In the best interests of children? The paradox of intensive parenting and children’s health

Mara A Yerkes,Marit Hopman,F Marijn Stok,John De Wit

doi:10.1080/09581596.2019.1690632

Abstract

ABSTRACT The family environment and parental guidance are generally considered to be key drivers of children’s health behaviours. Parents, mostly mothers, have become a focal point of policies aimed at preventing children’s health and well-being problems (e.g. childhood obesity). The underlying intensive parenting ideology places significant pressure on parents (notably mothers), requiring them to spend a great deal of time, energy and money on their children’s health and well-being. Yet, the relationship between intensive parenting and children’s health might be paradoxical. While a clear positive relationship exists between parental childrearing styles and children’s physical health, the limited evidence in relation to psychological health suggests intensive parenting may negatively affect children’s wellbeing. Using data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) we provide key insights into the relationship between parenting styles and children’s physical and psychological well-being. We analytically distinguish three types of parenting styles (intensive parenting, neglectful parenting, and ‘intermediate’ parenting), and compare children’s self-reported health, well-being and self-esteem by parenting style. The findings show that parenting styles may differentially affect children’s physical and psychological health in nuanced ways. Public health and social policy implications of the role of parenting in children’s health and wellbeing are discussed. The conceptualisation of parenting styles and the relationship with children’s health, however, requires further exploration, which we discuss in the conclusion.

Highlights

Konstanzer Online-Publikations-System (KOPS) URL: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:352-2-1xi1hjnalwyqm5Children’s health and well-being is a focal point of social and scientific concern, given health problems such as rising child obesity rates (Ludwig, 2018; Skinner et al, 2018) and psychological problems arising from issues such as increased divorce-rates (e.g. Amato, 2001) and online and offline bullying (e.g. Reijntjes et al, 2010)
Our research centres on three questions: 1) To what extent can we differentiate distinct intensive parenting categories; 2) To what extent do differences in these parenting categories relate to children’s physical and psychological health outcomes; and 3) Do these relationships change across time? Given an absence of evidence on variation in the ‘intensity’ of intensive parenting, we explore the possibility of differentiating among parenting styles, assuming it is possible to distinguish an intensive parenting style that differs substantively from other forms of parenting styles (H1)
Three parenting styles were distinguished based on the frequency of parenting activities using principal component analysis (PCA) and latent class analysis (LCA)

Summary

Introduction

Konstanzer Online-Publikations-System (KOPS) URL: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:352-2-1xi1hjnalwyqm5Children’s health and well-being is a focal point of social and scientific concern, given health problems such as rising child obesity rates (Ludwig, 2018; Skinner et al, 2018) and psychological problems arising from issues such as increased divorce-rates (e.g. Amato, 2001) and online and offline bullying (e.g. Reijntjes et al, 2010). Children’s health and well-being is a focal point of social and scientific concern, given health problems such as rising child obesity rates (Ludwig, 2018; Skinner et al, 2018) and psychological problems arising from issues such as increased divorce-rates Amato, 2001) and online and offline bullying (e.g. Reijntjes et al, 2010). Professionals working with children (e.g. child development professionals, public health experts, paediatricians, and child psychologists) increasingly emphasize the importance of parents’ childrearing practices as a salient determinant of children’s health and well-being. Parental support, modelling and guidance are expected to provide children with autonomy and enable healthy behaviours in children (Apouey & Geoffard, 2013; Bauer et al, 2011; Case et al, 2002; Currie & Stabile, 2003; Xu et al, 2015)

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Conclusion