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Running head: CAREGIVER STYLES 1

Caregiver Styles

Ma. Elena Bush

Fresno Pacific University


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Caregiver Styles

According to the textbook, Guidance of Young Children, 2018, there are four caregiving

styles, “…authoritative, authoritarian, indulgent/permissive, and uninvolved/permissive…”

(Marion, 2018, p. 21). Each of the styles have different effect on children (Marion, 2018, p. 14).

As a child raised by authoritarian parents, I can empathize that balance is the key to a positive

relationship among parents or caregiver, and children. The overly strict parents or caregivers could

afflict harm to their children and the opposite which is the overly loose caregivers or parents could

also negatively impact the child.

The authoritative style of caregiving according to Marion, 2018, is the “Combination of

high demandingness and high responsiveness; considered a positive approach” (Marion, 2018, p.

14). This style of caregiving enables children to “feel safe and secure”, and “encourages self-

responsibility”; “fosters competence and healthy self-control” (Marion, 2018, p. 15). Setting

proper limits to children as well as providing the right amount of attention when needed supports

their need for structure, consistency, and trust. Children will know that the adults care enough to

protect them from harm by setting limits to their unsafe behaviors as well as being the kind, warm,

and nurturing person who they can talk to whenever they need help or comfort. According to Piko

and Balázs, 2012,

“Authoritative parenting style, providing an optimal compound of control and

connectedness, help with effective problem solving in the families. In addition, as

data from an empirical study suggest, authoritative style is important not only in

terms of parenting, but also related to school life: authoritative schools (that are

both demanding and responsive) have the best results for youth behavior (e.g.,
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disengagement, behavioral and psychological measures).” (Piko & Balázs, 2012, p.

6).

The study that was conducted aimed to prove that authoritative parenting can help if not prevent

youth from depression and other negative behaviors. Their results although not a hundred percent

proven still showed the positive outcome of having authoritative parents (Piko & Balázs, 2012, p.

6).

Authoritarian parenting according to Marion, 2018, is the “Combination of high

demandingness and low responsiveness; considered a negative approach”. This is not a

recommended caregiving style due to the negative discipline involved such as “Harsh physical

punishment, threats, lies, shaming, ridicule, sarcasm, humiliation, hostile humor and

disconnecting” (Marion, 2018, p. 18). According to Nguyen, 2008, “Furthermore, cross cultural

research has reported that children, both in Asia and in Western countries, whose parents use the

authoritarian parenting method tend to exhibit higher levels of depression and lower levels of self-

esteem (Cheung & Lau, 1985; Chiu, 1987; Fry,1984; Gunnoe, Hetherington, & Reiss, 1999; Herz

& GuUone, 1999)” (Nguyen, 2008, p. 3). Understanding the negative effect brought about by this

style of caregiving will prevent future damage to children’s emotional development as well as

psychological development. As teachers, we can advocate for the children in our classroom and

to help educate families, specifically families from cultures that practices this style of caregiving

who considers it normal, with the effect of such harsh practices.

The caregiver style of permissiveness which are indulgent and uninvolved are also not a

good caregiving style. Marion, 2018, states that, “Permissive adults tend to use ineffective

discipline. They do not hurt children, but they are not very helpful, either” (Marion, 2018, p. 21).

In an article by Wischert, Mulvaney, Brackett, and Perkins, 2016, “Permissive parenting has been
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found to be negatively associated with emotional competencies, including emotion regulation

capabilities (Jabeen, Anis-ul-Haque,&Riaz, 2013) and increased emotional problems

(Sadiq&Khatoon, 2012)….negatively associated with personal growth (Lavasani, Borhanzadeh,

Afzali, & Hejazi,2011)” (Wischert, Mulvaney, Brackett, & Perkins, 2016, p. 1-2). The common

saying that “too much of everything is not good” could easily describe the indulgent caregiving

style. Too much freedom will also be harmful to children. If a child does know that they could

hurt others by their actions because their trusted adults did not show them the consequences, they

will not be able to learn empathy, and “they tend to be low in impulse control.” (Marion, 2018, p.

22). These children will not be “very self-reliant or self-responsible.” (Marion, 2018, p. 22).

Wischert et al, 2016, states that, “Children with permissive parents may have fewer opportunities

to experience boundary setting or the consequent frustration, anger, and disappointment that follow

when children are required to conform to adult expectations for behavior.” (Wischert, Mulvaney,

Brackett, & Perkins, 2016, p. 4) which is not the way to learn structure when the child is already

in the school setting. Not only will it be difficult for the teacher to deal with the child’s challenging

behavior, the child’s experience in school will also not be pleasant. Instead of learning new and

exciting lessons, the child will spend this time being reprimanded.

As teachers and caregivers, we do our best to provide the children with the best learning

experience that will support their developmental needs. Having the knowledge of the right

caregiving styles will be beneficial in our classroom setting because it will also promote a calm,

and smooth sailing environment, with minimal distraction from dealing with challenging

behaviors. It will also equip us the tools to share to parents on how to guide their children properly.

We also have to consider the child’s home environment, culture, and lifestyle when thinking about
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the challenges that they present in our classroom. As previously learned, it takes a village to raise

a child and as part of their village, we need all the help we can get.
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References

Marion, M. (2018). A teacher’s role in guiding children. In Guidance of young children

[Redshelf] (9th ed., pp. 14-37). Retrieved from

https://fresno.redshelf.com/book/read/833263/?course_id=22423

Nguyen, P. V. (2008). Perceptions of Vietnamese Fathers’ Acculturation Levels, Parenting

Styles, and Mental Health Outcomes in Vietnamese American Adolescent Immigrants.

Social Work, 53(4), 337. Retrieved from http://0-

search.ebscohost.com.librarycatalog.fresno.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,uid

,url&db=edb&AN=34765375&site=eds-live

Piko, B., & Balázs, M. (2012). Control or involvement? Relationship between authoritative

parenting style and adolescent depressive symptomatology. European Child &

Adolescent Psychiatry, 21(3), 149–155. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-012-0246-0

Wischerth, G. A., Mulvaney, M. K., Brackett, M. A., & Perkins, D. (2016). The Adverse

Influence of Permissive Parenting on Personal Growth and the Mediating Role of

Emotional Intelligence. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 177(5), 185–189.

https://doi.org/10.1080/00221325.2016.1224223

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