“We notice that the values handed down in families have fundamentally changed. While twenty years ago respect for other people was in first place, today it has dropped significantly on the list. But a new category of ‘respect for me’ is emerging,” said Pavla Gomba, executive director of the Czech Committee for UNICEF, pointing to a comparison with the survey conducted in 2001.
In 2001, 77 percent of children mentioned respect for others among the values passed on in the family, the second most common was truthfulness, followed by self-control. In subsequent surveys, children did not mention respect for other people as often, this year 35 percent mentioned it.
“Respect for elders is disappearing a little. In some places it was previously exaggerated, but today it may be overturning too much,” psychologist Jaroslav Simon commented on the findings.
The category where children state respect for themselves was already noted by researchers in 2017, when twelve percent of children mentioned it. This year, the number rose to 16 percent. “Twenty years ago, this category did not exist at all. It outlines an authentic picture of what changes have occurred in society,” said Gomba.
Young people, for example, are much sharper in their approach to work, they want to pay it well. I personally admire them for that
Child psychologists see the cause in the transformation of society associated with the development of digital technologies. “Children today acquire values in a different world than their parents,” psychologist Pavel Brenkus, who specializes in family therapy, told Novinkám.
“The influence of social networks and digital technologies leads to the transfer of contacts from the physical world to the virtual one. Children can be more self-centered because their ability to communicate and adapt in the real world is reduced,” believes Simon.
Generation gap
Brenkus pointed out that the very nature of the time is self-centered, but it does not have to be harmful. “Young people, for example, are much sharper in their approach to work, they want to pay it well. I personally admire them for that, because the generation of Husák’s children, to which I belong, could not do this,” he said.
According to him, however, the company suffers more significantly than before from the so-called the generation gap that is related to respect. “Older people are instilled with some wisdom that no longer works. At work, it used to pay off for them to remain silent and wait for the award. In short, that no longer applies today, if you don’t speak up, no one will give you anything, and the children can see it. It then frustrates the older generation that we don’t actually listen to them,” added Brenkus.
The psychologist appreciates that children want to be respected, but this can be reflected in problems with authority. “If you don’t run into borders, you don’t really know where to move,” he added.
Simon also agrees with the importance of setting roles in the family. “The child should be allowed to express opinions and disagree, but should also respect the family’s hierarchy. Some parents give up their role, perhaps because their own parents were too strict,” he pointed out.
Mladé hlasy surveys have been mapping the subjective opinions of children aged nine to seventeen at intervals of several years since 2001. The survey sample is representative of the Czech Republic.
A record few children are born to Czechs. Money, housing, kindergartens and prestige are missing
Homemade
