The transmission of the meanings attributed to marriage between different family generations

Abstract

This multiple case study aimed to understand how the meanings attributed to marriage are transmitted between three family generations. Six women belonging to three generations of two families, aged between 28 and 90 years, all married, participated. Face-to-face, individual interviews were conducted. Genograms were constructed with the participation of members of the three generations. The interviews were submitted to thematic-reflexive analysis and the genograms interpreted from the family systemic referential. All the participants are among the oldest children in their families of origin, three of them being the first-born. For them, especially, the responsibility of caring for the younger siblings remained, as if they had a parental task over them. The results highlighted the family influence on the conjugal bond and the transmission of family inheritance. The mechanisms for the transmission of the meanings of marriage were the learning of behaviors linked to femininity, sharing of daily experiences, family traditions and relational patterns reinforced in the family and socially. Expectations prior to marriage and the baggage of the families of origin were evidenced in social roles and conflict resolution. Transgenerational and gender issues were highlighted in order to understand the transmission of contents as a way to maintain the family legacy.