Parenting style has been blamed for juvenile delinquency, research
proves that parenting the child is of many modules and of traits and
types. When it comes to teenagers being out of
control and getting into trouble with the law, the bulk of the blame
goes to the different methods of parenting, but there are other factors
that are playing a significant role alongside parenting style and
modules which we are about to unveil in this article.
Many psychologists claimed there was not enough discipline in the home and that is what let to juvenile delinquency in the children. Today more and more criminologists and psychologists are starting to see that no one factor such as a parenting style can account for this deviant behavior. The theories are too limited, they do not take into consideration social and ethnic factors, poverty, peer pressure, media influence, and so on. However, for the purpose of this article we will look at the different parenting styles first set forth by Diana Blumberg Baumrind, clinical and developmental psychologist.
Dr. Baumrind's work
Dr. Baumrind studied how parents responded to the needs of their children, “parental responsiveness” and how that determined a child’s behavior. She also looked at how they demanded things from their children, in terms of their behavior, “parental demandedness.” She used these two measures of parenting to form her seminal Parenting Styles theory (1966), which would shape the voice of psychology and criminology well into the 1990’s.
This theory also set well with the public, for they felt that if a child becomes delinquent it had to be the parent’s fault. If the parents exhibited proper discipline in the house then there would be no delinquency. It also led to some unfair alienation of some parents in their communities, placed a heavy burden on single mothers, and created some harsh laws penalizing the parents for their children’s behavior.
The fact that parents have their own contribution towards juvenile delinquency does not mean that they are the major contributors in this scenario. It should be understood that parent have their role in this problem whether knowingly or unknowingly, I am saying that parents cannot be held totally responsible for their children’s behavior. Some children had what we would consider model parents and yet they still turned to delinquency. This got researchers to begin to look at other reasons besides parenting which could be a cause for the wayward youth of today. So now let us look at Diana Baumrind’s landmark theory on parenting styles.
Authoritarian Parenting
The authoritative parent is very rigid and demanding, there is no room for a child to disobey. The child must follow the rules of the house without question. The parent is always right. Or the parent may delegate the rightness to a higher force like “God.” These parents can be very similar to the drill sergeants in the army in the sense that chores have to be done “just right” and there is no room for error. There is no room for exceptions either and children are severely scolded physically and or verbally when they do not comply with the rules. For example, “you lazy good for nothing, get that room cleaned up NOW!” Dr. Baumrind stated that some of these parents are abusive, but not all of them. They are just very rigid in their thinking and everything must be their way.
The authoritarian parents want to shape their children into their own perception of what children should be. The children must be given chores to develop a good work ethic, must value work over play, and must be obedient at all times. The children are not allowed to express any individuality. All behavior is controlled. How the children talk, act, dress and so on is controlled according to the parents idea of what is proper even if that goes against what the children want or what society considers normal.
The order in the house and how one conducts oneself outside is all according to tradition and the parent’s idea of what a child should act like. It could be because of a religious upbringing and these are the rules handed down by God or it could be because that was how the parents were taught from their parents and this is the way it has to be with their children as well.
Although this group is not traditionally associated with becoming young offenders some research points to the fact that being brought up in a very strict home can have adverse effects on children. Some (not all) not all children may rebel to the point that they leave home early, or are thrown out by their families (and become street kids). Some of these kids get involved with the wrong crowd because according to some self reports they state they want to enjoy life and just do what other kids do.” These kids may experiment with drugs and alcohol and get involved with the law. However, they are not the biggest group of juvenile offenders.
Permissive Parenting
These are the little children in the toy stores screaming until their parents buy that toy for them. These are the children you see on the talk shows saying “I ‘m 13 years old and I do what I want, if I want to have sex, I will, If I want to smoke I will. Yes, these kids are the classic juvenile delinquents. They will rob from their parents or they will rob from other people. They will get what they want when they want it without remorse.
It would be wrong here to think that permissive parents are necessarily negligent parents not caring what their children are doing, although that can be true in some cases. Permissive parents often think they are doing the right thing. They think that children should have a say it how they are being brought up. However, they are not very good at setting proper boundaries on what is acceptable behavior and what isn’t. They have trouble enforcing rules.
These are the parents that because they have not made any boundaries their children know no boundaries. For example, a parent not exercising rules or boundaries would be the one who still has a 8 year old up at 11PM on a school night because when the child was told to go to bed at 8 pm he was not tired.
Note: Of course not every child from a permissive parenting style household will be a juvenile delinquent. The issue to understand here is that in all the studies done on juvenile delinquency and parenting styles, this is the parenting style that lends to juvenile delinquency because children were not taught the importance of rules. The children from these families are self-indulgent thinking only of their own needs with very little concern about others. Many of them get into crime if their parents are unable to continue to support them. Many do not have a work ethic and stealing becomes a way of life. Or, they cannot find work because they did not finish their schooling.
Again there are exceptions to the rules. I know some of you are saying to yourself, “my son was spoiled rotten and he is a dentist today.” Yes, that is true, but remember the paper is on parenting styles and juvenile delinquency so we are talking about which style leads to the most juvenile delinquency and why.
Many spoiled kids are really smart and they do not get into trouble with the law. They marry people who will continue to indulge them and some are very highly productive people in the community once they grow up.
Authoritative Parenting
However, they are always in control. They shape their children’s behavior in a positive fashion and set good examples themselves. Children respect their parents and parents respect and support their children. Children realize their parents are fair and they will come to them with their problems and issues often averting juvenile delinquency by doing so. Read more here
Photos courtesy: Google.com
Related Posts:
* The Lesson of the Antenatal Class on the Unborn Child.
* Child Prostitution: A Barbarous Crime
* Personality Development: A Task for Early Childhood and Adolescent.
* Newborn Babies, Their need and Want
* The Challenge of Growing Up Without a Father.
No comments:
Post a Comment