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Any family has its customs, which are founded on some beliefs and principles. Heritage is something that has a direct correlation to previous practices of our ancestors. Family tradition features past practices, experiences and customs that are transmitted from parents to their offspring. Essentially, the idea of heritage is an intricate one, as it may have a substantial influence on identity formation. It is crucial to comprehend that culture and personality are interconnected, particularly on the familial or individual levels. Parents provide their children with necessary information regarding who they are and what beliefs are critical for their families. This implies that family tradition or custom helps to develop a sense of belonging. Family tradition has a powerful influence on individual identity because the understanding of previous practices, family customs and parental values enhances self-esteem and develops a sense of belonging and harmony.
The relationships within families are possibly the most influential and persistent in the developmental stage. Within these symbiotic associations, communication plays a critical role in control, transformation, and the definition of the family’s existing reality. In line with the family systems model, families have a symbiotic system in which boundaries, patterns, rules, and messages define the structure (Upreti,2017). Notably, people are perceived as intimate in their system of relationships and are highly influenced by their family of origin all through the developmental phases. Thus, generally, family functioning has a substantial impact on the individual. Within individual growth, identity development is an essential process that begins at infancy and continues through life with the shared identity change happening in adolescence and the change to adulthood (Upreti,2017).
More than 50 studies have been done through Olson’s Circumplex Model to explore the impact of family functioning on child and adolescent development (Kiani, Hojatkhah, & Torabi-Nami, 2016). These studies have established that family functioning has a considerable impact on the development of sympathy and career growth, and also general adolescent change to new life events, for instance, remarriage of a parent. There can be serious implications for individual development in infancy and adolescence if the family system is not functional, for example, behavioural problems, anxiety and depressive disorders, maladaptation and the application of harmful coping mechanisms to stressors. The period between adolescence and adulthood, considered as developing adulthood, is a stage of extensive personal change and identity development. During this phase, family functionality could impact a person’s capacity to deal with environmental stress.
As observed by Edgar Guest in her poem “The Stick-Together Families,” identity formation is essential to psychosocial functioning and commitment to social responsibilities, which enables people to feel contented and able within the society. However, identity development can be done more or less successfully reliant on appropriate study and identity commitments. If identity creation is less successful, it can be a root cause of difficult psychosocial development in advanced stages. However, if a person changes to developing adulthood originating from balanced working family background, they will sensibly have the confidence and strength to embark on the study required for critical identity formation.
Moreover, family tradition helps to shape an element of personal identity, making individuals more poised in their decision making. Family tradition plays a critical role in the communication process since individuals want to enhance social networks and meet people with the same standards and values. Personal identity depicts the different experiences and characteristics of a person. These experiences involve the practices of family members, their accomplishments and failures. The development of their own identity is founded on the identification of individual values developed by previous groups. Positive memories have a positive influence on the development of personal identity, reinforcing family connections and forming strong characters, as observed by Edgar Guest in her poem, “Only A Dad.”
Generally, it is vital to keep the family history since it helps to explore more regarding the family tree and strengthen family bonds. Using my individual experience and assessment, I can state that family traditions and individual personalities are intertwined. Family customs and cultural inheritances may prevent a person’s self-identity because of developed customs and values. For instance, most households have developed traditions to come together during Christmas Day celebrations. People want to maintain their customs to remain obedient to family standards and principles.
The family heritage is shared in various ways. This fact implies that it is treasured among each family member distinctively. Family history is part of family tradition because it portrays the attitudes of family members, their taste, wishes, morals and principles. Though family history embodies a group of memories, some of which can be measured as unimportant, for instance, letters and academic credentials, among others, it plays a critical role in developing the individual personality of family members. Previous experiences that have a direct correlation to one’s family history help to provide more insight into the usefulness of the social relationships of the family. Some family members do not wish to discuss unpleasant past experiences encountered in their lives, whereas others do it so that they can learn something from it; this is evident in Maya Angelou’s poem, “On Aging.” Children and adolescents who are cognizant of their family’s memories will be equipped to solve similar problems in the future. Nearly in any household, grandparents love to impart some knowledge to their granddaughters how to become more effectful in life using their personal experiences. In some instances, mothers and grandmothers provide various interpretations of the same family past encounters, commonly considered as a shared history. Children have a chance to know the response and actions of their family members, getting essential conclusions. Nevertheless, children are proud and happy of their grandparents and parents, which have made it in life, thus making their lives as well meaningful.
Family heritage should be taken seriously and treated with the utmost respect by all family members. If a family maintains its values, each household member is aware of confidence. Consequently, the decisions arrived at by family members will be ethical. It is critical to keep the beliefs and historical ties that bring people together, having a strong influence on individual identity. For instance, people treat others better and with dignity if family tradition is highly treasured. These individuals know what is appropriate and what is inappropriate. As a norm, these people are truthful, responsible, and result-centred. Family heritage aids in making individuals better because of the influence of past practice on individual identity. For instance, some precious elements must be kept to be transmitted from one generation to the next. This fact implies that family tradition helps to bring people together, making them more sociable and freer to communication.
Therefore, it is vital to conclude that following on mu individual experience and assessment; family tradition has a powerful influence on one’s own identity because of the positive impact of the understanding of the past family experiences, practices, the family believes and customs, which helps to enhance self-esteem and develop a strong sense of harmony. Family heritage aids in bringing people together of all ages. Children and adolescents should be cognizant of the family’s past experiences and memories to become result-centred, poised, honest and accountable. Grandparents should instill some knowledge to their grandchildren how to flourish in life and how to make one’s individual life worth. It is essential to keep the family history because it facilitates learning more regarding family customs, values, perceptions, beliefs and attitudes.
Moreover, family history reinforces family bonds. Family tradition and individual identity are interconnected because family customs influence the development of personal identity. The increased confidence and the sense of harmony enable most individuals to lead a meaningful life, making rational decisions and avoiding negative feelings and perceptions like abuse and discrimination. Any person should love his or her family while respecting and safeguarding its tradition throughout one’s life.
References
Kiani, B., Hojatkhah, S. M., & Torabi-Nami, M. (2016). Family functioning, identity formation, and the ability of conflict resolution among adolescents. Contemporary school psychology, 20(4), 392-401.
On aging by Maya Angelou, famous family poem. (n.d.). Family Friend Poems. https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/on-aging-by-maya-angelou-2
Only a dad by Edgar guest, famous family poem. (n.d.). https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/only-a-dad-by-edgar-guest
The stick-together families. (n.d.). https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/the-stick-together-families-by-edgar-albert-guest
Upreti, R. A. S. H. M. I. (2017). Identity construction: An important issue among adolescents. Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 22(6), 54-57.