The Stages of The Family Life Cycle

We can divide these stages into three major parts of the family life cycle: the beginning, developing, and launching stages. Let’s explore these parts and the stages within them further!

Beginning Stage of Family Life Cycle

The main parts in the beginning stage of family life are the marriage and procreation stages. In the sociological world, marriage has been arguably hard to define. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2015), marriage is:

Marriage Stage of Family Life Cycle

Marriage has historically been a sign of a family starting, as there has been a tradition of waiting until marriage to have children.

In stage 1, according to Glick, the family type is a married family with no children involved. This stage is where the morals of the family are established between both partners.

The term homogamy refers to the concept that people with similar characteristics tend to marry one another. Often, we are likely to fall in love and marry those in close proximity to us, perhaps someone we meet at work, university, or church.

Procreation Stage of Family Life Cycle

The second stage is the procreation stage when the married couple starts to have children. In many cases, this is considered the beginning of family life. Having children is important to many couples, and a study conducted by Powell et al. (2010) found that the determining factor for most people (when defining a family) was children.

There has been a fluctuation in what Americans consider a 'normal' family size. In the 1930s, the preference was for a larger family containing 3 or more children. Yet as society progressed, in the 1970s the attitude had shifted to a preference toward smaller families with 2 or fewer children.

Developing Stage of Family Life Cycle

The developing stage of family life begins when children start to attend school. The developing stage includes:

• Preschooler family

• School age family

• Teenage family

The developing stage is arguably the most challenging stage because it is the point at which the children in the family develop and learn about the world around them. This happens through the social institutions of education and the family, which teach children society's norms and values.

Fig. 2 - The developing stage of the family life cycle is where the children learn about society.

Preschooler Stage of the Family Life Cycle

Stage 3 of the family life cycle involves the preschooler family. At this point, the children in the family are aged 2.5-6 years old and starting school. Many children in the U.S. attend daycare or preschool when their parents are at work.

It can be hard to determine if a daycare center offers a good quality service, but some facilities offer a constant video feed for parents to check in on their children whilst at work. Children from middle or upper-class families may have a nanny instead, who tend to the children whilst their parents are at work.

School Age Stage of the Family Life Cycle

Stage 4 of the family life cycle involves the school-age family. At this stage, the children in the family are well settled into their school life. Their morals, values, and passions are shaped by both the family unit and the institution of education. They can be influenced by their peers, the media, religion, or general society.

Life After Children

Interestingly, sociologists have found that after the birth of a child, marriage satisfaction decreases. This can often be attributed to the way in which roles change for the married couple after parenthood.

The roles and responsibilities that the couple has divided between themselves begin to shift, and their priorities change from each other to the children. When children begin school, this can create further changes in the responsibilities of the parents.

Teenage Stage of the Family Life Cycle

Stage 5 of the family life cycle involves the teenage family. This stage is a key part of the overall developing stage, as it is when the children in the family grow into adults. The teenage years are an important part of an individual's life, and a key part of family life too.

Often, children feel vulnerable, and the parents may struggle to understand how they can properly help their children. At this stage, parents often help their children to try to determine their future path in life.

Launching Stage of Family Life Cycle

The launching stage of family life is an important one. This is when the children have grown up into adults and are ready to leave the family home. The launching stage involves the launching family and the consequential empty nest family.

The launching family is part of the sixth stage of the family life cycle. This is when the children begin to leave home with the help of their parents. Children may go to college or university as a way of integration into adult life. Parents have reported feeling accomplished once their children have started to leave home.

As a parent, this is often the stage that you are no longer responsible for your child, as they have grown up enough to leave the safety of the family home.

Fig. 3 - When the launching stage of family life is complete, the empty nest family ensues.

Empty Nest Stage of Family Life Cycle

The seventh and final stage of the family life cycle involves the empty nest family. This refers to when the children leave home and the parents are left alone. When the last child has left home, parents can often struggle with feelings of being empty or not being sure of what to do now.

However, in the U.S. children are now leaving home later. The prices of houses have increased and many find it hard to sustain living away from home. In addition to this, those who move away from college are likely to come back to the parental home after they graduate, even just for a brief period. This has resulted in 42% of all 25-29-year-olds in the U.S. living with their parents (Henslin, 2012)².

At the end of these stages, the cycle continues with the next generation and so on!