KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship

BACKGROUND: How cohesive are families and how do they respond to their members’ needs? How do families transmit advantages and disadvantages within and across generations? Current data confine our answers to these questions to solidarity and transmission in the immediate family, overlooking other re...

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Main Authors: Thomas Leopold, Charlotte Clara Becker, Zafer Buyukkececi, Beyda Çineli, Marcel Raab
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research 2024-10-01
Series:Demographic Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.demographic-research.org/articles/volume/51/25
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author Thomas Leopold
Charlotte Clara Becker
Zafer Buyukkececi
Beyda Çineli
Marcel Raab
author_facet Thomas Leopold
Charlotte Clara Becker
Zafer Buyukkececi
Beyda Çineli
Marcel Raab
author_sort Thomas Leopold
collection DOAJ
description BACKGROUND: How cohesive are families and how do they respond to their members’ needs? How do families transmit advantages and disadvantages within and across generations? Current data confine our answers to these questions to solidarity and transmission in the immediate family, overlooking other relatives who play a significant role in socialization, social integration, social support, and the reproduction of social status and inequality. OBJECTIVE: This article presents the KINMATRIX project, a novel comparative survey that collected extensive data on a wide array of family members, moving beyond the traditional focus on the immediate family. METHODS: The KINMATRIX data map out families as ego-centric networks of younger adults aged 25 to 35, including their parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and step- or half-relatives. The data prepared for scientific use include N = 12,438 egos (anchor-respondents) and N = 252,278 alters (anchor–kin dyads) in 10 countries (Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States). CONTRIBUTION: KINMATRIX contributes to research infrastructure by offering detailed relational and attribute data collected on family networks, covering a wide range of relatives and diverse family forms. These data reflect the complexity of contemporary families and add to our understanding of key family processes, such as solidarity and transmission. The broad scope supports comparative analyses across European societies and beyond.
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publishDate 2024-10-01
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spelling doaj-art-1cc61dae885148b1bea10d0dcc7c09e42025-08-20T02:52:30ZengMax Planck Institute for Demographic ResearchDemographic Research1435-98712024-10-01512578980810.4054/DemRes.2024.51.256630KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinshipThomas Leopold0Charlotte Clara Becker1Zafer Buyukkececi2Beyda Çineli3Marcel Raab4Universität zu KölnGESIS – Leibniz-Institut für SozialwissenschaftenMax-Planck-Institut für Demografische ForschungUniversität zu KölnUniversität BambergBACKGROUND: How cohesive are families and how do they respond to their members’ needs? How do families transmit advantages and disadvantages within and across generations? Current data confine our answers to these questions to solidarity and transmission in the immediate family, overlooking other relatives who play a significant role in socialization, social integration, social support, and the reproduction of social status and inequality. OBJECTIVE: This article presents the KINMATRIX project, a novel comparative survey that collected extensive data on a wide array of family members, moving beyond the traditional focus on the immediate family. METHODS: The KINMATRIX data map out families as ego-centric networks of younger adults aged 25 to 35, including their parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, and step- or half-relatives. The data prepared for scientific use include N = 12,438 egos (anchor-respondents) and N = 252,278 alters (anchor–kin dyads) in 10 countries (Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States). CONTRIBUTION: KINMATRIX contributes to research infrastructure by offering detailed relational and attribute data collected on family networks, covering a wide range of relatives and diverse family forms. These data reflect the complexity of contemporary families and add to our understanding of key family processes, such as solidarity and transmission. The broad scope supports comparative analyses across European societies and beyond. https://www.demographic-research.org/articles/volume/51/25familynetworkssolidaritysurvey methodologytransmission
spellingShingle Thomas Leopold
Charlotte Clara Becker
Zafer Buyukkececi
Beyda Çineli
Marcel Raab
KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
Demographic Research
family
networks
solidarity
survey methodology
transmission
title KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
title_full KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
title_fullStr KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
title_full_unstemmed KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
title_short KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
title_sort kinmatrix a new data resource for studies of families and kinship
topic family
networks
solidarity
survey methodology
transmission
url https://www.demographic-research.org/articles/volume/51/25
work_keys_str_mv AT thomasleopold kinmatrixanewdataresourceforstudiesoffamiliesandkinship
AT charlotteclarabecker kinmatrixanewdataresourceforstudiesoffamiliesandkinship
AT zaferbuyukkececi kinmatrixanewdataresourceforstudiesoffamiliesandkinship
AT beydacineli kinmatrixanewdataresourceforstudiesoffamiliesandkinship
AT marcelraab kinmatrixanewdataresourceforstudiesoffamiliesandkinship