关键词: 家庭概念, 住户, 亲属关系, 低生育率, 转型社会

Abstract: Reconstructing the concept of family can better respond to the challenges posed by low fertility and the transitional society in this era. The article traces the formation and evolution logic of the concept of family, reviews the efforts made by the academic community so far to reconstruct the concept, and puts forward the redefined concept. The concept of “family” in China was formed through a hybrid system and ideological framework that emerged from the dual logic of the “family” in the patriarchal system and the “household” in governance, and was shaped by the transplantation of modern concepts and the changes in contemporary society. The evolution of the Western concept of family provides a necessary historical reference for understanding the institutional dependence and cultural adaptation issues of the concept of family generally used in China. The academic community both at home and abroad are reconfiguring the family in terms of theory, methods, and policy adjustments, with focus shifting from “household” to “kinship”. The article redefines the concept of family as: “A network of resource sharing and risk allocation formed by individuals connected through kinship and quasi-kinship relationships such as marriage, blood ties, or adoption”, which can be illustrated as a nested circle that expands from the inside out, consisting of “household-shared family—functional family—kinship circle family”.

Keywords: Concept of Family, Household, Kinship, Low Fertility, Transitional Society