Just as proper diet and exercise combine to make us feel, look, and function more efficiently, there are certain contributions each family member can make to help create a stronger, healthier, and more satisfying family life. More than any other single factor, the quality of family life in two-parent families is reflected in the nature of the marriage relationship. The wife and husband's ability to communicate, negotiate and compromise, and show their love and affection toward each other provides a positive role model for their children. Quite often, however, romance, caring, and helping are replaced by hostility and resentment. Not only is this detrimental to the couple's relationship, but it's also harmful to the emotional and physical health of the entire family.
Children learn much of their own behavior by observing how their parents relate to each other.
In this way, the marriage relationship becomes the primary component in the development of healthy family relationships. Shared Family Power Power in healthy families is shared power. This means that family decisions and rules are made with the input of each person. It should not be necessary for the father or mother to always try to dictate orders. This becomes an impossible and frustrating task.