+70 Parenting styles can be put into four categories: 1. //Firm but loving// **(authoritative)** 2. //Firm but not loving// **(authoritarian)** 3.//Not firm but loving// **(permissive)** 4. //Not firm and not loving// **(uninvolved)**. The best style is firm but loving, and the worst is when the parent is both not firm and not loving, amirite?

by Anonymous 10 years ago

Children from authoritative homes tend to perform better all around while growing up.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Not that I don't believe this (because I suspect it might be true) but do you have any evidence to support this claim?

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I read this in my human lifespan book yesterday. I'll post the actual facts when I get out of my current class.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

"Children reared in such families typically show higher self-esteem and are more independent, but are also more likely to comply with parental requests and may show more altruistic behavior as well. They are self-confident and achievement-oriented in school and get better grades than do children whose parents have other parenting styles (Crockenberg & Litman, 1990; Dornbusch et al., 1987; Steinberg, Elmen, & Mounts, 1989)."

by Anonymous 11 years ago

The only part I disagree on is the worst one. I think firm and unloving is by far the worst kind. I'd rather be ignored than ordered around and constantly yelled at and controlled.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

it might sound bad having no love but firmness but the one who gets no love or discipline ranks the lowest in terms of happiness, self-control, and self-esteem the ones with firm but unloving know at least the caregiver cares enough to boss them around being ordered around is not fun but I'd rather if my caregiver did not ignore me feeling a lack of acknowledgement from a parent is one of the toughest feelings especially since that leads to the most unhappiness and since it's the worst for a child's development

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I think the best kind depends on the child (out of the two loving kinds). Some kids are better off with permissive parents because they flourish on their own in their own way, while others need more rules to keep them adhering to good lifestyles.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

yeah I explained exceptions at the top and permissive generally leads to less self-control, possible issues with emotion regulation, and impulsiveness

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I dunno, I was definitely raised permissively. I suppose much of that came naturally to me (though I cannot resist eating any unhealthy food stored in my house when the chance arrives).

by Anonymous 11 years ago

http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/parenting-style.htm development-wise authoritative is the best style I'd say that doesn't mean kids won't flourish from other styles someone who grew up with an authoritarian or uninvolved parent could develop just fine but that doesn't disprove that authoritative is the best in general I didn't specify that authoritative is the best for everyone but looking at the results it's authoritative that has the best results

by Anonymous 11 years ago

If you mean in general, then I agree. Most kids benefit the most from an authoritative style.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

yes I wrote this post thinking about each style individually and how they work often also, not only does the parent influence the child but the child also has an influence on the parent's choice of style two siblings might grow up with two different styles the aggressive one may face an authoritarian caregiver and the timid one may face a permissive style from the very same caregiver here's another layer to it if you scroll down to "What about children's styles?" http://www.aboutourkids.org/articles/parenting_styleschildren039s_temperaments_match

by Anonymous 11 years ago

The trouble with firm and unloving is that sometimes a punishment would be withdrawal of affection and ignoring. And trust me that really sucks. And it's not so much unloving as just an inability of the parent to respond to a child's emotion. They will say things like "What's your problem?" and "You're not the victim here" Also they don't see the child as an equal in the sense that tbey won't explain any rules because the mindset is that the child has to obey regardless. So they will say tthings like "because I said so" and even if a rule or consequence logically makes no sense it will enforced. And it's really hard to say what is worse because it obviously depends on the situation but authoritarian (firm, unloving) is really a pretty tough one to go through....

by Anonymous 10 years ago

authoritarian is tough but in a country such as China kids feel loved when their parents show discipline they're getting attention when a parent shows no firmness or no love I say that's the worst because it's as if they don't care enough to even interact with you one of the worst feelings is when a parent shows no kind of attention towards the kid when they barely acknowledge your existence when they abandon you

by Anonymous 10 years ago

I agree that obviously the neglectful sort is certainly not a healthy environment to grow up in but as I said it's difficult to argue what's worse because it depends on the situation. I mean I'm sure that there are authoritarian kids out there who have it much worse than neglected kids and also vice versa. And I'm sure both sides have caused teen suicide somewhere in the world. It's difficult for one person to compare better or worsr because tou can only imagine what the others feel like.

by Anonymous 10 years ago