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Soviet Union [USSR] Family and Kinship Structures
The extended family was more prevalent in Central Asia and the
Caucasus than in the other sections of the country and, generally,
in rural areas more than in urban areas. Deference to parental
wishes regarding marriage was particularly strong in these areas,
even among the Russians residing there.
Extended families helped perpetuate traditional life-styles.
The patriarchal values that accompany this life-style affected such
issues as contraception, the distribution of family power, and the
roles of individuals in marriage and the family. For example,
traditional Uzbeks placed a higher value on their responsibilities
as parents than on their own happiness as spouses and individuals.
The younger and better educated Uzbeks and working women, however,
were more likely to behave and think like their counterparts in the
European areas of the Soviet Union, who tended to emphasize
individual careers.
Extended families were not prevalent in the cities. Couples
lived with parents during the first years of marriage only because
of economics or the housing shortage. When children were born, the
couple usually acquired a separate apartment.
Data as of May 1989
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