Abstract
The joint family has historically been regarded as the cornerstone of Indian social organization, performing economic, protective, religious, and socialization functions for its members (Kapadia, 1966; Shah, 1998). Rapid urbanization, occupational diversification, rising educational attainment, and residential mobility have, however, exerted sustained pressure on this traditional institution (Goode, 1963; Gore, 1968). The present study examines the impact of urbanization on joint family structures in Gwalior city, Madhya Pradesh, using a descriptive-cum-analytical research design. Data were obtained from 400 households selected through stratified random sampling across three urbanization zones of the city, namely the Core City, the Transitional Zone, and the Peri-Urban Colonies. A structured interview schedule was used to record household composition, socio-economic characteristics, duration of urban residence, perceived urbanization pressure, and attitudinal preference for joint family living. Chi-square tests, independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation were employed to test six hypotheses. The results reveal a statistically significant association between urbanization zone and family type (χ² = 31.72, p < .001), a significant association between education of the household head and family type (χ² = 17.86, p = .001), significantly longer urban residence among joint families (t = 13.34, p < .001), and significantly higher preference for joint living among members of joint households (t = 11.11, p < .001). Perceived urbanization pressure differed significantly across zones (F = 42.30, p < .001), being highest in the rapidly urbanizing peri-urban colonies. However, urbanization pressure showed no significant correlation with attitudinal preference for joint living (r = .045, p = .367), suggesting that structural change is proceeding faster than attitudinal change. The study concludes that urbanization in Gwalior has produced a clear structural shift towards nuclear households while normative attachment to the joint family persists, indicating adaptive transformation rather than complete disintegration of the institution.