Throughout the years, the way people have done things has changed for a multitude of reasons, like social media and busy schedules that have made having the same traditions sometimes unrealistic. An example of this is family dinners. 

According to a 2020 story on Harvard Graduate School of Education, only about 30% of families manage to eat together regularly. Although, families eating together has been proven to positively impact family relationships.

I created my own survey through social media. I asked 50 random people from all around the country if they eat dinner with their families on a regular basis. Contrary to past studies, over 60 percent of those surveyed say they do have family dinners more times than not.  

The majority vote does not account for the 30 percent of people surveyed who said they eat alone. So then you have to question, what goes into eating as a family or eating alone, and how can it affect relationships within the household? I interviewed four HHS students from each grade asking them these questions.

Freshman Christina Rosenberg believes that even though their family does not eat together all the time, it does not negatively impact their family’s relationship in any way.

“We only eat together when it comes to holidays or just some nights when we feel like it. We usually go our separate ways after, but I usually stick around with someone so I can talk to my family in some way,” Rosenberg said.  “I wish we could eat together more, sure, but I don’t think it negatively affects us at the same time. We all still get along for the most part whether we eat together or not.”

Junior Chloe Measmer feels that eating dinner together keeps her family close and helps them communicate better. 

“Yes, we eat as a family on a regular basis,” Measmer said. “I think how it affects my family is that we get closer to each other and it helps us communicate with each other.”

Senior Lydia Lavine eats dinner with her mom on a regular basis. She believes it has made their bond stronger. 

“I would say my family eats together frequently. It’s just me and my mom so we usually watch our shows together and eat,” Lavine said. “My relationship with my mom is very strong and we are very close. We are very open with one another and our bond is one of a kind.” 

Sophomore Sabrina Albanese does not eat dinner with her family on a regular basis. She believes that it could have something to do with her family’s lack of communication.

“We all go into our areas and don’t talk,” Albanese said.  “It affects the relationship within our household because we never are sociable with each other. Because of that we aren’t close and always argue honestly.” 

As you can see, there are many dynamics that go into family dinners and how they affect household relationships.