Parenting in Early Childhood
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Psychologist Diana Baumrind identified four different parenting styles based on qualities, such as warmth, discipline, expectation, and communication. Authoritative parents set limits and enforce rules, but also listen to the opinions and thoughts of their children. They exercise control with a light touch and strive to maintain warm, responsive relationships.
Authoritarian parenting is the strictest style. The parent's word is the final say. There are high expectations of the child, but little communication. Punishment is typically strict and possibly physical.
EVA M. POMERANTZ: The authoritarian parent is also high on structure, but they tend to be intrusive and they are not going to be warm.
NARRATOR: Permissive parenting gives the child more free reign with few expectations. Permissive parents may be nurturing and accepting, but may not listen, negotiate, or explain decisions well.
EVA M. POMERANTZ: That's going to be a house where kids can really do whatever they want. They can eat as many muffins as they want. This is not the tiger mother.
NARRATOR: Finally, there is neglectful parenting.
EVA M. POMERANTZ: Neglectful is a parent who's really absent from the house. So there's no structure. There's no control.
There's no autonomy support. And there's no warmth, but there's no hostility. This is the parent who is watching TV while the kids and ruins and wrecks the house.
NARRATOR: Parenting style influences a child's development. Parenting that is abusive or neglectful always harms children. Permissive parenting may undercut a child's development of self-regulation. Authoritarian parenting may inhibit the acquisition of more sophisticated language and problem solving skills. In contrast, authoritative parenting supports positive development and most often results in children who are happy and healthy.
EVA M. POMERANTZ: People generally agree that the authoritative parenting is the best so having this structure, having roles in your house, having your dessert nights, having consistency, but also autonomy support. So within that structure, maybe the child is making decisions about how they're going to spend their free time or how they're going to dress.
NARRATOR: Context also plays a role. Keeping children close by and obedient in order to keep them safe may be incorrectly perceived as authoritarian parenting.
IHEOMA IRUKA: Some families are so stressed. If you think you live in a high-risk neighborhood or you're a single mother, you don't have a job, or you're just economically stressed, we need to understand what do we as a community or society do to really help families who are stressed deal with raising young children.
NARRATOR: With all the different kinds of parents in the world, experts can agree that all children suffer if they feel rejected and unwanted, and benefit if they believe their parents love and appreciate them.
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