The family is considered the most important agent of socialization because it is the family that provides crucial childhood development. The family is the first line of defense to prevent children from becoming feral children, which can have disastrous consequences on a child's life. The family creates the personal identity of young children and begins the socialization process. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayWhen a child is born, his or her personality is in what Sigmund Freud called the "id" stage, in which the child has a constant demand for immediate gratification. The child needs responsible and loving family members to help him develop what Sigmund Freud called “ego”, which is the reality-oriented stage, and what Sigmund Freud called “superego”, which introduces the moral and ethical aspects of personality. .Another reason why the family is considered the most important agent of socialization is because it is the family that will help the child through what Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist, calls the four stages of cognitive development. In the first stage, called the sensorimotor stage, which occurs from birth to two years old, the child is unable to speak or have symbolic thoughts. The second stage, called the preoperational stage, occurs from ages two to seven, when children are just beginning to form mental images and symbols. In the third stage, called the concrete operational stage, which occurs from ages seven to eleven, children are able to draw their own conclusions regarding the likely physical consequences of actions and to relate to the points of view of others. In the fourth stage, called the formal operational stage, which occurs from age twelve to adulthood, young people are able to absorb abstract thinking and understand things such as places and events that they have not seen. At this stage young people are also able to understand the concept of past, present and future and to relate to each other. No one is more influential in a child's development through these stages than family. The family provides children with a sense of what is normal in society. The family gives children rules of behavior, as well as beliefs and values. Over the past few generations, the American family has undergone dramatic changes, including a huge increase in the number of single people, due to an increasing divorce rate and a very high divorce rate. increase in single women giving birth. Many people wait longer to get married. These changes have been linked to changes in child care, the development of women's role in society, and the sexual revolution from the 1960s to the 1980s. Although the “mom and dad” family with one or more children remains the norm, this tradition is wearing thin. Social class in America can create differences in how people experience family life and how they conduct their marriages. People from the upper class i.e. the wealthy class spend millions of dollars on a luxury wedding and honeymoon vacation. The low-income working class will spend a few hundred dollars on a backyard wedding on a Saturday and return to work the following Monday. Likewise on holidays, the rich class will fly all over the country visiting families with beautiful and large houses with guesthouses or guest rooms. But the low-income working class may simply stay home during the holidays or some will even have to work during the holidays. The difference in race in America can have different styles of marriage and family life due.