BEYOND FAMILY-STRUCTURE - THE FAMILY IN DOMESTIC COMEDY

This inquiry examined the portrayal of family relationships in domesti c comedy. Participants were randomly assigned to view and evaluate sam ples of thirteen programs, selected for the study on the basis of thei r popularity during the period 1950-1990. Separate discriminant functi on analyses of spousal and parent-child relations showed that spousal relations were defined in terms of receptiveness and expressiveness wh ile parent-child relations were defined in terms of the effectiveness of child socialization and the affective tone of the relationship. Fur ther examination provided strong evidence that the development of the television family has occurred as a stepwise process in which successi ve generations have been characterized by changed levels of relational openness and a general trend toward increased expression of affect in spousal relations. The study yielded no support for the claim that fa mily life and family relations have deteriorated across time in the te levision family although there was evidence that working-class familie s are seen to be less functional than higher socio-economic status fam ilies. The limitations and implications of these findings are discusse d.