It should be emphasized that the close familial ties are upheld to the highest extent. The primary social welfare system for the Filipino is the family. Many Filipinos live near their family for most of their lives, even as independent adults. A nuclear family is very common among Filipinos. When it comes to the divorce policy in the Philippines it is illegal. President Arroyo provides insight and believe it is "un-Filipino, immoral, unconstitutional and a danger to the Filipino family." Others point out that in the past that ancestral tribes did practice divorce and that the "reign of the Pope via the Spanish crown" to be the source of such laws.
Among great distances of the family, balikbayan boxes are transferred through vast distances as some are compelled to move to international territories. These overseas Filipinos send huge boxes called the balikbayan box to their families back in the motherland containing goods, gadgets and/or popular trendy items. They also bring balikbayan boxes when they return to their motherland on vacation to visit their family. Sometimes their families at the Philippines return the favor and send exotic food items only found in the Philippines or indigenous property expressing Filipino workmanship. It is another way to express cultural exchange and a way of helping out their families at home.
Courtship amongst the Filipino people is heavily influenced by Spanish and Roman Catholic traditions. Many parents disapprove of girls visiting boys' homes. Usually, the boy comes to the girl's house to formally introduce himself to her parents and family. The Filipino must win the Filipina's parents approval. At home, painful corporal punishment is almost always practiced among the Filipino family as children are often hit as a form of discipline. Filipinos use their belts, hands and canes to hit their children.