Family Theory and Research in Norway

Abstract

Norwegian family research was initiated on a broad scale after the Second World War. Researchers were in this period no doubt often inspired by American scientists who visited the country and taught how to do quantitative empirical studies. However, family-related research was also present before this through the pioneering work by Eilert Sundt. Sundt was engaged in policy-oriented studies on poverty among unwed mothers and their children in the 1850s as well as in descriptive demographic studies. Broadly speaking the two trends that were initiated by Eilert Sundt are identified as characteristic of family research also in our times: one which is rather descriptive and broad-scale oriented and one based on qualitative data-often discussed in a critical context. To some extent these differences in orientation reflect the position of the researcher. Descriptive studies are mainly initiated by applied research institutions while the more independent position of university researchers seems to encourage work ...