Permissive Parenting Lifestyles - A Dangerous Trend

When I was a preschool teacher, I had a student who would hit his classmates whenever he was angry or upset. His parents were known for their laid-back approach to parenting and always seemed to ignore any misbehavior. Whenever I brought up the issue, they'd say, "Oh, he's just being a kid, don't worry about it."

While this may seem like a harmless attitude, the truth is that permissive parenting can have serious consequences for children and society as a whole. Permissive parenting is a style where parents set few rules, rarely enforce them and often allow their children to make their own decisions. In the short term, it may seem like a "cool" style of parenting, but in the long term, it can lead to major problems.

Permissive Parenting Examples

Let's look at some of the quantifiable examples of what permissive parenting may look like:

• Parents not setting rules or having any kind of discipline strategy
• Parents not enforcing the few rules they have set, and their children suffer no consequences for their misbehavior
• Parents allowing their children to make their own decisions, including decisions that may not be age-appropriate
• Parents prioritizing their child's wants over their needs, leading to potential obesity, lack of healthy boundaries, and poor decision-making skills
• Parents providing their child with everything they want, without any regard for managing finances

Why Permissive Parenting is Dangerous

Permissive parenting can lead to major problems in both the short and long term for children and society as a whole. Here are three major reasons why:

1. Behavioral Problems - Permissive parenting can often lead to behavioral issues in children, such as aggression, lack of self-control, and disrespect for authority figures.
2. Academic Issues - Without any structure or discipline, children of permissive parents may struggle academically, as they are not taught the value of discipline, hard work, and perseverance.
3. Life Lessons - Permissive parenting may lead children to believe that the world will always cater to their every wish and desire, a very dangerous lesson to learn. Children need to learn that life isn't always fair, and that discipline and hard work are essential to success in life.

Practical Tips

If you feel like you may have fallen into the trap of permissive parenting, below are some practical tips to redirect your parenting style:

• Set clear rules and expectations and enforce these rules with fair, age-appropriate consequences.
• Encourage your child to make age-appropriate decisions but be mindful to guide them appropriately and avoid making decisions for them.
• Teach your child the value of perseverance, discipline, and hard work.
• Remember that children need structure and guidance from their parents to grow into responsible adults.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we can see that permissive parenting is not the way to go when it comes to raising responsible and accountable children. The dangers of letting children make their own decisions, without any guidance, can lead to behavioral, academic, and life lessons problems. Practicing fair, compassionate, and age-appropriate discipline, will result in raising strong, well-adjusted, and successful children.