In an earlier study of the family, I took as given that general a nation.s family structure determines the kind of society it will have, and that any attempts to change or improve the society must begin with changing the family. Six years lat er now, I have come to feel that, paradoxically, although some kind of family structure may be indispensable to societal functioning, it is the society that determines what the family will be, and not the other way around. Whatever kind of family a given society needs is the kind of family it will have. Thus any change or improvement in family forms may have to come as a result of changes in other societal structures. That means the whole web of political-economic institutions and leader- ship.