Family Influences

Family influences are factors, characteristics, or behaviors exhibited by the family that can bring about changes to one or more members of that family. Though there are numerous and diverse family arrangements, research has often focused on the relationship between the parent and the child. Because parents are generally considered the primary caregivers in the family, they have a great influence on their child's biological, social, emotional, and intellectual development. Depending on the context, family influences can contribute to positive outcomes for the child as well as negative outcomes.