The Family as a Developmental Framework for Biographically Determined Behavioural Dispositions

Abstract

The influence of family structure and dynamics on subjects' later lives was investigated using as a basis 265 biographies representative of the population of North Rhein-Westphalia, Federal Republic of Germany. It was possible to document empirically the presence and the effect of behavioural dispositions, which can be traced back to experiences in the childhood familial environment. It was also possible to identify the relationships between events and experiences in childhood and the later biographies, especially in the realm of familial reproductive behaviour, residential behaviour, occupational mobility, and the incidence and duration of illness. The findings were stable with regard to the possible influence of the subjects' age, sex, social-class membership, and region of residence.