ABSTRACT
A distinctive feature of the sociology of family since the 1970s has been the ‘discovery’ of the theoretical importance of family networks in contemporary urban society (see Konig 1976; Segalen 1981). On the basis of a growing body of empirical evidence, the presence in our societies of a variety of family structures (including extended family forms) and the persistent supportive role of kinship relations have been emphasised, and opposed to what were current opinions in the conventional sociology of the family. Ample documentation has been provided on the precise nature of these family ties, and on the role of exchange of goods and services, which takes place on a family-network level, showing their importance on both material and cultural levels.1
