It’s not about dinner but the kind of conversations you have with your family and the stories you tell.
Robyn Fivush ~ Professor of Psychology, Emory University
“The family is the first and most enduring group you belong to,” says Barbara Fiese, a psychology professor at Syracuse University. “It provides a sense of belonging for children, adolescents and adults so the individual doesn’t have to feel isolated.”
We help create this bond by sharing our family stories from the past and the present. Research conducted by Dr. Robyn Fivush shows that parents who take the time to tell their children about family events, inside jokes, nicknames and family successes and failures produce adolescents with higher self-esteem and self-confidence.
We owe it to our children not only to make dinner a time for the family to gather but also a time to share the richness of our family stories.
Photo by Kirsten Jennings
Share this post.
