In the article, “Teen Control Backfires,” a study found that too much parental control can be just as bad as too little. Some will argue that parents of teens and tweens have more difficult tasks than parents of young children, where the parents of the older kids have to try and find a perfect medium. In this study, if a parent gave their child too much freedom, the child was more likely to take more risks, and behave poorly. They conducted the same study for parents that were too controlling. It seems as the parent needs to be somewhere in the middle of the two to be considered a “good parent.” Somehow the parent needs to learn to balance being too intrusive from being too laid back. The article suggests allowing teens “nights out but know who with and where,” instead of not even asking where they’re going. Sara Goldstein, an assistant psychology professor stated that “it’s important for parents to make adolescents feel like they do have some freedom.” I agree with that statement, for when a child feels like he is being sheltered or babied, he will act out against the parent. Unless the parent wants their child to act like that, it is best to give them some form of freedom. Trust must be established in the parent-adolescent relationship for it to be successful. Parents need to remember that a good balance is key.
Cunningham, Aimee. "Teen Control Backfires." Scientific American Mind 16.2 (2005): 9. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 11 Oct. 2010.
No comments:
Post a Comment