ASRC 4606

The Family and Society in Africa and the African Diaspora

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2023-2024.

The family, as a social institution, is structured according to historical, socio-economic, political, and cultural factors. The course will cover concepts of the nuclear and extended family, the roles, rights and obligations of different age groups, generations, and continental and global migrants; and marriage and its related issues, including parenthood, childrearing, and gender roles. Other issues examined are: reproductive health and broader health challenges including the effects of major challenges such as HIV/AIDS and COVID-19, family planning, fertility with a focus on adolescents, law and politics of sexual orientation, family codes. The course deals also with structural change and continuity, the impact of westernization, urbanization, formal education, the contemporary economy on the structure and challenges of the family in Africa, and ICT, long-distance family connection. The legacy of African family values and traditions in the African Diaspora is also discussed with case studies of the use of scientific/DNA procedure to trace ancestry.

When Offered Summer.

Breadth Requirement (GB)
Distribution Category (GLC-AS, SBA-AS, SCD-AS)

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