Resolution of Communication Conflicts in Multigenerational Households - Research Proposal Example

Resolutions to communication conflicts in multi generational householdsCommunication is a crucial aspect of the human nature. The essential aspects of communication are the sender, encoding, message, receiver, decoding and feedback. The salient feature of communication is the receiver (Poza 12). The sender initiates communication having the receiver in mind. Communication is not complete without the receiver getting the intended message. This paper aims at discussing the solutions to conflicts in multigenerational household.

The members of this house hold differ in age with one another; therefore there ought to be a mechanism of passing information from one person to the other. Living in a multigenerational household is beneficial. The members of these households enjoy companionship and support each other emotionally. They are able to cut on the cost of living, and live comfortably (Candlin et al, 67). The family remains close with one another experiencing life as a team. The children growing in this household benefit from all-round care and attention.

Communication related conflicts are a threat to the cohesiveness of these families. The benefits of living in a multigenerational household can be eroded by conflicts. It is common to have conflicts in families even those that are not multigenerational. This is because people’s perceptions and attitudes towards life are different. In a family, when the members start talking about each other’s weaknesses conflicts arise (Hausner et al, 46). The members of a family develop resentment and judgments towards each other.

This strains the relations of the people within the family.This is a clear sign of communication breakdown within the family. The distribution of information from the source to the intended persons becomes ineffective. The members of the family do not involve in the planning family issues and decisions. As communication deteriorates, the issues of family control start to arise. Power distribution becomes unequal; this leads to segmentation in the family. Poor communication within the family makes conflict to escalate.

A family needs to communicate on the way the family will operate. The responsibility of each member within the family should be well defined. Communications helps in setting of boundaries. The members of the family understand the like and dislikes of each person. They are then able to compromise on issues of disagreement in order to create harmony in the family. The development of proper communication in the family is a conscious process (Poza et al, 93).The family should establish proper communication channels.

They should appoint one or two people and give them the responsibility to be disseminating information. Further, a family should have a conflict committee (Vazquez et al, 138). These are persons who will be solving the family conflicts when they arise. The family members should decide on who among them will lead the conflict committee. This person will receive the grievances of the family members and forward them to the committee for discussion and deliberation.Family meetings are necessary for the succession process of the family from one generation to another.

They enable the members of the family to interact with each other actively. A family bond develops, and people are able to have in-depth communications with each other. The discussions concerning decisions in the family involve everyone. Communication and participation in family matters brings security and a sense of belonging to the family members. Family cohesiveness is strong in families that are able to communicate their history and culture to the next generation. Good communication enables the members of these families to be able to appreciate one another and work as a team.

Improvements in the communication among members help to solve existing conflict, and deter the future conflicts (Hausner et al, 74). Healthy communications, which is open and honest, creates trust. A multigenerational household needs to have family governance in place. The head of the family should then involve everyone in family meetings.ReferencesCandlin, Christopher, and Maurizio Gotti.Intercultural Aspects of Specialized Communication. Bern [etc.: Peter Lang, 2007. Print. Poza, Ernesto J.

Family Business. Mason, Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.Gurman, Alan S. Clinical Casebook of Couple Therapy. New York: Guilford Press, 2010. Print. Vazquez, Carmen I, and DineliaRosa.Grief Therapy with Latinos: Integrating Culture for Clinicians. New York: Springer Pub, 2011. Print. Hausner, Lee, and Douglas Freeman.The Legacy Family: The Definitive Guide to Creating a Successful Multigenerational Family. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. Print.