The ordinary family in colonial North America was primarily concerned with sheer physical survival and beyond that, its own economic prosperity. Thus, children were valued in terms of their productivity, and they assumed the role of producer quite early. Until they fulfilled this role, their position in the structure of the family was one of subordination and their psychological needs and capacities received little consideration. As the society became more complex, the status of children in the family and in the society became more important. In the complex, technological society that the United States has become, each member must fulfill a number of personal and occupational roles and be in constant contact with a great many other members. Consequently, viewing children as potentially acceptable and necessarily multifaceted members of society means that they are regarded more as people in their own right than as utilitarian organisms. This acceptance of children as equal participants in the contemporary family is reflected in the variety of statutes protecting the rights of children and in the social and public welfare programs devoted exclusively to their well-being. This new view of children and the increasing contact between the members of society has also resulted in a surge of interest in child-rearing techniques. People today spend a considerable portion of their time conferring on the proper way to bring up children. It is now possible to influence the details of the socialization of another person' s child by spreading the gospel of current and fashionable theories and methods of child rearing. The socialization of the contemporary child in the United States is a two-way transaction between parent and child rather than a one-way, parent-to-child training program. As a consequence, socializing children and living with them over a long period time is for parents a mixture of pleasure, satisfaction, and problems.