sex parents are now visible embracing parenthood through adoption, surrogacy or donor sperm.
The number of marriages founded on weddings has greatly reduced due to many births outside wedded marriages and the wedding being seen as a later adulthood rather than earlier adulthood.
There is an increasing number of Asian American marriages due to immigration effect which seems to be successful and still adhering to their Asian cultures.
Circumstances may prompt friendships advancing to family relationships. Such bonds are very strong and cannot easily be broken. They see these friends as family.
There is also an increase in the children of inmates due to the many inmates experienced in the United States.
Studies to Carry Out in Evaluating Family Trends and Family Life
To evaluate the emerging family trends and family life, I would seek to understand the social demographics of the people in the United States. This would help in getting to know their behavioral changes in respect to changing time. Secondly, I would study the effect of government policies in family life. The policies that have been put in place to govern marriages and families might be responsible for the changing trends or might need to be revised.
Thirdly, the economy of the nation a key determinant. For the poor, they may experience difficulties and more challenges in running their families than the middle, working class. They may also be afraid of marriage as it is seen to consume many resources. Lastly, the social environment surrounding the people. This can determine whether families will survive, how strong relationships are and whether or not there is a motivation to family life.
Comparison of My Family to Those Described in the Article
There is a significant similarity in my family and these families. This is evident in the way the members of the family work hard to maintain their relationship despite differences and challenges among them.
There exist differences between these families and my family. The families are built up out of previous relationships that did not work out well. In my family, this is not the case since it is the first relationship that led to marriage. The parties in the families in the article were not founded on a wedding. This is different for my case because my family is based on a wedding signifying long lasting marriage.
I would not like to join any of these families. This is because it would be difficult for me to adjust to another person as my sibling whom we are not biologically related. I would also not like being subjected to different parenting.