The nine specific characteristics of rural family are as follows: a. Domination of the Clan b. Families based on Agriculture as Main Occupation c. Patriarchal and Matriarchal Families d. Power of the Head of Family e. Close Relationships f. Common Lifestyle g. Health Hazards h. Division of Labour i. Family Tensions.
a. Domination of the Clan:
Many anthropologists, who have studied the Indian villages, argue that rural families in India are clan-dominated. Some of the families that are based on clan ties are nomads of Kalbelia and Gadulia, food gatherers and pastorals, such as Bhotia and Rebari. In the opinion of Irawati Karve, caste is an extension of kin and clan. Though in present times, rural family is divided, the basic relationships originate from clan relations.
b. Families based on Agriculture as Main Occupation:
The main occupation of the rural families is agriculture. Apart from this, the family members are engaged in the domestication of animals. Thus, a rural family prefers to own some cattle as it serves as a secondary source of income, whereas agriculture serves as primary source.
c. Patriarchal and Matriarchal Families:
The patriarchal family, which is found commonly in India is dominated by the eldest male member of the family. Such a family is also patrilocal in nature. The male head of the family owns all the property and makes important decisions.
On the other hand, matriarchal families are found among some castes of Kerala and Tamilnadu. Here, the head of the family is the eldest female member. The structure of matriarchal families is different from that of patriarchal families. In such families, mother occupies a high position and status.
d. Power of the Head of Family:
The whole authority is vested in the hands of the head of the family, who distributes work among family members, makes important decisions, and trains youngsters for future agricultural work and in social life. He/she also arranges for marriages and administers the property of joint family.
He/she is the sole authority, who can be regarded as teacher, educator, priest, and on the whole, the manager of family. All the individual members are subordinates to the head of the family. Such subordination leads to lack of development of personality and individuality among the family members, especially belonging to the younger generations.
e. Close Relationships:
The degree of closeness among the members of a rural family is intimate. On the contrary, in urban families, the relationships are not so intimate. In such societies, as both husband and wife are working, they do not have much time to spend with children or other family members. On the other hand, as the members of the rural family are engaged in common occupation, there is hardly any chance to miss out on the members of family. Apart from maintaining close relationships, the members of the family share a common ideology.
f. Common Lifestyle:
As the occupation of all the members of the family is common, they all develop a common lifestyle. All the activities of rural family members revolve around agriculture. So, everyone in the family is aware of what work has to be done next. Thus, because of the common occupation they tend to develop a common lifestyle.
g. Health Hazards:
Due to the similarity in the occupations, the rural family members suffer from common diseases. Lack of awareness towards sanitation and hygiene may also help in spreading these diseases. For instance, soon after rains, rural people are more prone to water-borne diseases such as malaria, diarrhea, etc. Meager availability of healthcare and medical facilities makes rural families suffer from such seasonal diseases. On the other hand, as the accessibility of healthcare facilities is more, the urban families are not much prone to these diseases.
h. Division of Labour:
Generally, all the work in a rural family is distributed among its members. It is not that they are only confined to fields and agricultural operations. Usually, the work is distributed on the basis of sex and age distinctions. Whoever is capable of doing a work, in accordance with age and sex, is assigned that particular work. According to A. R. Desai, ‘Work is distributed among them mainly on the lines of age and sex distinctions.
The community house, common land and common economic functions, along with the common kinship bond create the peasants household. Since the members of the rural family form a single economic unit and constantly cooperate with one another in agricultural operations, since they hold property in common usually managed by eldest member of the family, since they spend most of their time together, the psychological traits they develop are very similar.’
i. Family Tensions:
The rural family life is not always smooth. There also occur certain family tensions, stress and strain. These family tensions occur especially during the distribution of property and separation. At this time, the head of the family has to take up wise decisions. A small mistake also may create a lot of misunderstanding among family members.
Thus, rural family is exclusive in maintaining its uniqueness and specificity. However, the changes that are occurring in rural society are consequently bringing about a change in the functioning of the rural family. The impact of modernization, which emerged as a result of urbanization and industrialization, has been felt on the structure of rural family. Members of joint family are no longer engaged in their family occupations.
They are showing more interest in migrating to towns and cities to seek employment in industries. Those, who are educated enough, prefer to take salaried jobs. The reservation policy of the government has also led the members to look for employment outside villages. Rural handicrafts have declined with the advent of technology.
The joint family system, which is an important aspect of rural family structure, has been a topic of debate for many sociologists. They argue that due to modernization, the traditional joint family is disintegrating as it is linked with occupation. However, few others argue that as far as the principal village occupations continue to operate, the chances of the survival of joint families are more.