If a pokemon has a branched evolution family and has not yet decided what to evolve into, is it a bad idea to lead them in one direction? Eg. If I had an eevee and wanted a flareon, is it wrong to try and encourage it to take that path by training it in certain ways and having it meet with other flareon?

Not at all! It’s only really inconsiderate to force your pokémon to adopt an evolution that it doesn’t want to assume. For example, if your eevee absolutely did not want to be flareon, it would be wrong of you to force it to be one. However, if your eevee is indecisive, there’s nothing wrong with giving it information about flareon and offering your advice and opinion.

Just be sure to sit down with your eevee and let it know first that you think it would be a good idea if it evolved into a flareon. Then, be on the lookout for any signs that it may be experiencing doubts as you train it. If at any point it doesn’t seem comfortable about evolving into a flareon, stop training it and ask it what it wants instead.

In other words, absolutely, it’s fine to educate your pokémon about one branch of its evolutionary tree, and it’s certainly fine to encourage your pokémon to choose a certain path. It’s your right as a trainer to channel your pokémon onto the path you think would be best for them. What’s not within your right is forcing your pokémon to choose a path it doesn’t wish to take, which is why it’s very important to be sensitive about your pokémon’s wants and needs.

Best of luck, anonymous!