Youdh’s Insights

For me, marriage preparation has completely changed my perspective on relationships. Before this, I often thought love was mostly about feelings and interaction, something that just “happens” naturally. However, through our readings and class discussions, I now realize that love, especially the kind that leads to marriage, has to be built intentionally. It’s not just about what you feel; rather, it's about how you choose to grow with someone, step by step. This idea became even clearer in class when we learned about the Relationship Attachment Model (RAM), which outlines the proper order in which to build a healthy connection: Know → Trust → Rely on → Commit → Touch. The RAM model is simple, yet profoundly powerful. Its effectiveness lies in the fact that it shows you can’t skip steps or reverse the order without risking serious consequences. Sadly, our dating culture often overlooks this principle, frequently turning the model upside down. Many people, for instance, rush into phys...

Exploring gender and family roles has profoundly affected how I view relationships, identity, and the deep influence on our perceptions. At the core of this reflection is President Gordon B. Hinckley’s teaching:  "Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord."  This truth frames gender not merely as a social construct or biological fact, but as something sacred, a divine partnership designed to fulfill God’s purposes. Our class discussions helped me understand how typical male and female traits often complement each other in a way that benefits families. For instance, women excel in caring, teamwork, and building relationships, while men typically lead in providing, leading, and guarding roles within the family. Although these qualities aren’t fixed or exclusive, when they are recognized and respected, they can create a strong balance in family life. Reflecting on my own experiences growing up in India, I saw these roles play out in rea...

Social class and cultural diversity helped me realize how deeply family dynamics, traditions, and roles are shaped not only by culture but also by socioeconomic forces. Through both the readings and personal reflection, I’ve come to appreciate how my family, like many others, has been molded by traditions, economic demands, and deeply held values about unity and responsibility. One of the most striking things that I learned was from the research "The Costs of Getting Ahead: Mexican Family System Changes After Immigration." It analyzed the way undocumented Mexican families experienced changes in family roles, parenting, and emotional bonding due to the pressure of immigration. I was especially interested in reading about the concept of family, which emphasizes strong family loyalty and solidarity. Despite all these challenges, such as long working hours by parents. It brought to mind the fact that even my family, back in India, depended on cohesive bonding and common beliefs t...

     Since I grew up in India, I used to think that families were all similar, parents made decisions, kids listened, and the older one became, the more one sacrificed. As I’ve been studying family dynamics more deeply now, especially through Family Systems Theory and genogram analysis, I’ve realized how many secret rules and hidden patterns govern our daily family life, often without us even knowing. I share this with friends back home who might also find themselves caught in these patterns or who may begin to recognize them in their own families.      Family Systems Theory views the family not as a collection of individuals, but as a living system where the behavior of one member affects all the others. If one part changes, the rest of the system reacts. It’s like gears in a machine; if one gear turns, the rest begin to move as well. This theory highlights roles, boundaries, feedback loops, and the idea that families strive to maintain stability (or "home...

This week, we discovered one of the most debated topics in modern family science and one of the impressive problems- parents of the same sex and the ir effect on children. Instead of forming an opinion based on personal faith, we analyzed research that has influenced the court's most important decisions, especially in the United States. Dr. An important reading was done by Loren Mar k s , who seriously underwent the 2005 American Psychological Association ( APA ), as claimed, "In a single study, the children of gay parents in a single study have not denied any significant honor against the children of heterosexual parents." His analysis taught me that we must carefully examine the quality of research before accepting the findings.   More than 77% of the studies cited by APAs used small, non-representative samples , mostly composed of white, middle-class gay mothers. These samples do not reflect the complete diversity of LGBTQ+ families. It's like trying to ...