A man like this will not keep Hashem's statutes and ordinances, for he will utterly refuse to accept them from his father and mother. Torah is transmitted through the generations via parents. If the mitzvah of morah is not upheld, then the mesorah, tradition, will not endure. Our relationship with our parents avails us the opportunity for personal development and growth. Parents should realize the important obligation they have to educate their children in the mitzvah of Kibud Av v'Eim.
Children learn from their parents.
If parents respect each other - children see and emulate. The esteem that children manifest for their parents is connected with the esteem parents demonstrate for one another. The essence of the mitzvah of kavod is appreciation. One of the benefits of this mitzvah is a refinement of our middah of hakoras hatov, which accompanies the mesorah. In other words, the purpose of Kibud Av v'Eim is to establish a relationship that is tempered by hakoras hatov to reflect a transmission of the Torah tradition from father to son.