Family structure influence on preschoolers’ concept of desired family

Abstract

The study of 6-year-old children’s concept of family is a part of preschoolers’ image of the world that was carried out in 2009. This is a part of a continuing scientific project started in 1992. The aim of the project is to analyze changes in preschoolers’ concepts of reality. The study method is a structured conversation. The respondents are 6-year-old preschoolers. The conversations with 124 children (67 girls and 57 boys) are analyzed in this paper. It is shown that the only children think of their family as of a family with many children (or as least two children) more rarely than those ones who have at least one sibling. The only children more often and more fully talk of child-rearing problems. It is supposed that the difference between the only and non-only children concepts of family are due not only to parents’ attitude towards child-bearing (which is seen in children’s sayings) but also to parents’ orientation towards a family with shared family atmosphere (that is manifested in organizing family celebrations, keeping pets, etc.).