Intensive parenting is becoming a trend. It has some similarities with helicopter parenting, but is not damaging to children. It could be considered the opposite of free range parenting.
A study titled: “Social Class, Gender, and Contemporary Parenting Standards in the United States: Evidence from a National Survey Experiment” was published in Social Forces. It was done by Patrick Ishizuka.
He analyzed data from more than 3,600 study participants who were parents. The participants read about various scenarios in which a mother or father interacts with a child between the ages of 8 and 10. The stories focused on the child’s leisure activities, how the parent spoke to the child, and how the family interacted with schools or a doctor’s office.
Each scenario described one of two approaches: concerted cultivation (an intensive parenting approach) or natural growth (a non-intensive parenting approach). Parents in the study were asked to rate the behavior of the parents in the scenarios from “excellent” to “poor”.
75% of college graduates and non-college graduates rated the intensive parenting approach as “very good” or “excellent”. Only 32 percent of college graduates and 38% of non-college graduates rated the natural growth style as “very good” or “excellent”.
The Pros of Intensive Parenting:
Intensive parenting is a child-centered, time-intensive approach to parenting. Many parents, regardless of their education, income, or race, feel that intensive parenting is the best way to raise their kids.
Intensive parenting is an ideal approach for both mothers and fathers. It applies just as well to boys as it does to girls.
The Cons of Intensive Parenting:
It requires that one parent spend all of his or her time with their child.
Parents of lower socieoeconomic status will not be able to afford to do intense parenting. This can leave these parents to feel like they are failing their children.
Related Articles at Families.com:
- Helicopter Parenting is not Helpful
- Holy Flow Parenting – A New Style
- Free Range Parenting – Letting Kids Roam Free