ASIAN FAMILIES

CHINESE FAMILIES
Morrison Wong (1988) indicates that the Chinese family is the product of social, legal, political,
and economic factors interacting with culture through generations of families. The majority of
Asian families can trace their roots to the traditional family structure of China, which included
(1) patriarchal rule, with clearly defined roles of male dominance; (2) patrilocal residence
patterns, where married couples lived with the husband's parents; and (3) extended families; in
which many generations lived with their offspring under one roof.
Traditional Chinese family roles are governed by prescribed roles defined by hierarchy,
obligation, and duty. The family is thought of as a collective unit and an individualistic
perspective is seen as disruptive and disrespectful to the family. Marriages are commonly
arranged and spousal relationships are secondary to parent-child relationships. Males within the
Chinese culture are dominant and fathers handle familial disciplinarian responsibilities. On the
other hand, women are affectionate, self-sacrificing, and caring as mothers; taught to assist with
household responsibilities as daughters; and adhere to the thrice-obeying rule (comply with
fathers/eldest brother in youth, husbands in marriage, and sons when widowed) as wives (Tung
2000).
Because ancestor worship is emphasized, having sons to carry on the family name and serving
in-laws is also a cherished value. Another important value is filial piety; family relations are
characterized by duty, obligation, importance of the family name, self-sacrifice for the good of
the elders, and respect for status (Williams-Leon and Nakashima 2001).
JAPANESE FAMILIES
Like many other Asian cultures, the Japanese family assigns responsibility according to gender.
Women are considered the transmitters of tradition and handle most housework and childcare.
Men, on the other hand, provide financially for the family.
The Japanese are encouraged to think first of being part of a group. In other words, one is never
fully independent; therefore, one must always be conscious of others. Examples of the
Japanese we orientation include: (1) hiring practices, (2) decision making, (3) language, and (4)
nonverbal expressions (Varley 2000).
KOREAN FAMILIES
Korean families are hierarchical by gender, generation, age, and class. There is differentiation
by gender and men and women have traditional gender roles. Parents support children and
children are obligated to respect their parents.
Jip-an (within the house) identifies family membership, values, and traditions practiced within a
particular family. Marriage is considered a union among families rather than individuals
(Coleman and Steinhoff 1992). Prior to marriage, the family's community standing, as well as
the
specific
credentials
of
the
family
members,
is
considered.
MALAYSIAN FAMILY
The nuclear family of husband, wife, and children is the most widespread domestic unit, though
elders and unmarried siblings may be added to it in various societies and at various times. This
domestic unit is as common among remote peoples as among urbanites, and is also unrelated
to the presence or absence of clans in a society. An exception is the traditional, rural matrilineal
Minangkabau, for whom the domestic unit still comprises coresident females around a
grandmother (or mothers) with married and unmarried daughters and sons in a large traditional
house. Husbands come only as visitors to their wife's hearth and bedchamber in the house.
Some societies, such as the Karo of Sumatra or some Dayak of Kalimantan, live in large (or

Mark John Dayto

BSED II-T

ASIAN FAMILIES
long) houses with multiple hearths and bedchambers that belong to related or even unrelated
nuclear family units.
INDIAN FAMILY
The residential unit is normally the household, but this unit varies widely in its structure, from
housing a large extended family of three or four generations to a household made up of a lone
widow. In large buildings with many rooms, it is common to find a number of discrete
households, especially in cities; each of these households may be distinguished by its use of a
common cooking hearth and perhaps by depending on a common source of funds. In crowded
urban conditions, each room may constitute a separate household, as may each small grass hut
in a roadside encampment.
SAUDI ARABIAN FAMILY
In traditional residence pattern, a bride joined her husband in his father's household. Authority
was held by the husband's father, and the new wife was under the control of her mother-in-law.
Neolocal residence is now the norm, or at least the ideal, for newly married couples. In these
smaller conjugal families, the roles of husbands and wives feature greater equality and more
sharing of responsibilities. Authority formally rests with the husband, who also has the religiously
sanctioned duty of providing for the needs of his wife and children.
THAI FAMILY
The ideal is for a married couple to establish its own household as soon as possible. However,
especially among poorer couples, residence with the parents of the husband or wife is common.
The nuclear family is the core of the domestic unit, but it often includes members of the
extended family including unmarried siblings, widowed parents, and more distant unmarried or
widowed male and female relatives. The husband is nominally the head of the household, but
the wife has considerable authority. Female members of the household are responsible for most
domestic chores.
AFGHAN FAMILY
Traditionally, the basic household consists of a man, his wife, his sons with their spouses and
children, and his unmarried daughters. When he dies, the sons can decide to stay united or
divide the family assets. Authority among brothers is based on ability, economic skill, and
personal prestige more than age. Sometimes a brother asks for his share of the family wealth
and leaves the domestic group while the father is still alive. Residential unity does not imply
shared domestic expenses. Domestic units are larger among tribal people than among urban
dwellers.
TURKISH FAMILY
Traditionally, most Turks traced their descent and passed on property, especially homes and
land, through the male line. Even though most households have always contained only one
nuclear family, the ideal household, especially among the rural and urban wealthy, was patrilocal
extended, in which a son and his bride lived in his parents' home after marriage. The basic
kinship units are the family ( aile ) and the household ( hane ). Household members normally
eat together and share income and expenses. The next larger unit is the patrilineage ( sulale ),
consisting of relatives connected intergenerationally by a common male ancestor. While
patrilineage is important to old, noble Ottoman families and tribal peoples, it is of little
significance to most Turks.
The traditional Turkish household is characterized by male dominance, respect for elders, and
female subservience. The father or oldest male is the head, an authority figure who demands
respect and obedience. The mother is also respected, but her relationship with her children is
warm and informal.

Mark John Dayto

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ASIAN FAMILIES
Although supreme authority ordinarily rests with the father, the household is usually mothercentered. The mother, being largely confined to the home, manages and directs its internal
affairs. The division of labor has traditionally been clear-cut, with women having responsibility
for the internal home, and men providing the income and representing the household to the
outside world. Before the 1960s, even grocery shopping was a male duty.

Mark John Dayto

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