History
Chubina T.D., Doctor of
Historical Sciences,
Academy of Fire Safety
named after the Heroes of Chernobyl MIA of Ukraine, Cherkasy
THE
DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN UKRAINIAN FAMILY
Among western scholars
the thought that belief that the modern family is in the deep crisis is
widespread, moreover, almost in all developed societies. Among them there are
societies, overtaken by the crisis as ours, and quite successful in economic
terms Europe and the USA, countries in Asia and Latin America.
This crisis manifests
itself in such facts of family life: the decreasing of the birthchild, the
increasing in the number of divorces, the growing number of single parent
families and children born out of wedlock; increase in childless families, late
marriages, and growing number of couples without marriage registration.
What is the reason of
these phenomena? The point is, that as an initial element of society, the
family reflects the same contradiction inherent in the society. Modern family
came under the influence of few global worldwide trends. The scientists pointed
out the following: the growing role of women in economic, cultural and
political spheres of social life (these factors awakes their desire for greater
independence, they review the structure of traditional family relations of
equality with men in decision-making), the formation of two centers of the life
– work and home (formerly professional activities and household existed in
unity); evolution of the views of society on sexual morality (or the sexual
revolution of the weakening of social control, increasing anonymity of sexual
behavior, mitigation of traditional notions of permissible and unauthorized);
global trends of the late XX century, related to the informatization of
society, new areas of development, personal growth potential.
So, all these trends are
connected mainly with the transition of many modern societies to «industrial»
and «post-industrial» stage of development. Some researchers even believe that
at this stage the majority of social functions of the family disappear. With
the development of urban life and the constant decline of the part of
countries’ population, it became more difficult to characterize family as an
economic unit of the society. Each member has, as a rule, their own work and implementing
it is in the process of communication with other people, and not with his
family. As a result, the value of economic function of the family to society is
reduced.
The development of
services, trade, and food service reduced the weight of household functions.
Single people now live with no less comfort than married.
The role of family in
the process of human reproduction is also changing. The births out of wedlock
are growing (nearly every fifth child born in Ukraine are now out of wedlock).
In urban areas there are less children than in rural areas where the presence
of more labor in the family has always been the key to greater efficiency of
its economy. The level of women education and the informatization of the
society influences the number of children in the family as well as urbanization
and related ecology. The development of information production requires a
correspondence between modern technology and the ability of people to work: its
general culture, information, intellectual abilities, professionalism, health,
interest in work, capacity for rapid adaptation, the ability to make
independent decisions. The person in the information society will be engaged in
higher levels of education, awareness, the health, good shape (statistics show
that every decade people are increasingly spending their time on training and
support for their health). To increase employee quality under the living
conditions and facilities, which include level of education and culture,
housing, nutrition, services and health care, recreational opportunities,
should be established. In other words, the demand for quality of life has been
constantly increasing. These demands put the family in terms of restricting the
number of children in the family, because the large number of them leads to
lower quality of life of its members (20 per cent of Ukrainian families did not
want to have them).
In addition, modern man
is less educated in the family than it was before, when the representatives of
the dominant classes and the ordinary people received home education. Even at
the beginning of the century the majority of the population of the Russian
Empire either had no education at all, or studied 2-4 years in primary and
parochial schools. Almost all the knowledge, which is useful in life, country
youth and people from lower levels of the urban population received from
parents. In modern world there are a lot of agencies and social institutions
that assume the functions of education of young generation. These are:
kindergarten and school, the system of vocational education, higher educational
institutions, community organizations, local governments and the media.
American scientists have calculated that their students spend more time on TV
than on the communication with parents. So we can talk about reducing and
reproducing social and family functions.
The loss of social value
of family has led to the fact that the basis for marriage is gradually becoming
only the intimate sphere. The means of connection in the family are not as
social conditions, needs and economic dependence as a factor of love. You can
consider the interesting tendency – only in the XX century, when the process of
declining significance of family as a social institution and public interest in
its existence took place, the main factor that makes a person to marriage, is
their own desire, and is not dictated by the society or the state. Family
becomes the independent from state and society in general. State loses control
functions and application of punitive sanctions to the families and their
members, especially teenagers and minors.
A characteristic feature
of the modern family is the autonomy of its members. The higher level of
cultural and civilization development of society, more each member of this
society understands himself as an individual, the greater is need for
separation. In a family, by the way, the autonomy points out in that the
interests of both members of a marriage is much wider than purely family and
circle of meaningful dialogue for them beyond its borders. Their family
behavior is governed not only by customs, traditions and external influences as
individual submissions, the aesthetic ideals and moral values. Family actively
responds to the growing autonomy of its members. The new forms of family structures
appear: marriage contracts for a certain time, marriage with three-year
probation (no birth), "civil marriage" (marriage with the concern of
the parties, but without registration) "Distance marriages” (separated
spouses with occasional meetings)," "concubinage" (when the
family broke up and its members have their own lives, but children are brought
up together), marriage between persons of the same sex, group marriage commune,
and so on.
While some scientists
are already talking about the decline of the nuclear family and its
disappearance, the majority believes that family will remain in society in the
future, but it will lose its aura of "holiness",
"integrity" and "binding" for a person.
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