Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Children's perspectives of the family: A phenomenological inquiry

  • Published:
Human Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Conclusions

As researchers and as adults, caution must be maintained in perpetuating the rational approach to all family experience. Limiting the study of the family to the adult and, more communicatively competent, older siblings creates an artificial barrier that blocks insight into early childhood socialization practices and understandings.

This study has raised the notion that children have valuable experiences that they quickly learn, embody, re-produce, and can present to researchers. As family members, they create and perpetuate those practices that reify the patriarchal order. As researchers, the lessons to be learned from such a study are educational. For children, families that “might make your ears pop out” are the social and affectional structure that organizes their lives. The meanings that are produced within this structure are creatively constituted and should be heard. Studying the talk of children about families enriches knowledge and understanding of family relationships and family communication.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price includes VAT (Finland)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amato, P. (1990). Dimensions of the family environment as perceived by children: A multidimensional scaling analysis.Journal of Marriage and the Family 52: 613–620.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aquilino, W.D. (1990). The likelihood of parent-adult child coresidence: Effect of family structure and parental characteristics.Journal of Marriage and the Family 52: 405–419.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bates, E. (1976).Language and context: The acquisition of pragmatics. New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Belsey, C. (1989).Critical practice. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blau, P. and Duncan, O.D. (1967).The American occupational structure. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blumstein, P. and Schwartz, P. (1983).American couples. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Booth, A., Johnson, D.R., White, L.K. and Edwards, J.N. (1985). Predicting divorce and permanent separation.Journal of Family Issues 6: 331–346.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brennan, J.L. and Wamboldt, F.S. (1990). From the outside in: Examining how individuals define their experienced family.Communication Research 17: 444–461.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burggraf, C.S. and Sillars, A.L. (1987). A critical examination of sex differences in marital communication.Communication Monographs 54: 322–340.

    Google Scholar 

  • Certeau, M. de (1984).The practice of everyday life. Trans. S. Rendall. Berkeley, CA: University of California.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cissna, K.N., Cox, D.E. and Bochner, A.P. (1990). The dialectic of marital and parental relationships within the stepfamily.Communication Monographs 57: 44–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark, R. and Delia, J. (1977). Cognitive complexity, social perspective-taking, and functional persuasive skills in second- to ninth grade children.Human Communication Research 3: 128–134.

    Google Scholar 

  • Delia, J.G. and O'Keefe, B.J. (1979). Constructivism: The development of communication in children. In E. Wartella (Ed.),Children communicating: Media and development of thought, speech, understanding pp. 157–185. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Denzin, N.K. (1982). The significant others of young children: Notes toward a phenomenology of childhood. In K.M. Borman (Ed.),The social life of children in a changing society pp. 29–46. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duncan, B. and Duncan, O.D. (1969). Family stability and occupational success.Social Problems 16: 273–283.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eco, U. (1979).A theory of semiotics. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fields, N.S. (1986).The well-seasoned marriage. New York: Gardner Press, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, M.G. (1986). Perceptions of step-parents: Variations in stereotypes as a function of current family structure.Journal of Marriage and the Family 48: 537–543.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisk, J. and Hartley, J. (1978).Reading television. London and New York: Methuen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fitzpatrick, M.A. (1981). A typological approach to enduring relationships: Children as audience to the parental relationships.Journal of Comparative Family Studies 12: 81–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fitzpatrick, M.A. and Indvik, J. (1982). The instrumental and expressive domains of marital communication.Human Communication Research 8: 195–213.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fitzpatrick, M.A. and Wamboldt, F.S. (1990). Where is all said and done? Toward an integration of intrapersonal and interpersonal models of marital and family communication.Communication Research 17: 421–430.

    Google Scholar 

  • Forsyth, C.J. and Eddington, N.A. (1989). The American dream runout: The cluttered nest.International Journal of Sociology of the Family 19: 131–144.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garvey, C. (1975). Requests and responses in children's speech.Journal of Child Language 2: 41–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glick, P.C. (1983). Prospective changes in marriage, divorce, and living arrangement.Journal of Family Issues 33: 7–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glick, P.C. (1989). Remarried families, step-families, and stepchildren: A brief demographic profile.Family Relations 38: 24–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glick, P.C. (1990). American families: As they are and were.Sociology and Social Research 74: 139–145.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gottman, J.M. (1979).Marital interaction: Experimental investigations. New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haslett, B.J. (1983). Communicative functions and strategies in children's conversations.Human Communication Research 2: 114–129.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haslett, B.J. (1984). Acquiring conversational competence.The Western Journal of Speech Communication 48: 107–124.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hendrick, S.S. (1981). Self-disclosure and marital satisfaction.Journal of Personal and Social Psychology 40: 1150–1159.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hetherington, E.M., Camara, K.A. and Featherman, D.L. (1983). Achievement and intellectual functioning of children in one parent households. In J.H. Stevens, Jr. and M. Matthews (Eds.),Achievements and achievement motives 209–284. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hobart, C. (1990). Marriage and remarriage as intermarriage.International Journal of Sociology of the Family 20: 31–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ishii-Kuntz, M. and Seccombe, K. (1989). The impact of children upon social support networks throughout the life course.Journal of Marriage and the Family 51: 777–790.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jencks, C. (1979).Who gets ahead. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenkins, III., H. (1988). “Going bonkers!”: Children, play, and Pee-wee.Camera obscura: A journal of feminism and film theory 17: 169–192.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, F. (1977). Role-tracking and referential communication abilities in first-and third-grade children.Human Communication Research 3: 135–145.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kahn, M. (1970). Non-verbal communication and marital satisfaction.Family Process 9: 449–456.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lanigan, R.L. (1988).Phenomenology of communication: Merleau-Ponty's thematics in communicology and semiology. Pittsburgh: Duquesne University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, J.A. (1977).The colors of love. New York: Bantam Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lerner, R.M. and Spanier, G.B. (1978).Child influences on marital and family interaction: A life-span perspective. New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lipsitz, G. (1990).Time passages: Collective memory and American popular culture. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Locke, H.J. and Wallace, K.M. (1959). Short marital-adjustment and prediction tests: Their reliability and validity.Marriage and Family Living 21: 251–255.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lund, M. (1985). The development of investment and commitment scales for predicting and continuity of personal relationships.Journal of Social and Personal Relationships 2: 3–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mackay, R.W. (1991). Conceptions of children and models of socialization. In F.C. Waksler (Ed.),Studying the social worlds of children: Sociological readings 23–37. New York: The Falmer Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mangen, D.J., Bengtson, V.L. and Landry, P.H., Jr. (Eds.), (1988).Measurement of intergenerational relations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLanahan, S. and Booth, K. (1989). Mother-only families: Problems, prospects, and politics.Journal of Marriage and the Family 51: 557–580.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962).Phenomenology of perception. Trans. C. Smith. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merleau-Ponty, M. (1964a).The primacy of perception and other essays. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merleau-Ponty, M. (1964b).Sense and non-sense. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press. Original work published 1948.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merleau-Ponty, M. (1964c).Signs. Trans. R.C. McCleary. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press. Original work published 1954.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merleau-Ponty, M. (1968).The visible and the invisible. Trans. A. Lingis. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press. Original work published 1964.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, P.C. and Lefcourt, H.M. (1982). The assessment of social intimacy.Journal of Personality Assessment 46: 514–518.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neal, A.G., Groat, T. and Wicks, J.W. (1989). Attitudes about having children: A study of 600 couples in the early years of marriage.Journal of Marriage and the Family 51: 313–328.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, J.L. (1989). Phenomenology as feminist methodology: Explicating interviews. In K. Carter and C. Spitzack (Eds.),Doing research on women's communication: Perspectives on theory and method 221–241. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nock, S.L. (1988). The family and hierarchy.Journal of Marriage and the Family 50: 957–966.

    Google Scholar 

  • Norton, R. (1983). Measuring marital quality: A critical look at the independent variable.Journal of Marriage and the Family 45: 141–151.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nye, F.I. (Ed.). (1976).Role structure and analysis of the family. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perlman, D. and Duck, S. (Eds.). (1987).Intimate relationships: Development, dynamics, and deterioration. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perse, E.M., Pavitt, D. and Burggraf, C.S. (1990). Implicit theories of marriage and evaluations of marriage on television.Human Communication Research 16: 387–408.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, E.E. (1987). Media consumption and girls who want to have fun.Critical Studies in Mass Communication 4: 37–50.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pill, C.J. (1990). Step-families: Redefining the family.Family Relations 39: 186–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polkinghorne, D. (1983).Methodology for the human sciences: Systems of inquiry. Albany NY: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rice, M. and Wartella, E. (1981). Television as a medium of communication: Implications for how to regard the child viewer.Journal of Broadcasting 25: 365–377.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roach, A.J., Frazier, L.P. and Bowden, S.R. (1981). The marital satisfaction scale: Development of a measure for intervention research.Journal of Marriage and the Family 43: 537–546.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryder, R.G. (1973). Longitudinal data relating marriage satisfaction and having a child.Journal of Marriage and the Family 35: 604–606.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sabatelli, R.M. (1984). The marital comparison level index: A measure for assessing outcomes relative to expectations.Journal of Marriage and the Family 46: 651–662.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scanzoni, J. (1987). Families in the 1980s: Time to refocus our thinking.Journal of Family Issues 8: 394–421.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaefer, M.T. and Olson, D.H. (1981). Assessing intimacy: The PAIR Inventory.Journal of Marital and Family Therapy 7: 47–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schumm, W.R., Paff-Bergen, L.A., Hatch, R.C., Obiorah, F.C., Copeland, J.M., Meens, L.D. and Bugaighis, M.A. (1986). Concurrent discriminant validity of the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale.Journal of Marriage and the Family 48: 381–387.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sigel, I.E. and Brody, G.H. (Eds.). (1990).Methods of family research: Biographies of research projects (Volume 1: Normal families). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Signorelli, N. (1982). Marital status in television drama: A case of reduced options.Journal of Broadcasting 26: 585–597.

    Google Scholar 

  • Snyder, D.K. (1979). Multidimensional assessment of marital satisfaction.Journal of Marriage and the Family 41: 813–823.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spanier, G.B. (1976). Measuring dyadic adjustment: New scales for assessing the quality of marriage and similar dyads.Journal of Marriage and the Family 38: 15–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, L. and Walker, A.J. (1989). Gender in families: Women and men in marriage, work, and parenthood.Journal of Marriage and the Family 51: 845–871.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorne, B. and Yalom, M. (Eds.). (1982).Rethinking the family: Some feminist questions. New York: Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trost, J. (1990). Do we mean the same by the concept of family?Communication Research 17: 431–443.

    Google Scholar 

  • Udry, J.R. (1981). Marital alternatives and marital disruption.Journal of Marriage and the Family 43: 889–897.

    Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Bureau of the Census. (1990).Household and family characteristics: March 1990 and 1989. Current Population Reports, Series P-20, No. 447. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Maanen, M. (1990).Researching lived experience: Human science for an action sensitive pedagogy. London, Ontario, Canada: The State University of New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Waring, E.M. and Reddon, J.R. (1983). The measurement of intimacy in marriage: The Waring Intimacy Questionnaire.Journal of Clinical Psychology 39: 53–57.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wartella, E. and Reeves, B. (1987). Communication and children. In C.R. Berger and S.H. Chaffee (Eds.),Handbook of communication science 619–650. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weedon, C. (1989).Feminist practice and poststructuralist theory. London: Basil Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weiss, R. and Birchler, G. (1975).Areas of change. Unpublished manuscript. University of Oregon, Eugene, OR.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weiss, R.L. and Cerreto, M.C. (1980). The marital status inventory: Development of a measure of dissolution potential.American Journal of Family Therapy 8: 80–86.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Communication, University of Northern Iowa, 50614, Cedar Falls, IA

    Roberta A. Davilla

  2. School of Interpersonal Communication, Ohio University, 45701, Athens, OH

    Judy C. Pearson

Authors
  1. Roberta A. Davilla
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Judy C. Pearson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Davilla, R.A., Pearson, J.C. Children's perspectives of the family: A phenomenological inquiry. Hum Stud 17, 325–341 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01322973

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01322973

Keywords

Search

Navigation