Nuclear family

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A nuclear family – also called an elementary family, atomic family, or conjugal family – is a family group consisting of two parents and their children (one or more), typically living in one home residence. The term is used in contrast to both a single-parent family and a larger extended family (which may include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and other blood relatives or community members). A nuclear family typically centers on a married couple that may have any number of children. Definitions differ among observers. Some definitions restrict the term to only biological children who are full-blood siblings, others consider adopted or half- and step-siblings a part of the immediate family, but another definition allows for a step-parent and any mix of dependent children, including stepchildren and adopted children. Some sociologists and anthropologists consider the extended family structure to be the most common family structure in most cultures and at most times for humans, and...

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