Global Day of Parents

  The multiple-forms approach used in contemporary theory and research on parental control has some important strengths. Most notably, it captures the complexity of parents’ role in socializing children . On the one hand, it is necessary for children to form their own interests, skills, and identities . The multiple-forms approach acknowledges that parental pressure, intrusiveness, and domination assault children’ individuality; there is thus a strong rationale for believing that when parents are coercive, they undermine children’s psychological development . On the other hand, as developing members of society, children also need to acquire behaviors that are appropriate and acceptable in their cultural contexts , and they require guidance toward such ends. Because parenting that includes firm enforcement, supervision, and behavioral control is likely to provide children with guidance, it is important to children’s development. The multiple-forms approach makes explicit what w...