Different types of families

What most consider a normal family is one with a mother, a father and children. In reality though, families are very diverse. A family can be a couple with no children. A single-parent family has children, but only one parent. In a blended family (uusperhe), one or both parents may have children from a previous relationship and they may also have children together. A rainbow family (sateenkaariperhe) is a family where one or more parents or other guardians are part of a sexual or gender minority.

Families also change constantly. People move in together and split up, they have children, and children move out of the home. A growing number of people in Finland live alone.

A nuclear family contains parents and the children they have together

The most common type of family in Finland is the nuclear family, which contains two parents and the children they have had together. Most parents are married. However, the percentage of families with unmarried parents has continued to grow. Only a very small share of people in Finland live in families with more than two generations in the same home. This means a family where a minimum of one of the grandparents lives with their children and grandchildren.

There are many other types of families in Finland in addition to the nuclear family.

A couple can be childless either voluntarily or involuntarily

When talking about families, we usually imagine a family with children. It is, however, common for a family to only have two adults. All families do not want children and many are happy with their lives without children.

Some couples cannot have children even though they would want to. Infertility treatments to help improve the likelihood of pregnancy and children are on offer for such couples. Couples can also consider adopting a child. An adopted child is biologically someone else’s child, but through adoption, the child gets new parents. In Finland, children are often adopted from other countries. The adoption process is regulated by law. It begins with a statutory adoption counselling where the family’s situation is mapped out.

It is also possible to offer a home to a child or young person by becoming a foster parent. A foster parent takes a child into care for whom, for some reason, it is not safe to live with their own parents. The child is in the care of the foster parents for the time being and sometimes until the child is of age.

A single-parent family only has one parent

A single-parent family is one where a family has children, but only one parent. The single parent is typically either separated or a widow. Sometimes the single parent has had the child alone, meaning that the family has always had only one parent. Women living alone can receive fertility treatment with donated sperm without a partner.

The most common reason for single parenthood is separation. After separating, parents can decide on different types of options for the child’s living and care arrangements. Typically children remain with their mothers after a separation, and therefore most single parents are women. There are also single fathers in Finland.

Typically after a separation, children spend time with both parents. A child has the right to meet both parents. Nowadays, it is increasingly common that the parents share joint custody after a divorce and children live with both parents alternatingly. This strengthens the role of both parents in the child’s life and it promotes equality, since both parents bear as much responsibility. Officially, a child can only have one address.

A parent who lives separately from their child must participate in child support by paying for the child’s living and housing costs. This is the case regardless of whether the child sometimes lives with this parent or not. Sometimes a single parent can be solely responsible for the child.

Combining childcare and work can be a challenge for a single parent. Finances can be tight and taking care of a child alone can be burdensome. The Finnish government supports single parents so that single-parent families would not be in a disadvantaged position. For example, some Kela benefits have a single-parent supplement (yksinhuoltajakorotus) meaning that the support for a single-parent family is slightly higher than for a family with two parents.

Blended families have children from previous relationships

In Finland, it is common after a separation that people find a new spouse, move in together and even get married. A blended family means a family where there are children from the previous relationships of one or both parents. A blended family can also have children from the current relationship. Often children in a blended family can have two homes. This means that the children live with the other parent some of the time.

Blended families have become more common in Finland during the past decades. Now, one in ten children under the age of 18 live in blended families.

In rainbow families, one or more of the parents belong to a sexual or gender minority

Families with people belonging to sexual or gender minorities are called rainbow families in Finland. The rainbow is a symbol used by sexual and gender minorities. There are different types of rainbow families. The family can contain, for example, two mothers and children.

Rainbow families have children in different ways. In Finland, female couples can receive fertility treatment with donated sperm. One of the partners may have children from an earlier relationship. A couple can also have children with a friend or another couple so that the child is raised by more than two adults.

Persistent work has been done in Finland toward ensuring rights for sexual minorities and rainbow families equal to those of families with a man and a woman. People’s attitudes have slowly become more accepting. The gender-neutral revision of the Marriage Act in 2017 has improved the legal rights of rainbow families and their children.

Partnered parents have not been in a relationship together

Partnered parenting or co-parenting (kumppanuusvanhemmuus) means that two people decide to become parents together without being in a relationship. The child lives with both parents alternately.

Sometimes the co-parents have been friends before they decide to become parents together. Sometimes people who live alone and want children try to find another person in a similar situation. Their aim is not to find a romantic partner, but to raise a child together. Partnered parenting is still quite rare, but it has become slightly more common lately.

Many different types of people live alone

Almost one quarter of Finnish citizens live alone. In addition to these, there are people who do not live with family, but they do not live alone. They can, for instance, share an apartment with friends.

​​​​​​​Living alone is especially common in Finland among young people and pensioners. In Finland, young people move out of their homes earlier than in many other countries, on average at age 21. Women often start living alone younger than men. Young people’s independence is valued in Finland. The welfare state’s support for students also makes it financially possible for young people to move into their own homes.

It is common for students to live alone in small one-bedroom apartments. It used to be more common for students to live in shared apartments where they shared a kitchen and a bathroom with other residents. Some choose to move in with friends. Living together with friends can make it possible to live in an area where it would be too expensive to live alone. This is also a way to increase communality.

In addition to young people, adults without a spouse or without children at home live alone. Especially elderly women live alone after their spouse has died. Even though a person lives alone, they usually have people close to them, such as parents, adult children, other relatives or close friends. Living alone can also be lonely.