In modern society, family bonds seemly become gradually weaker, and family members are distant from each other each other. Despite the scenario, people have used to it and have no intention to change it. In this passage, I will analyze the primary causes behind the situation along with the possible consequences it might bring.
It is the geographical distance between family members that determines the weaker family ties. As people living in suburban areas or the countryside have to seek better job opportunities with promising prospects, they have no choice but to leave their hometown, going to a place that was thousands kilometers away from their hometown. As a result, the migrant workers are not able to visit their families frequently, constituting the emotionlessness between family members. Besides, this scenario may also attribute to less memorable childhood memory. According to the statistics of psychological department of Harvard University, 34% of the migrant workers are not willing go back to their hometown because it reminds them of the childhood memories, such as failure to meet parents expectations, domestic bullying or previous confrontations. Instead of having no choice but stay in the cities, it is their initiative to not go back.
The distant relationship might firstly contribute to worse older dependencies loneliness. The family members, especially the worker’s parents, are enabled to see their children only once or twice annually. The lack of company would deepen the sense of detachment between family members, exacerbating the mental depression and loneliness of the elderlies. This might further contribute to the reduction in social happiness. On the contrary, the detached family correlation might benefit the individual by enhancing their personal independence. More attention and effort could be devoted to personal development along with career promotion as less worries would be spent on maintaining family relationship. The gain in wages along with workload will aid the individual financial independence, furthermore, people can get a foothold in society.
In conclusion, the reason for distant family relationship could be traced back to the childhood experience and the distance between hometown and workplace, if letting the scenario happening, isolation might grow in elderlies, while migrant workers might benefit from a growing independence.