What's in a Family? Family Conceptualizations of Flemish College‐Aged Students (1997–2018)

• Published date: 01 July 2021
• Author: David De Coninck,Koen Matthijs,Graziela Dekeyser
• Date: 01 July 2021
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12433

D D C, K M,  G DKU Leuven

What’s in a Family? Family Conceptualizations of

Flemish College-Aged Students (1997–2018)

Objective: Inspired by previous research, we

investigated how perceptions about family have

changed among rst-year university students at

KU Leuven (Flanders, Belgium) between 1997

and 2018.

Background: The question of what constitutes

a family has puzzled scholars for years, yet

empirical information on this topic, especially

from young adults, is limited. The perceptions

are important because studies have found a link

between perceptions about families and family

behavior.

Method: We collected a convenience sample

of rst-year university students at KU Leu-

ven in 1997 (n=674) and 2018 (n=471)

via online and ofine questionnaires. Using

cross-tabulation analysis, we compared the

data to consider changes in perceptions about

families and investigate differences.

Discussion: We found that students in 2018 are

more receptive to postdivorce arrangements,

pets, and deceased family members in their con-

ceptualizations of family. Also, we noted that the

conceptualization of families including friends

was not widespread, indicating that the “fram-

ily” is not yet established among the university

students in this group. We found that women,

students who report their parents as having a

lower socioeconomic status, and students from

Parkstraat 45—Bus 3601, Family & Popula-

tion Studies, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium

(david.deconinck@kuleuven.be).

Key Words: college students, family conceptualization, fam-

ily perceptions, family structure, Flanders, young adults.

nonintact families held more inclusive family

views.

Implications: Our ndings contribute to a bet-

ter understanding of how Flemish college-age

students perceive families. This information,

however limited, can provide valuable infor-

mation for policymakers, opinion leaders, and

(family) therapists.

In recent decades, the institution of the family

has been the subject of dramatic changes in

Western societies. Marriage and the number of

children in families are declining, and unmarried

cohabitation (pre- and postmarital), extramarital

childbearing, and divorce are increasing (Corijn

& Van Peer, 2013). One of the main character-

istics of this is the weakening of the connection

among marriage, sexuality, and procreation

(Matthijs & Vanassche, 2016). As the close

bond between these characteristics of family is

eroding, growing up in a nuclear family (two

married parents and at least one child living

together) is becoming less common. This is

particularly the case in Flanders, the region

where this study was conducted (Corijn & Van

Peer, 2013). An interesting question is whether

these trends have led to a different perception of

what constitutes a family among young people.

In this article, we investigate whether there

has been a shift in rst-year college students’

conceptualizations about family over the past

20 years(between1997and2018)atKULeu-

ven, the largest university in Flanders, Belgium.

Over the past 20 years, enrollment rates at Flem-

ish universities have increased signicantly.

This increase implies that Flemish university

Family Relations 70 (July 2021): 717–725717

DOI:10.1111/fare.12433