The family is the most vital institution in the society that, psychologist who work with family usually see them as unit.
This is because it is the unit into which individuals have their first contact in life, hence like a game of billiards.
Interestingly, when you shoot the cue ball into a cluster of other balls it scatters them into various direction. According to henslin(1993) defines family as a group of people who consider themselves related by blood, marriage or adoption and usually lives together.
Families are not democracies because each family has its own ways of executing power and authority. In every family, parents are expected to be the leaders of the family whiles children are required to follow the leadership of their parents.
Responsibilities of families towards their children is a shared responsibility though generational hierarchies are the most common ones within the families. Sometimes they base certain responsibilities on gender and in traditional societies like ours, men have powers over women thus fathers automatically becomes the providers and authority’s figures while mothers are the caretakers.
The family life is changing as a result of changing social norms and economic imperatives. Many families have now shirked their responsibilities towards their children. Families now focus less on the duties towards their kin and their families and more on their desires for self-fulfilment as individuals.
Think about who is responsible for what within your own family and how the current arrangement is working. Some responsibilities are open to negotiation, particularly if the family does not function optimally.
This act of negotiation has weakened the family fibre and has cause moral degradation in the family.
For a family to mature as a system it must have a healthy emotional system in place.
It is a must for the family to provide materials and spiritual welfare of their children in a responsible manner and provide for their healthy growth and must also inspire their children by their own exemplary life and must never neglect to correct their faults.
On the other hand, children must respect their parents, must love them and must never do anything to hurt their feelings.
Families have to perform vast responsibilities towards their children. families have to internalize their responsibilities towards their children in order to make them able and ideal citizens.
Responsibilities towards their children is a must and never should it be on a negotiable basis.
The author SUWEIBAH UTHMAN(SWAY) is the Executive Director of Social Workers’ Network-Ghana (SOWON) and currently a student of KNUST.
An orgnisation that seeks to promote human relationships in our society.
