Deadly Parenting Style 1: Helicopter Parenting
Hovering over your kids, hurrying to smooth every one of life’s bumps.
It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s a helicopter parent! These parents constantly hover, and stop at next to nothing when it concerns their kids. They finish their homework, do and redo those science projects, and swoop into rescue mode solving each and every kid problem. But beware: if kids have always been rescued or micromanaged, they may have had too little practice in developing such critical life traits such as self-reliance, decision-making and problem solving.
According to Frederick Frankel, PhD, co-director of the UCLA Parenting and Children’s Friendship Program, an outpatient clinic of the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, while parents may believe they have the best intentions and are being helpful, they are in reality doing a disservice to their children. "It’s natural for parents to worry about their children and try to ensure the best for them, but when taken too far, the child may grow without experience in decision making and problem solving," says Dr. Frankel.
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