How to improve family communication? 4 keys

The members of a family are characterized by having spent a lot of time together, but that it is not always a guarantee that there is good family communication.

So... how can we improve this type of communication?

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What we understand as "family"

It is essential to define the term family around which this article revolves. The family is not just a group of people who live together and share blood ties and surnames. It is also something more than an organization of individuals cooperating with each other.

The family must be understood as a community, as a group where the relationships between members have a deep affective character and are what make the difference with respect to other types of groups.

From this perspective, emotional reactions in the family context are a constant source of feedback on expected behaviors. In this sense, the family is an element of integration that can create spaces that allow members to

development of a relationship of belonging and identification. This belonging is not accidental or temporary, it is essential, since it defines the subject before himself and before society.

Finally, it should be noted that the family is an organization in which its members must share common goals and objectives that generate unity and allow the sharing of functions and responsibilities. It is therefore a team.

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Communicative models

The communicative patterns of family members vary. They must be taken into account, since there are important differences of generational origin and this can generate misunderstandings, discrepancies and distancing due to lack of connection and understanding, thus opening a gulf between Fathers and sons.

This may be due, among many other reasons, to the fact that currently the majority of parents who belong to the well-known "baby boom" (1946 - 1964) have grown mainly with television as the means of communication and with the so-called “mass media” (cinema, radio and press). The characteristic of all of them is that the communication style is informative, vertical and one-way, that is, one-way.

Given that the different technologies transmit certain values, this generation has acquired the verticality and hierarchical organization of television discourse, acquiring the role of receiver, thus getting used to being passive agents in the act of communication.

The Net Generation

For their part, the respective children belong to the generation of new technologies; some studies call it "Net generation". People of this generation are able to read visual images (more visually literate) are able to shift their attention from one task to another, the response time is fast, and they are generally curious and independent.

Although this generation has also grown up being related to the television, their focus of attention is the computer and the mobile phone. In the Internet environment they move like a fish in water, especially on social networks. In these environments, communicative discourse is horizontal, multi-track, active and immediate.

The impact of new technologies

We live daily with endless devices that allow us to communicate with those who live far away but who, in turn, can take us away from the people who are closest to us. And it is that we have all lived scenes in which several members of the family remain self-absorbed looking at a screen without saying a word, thus worsening the interpersonal relationships of coexistence.

Dialogue is important in interpersonal relationships and even more so in the family. Communication helps us to establish contact with people, to give or receive information, to express or understand what we think and to transmit emotions. In short, communication unites and links us through affection and empathy.

Of course, there is no basic rule for family communication. Each family is a world and has a unique language. However, to improve communication or generate fluid communication among its members and given the generational difference, it is advisable that there is will, interest and availability mainly on the part of the parents, in order to create a communication lived intensely by everyone.

Improve family communication

What can we do to improve communication in the family nucleus? To shorten distances between the different generations and improve communication and ultimately coexistence, we can apply the following strategies.

1. Moments without technology

It is important to mark several times throughout the day in which devices should not be used. Those moments that take place around the table (breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner) are ideal to promote fluid communication.

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2. Shared leisure

It is important to look for moments when you can share entertainment. It can be something as simple as watching a movie that is suitable for all members of the family. This generates union, not only physical but also experiential, thus avoiding the isolation of the family members in different rooms. We thus encourage a possible dialogue or debate regarding the shared film.

3. Encourage dialogue / debate

It is essential to take advantage of the shared moments to exchange impressions, ideas and opinions on a topic that arouses interest. Encourage participatory dialogue of each of the members it is vital, always respecting the different contributions and allowing spaces of trust, security and belonging.

4. Interaction

It is important to show interest in each member of the family asking how your day was or what is it that worries you and / or happens. In this way we promote direct, personal, human communication and a greater knowledge of the personal situation of each member of the family.

The family is essential and fundamental and, therefore, knowing each other's concerns is essential to build a family united by affection and get to know each other very much.