Scholars within the Hayekian-Austrian tradition of classical liberalism have done virtually no work on the family as an economic and social institution. In addition, there is a real paucity of scholarship on the place of the family within classical liberal and libertarian political philosophy. Hayek's Modern Family offers a classical liberal theory of the family, taking Hayekian social theory as the main analytical framework. Horwitz argues that families are social institutions that perform certain irreplaceable functions in society. These functions change as economic, political, and social circumstances change, and the family form adapts accordingly, kicking off the next wave of developments in the social structure. In Hayekian terms, the family is an evolving and undesigned social institution. Horwitz offers a non-conservative defense of the family as a social institution against the view that either the state or "the village" is able or required to take over its irreplaceable functions.
"Hayek's Modern Family: Classical Liberalism and the Evolution of Social Institutions introduces a theoretical frame that not only explains past trends in family formation, but also suggests productive directions for future scholarship. As such, Horwitz's contribution is recommended for anyone with an interest in the study of the family, from students seeking their first introduction to the 'how' and 'why' of family in the Western world to scholars seeking research inspiration." (Jayme Lemke, The Review of Austrian Economics, Vol. 30, 2017)