Families in Israel: Coping and Adjustment

For most Israelis, the family is the center around which life revolves. The emphasis on family life in Israel is evident across all cultural and religious sub-groups composing the Israeli society: it can be seen in high marriage rates, fertility rates and the cultural ideals surrounding them. Nevertheless, is there such a thing as an ‘All-Israeli’ family? In this chapter, we draw a picture of the Israeli family shaped by tradition and modernity, reviewing data regarding family types and patterns, marriage and divorce, fertility and the place of children in the Israeli family, as well as regarding other factors surrounding family as a social institution.