Parenting Styles and Child Growth

Parents are the first window that a child sees the world through. Therefore the way parents choose to parent their children at the different stages of their lives has great influence on how they develop their characters. The degree to which parents set rules, show love, handle discipline, and allow for the child’s expression and input all affect how the child feels about themselves, how independent they become, and how they interact with others. Psychologically, there are four main types of parenting depending on how strict they are.

Authoritative parents set clear rules and expectations for their children but at the same time give some autonomy to the children. They provide explanations for the rules and allow for input. This style seems to be the most balanced and builds confident personalities that are able to make responsible decisions. Authoritarian parents, on the other hand, impose strict rules that are non-negotiable. No room for the children’s understanding, opinions, or expression leads to building characters with low esteem that are most likely very disciplined, but follow rules out of fear.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are the permissive parents, who don’t set many or any rules. This creates an atmosphere of love and friendship between the parents and children but leads to characters that have low self-control or discipline. Finally, there are the neglectful parents, who are almost absent. Their lack of support or even involvement in their children’s lives leads to many problems, such as in school and in relationships with peers, friends, and other adults.

In the end, how a child is raised influences their emotional growth, communication skills, ability to problem solve and face both stress and challenges, as well as their social interactions and relationships. Parenting styles are the foundation to building either stable, healthy, and balanced versus weak, unstable, and insecure personalities.