Parenting Styles Essay, Research Paper

Categorizing parents according to whether they are high or low on parental demands and responsiveness creates a typology of four parenting styles: permissive, authoritarian, authoritative, and uninvolved. (Maccoby & Martin, 1983). Each of these parenting styles reflects different naturally occurring patterns of parental values, practices, and behaviors and a distinct balance of responsiveness and how much they demand.

 Permissive parents (also referred to as “indulgent” or “non-directive”) are more responsive than they are demanding. They are nontraditional and lenient, do not require mature behavior, allow considerable self-regulation, and avoid confrontation” (Baumrind, 1991, p. 62). Permissive parents may be further divided into two types: democratic parents, who, though lenient, are more conscientious, engaged, and committed to the child, and non-directive parents.

 Authoritarian parents are highly demanding and directive, but not responsive. “They are obedience- and status-oriented, and expect their orders to be obeyed without explanation” (Baumrind, 1991, p. 62). These parents provide well-ordered and structured environments with clearly stated rules. Authoritarian parents can be divided into two types: non-authoritarian-directive, who are directive, but not intrusive or autocratic in their use of power, and authoritarian-directive, who are highly intrusive.

 Authoritative parents are both demanding and responsive. “They monitor and impart clear standards for their children s conduct. They are assertive, but not intrusive and restrictive. Their disciplinary methods are supportive, rather than punitive. They want their children to be assertive as well as socially responsible, and self-regulated as well as cooperative” (Baumrind, 1991, p. 62).

 Uninvolved parents are low in both responsiveness and how much they demand. In extreme cases, this parenting style might encompass, both, rejecting neglecting and neglectful parents, although most parents of this type fall within the normal range.

Because parenting style is a typology, rather than a linear combination of responsiveness and how much they demand, each parenting style is more than and different from the sum of its parts. (Baumrind, 1991). In addition to differing on responsiveness and how much they demand, the parenting styles also differ in the extent to which they are characterized by a third dimension: psychological control. Psychological control “refers to control attempts that intrude into the psychological and emotional development of the child” (Barber, 1996, p. 3296) through use of parenting practices such as guilt induction, withdrawal of love, or shaming. One key difference between authoritarian and authoritative parenting is in the dimension of psychological control. Both authoritarian and authoritative parents place high demands on their children and expect their children to behave appropriately and obey parental rules. Authoritarian parents, however, also expect their children to accept their judgments, values, and goals without questioning. In contrast, authoritative parents are more open to give and take with their children and make greater use of explanations. Thus, although authoritative and authoritarian parents are equally high in behavioral control, authoritative parents tend to be low in psychological control, while authoritarian parents tend to be high.