Of the topics that most chafe my college students when I teach my seminar Leading Lives That Matter, family relationships tops the list. Unfortunately, the usual way my students deal with these difficulties is through dreams of estrangement. As one of my students recently said: “I can’t wait until I’m financially independent enough that I can leave my family and their baggage behind.” This perspective is symptomatic of a growing trend of conflict avoidance that manifests itself across the spectrum of interpersonal relationships, from ghosting romantic partners and friends to “quiet quitting” (and “quiet firing”) in the workplace. In cases...