A definition of family is changing. Significantly.

There is a new lexicon of family oriented vocabulary waiting to be developed in order to help the world perceive that “family values” are not necessarily as black and white as they once were. Adoption, divorce, “urban tribes”, gay-spousal rights and remarriage are just some of the discrepancies that require an alteration to the changing definition of the word itself and have simultaneously made the concept of family more important than ever.

Research and design methodology

How can this all be accomplished? By uncovering, recording and sharing the stories behind numerous contemporary families. There is a common link to most everyone’s notion of family in the way they connect events, memories, games and even times of day to their kin—and behind that substance a common vocabulary. Gay marriage, blended families and single parenthood are just a few of the ordinary occurrences that lead to incongruences within a modern definition of family. My hope is to develop a lexicon and/or tool-kit that can unite families of all kinds making the narratives behind these kinships more lucid and comprehensible.

Format

The medium for all of these narratives and information will culminate in a book format in addition to a blog.

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Click here to download a pdf of the thesis summary.

Reason

In an age when many people are at a loss for identity, employing design methodology to help redefine and expand the very meaning of family itself seems a task worth pursuing not just for the participants themselves, but for future generations of families to come.