The New Millennium Family Functioning and Health of Generation Z: From a Socioconstructivist Perspective

Abstract

Background: From whichever culture a family belongs to, scientific evidence shows the role of family functioning and relationships on the child’s health and well-being. A family can either be a source of an issue or a resource for preventing the problem, especially in a diverse country like India. The foremost step to understanding these aspects is to develop an awareness of the transitional nature of family functioning in the new millennium. Objectives: The study proposes to explore the dynamics of family functioning from the conceptualization of parents of Generation Z and intents to analyze the subsequent outcomes on the health of children and adolescents, presenting it as qualitative network construction. Methods: Rich descriptive data was collected from 60 parents by a semi-structured interview schedule consisting of 4 predecided questions. The analyses were done by ATLAS.ti7 version 7.5.16, Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS). Results: As an upshot, 2 structural networks were constructed. One network depicts the 3 aspects of family functioning, cohesion, flexibility, and communication, studied according to Indian families of the new millennium. The psychological, socioemotional, and physical impact of the functioning accumulated in the second network. The study revealed the underlying aspects, the level, and quality of all the 3 dimensions and the thought-provoking aftermath for Generation Z. Conclusion: The study offers intriguing information about the Indian family functioning of the new millennium and its descriptive association with the health of children and adolescents.