Children in Families

The role of children in families has experienced distinct changes over the past century. Many family researchers consider childhood to be socially constructed, and both childhood and its prominence in the empirical study of human development have undergone a paradigm shift in recent decades. Family scientists, educators, and mental and medical healthcare providers now stress the significance of family life in the normative development of children. A family system, or lack thereof, has the potential to impact one's biopsychosocial health. Most crucial in this impact is the psychological, social, and emotional progression of a child. “Family” is largely a system-defined concept, generally consisting of a set of people who share a relationship (e.g., blood, adoption, covenant). Families typically consist of kinship networks that may include multiple generations and varying systemic structures. The focus of this entry is on the evolving role of children in family life.