Introduction: kinship and family in international context

Kinship and family have been an interest and focus of multidisciplinary research for decades. Sociologists, demographers, anthropologists, historians, and economists have defined and redefined family from many perspectives. There are many forms of family. The predominant family form in western society today is the nuclear family, comprised of a married couple and their children. Beyond the nuclear family, and more prevalent in many parts of the world, there are several forms of the extended family, including the stem family, consisting of one adult child with his spouse and his parents, the multigenerational family, where several generations of family members reside together; and the joint family, where married siblings co‐reside.