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This study investigated the relationship between culture, structural aspects of the nuclear and extended family, and functional aspects of the family, that is, emotional distance, social interaction, and communication, as well as geographical proximity. The focus was on the functional aspects of family, defined as members of the nuclear family (mother, father, and their children) and the extended family (grandmother/grandfather, aunt/uncle, cousins). Sixteen cultures participated in this study, with a total number of 2587 participants. The first hypothesis, that the pattern of scores on the psychological measures and the behavioral outcomes are similar across cultures, an indication of cultural universality, was supported. The second hypothesis, that functional relations between members of the nuclear family and their kin are maintained in high‐affluent and low‐affluent cultures, and that differences in functional relationships in high‐ and low‐affluent cultures are a matter of degree, was also supported by the findings. The results suggest that it is less meaningful in cross‐cultural family studies to ask questions about the structure of the family, than to ask about the functional relationships between members of the nuclear family and their kin. In looking only at the nuclear family, one focuses only on those residing in the household, but ignores those important members of the extended family who may reside nearby and their significant relationships with the members of the nuclear family.

This study, using a contextual approach, explores the relationship of family bonds to family structure and function across five cultures: Greece, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Britain, and Germany. Its long-term goal is the construction of measures of family structure and functioning that are useful in cross-cultural research. Differences in emotional closeness, geographic proximity to relatives, and frequency of telephone contacts and meetings were not found among the five cultures with respect to members of the nuclear family. Differences between Greece and Cyprus, selected as relatively collectivist cultures, and Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, individualist cultures, on these variables were found with respect to members of the extended family. By showing a pattern of cross-cultural similarity and differences, although moderate, among extended family members, this study shows that family structure and function are context variables that can explain variability between psychological variables and thus add to the explanatory power of cross-cultural psychology.

This article brings together two areas of current interest in cross-cultural psychology: acculturation and values. Specifically, to what extent do the values held by individuals change as they undergo the experience of acculturation? The cross-cultural study of values frequently examines a broad array of values, but the present study focuses on Greek family values because family is a central cultural institution. Because policies of the host society affect the process of acculturation, it was expected that Greek family values would be sustained after immigration to Canada (where integration is the policy) more than they would after immigration to European countries (where assimilation is emphasized more). It was also predicted that older people and males would subscribe to these values to a greater extent than would younger people and females. A total of 16 samples (N= 951) from Greece, Canada, the Netherlands, and Germany were drawn for the study and were administered a 65-item questionnaire. The results demonstrated significant value change in relation to acculturation across countries and between generations. The joint process of "culture shedding" and "culture learning" was supported.

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