Features of the Structural Organization of Russian and Turkish Families at the "Beginning Families" Stage and the "Empty Nest" Stage

Abstract In modern societies, the family is undergoing a transformation. By studying the structural parameters of families in different countries, we can seek to predict the possible prospects for its development. This also holds implications for the role of family system psychotherapy. The aim of our study was to identify and compare the features of the structural parameters of the Turkish and Russian families at different stages of the life cycle, taking into account the critical and lytic periods. To do this, we conducted a cross-cultural study based on the Faces IV questionnaire. The sample consisted of 153 people, 89 of them from Russian families and 64 from Turkish families. The study makes the following main conclusions: Russian and Turkish families at the "Beginning Families" Stage and the "Empty Nest" Stage have both differences in structural organization both within and between groups; the structural parameters of Russian and Turkish families at the "Beginning Families" Stage and the "Empty Nest" Stage differ during crises and the nature of these differences depends on whether the crisis takes place in the critical or the lytic period; the level of relationship between marriage satisfaction and unbalanced high cohesion (enmeshed) in Turkish families is higher than in Russian families. This study shows how the socio-cultural context is related to the structural features of the family system. Thus, the study complements the academic literature on cross-cultural sensitivity and can support psychotherapeutic practitioners when working with families from different cultures.