ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses changing demographics worldwide according to United Nations, US census data, studies of demographers including a study that points out different attitudes toward some family concepts inside several countries, and the worldwide phenomenon of multiple generations alive at the same time which makes oral history sources plentiful for families and those who study them. The chapter includes an overview of the exploratory research for this book: 1) over forty recorded interviews representing six continents with individuals interviewed about their family history experiences and others for process expertise. 2) a pre-interview questionnaire with the family history subset of interviewees, and 3) open-ended questions with that same family history subset. The pre-interview questionnaire suggests that for some respondents the concept of family extends beyond kinship. Further explanation and charted results are in Appendix C and in later chapters as results apply. This chapter gives examples with quotations of the importance of elders, of those whose circumstances make family oral history tenuous, and one person who strongly questions the reality of family while showing love and respect for her own family.
Keywords: Family, Oral History, Demography, Family History Research, kinship
Reference to Appendix C: Exploratory Research Plans and Results
