"[G]reater use of the internet [for communication] was associated with declines in participants’ communication with family members in the household, declines in the size of their social circle, and increases in their depression and loneliness(5)."

"The family context promoting optimal experience could be described as having five characteristics. The first one is clarity: the teenagers feel that they know what their parents expect from them–goals and feedback in the family interaction are unambiguous. The second is centering, or the children’s perception that their parents are interested in what they are doing in the present, in their concrete feelings and experiences, rather than being preoccupied with whether they will be getting into a good college or obtaining a well-paying job. Next is the issue of choice: children feel that they have a variety of possibilities from which to choose, including that of breaking parental rules–as long as thy are prepared to face the consequences. The fourth differentiating characteristic is commitment, or the trust that allows the child to feel comfortable enough to set aside the shield of his defenses, and become unselfconsciously involved in whatever he is interested in(his ital. 16)."

–Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, "Flow: the psychology of optimal experience"

"Then the kids came. They are now 2 years old and 7 months old, and they keep me busy. I have no time for fussiness or complications. People ask me how I do it, and I reply, ‘Simplicity and organization.’ We moved to a rural area up north and look forward to rtaising our kids with values and a wholesome environment(17)."

–Cynthia Ferguson in Elaine St James, "Living the simple