Family Relationships and Development
Title
Family Relationships and Development
Author
Grusec, Joan E.
Research Area
Social Interactions
Topic
Family Relationships
Abstract
Family relationships take different forms, with each form affecting development in a different way and requiring a different kind of parenting intervention. In this essay I begin by reviewing different approaches that have been taken to understanding social and affective outcomes of parenting and how each focuses on one particular kind of relationship. I then discuss central concepts including the importance for successful socialization of the internalization or the taking over of parental values and attitudes as one's own. Some current research is addressed, including (i) the investigation of control and how it can be exercised in such a way that it does not threaten children's autonomy and, therefore, their willingness to comply with parental directives; (ii) investigation of the many interactions between parenting and variables having to do with characteristics of the child and the context in which socialization takes place; and (iii) concern with the impact of different kinds of parental sensitivity on specific aspects of children's behavior. Finally, some key issues for future research are discussed. These include increased attention to the direction of effect between child and parent behavior, continuing attempts to understand how control is most effectively administered, and a focus on understanding the nature of interactions between genes and parenting in the developmental process.