Family models of independence/interdependence and their intergenerational similarity in Germany, Turkey, and India

Abstract

Family change theory suggests three ideal-typical family models characterized by different combinations of emotional and material interdependencies in the family. Its major proposition is that in economically developing countries with a collectivistic background a family model of emotional interdependence emerges from a family model of complete interdependence. The current study aims to identify and compare patterns of family-related value orientations related to family change theory across three cultures and two generations. Overall, N = 919 dyads of mothers and their adolescent children from Germany, Turkey, and India participated in the study. Three clusters were identified representing the family models of independence, interdependence, and emotional interdependence, respectively. Especially the identification of an emotionally interdependent value pattern using a person-oriented approach is an important step in the empirical validation of family change theory. The preference for the three family models differed across as well as within cultures and generations according to theoretical predictions. Dyadic analyses pointed to substantial intergenerational similarities and also to differences in family models, reflecting both cultural continuity as well as change in family-related value orientations.

Keywords:

• family change theory
• family models
• cross-cultural comparison
• intergenerational similarity
• person-oriented approach

Acknowledgments

This study is part of the of the cross-cultural and interdisciplinary research project ‘Value of Children and Intergenerational Relations.’ Principal investigators: Gisela Trommsdorff, University of Konstanz, Germany, and Bernhard Nauck, Chemnitz University of Technology, Germany. In Germany and Turkey the study was funded by the German Research Foundation (TR 169/9-1, -2, -3 and NA 164/9-1, -3, -4). In India, the study was co-funded by the University of Konstanz and the German Research Foundation. The authors would like to thank the following members of the VOC-team: Bilge Ataca (Turkey); Bernhard Nauck, Beate Schwarz, Daniela Klaus, Jana Suckow, and Isabelle Albert (Germany).

Notes

1. We use the term culture when referring to countries throughout the text. Though differences within cultures are important, especially in diverse and multiethnic countries like India, the consideration of relatively large cultural units defined by political boundaries has proven useful for the study of broad cultural differences.

2. This can include the emotionally interdependent family model (characterized by material independence) in cultures where overall the (totally) interdependent family model is being preferred.

3. Cohen's kappa compares the agreement resulting by chance (based on the marginal distributions) with the de facto empirical agreement (of two raters or as in this case: of two generations). A positive kappa thus denotes that the empirical agreement is higher than the agreement expected by chance. When different groups that have very different marginal distributions (e.g., in Germany a majority of participants – both mothers and adolescents – prefer the independent family model while in India a majority prefer the interdependent family model) are combined as in the pan-cultural analysis, the true (individual-level) chance agreement is underestimated because it is based on the marginal distributions of the combined sample rather than on the marginal distributions of the single samples, thus resulting in an inflated Cohen's kappa.

4. Varanasi represents a relatively traditional urban cultural setting in India. It is likely that we would have found more participants preferring an emotionally interdependent family model had the study been carried out in big cities such as Delhi or Mumbai.