Authoritative parenting is a parenting style that has many research-backed benefits for children. An authoritative parent sets clear rules and boundaries, maintains discipline and guides their child, encourages open communication and hears what their child has to say, and shows high levels of warmth and affection.
Parents using this style know how to set boundaries and say no, while maintaining warmth toward their child and belief in their abilities.
- What does authoritative parenting look like?: Behaviors of authoritative parents often include setting clear expectations and boundaries without threats or punishments, maintaining structure for the child, providing explanations for rules and allowing democratic discussion, supporting and helping the child, encouraging open communication between parent and child, and a loving, nurturing relationship between the parent and the child. Authoritative parents discipline as a way of guiding the child, not as punishment.
- Who has an authoritative parenting style? It’s possible for anyone to use an authoritative parenting style. Parents sometimes use a blend of parenting styles, and vary them depending on the situation. Authoritative parenting can look different in different cultures. “Strict” parents may still be authoritative, not authoritarian, if they are warm, affectionate, and allow space for the child to express their feelings and opinions. Authoritative parenting is the most popular parenting style in Western cultures.
- Benefits of authoritative parenting: It’s linked to benefits for children’s cognitive development, high self-esteem, life satisfaction, and self-confidence, academic achievement, social skills, self-reliance, and a strong ability to make decisions. People raised with an authoritative parenting style tend to be responsible and capable of managing their emotions. This parenting style may also help protect children against anxiety, behavioral problems, and the development of obesity.
- Academic benefits of authoritative parenting: Academically, authoritative parenting has clear advantages over other parenting styles, leading to kids who are more engaged at school and have better attendance, have positive attitudes toward education, get better grades, have higher academic aspirations, and less academic misconduct, like cheating. Researchers have found these benefits across cultures.
- Other parenting styles: Authoritative parenting is considered the most beneficial parenting style for child health and well-being outcomes, according to research. Other parenting styles include authoritarian parenting (strict with low affection) and permissive parenting (lax with high affection).
Don’t confuse authoritative parenting for authoritarian parenting. The names sounds similar but the styles are very different. Authoritarian parenting is a parenting style that’s associated with negative outcomes for children.
For a deeper dive on parenting and related topics, explore these Relationship Smart articles:
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