Definition and Functions of the Family – The presence of a family in one’s life is valuable. However, sometimes we are not aware of this value. In order to love and care for the family more, it seems that we need to understand the concept of how family is understood and functions. The following is a complete explanation of the meaning and function of the family:
Definition of Family
The family is the smallest social unit consisting of the head of the family and the family consisting of father, mother and children. Another definition of family according to Wikipedia is the smallest unit of society where the head of the family and several people live together in one place under one roof in a state of interdependence.
In another view, family means a group of people who live together as the smallest unit of society, usually with relatives, marriage, or other relations, and who live in a house headed by the head of the family. From the description of this definition, it is clear that the family consists of the head of the family and family members, namely father, mother and children who live together and need each other. To better understand what a family is, Sinaumed’s can refer to the opinions of the following experts:
1. Salvacion G. According to Bailon and Aracelis. Maglaya
Salvacion G. Bailon and Aracelis. Maglaya (1978), defines the family as two or more people who live at home by having family relationships, marriage, adoption, interact with each other, and overcome each other. Each role has a culture, created and maintained within that one relationship.
2.Peter Gillis
According to Peter Gillis (1983), the concept of family is a complex entity with these attributes, but each consists of several components that have meaning as a separate entity.
3. Johnson L. and Leny R.
According to Johnson L. and Leny R (2010), the concept of family is an environment where several people are still related.
4. EM Duvall
Family is a group of people related by marriage, childbirth, adoption, the purpose of which is to promote and maintain a common culture and to promote and maintain the physical, mental, emotional and social development of each member.
5. Allender, JA Dan Spradley, BW
According to Allender, JA and Spradley, BW (1996), the definition of family is one or more people who live together, that is, have emotional relationships and develop in social interactions, roles, and tasks.
6. BKKBN
According to the Federal Agency for Population and Family Planning (BKKBN), the term family refers to men and women, or men and women, and their children or fathers and their children, or mothers and their children.
Family Functions
Each family function has its own meaning, and plays an important role in family life. The following is a description of each of the 8 family functions that Sinaumed’s needs to know:
1. Religious Functions
Religion is a basic need for all human beings. The family is the first place where religious values are taught, and to instill religious identity in all children born in. Families develop religious values and produce good and pious children. The family teaches all its members to worship with full faith and devotion to God Almighty. Indonesian families adhere to different beliefs and religions, so carrying out religious functions must not ignore religious tolerance. The function of religion has 12 core values that must be understood and taught by the family. The 12 core values are:
- Faith is believing in Allah SWT, God Almighty, and always practicing His teachings
- Taqwa is practicing everything that has become the order of the religion he believes in
- Honesty, namely saying something as it is
- Tolerance or tolerance, namely the perception that everyone has differences
- Diligent, namely giving time and energy to fulfill obligations by trying to achieve the best results
- Piety, namely high moral value by doing the right thing consistently
- Obedience, namely fulfilling one’s duties and responsibilities promptly and with joy
- Like to help is to have a habit of helping others, and without expecting anything in return
- Discipline, namely adherence to agreed rules in a timely manner
- Manners, namely behaving in accordance with religious norms and values
- Patience and sincerity is the ability to face difficulties without wanting anything
- Affection which is an expression of full attention, awareness, and emotion of affection for someone
2. Socio-Cultural Functions
Family is the most important means of advancing and instilling noble cultural values that serve as role models for lifestyle. The socio-cultural function provides the family and all its members with the opportunity to develop a rich and diverse culture as a unit. Therefore, the noble values that serve as role models in the life of the nation can continue to be supported and nurtured. The family is the first place for children to learn to interact and adapt to the environment and learn the customs that apply in society.
The socio-cultural function consists of seven basic values that must be communicated and carried out by the family. The seven values are:
- Tolerance and mutual respect, namely the attitude of respecting and accepting positions that are different or opposite to ours, and the attitude of accepting and accepting the existence of other people.
- Politeness, namely behavior that is in accordance with local socio-cultural norms. Manners are learned by children through the example and example of their parents.
- Gotong royong, gotong royong based on kinship. Fostering a spirit of mutual cooperation in family life is related to the behavior of children who help each other and work selflessly.
- Living side by side in harmony and unity, namely in diversity, in peace and harmony. Family is the first place to educate children in a sense of unity and harmony with other families.
- Compassion, namely a compassionate attitude towards various social, cultural and customary issues, exploring the feelings and experiences of others. The compassionate attitude that emerges in family life stimulates a sense of connection and solidarity and respect for other people’s cultures.
- Love for the motherland, namely self-awareness as an Indonesian nation. National dignity must be maintained. The family’s love of home evokes a love for local produce and gratitude for the struggles of children’s heroes.
3. The Function of Love
Love and affection are important factors in shaping a child’s personality. The function of love means that the family must be a vessel that can create an atmosphere of love and affection in the life of the family, society, nation and state.
The function of affection can be manifested in the form of affection, comfort and attention among the family. The function of family affection is the solid foundation between children, husband and wife, parent-child, and kinship between generations, making the family the most important place for a loving life. Therefore.
The function of love has eight values that must be communicated and applied in the family. These values are:
- Empathy, the ability to understand and understand other people’s emotions, or the ability to recognize and help others
- Familiar, namely a relationship based on a sense of unity and emotional intimacy. Familiarity is characterized by mutual attention
- Fairness, namely fairness or fairness towards other people
- Forgiveness, this is to accept other people’s mistakes without feeling revenge. Forgiveness can form a child’s positive personality
- Loyalty, means fulfilling the hopes and wishes of others, whether requested or not
- Usability, namely the habit of helping or helping others
- Sacrifice, the willingness to give to help others, whether sought or not
- Responsibility, namely knowing and carrying out obligations
4. Protection Function
The family is a place of refuge or shelter for all members, a place that promotes peace of mind and warmth. Being in a mutually protective atmosphere means that the family must be a safe, comfortable and reassuring place for all its members.
When a family is functioning properly, it can perform the function of protecting its members and optimizing the growth and development of children. The family protects each member from harmful behavior and ensures that the family is comfortable and protected from discomfort.
The protective function has five values that must be communicated and implemented by the family. These values are:
- Feeling safe, that is free from fear and anxiety. The family brings a sense of security to the soul family at all stages of life
- Tolerance, namely forgiving other people’s mistakes without revenge, pointing out the mistakes of oneself and others, and always trying to fix them
- Knowing and recognizing responsiveness, i.e. what is dangerous or likely to be encountered
- Resilience, can withstand unexpected situations. The ability to control oneself and raise spirits when faced with problems
- Compassion to respond to the feelings and experiences of others. Good parenting can create a close sense of brotherhood
5. Reproductive Function
The family is the regulator of offspring reproduction in a healthy and planned manner so that the children born become quality next generations. The family is the place where reproduction functions as a whole, including sexuality and healthy and quality sex education for children. The family is also a place to educate members about issues of sexuality. Continuity of planned offspring can support the creation of family care.
The reproductive function has three values that must be impregnated and applied in the family. These values are:
- Responsibility, the ability to know and carry out one’s obligations. Families wisely discuss sexual behavior with children and make children aware of and responsible for all the consequences of sexuality
- Healthy, namely a healthy physical condition, reproductive system and function, as well as mental/emotional. People who reproduce are people who can maintain their reproductive hygiene and health
- Firm, one’s ability to maintain the chastity of the genitals before marriage. The family firmly encourages members to support genital chastity by not having sex before marriage and avoiding sexual harassment
6. Socialization and Education Functions
Family is the first and most important place to provide future education for all children. Family development includes education for child development and personality development. The function of socialization and education also means that the family is a place where the process of interaction develops and where a person learns good and healthy socialization and communication.
Very intensive interaction within the family, and the parenting process is very effective. Families talk to children about their values, norms, how to communicate with others, what is good and what is bad, and what is right and wrong.
There are seven values that must be communicated and applied to families in the function of socialization and education. These values are:
- Independence, namely the freedom to act independently by reasoning and making decisions, independent of other people
- Flexibility, which is easy to adapt to situations and conditions wherever you are. Flexible children are usually willing to accept and get along with other people
- Pride is the feeling of pleasure one feels when completing a worthwhile job or job and succeeding in achieving what one is trying to do
- Perseverance, which means giving time and energy to complete tasks and assignments and get the best results
- Creative, until someone is successful, it means finding and developing many ways and ideas to do things
- Responsibility, namely knowledge and fulfillment of that obligation
- Collaboration, namely working together and in good faith
7. Economic Functions
The family is the most important place to regulate the use of finance to promote and absorb the values related to finance, meet the necessities of life and create a prosperous family. The family is needed as a place to receive food, clothing, shelter and other supplies, and to provide financial support to its members.
The economic function has five values that must be absorbed and applied in the family. These values are:
- Thrifty to pay attention to money. Frugality is characterized by not wasting and buying according to needs and abilities.
- Careful, that is always paying attention to everything. A conscientious person always weighs the pros and cons of all his actions and minimizes mistakes
- Discipline, namely always following the rules that have been set. Disciplined people tend to pay on time, save regularly, and respect business partnership agreements
- Compassion, which is sensitive to the feelings of others. Loving people always want to help others who are struggling
- Perseverance, that is, resilient people who try hard to achieve their goals, characterized by the fact that they never give up and always want to try again when they fail
8. Environmental Development Function
The family plays a role in managing life while maintaining the physical and social environment, as well as the micro and macro environment. The family plays a role in maintaining the local environment and the surrounding natural environment. Family members need to know their neighbors and the local community and protect the natural environment. A family-friendly attitude towards the environment to provide the best for future generations.
The Community Development function has four values that must be absorbed and applied to the family. These values are:
- Clean, namely environmental conditions free of dirt, pollution, and dirt. Clean people are characterized by always keeping themselves and their surroundings clean
- Discipline, namely always following the rules that have been set. Disciplined people do not damage the environment and are characterized by behavior that complies with applicable rules
- Management, namely efforts to protect, utilize and improve the environment
- Conservation, namely efforts to maintain harmony between the family and the environment. The family and the environment influence each other, so that environmental conditions must be maintained in order to achieve the welfare and benefit of the whole family
Well, that’s an explanation of the meaning and function of the family. The meaning of family is of course very broad and it is not an easy matter to build a good and happy family. To understand the meaning and function of the family more deeply. Sinaumed’s can visit sinaumedia’s book collection at www.sinaumedia.com, enjoy studying. #FriendsWithoutLimits.