Images from whattoexpect.com and blog.lib.umn.edu

Parenting Styles

Uninvolved Parents:

Do not respond to child needs Do not set limits or demand anything

from the child Child “fends for self”

Permissive/Indulgent Parents:

Warm and responsive to needs of child Do not set limits or behavioral

expectations Child has “free reign”

Authoritarian Parents:

Are not sensitive to child’s needs and are not responsive to them

Set rigid rules and expectations that are not negotiable by child.

Are demanding and directive Child has no say.

Authoritarian Parents:

Are sensitive and responsive to child’s needs

Set high and reasonable expectations and demands of child

Use natural consequences to teach child Respect child as independent

individuals Research indicates this is the most

healthy form of parenting

Resources

Berk, L. E. (2013). Development through the life-span (6th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. ISBN: 978-0205968985

Gurian, A. (n.d.). Parenting Styles- Children's Temperaments: The Match.AboutOurKids.org. Retrieved March 16, 2014, from http://www.aboutourkids.org/articles/parenting

HEALTHY PARENTING FOR HEALTHY CHILDRENBy: Kristen Stephenson-CusacWake Forest University StudentOnline Master’s in Counseling ProgramStepKM13@wfu.edu

HEALTHY PARENTING FOR HEALTHY CHILDREN

Understanding how parenting styles and child temperament can lead to lifelong adjustment

Temperament Styles

The Easy Child:

Can easily establish regular routines, sleeping, and eating habits, but is adaptable when the routine is thrown off

Generally cheerful and happy Easily warms ups to strangers and

unfamiliar situations

The Difficult Child:

Is generally fussy and irritable Does not keep regular eating and

sleeping routines Low in adaptability Easily fearful and upset Intense reactions

The Slow-to-warm-up Child:

Tends to be withdrawn and inactive Reacts negatively, though mildly, to

unfamiliar situations and people, but can warm up and improve with time

* Remember: Temperament is NOT permanent and can change with a few parenting tweaks!

“Goodness of Fit”This principle implies that your temperament can affect your and that you can alter your child’s temperament!

Parents who are aware of their child’s temperament style can modify parenting techniques to fit a child’s temperament, but encourage positive behavior and reactions.

Temperaments and environments can work together to decrease the behavior and responses you do not like, and encourage positive reactions.

“Both difficult and shy children benefit from warm, accepting parenting that makes firm but reasonable demands for mastering new experiences” ~ Laura E. Burke

Elements of Temperament to be aware of:

Activity Level: Level of gross-motor activity

Attention Span and Persistence: how long they keep interest

Fearful distress: Response to intense and new situations and how long adjustment takes

Irritable distress: How long and how much crying and fussing is done when desires are not met.

Positive Affect: How often one expresses happiness and pleasure

Effortful Control: Self-regulation and the ability to suppress what a child wants to do for what is more acceptable

Parenting Tips: What this means for you

1.) Be aware of your own temperament style and how it affects your responses to your child

For example: if you are anxious, child may be more irritable.

2.) Realize what your child’s needs are and respond to them consistently

If your child is shy in new situations, stay close by, and model comfort and interaction with the surroundings

3.) Set reasonable limits for your children by offering options of acceptable behaviors or options.

For example: No, you may not watch another episode of Mickey Mouse, but you can choose a book to read or a puzzle to play with.

4.) Explain natural consequences of child’s choices- allow them to occur at times

For example: a minor falling down after you suggest they stop running. As you COMFORT and caringly attend to your child, point out what happened.

5.) Stay calm when he or she becomes upset or frustrated to and help him or her find a solution to the problem.

6.) Make sure your child knows his or her opinions are respected and valid, but remain firm in your expectations and decisions.

7.) Acknowledge your child’s individual strengths and work to create an environment where those can thrive

8.) Make communication a key aspect of your family life- explaining decisions made.

9.) Take care of your own mental health10.) Keep your relationship with your spouse

or other family members in your home happy and healthy