Diversity in Family Life

As new forms of family and 'non-traditional' families grow in number, there is a need to understand these 'new' arrangements and models of parenthood.

This ground-breaking book discusses, using a comparative and a sociological perspective, examples of the relationship between changing gender identities and processes of family formation in the Western experience. It aims to show that, in the 21st century, it is possible to form a family without sex, without children, without a shared home, without a partner, without a working husband, without a heterosexual orientation or without a biological' sexual body.

'Diversity in family life' will help readers discover and understand the characteristics, advantages and drawbacks of these new models of parenthood, and their political implications in terms of social movements, characteristics and demands.

Elisabetta Ruspini is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy). Since 2012 she has coordinated the Research Section “Studi di Genere” (Gender Studies), part of the AIS (Associazione Italiana di Sociologia-Italian Sociological Association). She is a board member of the ESA Research Network 33 “Women’s and Gender Studies” and has extensive teaching and research experience on gender issues. She has published a number of books, articles and contributed papers to many conferences.