"There was no respect for youth when I was young, and now I am old, there is no respect for age - I missed it coming and going." - J.B .Priestly 

Is this still the concern of parents today or has the complaint been extended to cover many other areas? With fingers pointed at the parents we hear comments such as: 

"Kids have no respect for others".

"Easy come, easy go! There's no respect for property anymore." 

"Look at the clothing on these kids! Where's the self respect?"

 Many parents argue, that the challenge for them today is facing the conflict between teaching respect for others, and teaching skills around safety. 

"Don't talk to strangers," is very different advice from: "Always respect your elders and answer when you're spoken to."

What can parents do? How is respect taught in the family?  

In order to have children who will be respectful of others, they first need to feel respected at home. Feeling respected, leads to self-respect, which affects self-esteem and self-confidence, three strong antidotes for coping with unhealthy peer pressure.

1. Parents can encourage a feeling of self-respect by:

2. Understanding and appreciating personality differences in the family, emphasizing each child's unique strengths. 

3. Modeling respectful behavior to all family members so that children can  experience being respected. (An extra please and thank you helps a great deal here). 

4. Enforcing rules in the home around put-downs, name-calling. Emphasizing that just because 'everyone' says it, or does it, is not an excuse to have the behavior in your house.

5. Listening to children's opinions (listening is not agreeing!) This also demonstrates to them the difference between respect and approval.

6. Offering children opportunities to grow with age-appropriate responsibilities, and then acknowledging their effort. 

7. Allowing children to experience the consequences of their mistakes, without preaching or rescuing.

8. Sharing your values and explaining why you feel strongly about certain issues.