Their companionship serves as a source of encouragement or prodding for all that...

Their companionship serves as a source of encouragement or prodding for all that, which is restrained or restricted by the parents; it is therefore, attractive to the child. The examples are an unbridled liberty of movement and loafing about, truancy, relaxation in the discipline, unruly "group behaviour" in the streets and other public places, and. worse still, immoral inclination.

What is even more attractive to that child who is well under disciplinary control at home and apparently worthy of the parents' trust is the sense of sharing secrets among the friends and loyalty to each other with regard to their secrets of misbehaviour outside home. Collective Adventurism. In fact, children are tempted to misbehave among their friends out of collective adventurism for its sake.

The adventure of sailing across the previously unchartered waters of the excitement of permissiveness in a group. all urging one another to paddle on, is the greater pull than the products of the adventure. And yet the products can include serious addictions which hook some of the children to ruin their prospects for good education and ethics.

It is such an alluring spectrum of friendship which poses the risk of the child's obedience to his parents to become eroded and subordinated or tampered by his collective loyalty with other children to their peers among the friends. The child may be uncomfortably unwell or indisposed.

He would however not reveal his state of health to his parents for fear of being grounded at home and missing seeing his friends; or he would still slip out to meet them against the instruction of the parents which was to take rest. Parents should have a cause for concern and begin a discreet investigation if the child's attachment and loyalty to his group of friends are disproportionately this much excessive.

To have friends and want to be with them almost regularly is not only normal but also healthy for the child. However, this normalcy imposes a great responsibility upon the parents. It is essential therefore that the parents keep a track of the movements and behaviour of the child outside the home.

They should get to knowing closely his friends individually by inviting them home and maintaining regular contact with them through the child to the extent that the parents should also show some interest in knowing their performances and conduct in the school so as to be reassured and relieved regarding the caliber of the child's close companions.