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My culture identity is heavily rooted in American culture, I was born here and so were a
few generations before me. However, my ethnic background is Italian. I dont have the hands on
experience of what it is like to live in Italy, but some of my family's characteristics bring to life
some Italian customs. One day I hope I get the opportunity to travel to Italy and explore the
beautiful culture for myself. But, for now I will share how my experiences here in the States
relate back to some traditional Italian familial backgrounds.
When I reflect on my family's culture the first thing I think of is food. Food is a symbol
of gathering for my family and I. We love to cook, eat, and spend time around the table together.
Holidays are centered around what is on the menu and you will never go hungry at a relative's
house. When you think of Italians you probably think of food too. Italy has some of the most
fresh and delicious food in the whole world. Italians are known for preparing big meals and
gathering around the table with many family members to eat, talk, and laugh together. This is an
important practice to families as it brings everyone close together and in the same place. Italian
families also have a rap for being very close knit. They like to be in the know about what is
going on in each other's lives and there aren't many secrets that are kept. Families share a lot of
information and don't often keep rigid boundaries. One positive to this behavior is that the
support system is strong within Italian families. But, it can also be overwhelming when your
family is constantly prying for information. This brings me to the first article I read when
researching the Italian culture.
The first article I read was "Cultural practices in Italian family conversations: Verbal
conflict between parents and preadolescents". This article discussed the role of verbal conflict
between parents and their children, especially during dinner time. The communication traffic is

at an all time high during dinner. The whole family is at the same table at the same time facing
each other. This is a time where parents ask questions and sometimes pry like I mentioned
earlier. Therefore, where the family is together all at once every night there is bound to be
conflict in this setting. During this stage of life the adolescents involved are seeking autonomy or
independence from their parents, while the parents are struggling with the letting go of their
growing adolescents. I experienced this within my own family many times. Usually my father
would be the one asking most of the questions since he was the one who worked and didnt know
what was going on in our lives as much as my mother did. I remember sometimes giving him
attitude when he did this and my mother would jump in and try to diffuse the situation.
Sometimes the conflict would arise between my parents because my father would get irritated
that my mother was getting in the way of his conversation with me. She was just trying to shield
me from answering questions she knew I didnt want to be bothered with. So I would have to say
in my own experience the conflict would most of the time end up being between the parents, but
caused by me (the adolescent). this relates back to the Italian family study because I can reflect
on how my father is a loud and opinionated Italian man. He wasnt afraid to let his thoughts be
heard and did not shy away from conflict. However, the article also states that verbal conflict to a
certain degree is a normal cultural socialization therefore what we were partaking in doesnt
seem so problematic. Exchanging heated words over dinner is just another part of the cultural
norm, whereas in other cultures it might be seen as rude or disrespectful. The article goes on to
explain that this time during dinner is also a time for family members to show their power and
role in the family accordingly.
The next article and topic I am going to discuss in relation to my Italian culture is the
changes from very traditional families to what is becoming the modern Italian family. For

decades upon decades Italian families have kept tradition in respect to their dynamics. There is a
mother and a father, kids, and two sets of grandparents- and of course in addition there is
numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins. Often, grandparents lived under the same roof or in a two
family home with the nuclear family. This kept families very close and created easy access to
keep traditions alive. There were elders around all the time to make sure the younger generations
were doing as they were supposed to, to honor the family values. The second article I read
entitled "Portraits of the Italian Family: Past, Present and Future" discussed these family changes
at length. They examined census reports as well as marriage reports to analyze the population
and the changes that were occurring. The article discusses how the presence of modernity is
reshaping the context of families in Italy. Some of the signs of modernity that were mentioned
are divorce, cohabitating, single parent households, and women living alone unmarried. I can
speak to these changes because I see it within my own family. In order to examine these points
within my own family I have to go back four generations. Looking at my paternal greatgrandparents in comparison to the younger generations I see almost all of these signs of change.
My paternal great-grandparents stayed married through many hardships, including war, physical
illness, and death. My great-grandfather fought in World War II and my great-grandmother
waited home for him. When their son (my grandfather) was in his 40's he was murdered and they
had to endure the loss of a child together. This alone sometimes leads to divorce because they
grief cannot be handled. Then, my great-grandfather suffered a stroke and my great-grandmother
dedicated her life to caring for him. As you can see, they endured so much yet held onto their
family values and never parted from one another. But, as I look at my grandparents, parents and
even myself I see divorce, infidelity, cutoffs, cohabitation, and out of wedlock children. All of
these things which are not traditional to the Italian family. We have tweaked the value system

and made it our own. I do believe most of it has to do with the fact that we were born in America,
but the article examines family date in Italy itself and these modern characteristics exist there
too. During the last 60 years, the resident population numbers have grown less than the number
of households. Through the last two decades the population suffered a slowdown in growth that
lasted until the end of the century, while the number of households has been increasing at a
growing average annual rate. This means that procreation had slowed down due to people not
traditionally going straight from family of origin to marriages and childrearing. People are living
on their own first, attending school for higher education, and not forming households as rapidly
as before. This whole idea is individualistic and some people might fall into that traditional mold,
but the numbers dont lie and things are changing. Marriages rates have dropped, while divorce
rates rose. This is a sign of change that cannot be ignored. The way society in Italy supports its
population has to adapt and change to better serve the way in which their families are living. This
means supporting women who are living on their own, or parents who are single and supporting
their own household. While we maintain traditional values, we also evolve.
In conclusion, I can relate to both of these articles in some ways. My family is heavily
rooted in American ways but we hold onto our Italian roots by preparing big meals (especially on
Sunday), keeping holiday traditions alive, and of course by sometimes meddling into each other's
business. I wouldnt change my family and culture because it has made me who I am today. I
plan on bringing as much Italian culture to my own children one day so they can know the
importance of our values and where we all came from.

References
Arcidiacono, F., & Pontecorvo, C.. (2009). Cultural practices in Italian family conversations:
Verbal conflict between parents and preadolescents. European Journal of Psychology of
Education, 24(1), 97117
Blangiardo, G. C., & Rimoldi, S.. (2014). Portraits of the Italian Family: Past, Present and
Future. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 45(2), 201219