Wondering what your parenting style is? Or maybe you’re thinking, ‘what are the 5 parenting styles and what parenting style best fits my kids?
As a parent, you may expect your children to do whatever you say without asking questions. To micromanage all aspects of your kid’s life so you can keep them safe and ensure they succeed.
Still, others embrace an easygoing approach, allowing kids to have the final say on almost everything about them.
This is not all… other parents will swing between different parenting styles depending on the age of the child, the kid’s temperament, or the prevailing situation.
For instance:
- In the morning when your energy is overflowing, you may apply authoritative parenting. Set clear rules and outline the consequences of breaking these rules. If your child breaks the rules later in the day, talk about it.
- At the end of the day when your energy levels are at their lowest, you may apply permissive parenting, leaving your kids to do what they want.
- Still, in other instances, you may want to lock yourself up in the room and enjoy a glass of wine without caring what your kids are doing. This is uninvolved/ neglectful parenting.
So, what are the 5 parenting styles? Read on to find out…
5 Parenting Styles and their Characteristics
1. Authoritative Parenting: Highly-Involved Parenting Styles with Amazing Results
- Authoritative parents set high standards for their kids while providing unlimited guidance so they can meet these standards.
- Most of the time these parents apply positive discipline, not my-way-or-the-highway rule.
- Most kids brought up by authoritative parents perform better in real life and academically.
- The children understand what their parents want from them and are confident that they’ll meet these standards.
- Also, children under authoritative parenting enjoy better relationships with others and will most likely be independent people in life.
How Authoritative Parenting Affects Kids
- The children learn how to respect and obey rules
- Children always think before they act, making it possible to avoid making impulsive choices.
- Kids perform better in academics
- Promotes discipline, independence, and self-motivation in kids
2. Permissive Parenting: Stay out of their Kids’ Way Which Means, They’ll Have to Figure Things Out on Their Own
- Don’t set any rules for their kids
- Regards themselves as friends to their kids, not figures of authority
- Children under permissive parenting usually don’t perform well in school and are poor both socially and emotionally.
- Permissive parents love and tend to their kids’ needs
- Usually ignores bad behavior and will most likely give in to their children’s tantrums
How Permissive Parenting Affects Children
- Children under permissive parenting as likely to struggle with anxiety or depression
- Kids tend to be aggressive and have poor social skills
- Poor performance in school
- Kids always find a way to speak their minds and may be more creative
- May not adapt to situations in life where they need to follow the rules to the dot.
3. Authoritarian Parenting: Either-My-Way-Or-The-Highway
Have you ever told your children to do something and when they try asking a question, you respond, ‘because I said it?’ Well, this is authoritarian parenting.
- Just like authoritative parenting, an authoritarian parent sets high standards for his kids but is less nurturing.
- And when a kid fails to meet these standards, the punishment is very harsh.
- No flexibility- either my-way-or-the-highway
- No warmth in the parent-child relationship
How Authoritarian Parenting Affects Kids
- Kids raised via authoritarian parenting are likely to rebel from their teenage years
- Instead of seeing their parents as mentors, they regard them as bullies
- The kids are likely to bully their peers at some point in life
- Children raised by authoritarian parents may struggle with depression or low self-esteem.
4. Attachment Parenting Style: Strong Family Bond
- Always apply nurturing touch
- Responds with sensitivity
- Practices positive discipline
- Has a near-perfect personal-family life
- Does everything, including feeding with lots of love, care, and respect
- Always present for nighttime parenting
How Attachment Parenting Affects Kids
- Helps children handle adversities, and stress
- May make it harder for kids to live independently when the parent is not with them
While attachment parenting may be of great benefit to the kids, the parents tend to forget their own needs. This may make it hard to move on if anything happens to the child or when the kids have to live separately.
5. Free-Range Parenting: Allows Independence As Long as One Follows the Rules
- Encourage children to become more independent
- Kids have more autonomy with little supervision
- Free-range parents still set rules and expect the kids to follow them, even with little supervision
- Free-range parents will advise their kids on what to do whenever problems arise.
- Also, the parent has to be mindful of what the law says before allowing the kids to do certain things
How Free-Range Parenting Affects Kids:
- Children become more independent
- More responsible kids in the long run
- Kids become more creative and acquire better problem-solving skills
- May not apply in all aspects as one has to live within what the laws of the land dictate.
There you have it. Hope we’ve answered the question, ‘what are the 5 parenting styles?’
As you’ve realized under what are the 5 parenting styles, each style has its pros and cons. Also, the parenting style that works for others may not work for your kids.
Also, there are times when you have to combine parenting styles depending on the situation. If the kids need comfort after a stressful situation, apply attachment parenting.
To set some boundaries at home, use authoritative parenting
If your kids become irresponsible and unreasonable, go for authoritarian parenting
And if your kids have proven that they can be trusted, apply a little free-range parenting.
What’s important is remaining in control either directly or indirectly. Remember, growing up is a phase. Your kids will at some point have to live on their own and what you teach them will either make them successful or failures.
Do you have other concerns on what are the 5 parenting styles? Or you are still not sure whether you are a good parent? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
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