Modernization of Family Values and Norms Among Armenians in Sydney

Abstract

The process of modernization occurs simultaneously at the social structural and the individual-cultural levels in a society. With respect to the latter the principal arena of, as well as the main bulwark against such change is the family, where changes in values, norms and attitudes involve a shift from the more traditional to the more modern. An examination of the degree and direction of these changes allows for a determination of the level of modernization reached and the factors most strongly influencing this process. In this paper the author examines the maintenance of and changes in the traditional structure and values of first generation Armenian immigrant families in Sydney, Australia taking the traditional Armenian family as the point of departure and the contemporary Australian family as the ‘modernized’ end point, an attempt is made to show what and how changes in traditional family values and structure have occurred both prior to migration and since arrival in Australia, and thus the level of modernization reached by these immigrants. In particular, an examination is made of: family type, composition, and household structure; the relationship of children and parents; decision-making within the family; the relationship of husbands and wives. The principal findings of this study indicate that most changes in traditional values occurred prior to migration to Australia, although changes are continuing in Australia which are leading to convergence of Armenian and Australian family values. Consequently, the degree to which Armenians can be considered to be modernized today is attributed not so much to the effects of living in Australia as to the extent their values ‘converged’ with those of Australian society at time of arrival.