How to Build a Strong Family Culture: Tips and Strategies

This guest blog post was written by The Parents Television and Media Council®, a non-partisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment. Founded in 1995, this national grassroots organization has more than 1.4 million members, and works with television producers, broadcasters, networks and sponsors in an effort to stem the flow of harmful and negative messages targeted to children. 

There has been a discernable shift in the culture in recent year. Fueled perhaps by nostalgia or a longing for a simpler, less harassed way of life, celebrity culture seems to be taking a back seat to family culture – social media influencers whose content is focused on home, family, craftsmanship, homesteading, cooking, preserving, and gardening rather than name brands and luxury items — and we’re here for it.

What is Family Culture?

Family culture is the unique way a family interacts, communicates, and lives together, influenced by their values, traditions, beliefs, and habits. It shapes the behavior and identity of family members and creates a sense of belonging and unity.

As parents, it is important for us to consider what we want our family culture to look like and the role we want technology to play in our lives; and then to set about establishing habits and routines that support that vision. More importantly, we need to ask ourselves if we are modeling the kind of behavior we want to see in our children.

Ask yourself if you are distracted by your phone when your child is trying to talk to you. Do you keep your phone on the table during meal times? Does your child see you scrolling through social media in your free time, or do they see you working with your hands, reading a book, or volunteering?

What you do with your free time says a lot about your priorities and will set the tone for your family culture. If you are concerned about your child’s relationship with technology, it’s worth examining your own relationship with technology, because parent screen use is closely tied to problematic social media, video game and mobile phone use in teens.

If you recognize that technology has become a problem in your household, it’s not too late to build a better family culture.

Where Do I Begin?

Identify Core Values Determine the values that are most important to your family. These could include respect, kindness, honesty, education, or creativity.

Establish Traditions Create and maintain traditions that bring your family together. This could be anything from weekly family dinners, family game nights, family movie nights, to annual holiday celebrations or special rituals.

Communicate Openly Encourage open and honest communication. Make sure every family member feels heard and valued. If you want to improve communication in your family, put the phones away.

A study by psychologists at the University of Essex found that the mere presence of a phone on the table — even if it’s turned off — makes those sitting around the table feel more disconnected. It can also inhibit conversations around weighty and consequential issues.

Spend Quality Time Together Allocate time for family activities that everyone enjoys. Whether it’s a game night, a hike, or a movie marathon, make sure to bond regularly.

Distracted parenting is a growing problem. Many kids express feeling like their parents were missing in action because they were routinely engaged in cellphone conversations, texting or scrolling on their phones. Younger children in particular report feeling like they have to compete with their parents’ devices for attention.

Improve the quality of your family’s “Quality Time” by putting the devices away.

Set Goals Have family discussions about both short-term and long-term goals. This helps to align everyone’s efforts and gives a sense of direction and purpose.

Foster Mutual Support Make time to do things together as a family, but also give everyone space to pursue their own interests and activities, and encourage and support them in those endeavors.

Creating a strong family culture takes time and effort, but it’s incredibly rewarding and creates lasting bonds.