Which Parenting Style Encourages Healthy Lifestyles in Teenage Children? Proposal for a Model of Integrative Parenting Styles

Children's behavioral problems, screen time, and sleep problems' association with negative and positive parenting strategies during the COVID-19 outbreak in Brazil

Families' health, safety, and economic stability were jeopardized during the pandemic. Parental stress is a risk factor for hostile and less supportive parenting. Parenting styles are a set of attitudes, feelings and behaviors related to parenting that modulate the child's psychosocial functioning and might impact on the adaptability to a stressful time.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the group differences among children raised by negative and positive parenting families during COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

We have done an online survey with 329 parents. Parents answer about parenting strategies and styles, children's behavior, Covid related questions, socio-economic information, sleep and gaming disorders.

RESULTS

Parents' frequent use of negative strategies were a risk factor to have a negative outcome related to mental health, games, sleep, and children behavior.

DISCUSSION

Parenting strategies are some targets pointed in this study for intervention. Parents' styles and strategies training to better manage children might be even more important to avoid negative consequences for children in stressful times.

Family promotion of children's healthy lifestyles during the COVID-19 pandemic in light of Saudi Vision 2030

Objective

This study aims to determine the role of the family in promoting an active and healthy lifestyle for children aged 3-12 years during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Qassim region in light of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 program.

Background

This study is important in defining the role of the family in promoting an active lifestyle for children during the COVID-19 pandemic because the family is primarily responsible for promoting a healthy lifestyle for children.

Method

We evaluated responses of 320 parents completing an online survey about their children's physical health during the pandemic.

Results

The results showed a low level of children's physical activity and excessive use of electronic devices. Late bedtimes were evident and defined as midnight or later. As well, however, families knew the necessary information about COVID-19 and maintained the children's preventive measures. The families were aware of the child's consumption of a healthy diet. They helped the child complete studies through distance education. The families supported the child's psychological well-being and helped them develop some entertainment plans.

Conclusions

Although the family plays an important role in promoting the active and healthy lifestyle of the child, there is still a need for more awareness regarding the child's practice of physical activity, healthy sleep habits, and correct use of electronic devices.

Implications

Programs should be established to increase family awareness of the guidelines of the World Health Organization and the Saudi Ministry of Health regarding the child's physical activity, sleep habits, and the use of electronic devices.

Impact of Parents' Knowledge about the Development of Self-Esteem in Adolescents and Their Parenting Practice on the Self-Esteem and Suicidal Behavior of Urban High School Students in Nepal

Background: Suicide is the third leading cause of death in adolescents worldwide, self-esteem is a strong protective factor, and parents may be able to provide interventions. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine how parents can help enhance their adolescent’s self-esteem and prevent suicidal behavior among adolescents in Nepal. Methods: Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to adolescents aged 13–19 years and their parents at eight high schools in three provinces in Nepal (n = 575 pairs). The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (bivariate and multivariate regression analyses). Results: The mean self-esteem score of adolescents according to the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was 16.59, and the prevalence of suicidal behavior was 11.3%. Parent’s knowledge about the development of self-esteem in adolescents was significantly positively related to parenting practice (communication, support, positive reinforcement, etc.) (B = 1.0, 95% confidence interval, CI 0.89–1.11) and authoritative parenting style (B = 0.2, 95% CI 0.15–0.25). Parental authoritativeness was positively associated with the self-esteem of their adolescents (B = 0.1, 95% CI 0.01–0.18), while adolescents with authoritarian parents were prone to suicidal risk behavior (adjusted odds ratio, AOR = 1.1, 95% CI 1.0–1.19). Conclusion: Counseling to parents based on our findings would be helpful to enhance the self-esteem and prevent suicidal risk behavior in their adolescent children.

Parenting and Healthy Teenage Lifestyles

How can one promote adolescent adjustment toward a healthy lifestyle? The first step is to locate the healthy habit configuration within the family environment. The hypothesis is that, if adolescent lifestyles are assumed autonomously during adolescence, then it is very likely that they will last throughout life. How does this relate to parenting styles? After reviewing the literature of the last four decades on adolescent behavioral autonomy and scientific articles that link healthy lifestyles with parenting, several conclusions have been reached, such as the relevance of recovering the biopsychosocial richness of healthy lifestyles, the need to use a dialogue strategy to resolve discrepancies between adolescents and their parents, and the adequacy of the personalistic parenting style to promote adjusted adolescent behavioral autonomy, and with it maintain healthy lifestyles in the long term.

Parental Socialization and Its Impact across the Lifespan

Classical studies have found that parental warmth combined with parental strictness is the best parental strategy to promote children's psychosocial development. Nevertheless, a growing set of emergent studies has questioned the benefits of parental strictness. The present study examined parental socialization and its short- and long-term impact on the psychosocial development of adolescents and adult children. The sample consisted of 2150 Spanish participants, 623 adolescents (12-18 years), 619 young adults (19-35 years), 502 middle-aged adults (35-59 years), and 406 older adults (60 years or older). Families were classified into one of four typologies (indulgent, authoritative, authoritarian, and neglectful). Psychosocial development was examined with five indicators (physical and family self-concept, nervousness, empathy, and internalization of social values of benevolence). The results show a common short- and long-term pattern between parenting styles and psychosocial development: the indulgent style equaled or even surpassed the authoritative style, whereas the neglectful and authoritarian styles were associated with low scores. The present findings were discussed by considering the importance of the cultural context in family socialization. Additionally, the long-term impact of parental socialization seems to be crucial, even in adulthood.

A Third Emerging Stage for the Current Digital Society? Optimal Parenting Styles in Spain, the United States, Germany, and Brazil

We propose a new paradigm with three historical stages for an optimal parenting style (i.e., indulgent parenting style), which extends the traditional paradigm of only two stages (i.e., authoritarian and authoritative parenting styles). The three stages concur, at the same time, in different environments, context, and cultures. We studied the third stage for optimal parent-child relationships through the offspring's personal and social well-being, with four adolescent samples from 11 to 19 years old (52.2% girls) from Spain (n = 689), the United States (n = 488), Germany (n = 606), and Brazil (n = 672). The offspring's personal well-being was measured through self-esteem (academic, social, emotional, family, and physical), while social well-being was measured with the internalization of self-transcendence (universalism and benevolence) and conservation values (security, conformity, and tradition). The parent-child parenting style was measured through parental warmth and strictness, and the adolescents' parents were classified into one of four groups (indulgent, authoritarian, authoritative, and neglectful). Remarkably, the greatest personal well-being was found for adolescents raised with higher parental warmth and lower parental strictness (i.e., indulgent), and the greatest social well-being was found for adolescents raised with higher parental warmth (i.e., indulgent and authoritative; p < 0.05 for all countries). Consistently, poorer personal well-being and social well-being were associated with less parental warmth (i.e., authoritarian and neglectful). Findings suggest that the parent-child relationships analyzed have a common pattern associated with personal and social well-being that coincide with a proposed third stage.