Do Minors Respect Adults on How They Live

For many decades now, the issue of the respect shown by young people towards adults, as well as that demonstrated by adults to the youth, has captured the attention of the researchers of different fields, including psychology, sociology, and education. It is not limited to behavioral activities only, but also includes values, attitudes, and norms of society. Typically, persons under 18 years of age fall in the category of minors and probably are seen to be flexible in terms of gaping the ion of respect, authority, and so on while adults are most often regarded as pedagogue. However, from a child’s perspective, it is not clear whether respect for an elder is entirely defined by the manner in which the elder’s life is led. In this paper, we will outline the reasons behind this rather strange phenomenon and some of the changes that have occurred in the relationship between adults and children and how these relations are constructed in society.

The Concept of Respect

Respect is many things to many people, people adore someone for various reasons which depend on the kind of person they are or their successes. There are several factors that may help children develop respect to adults, including, ethnicity, personal ethics, and society. Many societies have been known to instill respect for older people during childhood and within families and educational institutions. In some cases, this respect is given automatically, just because of the person’s age.”. However, it seems that this situation has changed with the younger generation demanding, or being more intelligent, that respect is dependent on the behaviors exhibited by adults, their characteristics as well as how they treat others.

Factors Shaping Minors’ Respect for Adults

Role Models and Behavior

Adults are essential to the lives of young ones as they look up to them and young ones also show high regard to adults whose traits are commendable. Children tend to respect adults with good character and those who believe in leading through actions. Kindness, empathy, honesty, and responsibility are, therefore the main traits which children will respect from adults. If an adult does not deviate from the norms then children may respect them for standing by the standards of the society.

On the other hand, adults who engage in undesirable practices like lying, violence or being rude may earn a lack of respect from minors. For example, if an adult scares a child or embarrasses himself in front of his peers, the child may lose respect for that adult or his ideal image. In this regard, conflicting ideals or role models are confusing to minors due to the fact that they wonder how they ought to respect an adult when in fact, the adult behaves incauthically.

Conformity in Actions and Words

Minors actively check if adults are not just saying ‘do as I say’ and are living to their words. If a the teacher encourages everyone to adhere to certain values, but they do not do the same, children may get disillusioned. A teacher who threatens other people with unreasonable expectations and who tells children – ‘listen, you must show respect’ will likely have problems with how children respond to such people. This cohesiveness of the speech and actions dots out the likelihood of children respecting a number of adults.

The Role of Parents and Family Issues in the Formation of Individual’s Respect

A minor should be conscious of the sense of respect as the family is the primary institution for understanding this particular sense. It is often observed that the parent or guardian as the primary caretakers shapes the way a child understands authority. This is especially true if a child is consistently respectful to them regardless of the age. Most of the children in such households are oriented into extending dignity to other adults because respect is not only taught but also practiced.

If children witness the same type of disrespectful interactions between their parents or to other elders, they may tend to find it hard respecting adults altogether. When it comes to a parent’s personal way of living for instance balance between work, relations and obligations, it greatly dictates what their children think about non-related adults’ aspects of life.

The Role of Self Perception in Changes of Acceptable Cultural Perceptions

Like parents, adults also serve as models for minors and children’s attitudes to such adults may be shaped by cultural expectations. In some societies, there are certain behavioral codes where children must respect adults, especially upper age groups. It is the belief that age precedes wisdom and so children must be taught to hold adult persons, irrespective of their lifestyle, with high regard. Respect in such a culture is often viewed as respect for one’s positions, where the young must bow to the old for no other reason but heritage.

In more individualistic cultures, the concept of respect finds its place amidst earnable rather than automatic values. For example, in these societies, minors may confer respect to the adult based on his or her personal values, achievements, or societal roles. Such changes further signify the evolution of respect as a social construct across cultures, in which the emphasis is less on age and more on respectability and personality qualities.

Developing Social Media and Adolescence

There are many structural and psycho-emotional changes within the adult-minor relationship due to social network and today’s communication methods. Children now have the unique opportunity of not just being within the physical setting and seeing how the adults behave, but on the web and observing their behavior on a wider perspective. Social media is bombarded with interactions from influencers, celebrities, and even ordinary people so that small children can evaluate their behavior, choices, and values.

Looking at it in today’s context, social media has offered a more definitive understanding of respect; it can be earnt and lost within the platform. So, looking up to a certain adult for their achievements or how they affect society positively, several minors will demonstrate respect by following, liking, or commenting on the adult’s posts. On the other hand, should that adult do any other act considered unsatisfactory or taboo, the children very easily lose any shred of respect there was. The technology era has indeed made respect more businesslike than before in that, gaining or losing it is done in the open and rather in a rapid manner.

Effects of Personal Experiences

Cultural norms or even societal expectations are not the only contributing factors, personal experiences also affect how minors respect adults. A child whose adult companion has taken a keen interest in nurturing his development is likely to view such adults positively. On the contrary, those who have been neglected, held in contempt, or abused by adults are more likely to have a challenge in showing respect towards those in power.

Personal experience affects the views held by minors towards adults and lessens the issue of respect as a social relative commodity. A minor’s relationship with his/her parents, his/her teachers and other authority figures can motivate or demotivate the child towards respecting other adults. For example, a student who is treated with warmth and empathy by a teacher may respect that adult quite a lot whereas a child treated in a warm way and yet still feels that she is not understood, may find it hard to the same degree respect.

Authority vs. Admiration

Respect for adults can be observed in two distinct forms: respect for the status of an individual and respect based on appreciation of an individual’s personality. Authority oriented respect is usually more structural. Children may hold adult role models such as teachers, police officers, or parents in high regard simply because they are required to do so. This type of respect is often socialized through behavior and its consequences.

However, respect rooted in admiration is spontaneous and voluntary. Children yield to adults whom they look up because of past accomplishments, kindness, or even leadership. Because people respect authority for some time only, admiration tends to be more profound and permanent. Children tend to respect adults who cause admiration in their lives to a greater extent than when it comes to respect seeking in terms of obedience.

The Role of Empathy in Respect

Mature minds regard the contributions of the adult to the child and to the community as worthy of respect, and this is where the thinking of the child regarding the adult is called forth. When children comprehend the problems that are present in adults along with their many facets, then this respect may take a more representative form. Such respect towards minors allows them to pity adults instead of looking down at them.

In particular, this is useful in terms of modern parenting principles, which dictate the necessity for openness and comprehension. Also, when parents or other adults explain the reason for their actions, decisions or the difficulties in their lives, children may grow more respectful of them. Respect that is driven by empathy has the potential to deepened relationships and enrich children’s interactions with adults.

Conclusion

There is no one determinant factor regarding the attitudes children show towards elders, as several cultural, familial, societal and individual factors come into play. Age and accrued authority may still command respect in some circumstances however there is the question as to the best way to earn the admiration of children by adults in the course of their interactions. On the other hand, alignment of positive behaviors such as warmth, truthfulness and compassion in adult role models leads to quest for respect from minors. These days due to the evolution of the world and the changing order of hierarchy, where social media allows children to engage in adults’ lives self-respect through mere unearned basis is fast disappearing.