Age-Related Characteristics of Family Attitudes among Higher Education Institution Lecturers

Abstract. Researchers note that the leading activity of the family can rightly be considered the
development and transmission of certain values to the next generations – the value orientations of
family members. In the process of its own existence, a family usually creates its own values.
According to the style of relationships between parents and children in a family, there are
authoritarian, democratic, liberal and indulgent upbringing. Authoritarian upbringing is a type of
upbringing in which a certain ideology is accepted as the only truth, and is dominated by such
educational methods as demand, coercion, etc. The democratic style can be implemented in practice
in the system of the following metaphors: “Equal among equals’ and “First among equals’. The
indifferent style is usually manifested in the family as the absence of any relationships: detachment
and alienation of family members from each other. The liberal (non-interference) style of upbringing
is characterised by the lack of active participation of the father or mother in managing the process of
education and upbringing. Family attitudes reflect family upbringing styles. These attitudes can have
a significant impact on how people perceive themselves and others at different stages of life. The
purpose of the article is to theoretically summarise the role of value attitudes towards family
functions and family behaviour strategies, to specify family upbringing styles and to empirically
investigate the age-related peculiarities of family attitudes of university teachers. According to the
Kruskal-Wallis criterion, statistically significant differences were found between the responses of
respondents of different age categories according to the following indicators: having a high income
(ꭓ2=6.85; α=0.05); dressing in the latest fashion (fashion brands, stylish clothes and shoes) (ꭓ2=4.74;
α=0.13); professional development (ꭓ2=8.78; α=0.02); spending free time with family (ꭓ2=7.83;
α=0.02). The scores for respondents aged 41–55 and 56–68 do not differ significantly. In this paper,
we have studied upbringing in several aspects: the use of folk pedagogy methods in upbringing, and
upbringing styles. Faculty members from both Ukrainian and Chinese higher education institutions
aged 41–55 prefer family and family affairs more than any other age group. In all age groups, the
democratic style of upbringing prevails.