Abbie Price

Ms. Oda

English 1010

7 January 2023

How Are You Raising Your Child?

3 perspectives about Parenting Styles

Research Question: What is the best parenting style for parents or are they even needed in

2022?

Parenting styles have recently become a significant study in psychology, first discovered

by Diana B Baurmrind in 1966. This is the study of 4 main parenting styles. Authoritative,

authoritarian, permissive, and uninvolved. The debate, however, is about which is the best style

for parents in today's day in age and if parenting styles are needed. Most people have heard the

issue of wrong and suitable parenting styles, but there is some disagreement about which one is

the best. Some acknowledge the different qualities of parenting styles but feel that they’re

unnecessary for them to learn fully about the virtues of parenting. Others point to a statistic that

shows the correct type of parenting is authoritative. Still, others say to let their children do what

they want and let them be “adults.”

First, the argument that parenting styles are not important enough to learn about the

different qualities has been thrown around throughout the years. However, some studies show

how parents can affect their children's mental state. Debora Baldwin states in her article,

Perceived Parenting Styles on College Students’ Optimism, “the relationship between parenting

styles and child psychosocial outcomes are well documented. To our knowledge, empirical

studies examining the association between parenting styles and dispositional optimism are scant.
However, there is evidence that suggest that the same parenting behaviors (e.g., hostility,

rejection, parental dominance or control) that contribute to child depression may contribute to

pessimism in children as well (Dixon, Heppner, Burnett & Lips, 1993)” (Baldwin). Showing how

much parenting styles can affect a child, parents need to be aware of how they’re raising their

children. If not raised correctly, children will be more prone to depression and neglect. In the

study of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences Researchers Add New Findings in the Area of

Anxiety Disorders (The effect of parenting style on anxiety and depression in adolescent girls

aged 12-16 years) it says, “The findings of the present study showed that an educational

intervention on a group of mothers regarding their parenting styles has helped their adolescent

daughters to handle their anxiety and depression and also led to a decrease in their anxiety and

depression scores.” With how their mothers decided to educate themselves for their daughters,

their daughters received more help in this stressful world. When parents educate themselves they

can help their children through the struggles of life, so therefore it is important to learn and apply

the different types of parenting styles.

Next, with the development of the different styles of parenting, one must figure out which

one is the best type of parenting style. According to a widespread population, it is shown that

authoritative parenting is the most effective style. The article High Praise for Strict Parenting,

talks about the benefits of authoritative parenting. “Research shows that children who grow up

with authoritative parenting are more secure than children who grow up with permissive

parenting, Dorr says. If a 5-year-old can push his parents around, he loses respect for them.

‘Therefore, he can't depend on them to watch out for him. With authoritative parents, children

know that when they get in trouble, they can far back on their parents because they know they're

tough.’” (Berg). Permissive parenting doesn’t work in this example because children who
demand their parents around don’t make sense. Parents are there to teach their children not the

other way around. The article, Indulgent Parenting, Helicopter Parenting, and Well-Being of

Parents and Emerging Adults - Journal of Child and Family Studies talks about the results of

their study and how it affected the children and how the children take what they’ve learned from

their parents and apply it to themselves for when they have children. “Results from analyses on

parents and emerging adults suggested that indulgent parenting in childhood and adolescence

was associated with helicopter parenting in emerging adulthood there was a positive association

between indulgent parenting and parents’ negative well-being, and helicopter parenting mediated

the association between indulgent parenting and emerging adults’ depressive and anxiety

symptoms and emotional dysregulation.” (Cui) Helicopter parenting is another term for

uninvolved parenting. It means that the parents aren’t there for their children physically and/or

mentally. With this study shows that demanding, negative, neglectful parenting affects the child's

mental health.

Finally, parents believe that giving their children the freedom to do what they want is the

best way to raise their children. They want their child to think they’re cool as a parent. The

article, Permissive Parenting - Why Indulgent Parenting Is Bad for Your Child, talks about the

effects of permissive parenting and the qualities it brings your children.

Lax parents do not monitor their children’s study habits. So their children have less

self-discipline. Permissive parents also do not demand their children to perform or set a

goal for their children to strive for. Studies show that children of permissive parents tend

to have lower academic achievement. Permissive parents do not control or regulate their

children’s behavior. So their children are less aware of the limits of acceptable behavior.

They also exhibit worse impulse control and have more behavioral problems. When
 facing stressful situations, they are more likely to resort to using aggression. Studies have

found that children of permissive parents are more likely to be associated with crimes,

substance abuse, and alcohol-related issues because they have worse impulse control.

Emotional regulation is not something we are born with. It is a learned skill. Because

children of permissive parents are left to regulate their activities, behavior, and emotions

at a young age, they tend to have more difficulties self-regulating. Studies have found

that children raised by permissive disengaged parents tend to have less empathy leading

to worse social skills. They generally display more anti-social behavior. Permissive

parents do not regulate their children’s eating. These children are twice as likely to be

overweight compared to children raised by authoritative parents. (Li)

The results of permissive parenting are devastating. Children have no sense of worth or

responsibility. When there isn’t a knowledge of respect it can reflect not only on the parents but

also teachers and employers. This last article is called, The Impact of Children’s Socioemotional

Development on Parenting Styles. This talks about how much parenting affects the child and

how parents need to watch how children are raised. “Parents are the most important

environmental factors in a child’s development. In the literature, the focus has been mainly on

the role of three parenting style dimensions on children’s socioemotional development.”

(Zarra-Nezhad). Children need sustainable parenting and permissive doesn’t seem to be the

answer.

I believe that authoritative parenting is the best way to raise a child because it’s not too

hurtful towards the child as authoritarian and permissive. Those two parenting styles appeal to

many parents but it damages children. Parenting styles are important and while people believe

authoritative parenting is the best, some also believe that permissive parenting is the best style of
parenting. Especially after writing this article, I feel as if authoritative parenting is the best

parenting style because it meets everything in the middle and it isn’t teaching children bad habits

nor is it causing children to fear their parents. The debate overall is difficult because, in theory,

every parent should traditionally raise their children but in 2022 there is a lot of permissive

parenting. Children not doing anything, becoming lazy, and don’t respect their elders/those in

charge of them. Hopefully, this article can reach the ears of those parents who need to understand

that their children need a parent, not a best friend.

Baldwin, Debora R., et al. "Perceived parenting styles on college students' optimism."

College Student Journal, vol. 41, no. 3, Sept. 2007, pp. 550+. Gale OneFile: High School

Edition,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/A169306800/GPS?u=pioneer&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=586d0d84.

Accessed 1 Dec. 2022.

In this article, Baldwin first talks about the different parenting styles defined by

Baumrind. He only mentions 3 which are, authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive. Then

Baldwin described the other attributes of each type of parenting style. She talks about the

relationship between a parent and child and how if it is a negative relationship, it could lead to

depression for the child.

This will be useful in my article because it shows that parenting styles are important.

They’re not something to ignore because they can and will affect your child's mental state and

that will be a big winner in pulling people over to acknowledging that parenting styles are

important.

Berg, Stacie Zoe. "High praise for strict parenting." Insight on the News, vol. 13, no. 32,

1 Sept. 1997, p. 43. Gale OneFile: High School Edition,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/A19701878/GPS?u=pioneer&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=c472f156.

Accessed 2 Jan. 2023.

This article talks about the strict parenting can be beneficial in growing up because it

causes your child to respect you and it teaches the child that they’re not in control, the parents

are. That doesn’t mean to be demanding and rude to the child but it means to assert dominance.
 I like this article it will support the cause that authoritative parenting is the best type of

parenting. It also shows the weakness in the other types of parenting.

Cui, Ming, et al. “Indulgent Parenting, Helicopter Parenting, and Well-Being of Parents

and Emerging Adults - Journal of Child and Family Studies.” SpringerLink, Springer US, 7

Jan. 2019,

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10826-018-01314-3.

I like this research article because it discusses how parenting styles will affect the child

and which parenting styles the child uses when they become a parent. This will be a very good

study to add to my paper because parents want the best for their kids and grandkids so they want

to set good examples and make sure they’re providing the best for their children.

Li, Pamela. “Permissive Parenting - Why Indulgent Parenting Is Bad for Your Child.”

Parenting For Brain, 4 Dec. 2022, https://www.parentingforbrain.com/permissive-parenting/.

I like this article because it is very useful when it comes to explaining today's parenting v

old parenting. It shows the cons of permissive parenting and all the dangers that could come

from it. It talks about some of the mental illnesses that could come to kids because of this style of

parenting. This article will be very useful in showing the dangerous change we’ve made from old

parenting styles to new parenting styles.

"Shiraz University of Medical Sciences Researchers Add New Findings in the Area of

Anxiety Disorders (The effect of parenting style on anxiety and depression in adolescent girls

aged 12-16 years)." Women's Health Weekly, 1 Dec. 2022, p. 6251. Gale OneFile: High School

Edition,
link.gale.com/apps/doc/A728038208/GPS?u=pioneer&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=dbfd7963.

Accessed 4 Dec. 2022.

This article talks about how some parenting styles have helped their daughters with their

anxiety in Iran. They did a whole study about what mothers can do to help their daughters.

Iran has a different culture than us so it will be interesting to use this as a source because

of how different our countries raise our children so this will be a good compare and contrast

moment in my article. Also, it is another point in the case that parenting styles are important.

Zarra-Nezhad, Maryam, et al. “Full Article: The Impact of Children’s Socioemotional

Development on ...” Taylor and Francis Online, 2020,

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03004430.2020.1835879.

This is a study about the effects of parenting styles on children. They have given a

questionnaire to children and parents asking them questions about how social the children are

and how affectionate the parents are. Studies show that more affectionate parents bring up more

social children. I think it will be a good add-on because it’s a current study and it also brings up

other ways of becoming a better parent and how to raise your children. This article also has a

compare and contrast aspect to it which is good for rebuttals and more information.