Research Paper Proposal - A Longitudinal Look at Kibbutzim and the Family

During this course, we have looked at the recent trend towards the destabilization of the “traditional family” into new forms of "family" such as social networks of friends, reconstituted families, blended families, etc.  And yet, the kibbutzim of Israel have, in essence, seen a reversal of this pattern.  Founded on principles of communal living, equality and mutual cooperation, priority lay in the power of the society as a whole rather than the individual family unit.  However, in recent years, kibbutzim have become more family-centered with an overall decline in the communal principles on which they were founded.  I propose to look at how the original kibbutzim functioned as an overall family unit including spousal relations, division of domestic and paid labor, children-rearing, family structures and power relations.  I will then examine the causes behind the decline of the communal spirit towards its currently more privatized living structure with a focus on the changes in gender relations and family life.  I will conclude with a review of the previously mentions topics within the modern day conception of a kibbutz. 

Although founded within a unique social and historical context, the history and progress of the kibbutz system provides foresight to the future of the family unit, raising points of contention and discrepancy.  In looking at the structural and normative causes of the decline of the kibbutz system, I hope to reveal issues of gender and family power relations.  The research methods for this paper will be review of secondary sources and primary source interviews with current kibbutz members.