A Meta-Analysis in Family Studies: Strengthening and Distorting Factors in Iranian's Families

The Purpose of the Study: Family, as the leading social institution, fulfils the most fundamental needs of men and plays a crucial role in raising the upcoming generation and in cultural transfer. Historically, Familism was a prominent norm in the Iranian’s culture. However, the indispensable changes of the current era were influential in the family structure and its functions. The present research was aimed to review the works in Family Studies to identify strengthening and distorting factors in Iranian families. The study was designed in a meta-analytic manner. 64 relevant case studies- research projects on the subject of influential factors in families- were examined thoroughly and data was collected accordingly. Findings and Based on the results, Most of the research projects were well equipped with theoretical frameworks. However, they could be considered as examples of reductionism because of the presence of situational variables. In conclusion, the analysis of family as a social institution requires a more comprehensive theorizing in the Islamic-Iranian culture. According to the current study, researchers have identified 104 factors, 62 strengthening and 42 distorting factors, which respectively had the frequency of 191 and 125 (316 in total) in personal, familial and social dimensions. Familial factors with 55% (173 cases), personal factors with 40% (137 cases) and social factors with 5% (16 cases) were the most influential. Based on the results, a pattern of Influential factors in families, consisted of 11 main themes, had been developed. These themes were: cultural factors (including faith, moralities and beliefs), familial interactions, physical and mental health, personal developments, family management techniques, financial matters and economic welfare, cultural social and political environments, Couples’ age difference, length of marriage, public services and public transportation and health care issues.