Taperman articles

Each year Americans are moving intercity, interstate and abroad. Chasing the American Dream is forcing people to migrate. Such a movement has its effects, some good and others not so good. One such adverse effect has been the social costs of moving on the traditional American Family. A conventional American family consists of at least two generations living together, with the elders living in the same house or in the same city. This model is still prevalent in rural America but is becoming scarce in the cities. Economic reasons are forcing Americans to make hard choices. These choices include moving away which has an adverse effect on their families. More often than not, moving hits the elders of a family the hardest. The choice to move usually involves leaving behind the elders. The elders are thus faced with an ‘empty nest’ which has a direct impact on their emotional health. Moving sometimes involves admitting the elders into old age homes. Some senior citizens cope up with this ‘banishment’, while others find that sadness and melancholy dominate their lives. Along with the elders others are also affected. Children too feel the adverse effects of moving. The moral values and lessons of life passed on verbally by the grandparents are lost to them. Moving to a new place is never easy on the pocket. Any relocation is a challenge on your budget management, which would include careful assessment of your immediate liquidity, as well as your various insurance policies. A move abroad requires far more careful financial planning than an interstate move. The financial health of unitary families is also affected. It may well happen that the children plan to move away requiring the parents to ‘chip in’ thus increasing the financial burden. Despite doing that, the children may not reciprocate on reaching their new place thus straining the family social relations. Moving also affects the way families relate to each other and the society at large. Relocation involves, in most cases, leaving behind a part of your family, that vacuum requires to be filled up. If this vacuum is not filled by a suitable role model, children may fall into bad company and also may require psychiatric help at a later stage. Why are Americans going in for psychiatric counseling in increasing numbers? The answer possibly lies in the disarray caused by the breakdown in the American family social structure - a possible outcome of migration. So should we as Americans reevaluate the way we have become or continue to chase the eternal rainbows - that’s the question that needs answering.

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