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Welcome to “Parents and Kids,” a column dedicated to exploring the unique and dynamic relationships within families. Here, we offer practical advice, insightful tips, and heartfelt stories to help you navigate the joys and challenges of parenting.
In this maiden edition, we will examine different parenting styles you can adopt in raising your kids. To start with, which style do you use? Parenting is a journey filled with challenges, joys, and uncertainties.
At the heart of this journey lies the approach or style parents adopt to raise their children. Parenting styles encompass the strategies, behaviors, and attitudes parents use to interact with their children and guide their development.
While every parent may have their unique blend of parenting styles, Let’s examine the three levels of parenting, and you can determine which one you practice with your kids.
Authoritative Parenting: This style is often seen as the gold standard. It combines warmth and responsiveness with clear expectations and boundaries. It involves nurturing and supporting while also setting reasonable rules and consequences. Authoritative parents strive to foster independence and self-discipline in their children while maintaining a close and loving relationship. Open communication is key; they listen to their children’s perspectives, validate their feelings, and encourage them to express themselves freely, providing guidance without harsh discipline or control.
Permissive Parenting: This style is characterised by high levels of warmth and indulgence with few demands or expectations placed on children. Permissive parents are lenient and often avoid using discipline or setting firm boundaries. They prioritise their children’s happiness and autonomy above all else, sometimes at the expense of structure and accountability. Children raised with this style may struggle with boundaries, authority, and delayed gratification, and they may have difficulty coping with frustration and setbacks due to the lack of clear guidelines.
Uninvolved Parenting: Also known as neglectful parenting, this style is characterised by low levels of warmth, responsiveness, and control. Uninvolved parents are emotionally detached and disengaged from their children’s lives, often prioritising their own needs or interests over their parental responsibilities. They provide minimal supervision, guidance, or support to their children, leaving them to fend for themselves. Children raised in uninvolved households may experience feelings of neglect, abandonment, and insecurity.
As parents, I strongly advise you to adopt the style that best suits you while ensuring the well-being, growth, and discipline of your child.I look forward to hearing about the progress you’ve made in your parenting journey.
