Beanpole family,一般譯作“豆竿家庭”,指的是A family whose living members come from many generations, but with few members in each generation(幾代同堂,但是每一代人數都很少的家庭)。近年來,在很多國家都出現了這樣的家庭,新生代的人數普遍減少,多為獨生子女,而老一代人的壽命又在延長,這種家庭最初在英國被稱為verticalized family(垂直化家庭)。
The rising divorce rate partly explains the growth of the 'beanpole' family. With almost one in two marriages ending in divorce, many adults have at least two families, each with a single child.