The rural world has undergone many transformations due to the processes of modernization and globalization. Little is known about rural families, and knowledge about urban families is usually transferred to rural families, as if the reality was the same for both. This study sought to understand. The practices in the intimate sphere of Chilean rural families in Chile nowadays and how these are affected by the economic, social and political changes of a society with strong values placed on modernization processes. A qualitative case study design was used, with in-depth interviews conducted with seven families from the communities of Teno, Romeral and Rauco, in the Maule Region of Chile. Families had to have the presence of three generations, so as to know the views of family and intergenerational changes in it. Results show that the gap between the cultural changes in the social and structural changes in the family, is higher in rural households.